High Representatives from 14 different countries visited IFTS, the Advanced Flight Training School for student fighter pilots from all over the world.
On Thursday, April 11th, at the International Flight Training School (IFTS) in Decimomannu, Sardinia, the Ambassadors and Military Attachés of Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, Greece, the Netherlands, Japan, Kuwait, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Great Britain and the United States visited. The aim of the visit was to let the senior representatives of the participating countries experience first-hand the cutting-edge techniques and means, in the field of flight training and training, that the IFTS offers to the aircrew not only of the Air Force, but also to student pilots from all over the world.
Arrived at the Experimental and Standardization Department of Air Shooting (R.S.S.T.A.) of Decimomannu, the delegation of Ambassadors, accompanied by Air Force General Silvano Frigerio, Commander of the Schools of the A.M. / 3^ Air Region of Bari, was welcomed by Air Brigadier General Davide Marzinotto – Commander of the Air Force Command for the Autonomous Region of Sardinia (C.A.M.R.A.S.) – and by Colonel Federico Pellegrini, Commander of the R.S.S.T.A..
After a greeting address by Gen. Frigerio, the guests attended an illustrative briefing on the activities of the 212th Flight Group/IFTS, held by Col. Vito Conserva – Commander of the 61st Wing – and Ing. Recchia, head of IFTS for Leonardo Aircraft. The visit then continued at the Ground Based Training System (GBTS) – which houses training rooms and a modern interactive training system based on latest-generation full mission simulators – followed by the Flight Line, the accommodation facilities and facilities available to visitors, as well as the logistical-maintenance infrastructures that manage the operation of the fleet of 22 M-346 aircraft (called T-346A by the Air Force).
“We had an important participation of Ambassadors and also of Military Attachés from numerous nations (from the United States, to Japan, from Sweden to Kuwait) who were thus able to experience first-hand how much the International Flight Training School, here in Decimomannu, is the state of the art as regards Lead-In Fighter Training, i.e. the advanced training for military pilots who will be destined for fourth and fifth generation combat aircraft”, these are the words of Gen. Frigerio on the day spent. With reference to the many professionalism of the instructors and all the staff who work at the School, he continued: “The human sphere is always relevant, I would say prevalent when it comes to training and flight training, and therefore also the selection process to have the best instructors, both civilian and military, is constantly evolving and constantly updating precisely because the human and therefore educational aspect has a preponderant part, beyond what the car, the aircraft and the whole system integrated into the training that derives from it may be”.
On this occasion, the Delegation was able to meet some student pilots and instructors belonging to the countries already partners of the IFTS project. Currently, the school hosts 53 students from Qatar, Singapore, Italy, Germany, England, Canada, Japan and Spain, testifying to the excellence provided by IFTS in the field of flight training in the international arena. On 18 March, the training process for pilots from Canada and the United Kingdom was completed, a month ahead of schedule, demonstrating the efficiency and effectiveness of the teaching methods and technological support in use at the School.
To date, nine foreign air forces have chosen to train their pilots at the International Flight Training School. These are, specifically, the Republic of Singapore Air Force, Royal Qatari Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Air Force, German Air Force, Japan Self-Defence Force, Austrian Air Force, Royal Saudi Air Force and Swedish Air Force.
The “International Flight Training School” project stems from the strategic collaboration between the Italian Air Force and Leonardo, with the aim of pooling the expertise of the Armed Forces in the military flight training sector and the resources of Leonardo Company, the largest Italian company in the Defence sector, all for the benefit of the entire country-system. The project is based on the provision of phase IV (Lead in to Fighter Training) courses, attended by pilots for 4^ and 5^ generation aircraft, such as the F-2000 (Eurofighter) or the F-35.
Officially presented in July 2018 at the Farnborough International Boat Show (UK), with work starting in December 2020, the IFTS already awards the first phase IV diploma to two pilots of the German Air Force in May 2022. The project is now a virtuous reality, an example of national institutional and industrial synergy, able to meet the growing demand of the Air Force and partner countries in the field of advanced pilot training. The Decimomannu training center is now a real campus – of over 130,000 square meters – capable of training up to 80 pilots every year. The 61st Wing, already internationally recognized in the field of military flight training, is structured to give an increasingly high-performance preparation suitable for the training of pilots destined for aerotactical lines. Specifically, the Salento Flight School, of the 4 phases that make up the complete training course of a pilot (the first phase – of flight selection – takes place at the 70th Wing of Latina), provides the training of the second (Primary Pilot Training – common to all student military pilots and aimed at identifying the lines on which they will fly) and third phase (Specialized Pilot Training – aimed exclusively at student pilots selected for the “Fighter” lines). At the 212th G.V. IFTS in Decimomannu, under the 61st Wing, the fourth and final phase – “Lead In Fighter Training (LIFT)” – takes place, preparatory to subsequent deployment on the latest generation fighter aircraft.
Follow us on our Telegram channel