| Motto | "Faith – Sacrifice – Glory" |
|---|---|
| Parent institution | Egyptian Military Academy |
| Established | 1938 as (Air Training School) |
| Focus | Military academy |
| Owner | Egyptian Air Force |
| Location | , Egypt |
Egyptian Air College or Egyptian Air Academy is an Egyptian military college, one of the colleges of the Egyptian Military Academy, specializing in fighter aircraft training. It was first established in 1938 as a training school in Almaza Air Base. [1] It is considered one of Africa's prestigious military colleges, graduating competent officers capable of shouldering responsibility and confronting modern challenges in the field of aviation. [2]
Formal air force training in Egypt dates to 1938 when a forerunner to the Egyptian Air Academy was established on the grounds of the Royal Air Force-administered Almaza station near present-day Cairo International Airport. Resources provided to this school included instructors, technicians, training aircraft and curriculum. The first cadets were non-commissioned officers from the Egyptian Army and various police forces who were deemed medically fit for flying. This first school was divided into five "wings": Flying, Science, Technical, Cadets and Administration.
By 1951 the Almaza site had become inadequate for air force training purposes. That year a law was passed by the Kingdom of Egypt authorizing the creation of the Egyptian Air Academy near Bilbeis. Despite the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, the expulsion of British forces and the subsequent rise of the Republic of Egypt, plans for the academy remained unchanged, with construction and renovation continuing through 1961. Future Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak served as a lecturer and later as director of the Egyptian Air Academy at various times during the 1950s and 1960s
Prospective Egyptian Air College cadets must be Egyptian "by heredity from forefathers," unmarried, no older than 21 have "good manners" and be "clean living." Once at the academy cadets are divided into "pilot" and "navigator" groups. Curriculum includes theoretical and practical flying, administration and humanities, computer science and foreign languages.
Upon graduation both pilots and navigators receive bachelor's degrees, commissions in the Egyptian Air Force and certifications in their respective fields of study. Graduating pilots also receive an internationally recognized commercial pilot's license. [3]
The following senior officers have served as Director of the Air Academy: [4]