Rabigh Wings Aviation Academy (RWAA) is the first
aviation
Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...
academy
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...
set up in
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
.
History
Aside from being the first aviation academy in the country, the academy is a modern
flight training
Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills.
Flight training can be conducted under a str ...
school.
The CEO and founder,
Turki bin Muqrin bin Abdul-Aziz, is a pilot, businessman, and a member of the
House of Saud
The House of Saud ( ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi State, (1727–1818), and his brothers, though the ruling ...
.
Adib Shishakly, a founder of the
Syrian National Council
The Syrian National Council (SNC), sometimes known as the Syrian National Transitional Council or the National Council of Syria, was a Syrian opposition coalition, based in Istanbul, Turkey, formed in August 2011 during the Syrian civil upris ...
, is the Vice CEO. Shishakly, not a pilot, told the
Saudi Gazette
''Saudi Gazette'' is an English-language daily newspaper launched in 1976 and published in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It is only available online, as the print version was discontinued in 2019. It is the second English-language daily newspaper in Saud ...
that he "did all the business side of it from buying the aircraft and delivering them to
Rabigh
Rabigh () is a city and governorate in the Province of Makkah of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, situated on the coast of the Red Sea, around northwest of Mecca in the historic Hejazi region. The city had an estimated population of 180,352 in 2014 ...
. I also helped structure the maintenance department, the fuel farm, and the marketing and business strategy for the school. We have 15 aircraft: some single engine
Cessna
Cessna () is an American brand of general aviation aircraft owned by Textron Aviation since 2014, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. Originally, it was a brand of the Cessna Aircraft Company, an American general aviation aircraft manufactu ...
s, and single and twin
Piper aircraft
Piper Aircraft, Inc. is a manufacturer of general aviation aircraft, located at the Vero Beach Regional Airport in Vero Beach, Florida, United States and owned since 2009 by the Government of Brunei. Throughout much of the mid-to-late 20th cent ...
, as well as two twin engine
Seneca Vs."
The academy's first social event was held in 2011 with the Saudi "Street Eagles," a
Harley-Davidson
Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression along with i ...
club. In 2011,
Arab News
''Arab News'' is an English-language daily newspaper published in Saudi Arabia. It is published from Riyadh. The target audiences of the paper, which is published in broadsheet format, are businesspeople, executives and diplomats.
At least as ...
reported that Rabigh Wings Aviation Academy "is preparing to admit women for training." On May 27, 2012, the Royal Jordanian Air Academy (RJAA) signed a
Memorandum of Understanding with Rabigh Wings Aviation Academy (RWAA) "to develop cooperation between the two academies and share experiences in the fields of aviation and aircraft maintenance." The MoU was signed by Turki bin Muqrin bin Abdul-Aziz, and Director General of RJAA Captain Mohammed Khawaldeh.
See also
*
General Authority of Civil Aviation
The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) () is the regulator of Saudi Arabia's civil aviation sector. It was established in 1934 as the Civil Aviation Administration () to oversee the air traffic control of Saudi Arabia.
It is responsible ...
*
Amaala International Airport
*
Saudi Vision 2030
Saudi Vision 2030 (, sometimes called Project 2030) is a government program launched by Saudi Arabia which aims to achieve the goal of increased diversification economically, socially, and culturally, in line with the vision of Saudi crown pri ...
References
External links
* {{Official website, http://rwaa.com.sa/
Amazing show for Lamborghini's cars with Rabigh Wings Aviation AcademyStreet Eagles ride to meet Sky EaglesSaudi Gazette
''Saudi Gazette'' is an English-language daily newspaper launched in 1976 and published in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It is only available online, as the print version was discontinued in 2019. It is the second English-language daily newspaper in Saud ...
Taking to the sky in RabighSaudi Gazette
''Saudi Gazette'' is an English-language daily newspaper launched in 1976 and published in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It is only available online, as the print version was discontinued in 2019. It is the second English-language daily newspaper in Saud ...
Aviation in Saudi Arabia
Aviation schools