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International Aviation Management Training
Institute (IAMTI)
“As
a pioneer in the field of aviation training and development, the
International Aviation Management Training Institute’s unique and
innovative initiatives served as a showcase for Canada’s expertise in
aviation management and helped to position Canada, and the city of
Montreal in particular, as a recognized world leader in international
aviation.”
- Belt of Orion Award citation, 2006
During the late 1970s, Ivan Head,
special assistant to then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, identified the
aviation industry in developing countries as a priority for Canada’s
foreign assistance program. The emphasis would be on helping these
nations upgrade and improve the management of their domestic aviation
industries. This concept was later championed by Don Mazankowski,
Transport Minister in the Joe Clark and Brian Mulroney Progressive
Conservative governments. He asked Claude Taylor, then president and CEO
of Air Canada, to help spearhead a new training institute that would
leverage Canadian expertise in aviation management, especially in the
field of security, for the benefit of aviation industry managers in
developing countries. This led to the hiring in 1986 of a founding
president and CEO, Michel Desjardins, a senior civil servant in
Transport Canada, and the establishment of a Board of Directors chaired
by Mr. Taylor and composed of senior aviation industry, government and
university representatives from Canada and abroad.
Under Mr. Desjardins’ direction, the mandate of the proposed institute
was broadened. More specifically, it was “to promote the efficient
development of international civil aviation and to advance the
management of air transportation systems, primarily through the
provision of quality management training programs and training services
to aviation organizations from developing and developed countries.”
Contribution agreements were reached with the Canadian International
Development Agency (CIDA) to provide financial support for students from
developing countries attending the institute’s courses. Technical,
advisory and other support would be provided by numerous organizations
and companies, including the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada,
Air Canada, Airshow Canada, Concordia and McGill Universities, the
University of Montreal, Georgian College, Transport Canada, Transport
Quebec, and several international associations such as the International
Air Transport Association (IATA) and the International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO).
A course curriculum was developed and a small full-time staff hired,
with offices and classrooms in Montreal. The International Aviation
Management Training Institute (IAMTI), incorporated as a not-for-profit
organization, officially opened its doors in early 1987.
IAMTI recognized that success in all three segments of civil aviation -
airlines, airports and public administration - requires highly competent
management to maximize opportunity and performance. It therefore aimed
to develop these capabilities in the industry by means of practical,
experience-based training programs and advisory services.
In partnership with a host of Canadian experts, IAMTI developed one of
the most advanced and comprehensive aviation management
curriculum’s available in the world. This was composed of
more than 100 courses and programs in airline, airport and civil
aviation management. These were presented in English, French and Spanish
by faculty members from Canada and other parts of the world,
who were recognized leaders in their fields. Faculty of IAMTI included
experts in areas such as: strategic management; airport financing;
aviation law; project management; transportation economics; aviation
security; management and training technology; airline marketing; airport
privatization; airline maintenance; and information technology, among
others.
IAMTI’s training program featured highly innovative computer simulation
models to provide hands-on, case-study training to participants,
including a simulated airline and airport authority. A learning
continuum was also developed, composed of knowledge-skill modules at the
introductory, intermediate and advanced levels, as part of IAMTI’s
flexible and progressive professional development program.
This training program and courses were later offered internationally
through a network of affiliated schools and organizations in South East
Asia, Europe and Africa, and the state-of-the-art pedagogical software
it developed was shared among numerous institutions on virtually every
continent.
During its 12 years of existence from 1987 to 1999, when it became part
of IATA, IAMTI trained 4,893 managers and aviation professionals from
667 different organizations, including airport authorities, airlines,
civil aviation organizations and government agencies. IAMTI clients came
from 175 different countries. The breakdown by area was as follows:
Latin America and Caribbean: 35%; Africa: 26%; Asia Pacific: 18%;
Europe: 8%; North America: 8%; Middle East: 5%.
IAMTI also had an important impact on the Canadian aviation industry,
with many managers from airlines, airports, government agencies and
other organizations benefiting from its management training programs. It
forged close relations with several universities, including Georgian
College of Barrie, Ontario, to enhance Canadian aviation management
education programs. And it was involved in the establishment of an
Executive Aviation MBA program at Concordia University.
In response to client demand, IAMTI also established a consulting group
which advised several nations on aviation matters, such as the creation
of airport systems and authorities.
In 1999, IAMTI’s activities were merged with IATA’s Training and
Development Institute, where its courses and pedagogical material,
including case study simulations, continue to benefit thousands of
students each year. IATA’s Institute, which has six strategically
located training centres worldwide, including Montreal, is headed by Guy
Brazeau, a former member of IAMTI’s management team.
IAMTI was a unique and innovative Canadian initiative that made a major
and lasting contribution to the Canadian and global aviation industries.
Its pioneering and high quality training courses and software for the
first time encompassed and integrated airline, airport and civil
aviation management, showcasing Canadian expertise in the field of
aviation management.
It fostered closer partnerships and collaboration among key players in
the Canadian aviation industry, including government, corporations and
universities. It reaffirmed Montreal’s position as an aviation
international centre of excellence, adding a “fourth leg” to a
foundation established by ICAO, IATA and the international aviation
information technology group, SITA.
IAMTI’s program provided an inspiration and model for other management
institutes worldwide. It generated a large number of IAMTI alumni,
representing an impressive network of aviation managers from five
continents who share a common learning and professional experience. Its
legacy of developing leaders in aviation continues and lives on today
through IATA’s Training and Development Institute.
The International Aviation Management Training Institute (IAMTI) was
presented with the Belt of Orion Award for Excellence at ceremonies held
in Montreal on May 27, 2006.
2006 Induction
Video - The Story
of the International Aviation Management Training Institute
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