20.02.2025.
Future SAF helicopter pilots’ training
Future helicopter pilots of the Serbian Armed Forces, who have been admitted to professional military service after completing the Reserve Aviation Officer Course, are in training at the Colonel-Pilot Milenko Pavlović military airport in Batajnica.
To obtain the title of military pilot, all aviation officers must go through this mandatory flight training, after completing the six-month course at the Military Academy. The training is conducted on Gazelle helicopters at the 890th Mixed Helicopter Squadron "Pegazi", 204th Air Brigade.Captain Aleksandar Ćirić, a flight instructor with the 890th Mixed Helicopter Squadron, explains what segments of flight training aviation officers must go through and what kind of preparations are undertaken before the flight.
— The concept of training is such that after completing the basic flight training, aviation officers move on to the following segments — navigation, instrument, night, and formation flying. The entire training is conducted on the Gazelle helicopter, says Captain Ćirić.
Second Lieutenant Andrija Pešić was assigned to the 890th Mixed Helicopter Squadron after completing the Reserve Aviation Officer Course. What motivated him to take this step, he says, was his childhood desire to fly.— When the Ministry of Defence published on its website that the competition was open, I applied and entered the selection process. The selection process included medical and psychological assessments, parachute training, and, at the very end, selective flight training. After completing all parts of the selection process, we moved on to the actual six-month course at the Military Academy. Military training at the Military Academy included several segments — the first part was basic infantry training, after which we were taught theoretical subjects, and then moved on to squadrons where we spent the last two months. I personally was assigned to the basic flight training helicopter squadron — says Second Lieutenant Pešić, expressing his gratitude to senior colleagues in the unit who offered support and served as professional role models for the newly admitted officers throughout the training process.
He invited all young and ambitious people to apply for the competition for the Reserve Aviation Officer Course, which is open for applications until March 31, 2025, and become pilots of the Serbian Armed Forces.