A FIRM which has trained thousands of pilots and aircraft engineers for more than 90 years has gone into administration.
Air Service Training (Engineering) Limited (AST), located in Perth, is a wholly owned subsidiary of UHI Perth and made the announcement on Thursday.
The aviation firm was founded in 1931 and at the time aimed to provide approved courses in aircraft engineering.
In the 94 years the company has operated, it has trained more than 190,000 engineers and pilots from approximately 150 countries, according to reports.
The Perth-based firm attributed its closure due to struggling financially since the Covid pandemic, due to declining student numbers, fewer commercial contracts and rising costs, The Courier reported.
UHI Perth, the company’s owner, has stepped in to provide funding to ensure the BSc in aircraft maintenance engineering and management programme will continue until the end of the academic year but all other courses will end immediately.
Shona Campbell of Henderson Loggie has been appointed as administrator and said supporting staff is their top priority.
AST employees 28 people, some of whom will be retained until the summer to deliver the BSc course.
Campbell said: “AST has faced prolonged financial challenges, making this a difficult but necessary decision.
“Our priority now is to support staff and ensure they receive the support and assistance they are entitled to.
“We will work closely with all affected parties to manage this transition as smoothly as possible and ensure optimum returns to creditors, including students.”
Some 164 students are currently attending courses in the UK, of which 46 are on the BSc.
A further 98 attend AST courses at overseas locations.
A spokesperson for UHI Perth said: “AST has been experiencing financial challenges for some time.
“The board of the company has been considering its future and, having exhausted all options to save the company, has taken the difficult decision to place AST in administration.
“Our primary concern throughout the process has been our staff and our students, and we have worked with the administrator in an attempt to ensure the most acceptable possible outcome for all of them.”
SNP MP Pete Wishart said: "This is devastating news for Perth – AST’s programmes were world renowned, and it has been a well-established feature of Perth’s economic sector for decades.
“Not only that, but its site at Perth Airport contains a whole range of state-of-the-art equipment. Such is its potential that it had previously been due to receive investment from the Tay Cities Deal to establish a national aviation academy.
“The onus is now on all stakeholders to do everything possible to support staff members impacted, and to work to find a viable solution going forward. We simply cannot have this fantastic local asset going to waste, or for Perth’s reputation for flight training to be tarnished.”
The aviation regulatory bodies UK Civil Aviation Authority (UK CAA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have been informed of the decision.
It has been reported that the regulatory body will work with the administrator to ensure their regulatory and statutory requirements are respected.
