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MONDAY, DECEMBER 27, 1993
THE TOUGH TRAINING AND AIR EXPERIENCE HAD PREPARED THEM ΤΟ CONDUCT AIR PATROL, SEARCH AND RESCUE, AERIAL SURVEILLANCE, HELP IN FIGHTING HILL FIRES, CHAUFFEURING VIPS AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, DURING NATURAL DISASTERS, TO AIR-LIFT SUPPLIES AND CASUALTIES HOSPITALS.
AND TO
BUT THE HAND-PICKED GUYS HAD UNDERGONE ALL THE TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS OF A FLYING TRAINING COURSE. THEY HAVE TO EXCEL IN COUNTLESS ROUNDS OF TRAININGS BEFORE THEY FINALLY SUCCEEDED.
FIRSTLY, AIRSICKNESS.
CAPTAIN KARL CHAN IS CANDID. HE SAID HE FELT AIRSICK VERY FIRST DAY OF HIS FLYING TRAINING.
ON THE
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THE CITY
"I'D ALWAYS FEEL DIZZY AFTER EACH AEROBATIC EXERCISE, POLYTECHNIC GRADUATE IN BUSINESS AND MARKETING SAID. THIS, НЕ TOOK SOME TIME TO OVERCOME.
THEN COMES THE LANGUAGE TEST.
INSTRUCTORS
"PROFICIENCY IN ENGLISH IS A MUST FOR IT IS THE INTERNATIONAL LANGUAGE FOR AVIATION INDUSTRY. BESIDES, NEARLY ALL OUR ARE EXPATRIATES, CAPTAIN WU SAID.
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AFTERALL, BAD LANGUAGE COMMAND
COULD
PERFORMANCE.
STRAITJACKET
THEIR
WHAT FOLLOWED WERE ENDLESS EXAMINATIONS.
AFTER PASSING AN APTITUDE TEST AND A SEARCHING AND FULL BOARD INTERVIEW, THE SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATES HAD TO ATTEND A SEARCHING AND 42-WEEK TRAINING COURSE IN THE UNITED KINGDOM то OBTAIN A PRIVATE PILOT LICENCE.
WHEN THEY RETURNED TO HONG KONG, THEY HAD TO GO THROUGH A FLYING TEST DESIGNED BY GPS ON BEHALF OF THE CIVIL AVIATION DEPARTMENT BEFORE THEY CAN HAVE THEIR LICENCE CONVERTED TO THE HONG KONG COMMERCIAL PILOT'S LICENCE.
TO FULFIL THE SPECIAL DUTIES OF GFS, THEY HAVE TO ATTEND A SIX- LEVEL CONVERSTON TRAINING PROGRAMME TO LEARN THE SPECIAL TECHNIQUES REQUIRED OF THEIR JOB, FROM LEARNING TO FLY LOCALLY TO OBTAINING THE SKILLS TO CONDUCT SEARCH AND RESCUE OPERATIONS AND FINALLY TO FLYING WITH NIGHT VISION GOGGLES.
BUT THEIR EFFORTS HAVE BORNE FRUITS.
"THEY ARE ALL GOOD PILOTS, THEY HAVE DISPLAYED THEIR STRONG MOTIVATION AND TALENT DURING THEIR TRAINING. THE ENTIRE UNIT INCLUDING I ARE PROUD OF THEM FOR BEING ABLE TO PASS THE FIRST STAGE OF TRAINING IN SUCH A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, THE GFS CONTROLLER MR BRIAN CLUER SAID.
TI
BUT AFTER THEY CLIMBED ONE HILL YET ANOTHER HAS A WAY OF COMING INTO VIEW. THERE ARE YET GREATER CHALLENGES LYING AHEAD.
TRAININGS SERVICE BY
CLUER IS CONFIDENT THAT THEY WOULD PASS ALL SIX MR
AND TAKE OVER THE WORK OF THE EXPATRIATE OFFICERS
LEVELS
OF IN THE
1997.