Julian Kerr | Ipswich and Avalon
Conversion training of aircrew for the RAAF’s KC-30A multi-role tanker transports (MRTTs) may soon dispense with live sorties and rely entirely on simulation.
Wing Commander Brent Taylor, commanding officer of 33 Squadron, operator of the five-strong KC-30A fleet at RAAF Base Amberley, told ADM that high end simulation had enabled the number of expensive and time-consuming live training sorties to be significantly reduced.
A two co-pilot crew receives 138 hours of simulation instruction, 78 hours of which are spent in the FMS. A crew consisting of a captain and a co-pilot undertakes an additional two-hour FMS session involving right seat take off, handling, and landing training for the captain.
In the early days of the conversion program, pilots had flown seven to nine live training sorties in a KC-30A after completing their synthetic training in the IPT and FMS, WGCDR Taylor noted.
This year, live sorties were being cut from five or six to three, each of about one hour’s duration, “and if I had it my way I’d get rid of those three as well; we’ll see what happens in the next couple of years”, he said.
CAE's VP APAC Ian Bell (2nd from R) talks with journalists alongside the KC-30A simulator. Credit: CAE Defence
On Tuesday 28th February at the Avalon Airshow, CAE announced it has been awarded a contract from CASG to provide comprehensive support and training services for the Royal Australian Air Force's Hawk Mk127 training system.
Under terms of the contract, CAE will provide classroom and simulator instructors to RAAF Base Williamtown, in addition to providing maintenance and support services on the three CAE-built Hawk Mk127 full-mission simulators currently being installed at both RAAF Base Williamtown and RAAF Base Pearce. The value of this contract was included in CAE's third quarter orders for fiscal year 2017.
“We are excited to begin supporting the Royal Australian Air Force's Hawk
Mk127 lead-in fighter training program that plays a vital role in preparing fast-jet aircrews for the RAAF's next-generation fighter aircraft,” CAE's vice president and general manager, (Asia-Pacific/Middle East) Ian Bell said.
“Our instructors will work closely with the RAAF to deliver high-quality academic and simulator training that will contribute to students receiving enhanced training as they prepare to fly fast jet aircraft.”
Under a separate subcontract to BAE Systems, CAE is delivering three new Hawk Mk127 full-mission simulators to support the RAAF under the Project Air 5438 Lead-in Fighter Capability Assurance Program. The first two CAE-built Hawk Mk127 full-mission simulators are currently installed at RAAF Base Williamtown and RAAF Base Pearce respectively, and are undergoing final on-site testing and integration before they are expected to be declared ready-for-training in the May timeframe. The third Hawk Mk127 full-mission simulator will be delivered to RAAF Base Williamtown in mid-2017.
The Hawk Mk127 full-mission simulators all feature a high-fidelity replica of the Hawk Mk127 cockpit surrounded by an 11-foot projection dome display featuring the CAE Medallion-6000 image generator and Boeing's Constant Resolution Visual System. The CAE-built Hawk Mk127 simulators also feature the Common Database (CDB) architecture, which was recently adopted by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) as an international standard for the creation of synthetic environment databases.