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New RAAF pilot training contract signed

written by australianaviation.com.au | December 9, 2015

Pilatus
The RAAF will operate 49 PC-21s. (Pilatus)

Formal contract arrangements have been signed between the federal government and Lockheed Martin Australia to provide and support the Australian Defence Force’s new pilot training system, after the company was named as the preferred tenderer the AIR 5428 project in September.

Under the acquisition and services contracts, which are worth $1.2 billion, Lockheed Martin will deliver 49 Pilatus PC-21 trainers, seven flight simulators, a modern learning environment for students and updated courseware, along with support for an initial seven-year term.

Basic flying training will be delivered at RAAF Base East Sale in Victoria. The first courses will begin in early 2019 with an annual intake of up to 165 trainee pilots, and will allow the ADF to increase the number of graduates from 77 to 105 each year.

“For the first time in Australia, pilot training will include simulators in undergraduate training; this will become the new benchmark for training and preparing military pilots for fourth and fifth-generation platforms,” Minister for Defence Senator Marise Payne said in a statement.

“Defence looks forward to a long-term partnership with Lockheed Martin Australia as together we embark on this exciting new phase of pilot training for the ADF.”

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As prime contractor, Lockheed Martin will provide overall project management for the pilot training system and will deliver the ground-based training systems. Partners Pilatus Aircraft will provide the PC-21 aircraft and through-life engineering and airworthiness support, and Hawker Pacific will provide maintenance and fleet support services.

“Our approach will be tailored to the particular needs of Australia’s future defence requirements and will leverage proven turn-key training capabilities from Lockheed Martin, as well as those of our partners – Pilatus Aircraft and Hawker Pacific,“ Raydon Gates, chief executive, Lockheed Martin Australia and New Zealand, said in a statement.

The Lockheed Martin-led Team 21 was selected ahead of a competing bid from BAE Systems, which together with CAE Australia and Beechcraft had offered a solution based around the Beech T-6C aircraft.

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Comments (13)

  • Paul

    says:

    WOULD BE GREAT TO SEE THE NEW RAAF PC21 & RNZAF T6 FLY AT AVALON 2017 -SOLO OR POSSIBLY A COMBINED DISPLAY

  • adammudhen

    says:

    I wonder if the combined display would be as loud as Paul’s comment? 🙂

    I do wonder what will happen to the Roulettes? Will they source their aircraft from those at East Sale or will they have a number set aside and rotate through the group?.

    Good to see this project is moving along.

  • mick181

    says:

    Paul we are not deaf so please don’t shout, don’t think they will be in service for 2017. I thought it was a pretty straight forward choice of aircraft for the RAAF coming from the same stable as the PC-9.

  • Daryl

    says:

    I’d like to see the display team get into fast jets.

  • Jason

    says:

    Adam – There will be more PC-21s at East Sale than there are currently PC-9s, so it is possible all or a large proportion of East Sale birds will have the ‘R’ on the tail and the displays birds will be rotated through the wider fleet.

  • Raymond

    says:

    CAPS LOCK OFF PLEASE! Why do you have to SHOUT?

    As good as the PC-21 is, wouldn’t it be great if the RAAF used the fleet replacement as an opportunity to order half a dozen or so extra BAE Hawks, and the Roulettes operated jets again. 🙂

    Turboprop display teams just don’t quite have the pizazz that their fast jet equivalents have…

  • Peter

    says:

    Reading the article as above, the Pilatus part of the contract is to supply the aircraft, which sounds like they own them and they become part of the training contract, just like the simulators, software etc. Lockheed Martin will supply engineering support. If this is a correct interpretation, then the RAAF don’t own them ( like they don’t own the CT-4s at BFTS Tamworth ), therefore the Roulettes won’t be flying them.
    Currently the RAAF own the PC-9s, with about 40 at 2FTS, 4 at 4 Sqn Willytown, usually 1 at ARDU Edinburgh and the rest at East Sale for the Roulettes & for training current pilots to be instructors.
    So the 49 PC-21s will be supplied by Pilatus specifically for the contract for pilot training – which is combining the roles of Flight Screening / BFTS / 2FTS. My understanding is that Flight Screening & BFTS will move from Tamworth to East Sale, but 2FTS will remain at Pearce & re-equip will PC-21s under this new contract. Maybe the RAAF will have to purchase their own aircraft for 4 Sqn & the Roulettes. For 4 Sqn’s role , the better option is the Super Tucano, but that’s a whole other argument.

  • Jason

    says:

    Extra Hawks would constitute a bespoke fleet due to the current build Mk128’s marked differences to the 15+ year old Mk127s we currently operate. A nice thought, but it aint gonna happen!

  • Peter

    says:

    To clarify my previous post which was a bit rushed…Team 21 won the bid to replace the current pilot training system. They did not win a bid to replace all the RAAFs PC-9s. Currently BAE have a contract using their own CT-4s to provide the ADF with Flight Screening & BFTS, which is currently at Tamworth. The RAAF own about 65 PC-9s, which they use to train at 2FTS, and some other RAAF PC-9s are with the Roulettes, instructor training, ARDU & 4 Sqn.
    Team 21 won the contract for a whole new training system for flight screening, BFTS & 2 FTS. In that bid Team 21 are suppling aircraft, simulators, software, ground support / engineering etc
    Team 21 have won a training contract, not a contract to supply the Roulettes, 4 Sqn etc with new aircraft.
    What happens for the Roulettes, 4 Sqn etc may be in the White Paper, but likely once 2FTS start receiving PC-21s, then any viable PC-9s from 2FTS will keep the Roulettes & 4 Sqn aloft for a while. Maybe the RAAF will buy their own PC-21s ( additional to the 49 owned by Team 21 ).
    Maybe as a suggestion for the RAAF’s 100th anniversary , as an on-going legacy, the Roulettes may get a permanent replacement to their PC-9s which by then will be close to 30 years old, with their flying life pushing the airframe to the max.. I agree, jets would be fantastic. By 2019 when the first PC-21’s start arriving, the RAAF will have the first sqn of F-35s here & retiring some classic Hornets, of course, the dud ones first, still there could be some good ones the Roulettes could get their hands on. Further F/A-18s going out as F-35s come in add to the Roulettes “pool” of classic hornets. Keep those going until the Super Hornets get eventually replaced with F-35s , then the Roulettes could grab the Supers. Roulette jets by stealth !

  • Peter H

    says:

    The new PC-21 contract includes 4sqn, ARDU , 2FTS and CFS. So Roulettes will be flying PC-21s.

  • Jason

    says:

    The RAAF will own the aircraft. They will be on he state register.

  • PAUL

    says:

    seems TO BE A BIT OF SHOUTING off & ON oh dear- ‘RAAF CFS PC9 PC21 BAE’ YES we know what the ACRONYMS mean so no need yell. – yes the p21 is a great machine to replace the pc9 so is the bae hawk127 & boeing f18. an f18 display team would be fab when the f35 jsf kicks in. dont think they wIll ever use the supers for that- too capable!!! turboprops are always a pleasant display very nice on the ears rather than noisy jets shouting about the sky with their afterburners. OVER lol OUT

  • Raymond

    says:

    Jason, my understanding is that the RAAF’s 127’s are to be upgraded to 128 standard. I could be wrong. Anyway, would there really be enough difference to prohibit a mixed 127 / 128 fleet? They’re both late gen Hawks…

    Yes, I guessed it’s unlikely to happen, but as you said, a (really) nice thought!

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