Getting on with it

The irony in Australia’s inclusion in the list is due to the long wait and extensive delays Australia’s defence industry has had to endure for the ADF’s AIR 5428 Pilot Training System to make it to RFT stage. AIR 5428 was first listed in the 2004 Defence Capability Plan, at a cost of $600-750 million. At that time, a single-pass decision was expected between 2008-9 and 2010-11, and in-service between 2012 and 2014.

In the 2010 update to the 2009 DCP, the project had completed first pass approval, but slipped to between 2015‑16 and 2017-18 for initial operating capability. In the 2012-13 federal budget, AIR 5428 with an expected cost of $1. 5 billion, fell victim to the Labor government’s surplus-seeking razor gang, copping a further one-year delay.

The draft RFT was originally due for release to industry in October 2011 and public debate over the delay focused on the resolution of tri-service requirements. The delay pushed a second pass decision into the 2014‑15 to 2016-17 timeframe, making the original 2017-18 timeframe, aligned with the PC-9 planned withdrawal date of 2017, difficult to meet.

Since then, the project has had some to-ing and fro-ing with schedules and timelines, with an RFT finally released to industry in August 2013 and due at end-March 2014. The tender documentation lists the timeframe for delivery as April 2017 through October 2018.

By contrast, New Zealand’s pilot training system appeared in its 2010 Defence White Paper. The document noted: “A study of pilot training options is scheduled to be completed by early 2011. It will take into account the capabilities to be provided by the proposed new maritime patrol aircraft and the need for training to match the full range of operational demands made on aircrew. The merits of acquiring a simulator for some aspects of pilot training will also be explored. ” Beyond the big question over why the NZDF is able to move faster and more definitively in acquisitions than the Australian Defence organisation, there’s also the chance that the selection could give some insight on Australia’s upcoming acquisition.

The RAAF needs systems that are capable of preparing pilots to fly the Growler and the F-35.

After a US Bankruptcy Court ended the company’s exclusivity arrangement with Raytheon Australia, Beechcraft teamed with BAE Systems and CAE behind the T-6C. The team’s bid would see BAE provide training, systems integration and sustainment capabilities paired with CAE’s simulation, training and support services.

The T-6 is a highly capable platform, particularly in the context of an ab initio pilot training system. BAE Systems operates the ADF’s Basic Flying Training School at Tamworth, while CAE currently delivers training systems and services for a range of platforms for the ADF, including the B350, C-130J, KC-30A and AP-3C. With credentials like these, the team will be highly competitive.

On the other hand, Lockheed Martin has teamed with Pilatus and Hawker Pacific to compete for AIR 5428 under the ‘Team 21’ monicker. The team will be led by Lockheed Martin, with Pilatus supplying its PC-21 platform and ground-based training systems, while Hawker Pacific will provide maintenance and logistics support.

Importantly, Team 21 will be able to leverage its successful experience in the joint operation of the Singapore Basic Wings program, run from RAAF Base Pearce in WA.

Whether the NZDF’s pilot training system can be used as any kind of guide for an Australian decision, however, is questionable. An air force without an air combat capability is likely to have greatly different requirements to one that stands ready to usher in a fifth generation fighter fleet.

The RAAF needs systems that are capable of preparing pilots to fly the EA-18G Growler and the F-35, not to mention the incoming advanced rotary-wing platforms. It’s up to industry to convince government whether that means making use of the PC-21’s more advanced capabilities, thereby lowering dropout rates and the general learning curve in the Hawk 127.

But it can’t be overlooked that most candidates trained by the RAAF are cargo and air mobility pilots, which would benefit from the T-6’s more palatable piloting requirements for first-step pilots.