Hot seat

An airline pilot flies the Hornet sim

RAAF Base Williamtown is the spiritual home of Australia’s jet fighter force. At the front gate a large billboard welcomes you to the ‘Hornet’s Nest’ as a less than subtle reminder of the squadrons of FA-18 ‘Hornets’ at the ready on the apron beyond the security gates and towering fences. As I step out of my measly 1.5 litre Toyota Corolla, the air is alive with the sound of afterburners and another pair of fighters takes to the sky. They are two very different worlds on either side of this fence.

I am met at the security gate by Squadron Leader Ray Simpson, a veteran of the second Gulf War and a current Fighter Combat Instructor (FCI). Highly experienced on the FA-18, Ray’s current posting calls for him to develop and oversee training, tactics and procedures for Hornet pilots and FCIs both in the aircraft and on the ground in the RAAF’s two Hornet simulators. Today, I am gaining some insight into the training of Australia’s fighter pilots by means of a ‘flight’ in one of these simulators.