In Active Service

Trainee pilots are first posted to Number 1 Flying Training School. 1FTS was one of the two units making up the Australian Air Force when it was formed on March 31, 1921. Prior to World War I, the Central Flying School had been formed to train pilots for the Australian Flying Corps, a branch of the Australian Army. The Avro 504K was the trainer then in use. 1FTS has operated numerous aircraft since its formation including some of the more legendary names of Gipsy Moth, and Tiger Moth. In 1956 the CAC Winjeel entered service with 1FTS, then based at Uranquinty, NSW, and in 1958 1FTS was relocated to its old home and birthplace at Point Cook. The Winjeel continued as a basic trainer until 1976 when the NZAI CT-4A Airtrainer was chosen as replacement. Winjeels continue to serve with 4 Flight, Williamstown, as Forward Air Control aircraft.

The CT-4 Airtrainer is basically a modified Victa Airtourer, originally designed by Henry Millicer and manufactured in Australia. Now built by New Zealand Aerospace Industries, the CT-4 is a 2-3 seat piston engined side-by-side trainer, powered by a Rolls-Royce Continental engine of 210 horsepower. Nicknamed “Plastic Parrot”, the Airtrainer is proving to be an adequate ab initio trainer, although it had “big boots to fill” in replacing the venerated Winjeel.

1FTS is responsible for officer training for cadets in addition to providing basic flying training. 1FTS also conducts RAAF Academy “Motivational Flying”, which is aimed at holding the interest and motivating Academy cadets during their University course. Both RAAF and RAN personnel follow the same course at 1FTS except for the first few weeks which are made up entirely of basic training specific to Air Force and Navy. The whole course lasts 24 weeks and includes ground studies in Air Force Law, Service Knowledge, and Administration and Organisation. Flying theory studies cover Aerodynamics, Airmanship, Compasses, Meteorology, Flight Instruments, Navigation, Morse Code, and Air Traffic Control. Interspersed throughout the theory work is practical flying training. About four or five flights are made every week during both day and night, depending on weather conditions. Flights average 1. 2 hours, and are usually conducted in the Point Cook and Avalon areas. The nearby RAAF base at Laverton serves as an alternate aerodrome, as the Point Cook airfield can only handle about six aircraft at one time. Trainee pilots fly solo after an average of 12 hours and will complete 60 hours on CT-4s while at Point Cook. Successful students on the RAAF/RAN course, as it is known, graduate from 1FTS after six months when they are posted to Pearce in Western Australia for advanced training at Number 2 Flying Training School.

Three RAAF/RAN courses are conducted at 1FTS each year, with an average of 45 students enrolled in each intake. The intake usually consists of 30 newly recruited cadets and Academy graduates, about five serving airmen, and about 10 RAN Midshipmen. Of these, only about 50% will graduate from 2FTS as military pilots.

At 2FTS trainee pilots continue flying training on Macchi jet trainers. The two-seat Macchi 326-H was constructed in Australia by the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation under licence from Aermacchi of Italy. The Macchi is powered by the Bristol Siddeley Viper II turbojet, also manufactured by CAC under licence, which gives a maximum speed of 400 knots. Seating is in tandem with most instruments duplicated in the instructor’s rear cockpit.

The course at 2FTS continues early theory work studied at Point Cook but emphasises jet aircraft systems and operation. About 150 hours are flown in Macchis throughout the nine-month period during which the students are based at Pearce. Students learn formation flying for the first time at 2FTS, and although the Macchi is capable of carrying a limited weapons load, no practical weapons delivery training is done. The trainee pilots graduate from 2FTS to be posted to an operational flying unit, but usually start on transport types.

Army Pilots Course

Future Army pilots are selected from the Officer Cadet School at Portsea in Victoria, from where they are posted to 1FTS after being commissioned as Army Officers. The trainees complete a 22-week course which includes 96 hours on CT-4s. From 1FTS the students are posted to the School of Army Aviation at Oakey in Queensland. The School of Army Aviation was formed in 1972 at Amberley. Prior to this, flying training was conducted by the Air Observation Post Flight based at RAAF Fairbairn. At the School, the students continue training on either fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft, completing about 130 hours over 4 months. After completing the course, the Army pilots commence flying with the 1st Aviation Regiment which operates Turbo-Porter, Nomad, and Bell 206 aircraft.

