Aircraft parked at the hangar of IIAS. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Jamshedpur, March 26: Enthusiasts no longer have to travel to Kalaikunda or any other air base to know how a jet aircraft functions. The city would soon boast of a jet laboratory.

To be established at the Indian Institute of Aeronautical Science (IIAS) situated within the Sonari airport, the jet laboratory would come up in the wake of a newly-designed course in jet engineering to be launched by IIAS in the coming academic year.

“With the massive growth of aviation industry, there is a tremendous demand for engineers and technicians having sound knowledge of handling a jet aircraft. We have decided to introduce the special courses on jet engineering from this year,” said the principal of IIAS, J.K. Shrivastava.

IIAS runs three licence training programmes, as approved by Director-General of Civil Aviation, and is considered equivalent to International Civil Aviation Organisation’s training standards.

“Our other centres in Delhi, Calcutta, Patna and Bhopal have already introduced this course and now it is the Jamshedpur centre’s turn,” said the principal.

The institute is at the final stage of procuring two large jet engines from Delhi to be set up at the proposed laboratory for the students’ practical lessons in maintenance and management of jet aircraft.

“The functioning is more or less similar, but the technical details have to be explained,” said the principal.

Apart from this, IIAS would also launch another course in radio navigation for its students this year. Faculty members from the institute are right now in Mumbai receiving training in radio navigation.

“Today the industry has changed. Every airbus one needs at least two pilots. There is a requirement of over 100 technicians for the same aircraft so specia- lised courses are necessary to deal with the growing demand,” said Shekhar Das, the institute’s administrative officer.

The two courses would begin from August while the lab would come up in the next two months.