Company’s work helps hone skills of RMAF pilots
What began as a boyhood dream of flying among the best of the best in the skies for Major (R) Datuk Halim Othman led him to found the Aerotree Group of Companies to provide training, maintenance and charter services to Malaysia’s air force, navy and army.
Halim founded the company in 2003 with another partner, Datuk Norida Hamzah who is the company’s group executive chairman.
Halim said the company is a continuation of his journey after he left the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) in 1998 at the age of 32.
While in the air force he flew everything from the Pilatus PC-7 training aircraft to the MiG-29N Fulcrum and F/A-18D Hornet air superiority fighters.
Once he left the RMAF, his business career started in 1998 with HALimO Sdn Bhd. The company was involved in infrastructure development. However, he was continually asking himself “what next?”
“Becoming a civilian aviator was not an option as they look at the number of flight hours a pilot has, but air force pilots have very few as our flights are usually for short durations,” he told Metrobiz.
Soaring ambitions: Aerotree Group of Companies executive chairman Datuk Norida Hamzah (left) with group managing director Major (R) Datuk Halim Othman with the Krisakti aerobatic aircraft at the company’s hangar in Subang.
After 13 years in the RMAF, he saw an opportunity in providing the training equipment needed to teach the next generation of military pilots for the Defence Ministry and the country’s three military branches, with the RMAF being the major client. To pursue the opportunity, he sold his house to obtain startup capital.
“Today, we also provide maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services for selected weapons, sensors and radar systems for the RMAF’s fighter jets,” he said.
The started with two employees and went on to receive two contracts from the government in 2003 to supply the spare parts for the Russian MiG aircraft used by the RMAF.
Building on that experience, in 2006, they expanded to provide training arangements for up to 200 RMAF pilots a year.
As training equipment is costly, ranging anywhere between RM70mil to RM150mil, he said it is more cost effective to arrange for pilots to be trained overseas in countries like the US, UK, France, Italy and Norway.
“Training schedules have to be met, and this arrangement with overseas private contractors with ties to their respective air forces achieves that,” he said.
A file image of an RMAF F/A- 18D Hornet. Because such aircraft are expensive to fly and maintain, the services of companies like Aerotree Group are becoming increasingly important.
As the RMAF went through rapid modernisation with the purchase of more advanced planes, , the company also grew. In 2007 Aerotree purchased its a Learjet 35A executive jet that was retrofitted with electronic equipment such as telemetry and scoring systems for weapon-firing simulations.
The simulations involve launching unmaned drones that are used as targets. Instruments then monitor the characteristics of weapons fired and their effectiveness.
The company’s work is an example of a private-finance initiative (PFI), where private capital is used to fund public infrastructure. The Defence Ministry will pay for use of the training while the company absorbs all the costs incurred for providing the service.
“This is a no-service, no-fee agreement and it is performance based,” he said.
To date, the company has received five contracts for the training services. Halim said things weren’t smooth sailing at first.
Generally, in the aviation industry, people are familiar with the purchase of planes but neglect the training components.
“We approached many bankers who were sceptical of our approach, so we are appreciative of Malaysia Debt Venture Bhd (MDV) and a few other banks who had enough foresight to provide us the financing,” he said.
Training comes in multiple stages. A military pilot starts with basic computer-based training to give the trainee basic information and tutorials about flying.
They then move on to flight simulators where pilots are exposed to an artificially created flight environment, including replicating the equations that govern how aircraft fly, applications of flight controls, how the aircraft reacts to external factors such as air density, turbulence and others factors, while still on the ground.
The more advanced training involve what is called the Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI) and target towing for live air to air firing exercises.
In 2009, the company filled the gap of its training system by bringing in the ACMI system from the US at the cost of RM20mil, making the company a full-fledged aviation combat training provider.
Used for fighter pilots to increase their dogfighting skills, he said the tactical training system simulates the movement of a missile based on a launch signal without the need to launch a real missile.
“Signals will be collected from a pod attached to the fighter and relayed to a ground station. One can observe the target’s maneuvering patterns to determine if an attack was successful from the ground station,” Halim explained.
This, he said, could help provide valuable feedback to pilots and also allow more training to be done to increase their skills.
The company is expanding its fleet of planes, and has plans to purchase helicopters and executive jets that will be used for both military and civilian charter services.
“We are also building our new aviation complex covering about 60,000 sq ft in Bay 14, Subang Airport, Shah Alam. The complex consisting of MRO facilities, hangars and services similar to commercial terminals caters for private fliers,” he said.
The company is also an active participant in airshows, not just as an exhibitor, but also in aerobatic displays. Halim himself still flies in the company’s aerobatic team.
To keep up the nation’s image as a potential aerospace hub, he said the company’s investments of RM15mil since 2011 (which include the purchase and maintenance of aerobatic planes) in the Krisakti aerobatic team is his small way of doing his part to keep the nation on the radar of potential investors.
-The Star