PNGDF Course

Cadets from the Papua New Guinea Defence Force receive training at Point Cook. This course is 36 weeks in duration and includes 140 hours of flying training. After 1FTS. further training on GAF Nomad 22 aircraft at the School of Army Aviation is completed before the graduates are posted to the PNGDF Air Arm Nomads.

School of Air Navigation

The School of Air Navigation was formed at East Sale in the Victorian Gippsland in February 1946 and was to be entirely responsible for training navigators for service in the RAAF. At that time navigators were needed for RAAF aircraft including the Liberator, Beaufighter, Mosquito, Dakota, and Catalina. During the Second World War, RAAF navigators and other specialist aircrew were trained in Canada and Australia under the Empire Air Training Scheme. Training was carried out in the long-serving “Aggie” – the Avro Anson.

In 1951 the Anson was replaced by modified Douglas Dakota aircraft which were converted from their basic transport configuration. A specially modified Government Aircraft Factories Lincoln 830 bomber with faired-in gun turrets, A73-15, joined the Dakotas to provide a long-range training capability. This Lincoln was phased out of SAN service in 1958, but the Dakotas were to remain until 1968 when the British Hawker Siddeley 748 was chosen over the Dutch Fokker Friendship. Eight Model 228 HS748 (NT) aircraft were acquired and numbered A10-601 to -608. Two VIP versions of the 748 were also obtained for the Canberra-based No. 34 Squadron.

The HS748 is powered by two Rolls-Royce Dart turboprops, and usually operates at about 20;000 feet, and cruises at 220 knots. Its normal crew complement is two pilots and a navigator. The special training fit, installed by Hawker de Havilland in Sydney, consists of two training consoles running down the starboard side of the aircraft. The forward console has four stations: two for navigation students, one for the instructor, and another station that can be used by a radar operator. (The 748 has a nose-mounted weather radar). The rear console, also with four stations, was originally designed for use by Air Electronics Officer students, but is now used by navigator students for radio and teletype communications. The HS748 can also carry a maximum of 30 passengers, but in this role there is no training capability.

The School of Air Navigation trains students to perform the duties of a junior commissioned navigator officer in the RAAF. In addition to pure navigational instruction, the student is also trained for other duties encompassing communications and maritime surveillance. SAN also runs a similar course to train observers for the Royal Australian Navy. This course is essentially the same as the navigator course. Between 1969 and 1979, 16 Air Electronics Officer courses were conducted before this course was integrated into the navigator course.

Two navigator courses are conducted each year, starting in March and September, and continue for 59 weeks. The syllabus includes a variety of subjects covering both general service officer and specialist navigation training. Military subjects include Administration, Air Force Law, Leadership and Management, Military Studies, and of course, Drill. The flying-related subjects include Navigation, Air Traffic Control, Aero Instruments, Computers, Meteorology, Teletyping, Weapons, and Electronic Warfare.

Interspersed throughout the theory course are navigational exercises (Navex), with each sortie lasting about six hours. A typical flight may be to and from a destination as far away as Queensland, and normally without landing at the turning point. Preparation for each flight includes a “dummy run” in the Synthetic Navigation Trainer. The SNT, as it is known, is a bank of 12 individual cubicles connected to a central computer. Previously programmed wind vectors and radio navigation aids are fed into the computer, and a central console, manned by one instructor, has facilities for cutting out any or all of the aids or instruments in any cubicle. Instrumentation in the cubicles is similar to the layout in the HS748 navigator stations but can be “frozen” on command if any specific problems are encountered. Using the SNT, ·the proposed flight can be completed in full on the ground before even entering the aircraft.

Eleven RAAF/RAN, 30 Army, and five PNGDF Pilots’ Courses, and 56 Navigator, 11 RAN Observer, and 16 Air Electronic Officer Courses have graduated since the formation of the two Flying Training Schools and the School of Air Navigation. SAN trains its own instructors, but pilot instructors receive their training at Central Flying School at East Sale, which is equipped with CT-4A, Macchi, and Dakota aircraft. Since their inception, aircrew training schools have provided Australian air arms with highly skilled aircrew, and will continue to produce proficient aircrew capable of carrying out the increasingly difficult duties demanded by modern sophisticated aircraft.

“In Active Service” will be continued in the next edition of AADR when we examine the operational spectrum of the RAAF’s Maritime forces. Order your copy today or subscribe direct and be assured of receiving each quarterly edition of the Australian Aviation & Defence Review.