Twelve European nations are moving closer to combining their future fighter pilot training under the Eurotraining programme
Within the next four months, air force chiefs from 12 European nations are expected to move towards a decision to proceed with a programme to deliver their future fighter pilot training requirements under a collective mechanism dubbed the Eurotraining model.
More formally called the Advanced European Jet Pilot Training (AEJPT) programme, the Eurotraining system was first mooted in the mid-1990s under an initiative drawn up by the European Air Chiefs group to address advanced and lead-in fighter (Phase III and IV) training needs across the continent.
Initially attracting interest from 17 states, the scheme will see partner countries acquire and operate the same type of aircraft, use the same synthetic training devices and follow the same syllabus, removing duplication, improving interoperability and slashing costs.
Twelve nations - Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland - supported an industry-led feasibility study into the Eurotraining concept worth c8 million ($9.8 million), which reported earlier this year on possible solutions to their joint requirements from 2012-13 onwards.
This study was headed by the so-called G5 consortium of European airframe manufacturers that have teamed up to address the AEJPT requirement by replacing the increasingly obsolete fast-jet trainer types now in European use. Aermacchi of Italy, Dassault Aviation of France, EADS Casa of Spain, EADS Deutschland of Germany and Saab of Sweden were supported by about 20 further companies, which are arranged into avionics, propulsion and simulation subgroups.
While industry sources stress that the Eurotraining concept is about much more than merely delivering a new aircraft, an early emphasis of the study process was to propose a range of designs capable of meeting the diverse requirements laid down by partner air forces. Dassault is proposing a new single-engined, high-subsonic trainer; Aermacchi its twin-engined transonic M346; and EADS the Mako single-engined trainer concept in both transonic and supersonic variants.
The study put forward seven possible solutions to meet European staff requirements, ranging as far as a full service to be delivered under a private finance initiative framework. Seven nations offered bases for use as part of the AEJPT system, which is likely to be spread across up to three facilities via a wide-area network. Countries with congested skies such as Germany are not promoting bases, while Mediterranean partner states such as Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain are considered likely favourites, along with large Nordic facilities. The feasibility study also assessed the likely transition plan for moving from currently fielded systems to the new training framework, which will support operations until around 2040.
In addition to conducting traditional advanced and lead-in fighter training, the AEJPT solution also aims to remove some work - and considerable expense - from the operational conversion unit level. Dubbed "downloading", this process will place increased emphasis on training in system operations, rather than merely aircraft handling, requiring the successful airframe type to provide embedded training capabilities, for example simulated radar and other sensor inputs.
The AEJPT partner air forces are now assessing the feasibility study results and are engaged in harmonising their requirements for the collective training system. A formal report and recommendations are to be submitted to the European Air Chiefs in November 2004. For now, sources close to the programme remain tight-lipped about the success of the feasibility study, but one concedes the harmonisation process is "not a small challenge".
A steering committee, comprising one representative from each of the partner nations, has been formed to oversee the industrial package. An advisory group sits below this structure and contains two or three officials from each country. Italy is the contracting nation for the AEJPT study, with Aermacchi designated contract manager. However, if the programme advances beyond the planning stage, an executive agency will be formed to establish and manage the main contract, which could be let by the OCCAR procurement agency or the new European Defence Agency.
EADS is seeking industrial partners for the delivery of its proposed integrated training systems approach, which includes its Mako High-Energy Advanced Trainer. "Mako is the most advanced [design being promoted for Eurotraining]. It fits exactly the requirement and we have proved it will be cost-effective," says an EADS source.
The company's proposed solution includes computer-based training, part-task trainers, full-motion simulators and embedded training, and also covers the delivery of facilities and training management, including instructors. EADS claims the Mako will have the same energy-manoeuvrability performance as a fourth-generation fighter and notes it is the only aircraft under consideration with an afterburner, enabling it to duplicate more performance characteristics of frontline aircraft.
Big savings
While noting that the Mako will be about 15% more expensive than its subsonic rivals in acquisition terms, EADS says: "Overall, it will deliver big savings during the most expensive segment of pilot training." The company estimates that Mako will deliver a cost saving of 25-30% per pilot by downloading training tasks from the operational conversion unit level. The company's investment in the Mako system to date totals more than €80 million, with more than 1,200h of windtunnel testing completed and the type having already attracted interest, but no order yet, from the United Arab Emirates air force.
Aermacchi's M346 is involved in a high-speed taxi test campaign in Italy, and is expected to undergo its first flight soon. The latter event will take place following the certification of the type's fly-by-wire control system - the first developed by the Italian trainer manufacturer.
Benefits for the AEJPT partners in selecting the M346 will include its low non-recurring costs, while at least half of the production work on the aircraft will be made available to non-Italian concerns, says Carlo Logli, Aermacchi's senior vice-president for commercial business. A twin-engined subsonic solution was also well supported in the feasibility study, he says. "The M346 must show the performance of the Eurofighter Typhoon and Lockheed Martin F-16, but it must be economic," says Logli.
Other platform rivals for the initial segment of AEJPT could include BAE Systems' next-generation Hawk and the Korea Aerospace Industries/Lockheed Martin T-50 Golden Eagle (Flight International, 29 June-5 July). The Pilatus PC-9 and PC-21 turboprops could also meet elements of a wider-ranging European training capability, with the Swiss company holding an advisory role on the current programme.
A positive decision later this year will prompt a massive advance in Europe's collective jet training capabilities, and provide a boost to a number of leading manufacturers across the continent.
CRAIG HOYLE / LONDON
Source: Flight International
