King Faisal Air Academy

King Faisal Air Academy is a military educational and training academy affiliated with the Royal Saudi Air Force in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The academy was established to succeed and develop the Air Force Academy. Its mission is to educate and train the students until they graduate with the rank of pilot lieutenant, flight lieutenant, or technical lieutenant and obtain a bachelor's degree according to their specialty.

Its establishment journey began on June 15, 1967, when Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (then Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General) announced the establishment of an aviation academy called "King Faisal Air Academy" during the graduation ceremony of the twenty-sixth batch of academy students at King Abdulaziz Military Academy.

On January 11, 1968, the academy was established and received two batches of trainees to study military aviation.

The academy was officially inaugurated on May 20, 1970, in the presence of King Faisal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and the first and second batches of its students graduated.

The academy comprises several main units: The Faculty Council, which is the authority responsible for approving and evaluating the education and training programs and the faculty's general administrative and financial policies; the Military Trial Council, which adjudicates disciplinary matters referred by the academy head; and the Students Affair Department, dedicated to physical, military, and leadership training, as well as student welfare throughout their studies.

Among the units is the Department of Education, which is the entity that specializes in the scientific and educational programs presented in the academy. It includes five divisions: the English Language School, the Scientific Studies Squadron, the Technical Studies Squadron, the Programs and Tests Squadron, and the Support and Educational Technologies Squadron.

The academy also comprises the Aviation Wing Unit, responsible for educating and training aviation students, weapon system operators, and air navigators in theory and practice, and the Supply Wing, the body in charge of providing logistical and operational support. Additionally, there is an Administrative Wing responsible for staffing the academy with qualified personnel and ensuring adherence to administrative rules and regulations, along with the Training Wing, which is responsible for nominating staff members for training programs to enhance their professional skills, as well as overseeing the welfare of scholarship students inside the Kingdom and abroad.

King Faisal Air Academy is committed to a specific educational system comprising stages. It starts with the freshman stage, in which students are trained both militarily and physically for seven weeks, followed by the preparatory stage, which is the English language stage that spans from ten to fifty-three weeks. Then comes the intermediate stage, where the students receive initial training in their field of specialization for thirty weeks.

Lastly, the students move to the final stage, where they study several educational levels and receive practical training. This stage spans forty to fifty weeks, depending on each student's specialty. The specialties are pilot, weapons systems operator, air navigator, air controller, fighter pilot, supplies, and air intelligence.