COVID-19: LAA director urges students, industry professionals on self-development, online learning
EHIME ALEX, Lagos
Following the coronavirus pandemic which has led to partial shutdown of industries such as transport, education, finance, petroleum, marketing, the Academy Director at Lagos Aviation Academy (LAA), Mr Bankole Bernard has called on students and aviation professionals to use the period to develop themselves and learn some new skills.
In a statement by Olamide Oni, public relations officer at Finchglow Group, Bernard stated that the time presents an opportunity for professionals to reflect, rediscover themselves, invest in personal development, read and learn new things online, and most importantly come out better at the end of it.
He particularly urged that students and staff of the academy, as well as industry professionals make good use of the times.
He said, “What the world is going through right now as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic is truly disheartening but we must not let it weigh us down, rather, we must invest in ourselves by making sure we are better people when we come out of this.”
He stressed further that efforts at curtailing spread of the virus could be achieved if everyone plays a collective role of staying at home and abiding by the safety measures as directed by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
“The aviation industry has suffered a major impact from the hit of the pandemic, the airspace has been shut down, flights are being cancelled, customers are requesting refunds, some passengers are stranded, jobs and salaries are on the line but I would like to encourage everyone to stay strong. We will surely overcome this and remember the saying by Robert Schuller – Tough times never last, only tough people do,” he said.
Bernard informed that the Lagos Aviation Academy (LAA) has moved some of its lectures online till the lockdown is finally over.
“In February, we announced that we would be commencing our online courses in the second quarter of the year, the pandemic caught us all unawares but we will use this opportunity to refine our processes. For now, we have moved the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Courses online, we have communicated to our students and this has started already,” he added.
The General Manager at Lagos Aviation Academy, Ms Chinasa Mbene who spoke further on the online classes said, “Currently, we are only able to run the IATA classes online because every other course would requires practical and supervision. However, for students who would be joining our online classes, we wish to reassure you of our commitment to delivering our best at all times.”