Julian Moxon/LUC EN PROVENCE
French army aviation is changing fast. The decision two years ago to move France's armed forces towards an all-professional body has meant that the army must cut its force by 60% before 2002 and its helicopter numbers by more than one-third.
In addition, the army is now preparing for the introduction of the Franco-German Eurocopter Tiger combat helicopter, which will represent the most significant change in both aircraft technology and operational tactics ever to hit its aviation corps.
The French army aviation corps, the Aviation Légère de l'Armée de Terre (ALAT),is undergoing a period of mutation that will leave it smaller, more efficient and equipped with considerably more modern aircraft.
Budget cuts, however, have delayed considerably the planned delivery dates for both the Tiger and the NH Industries NH90 transport helicopter, the latter being under development by France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. The first combat support versions of the Tiger are not due for delivery to the ALAT until 2003, while the anti- tank version and the first NH90s will not arrive until 2011.
Preparation for the Tiger's arrival is nevertheless cause for excitement in Luc en Provence, where the new combat helicopter will first join the French army's ranks at the EA ALAT (école d'Application de l'Aviation Légère de l'Armée de Terre) - the army aviation helicopter training school.
"The introduction of the Tiger will mean a complete change of culture for French army aviation," says Col Jean-Paul Fournage of the EA ALAT. "First, it is a tandem-seat machine that will have to work with our Gazelles, with their side-by-side seating. Second, it is far more complex in terms of its electronics. Third, it is designed to work autonomously, instead of in close co-operation with the army."
As a result, pilot training is set to undergo a major evolution, with the establishment of a new Franco-German school at Luc en Provence that will be responsible solely for qualifying Tiger pilots. The Ecole Franco-Allemand (EFA) is due to take its first students in mid-2003, but the thinking about how it will carry out its task has already begun to take shape.
NEW SYLLABUS
Today, the EAÊALAT is responsible for training the entire complement of French Government-employed helicopter pilots, so that besides qualifying those who fly for the army, navy and air force, it is also responsible for those employed by the civil emergency services, customs, police and gendarmes.
Basic training for all these pilots takes place at Dax, in south-west France, after which they go to their various specialist training centres (at Luc en Provence, for example, for the army). A third EA ALAT facility, at Saillagouse in the Pyrenees, provides specialist training in mountain flying. This is also available to other European governments.
Each year, the school selects 1,200 candidates from about 4,000 applicants. They are then put through demanding psychological and physical tests that look at students' qualities in areas such as spatial disorientation, concentration and military motivation, with the aim of filtering out those who are unlikely to make the grade.
The proof that this preselection process works is the 92% success rate in qualifying as a pilot. "The process of selection is tough to start with, but much more cost-effective in the long run," says Fournage.
An average of 25 students a year are selected to train as officers, and a further 85 as senior non-commissioned officers (SNCOs). In its 40 years of existence, the EAALAT has awarded some 1,000 helicopter licences for army aviation and a further 1,000 for the navy and other national forces.
"Our mission is to provide to the helicopter regiments officers and non-commissioned officers capable of being immediately operational in their primary roles, such as combat, patrol or search and rescue," says Capt Christian Guyot of the EA ALAT training school special studies office.
In 1997, this system replaced the previous practice of selecting potential pilots from the ground regiments, who were then qualified to fly. This carried the disadvantage that, if there was a sudden emergency that required mobilisation, the regiments would have to accept partly trained pilots back into their ranks. Added to that, the all-important training continuity was lost.
All pilots, including those who will subsequently train for the Tiger at the EFA, pass through a four-stage training syllabus that lasts anything from 10 to 20 months, depending on the courses followed.
WEAPONS SPECIALISATION
The first, elementary pilotage, stage covers 92h of day flying, 22h of instrument flying, 12h of navigation and 10h of night combat flying. This leads on to the tactical and command stage, comprising 23h of day and 10h of night combat flying. From here, pilots follow one of four weapons specialisations: attack (missile), 32h; air-to-ground (cannon), 64h; air-to-air (gun/missile), 70h; or logistics (movement and transport),140h.
Officers are selected firstly to qualify as an aircraft commander, in charge of a single helicopter, then as a patrol leader, in charge of two to four helicopters.
The arrival of the Tiger will see a fundamental change. The aircraft commander is planned to be an officer and the pilot an experienced warrant officer of SNCO. The weapon system commanders will be officers, reflecting the quantum leap in managing the Tiger's advanced weapon systems and its more central responsibility in carrying the battle forward. "The crew will be called upon to manage and fire weapons with five times the hitting power of those we use today," says Fournage.
In 1999, a Franco-German team will arrive at Luc en Provence charged with developing the infrastructure and syllabus for Tiger training. They will have a difficult task. "This is a complete cultural change for us," says Guyot. "We have to define a training system that takes into account a totally new modus operandi.
"Today, ALAT operates in full contact with the ground forces, in co-operation with tanks and other ground vehicles. The Tiger will be capable of operating as an offensive weapon system, flying into enemy territory in an autonomous role, possibly also acting as a close [air] support vehicle."
The problem is compounded by uncertainty over the number of anti-tank and combat support versions of the helicopter that the ALAT will eventually receive. At present, France and Germany have each signed up for 80 machines, and are scheduled to take a total of 215 and 212, respectively. "I don't expect we will see more than 120 at the end of the day," says one ALAT officer, "and that means we will have to rethink our strategy as to how they are used."
All this affects the eventual training programme because uncertainty remains, for example, over how many Gazelles will remain in the fleet, and what weapons they will carry - and therefore how many officers and NCOs should continue to be trained for this helicopter.
As now foreseen, the EFA will be set up to train officer pilots for the three versions of the helicopter to be purchased by the two countries (Germany's UHT anti-tank/combat support and France's HAC anti-tank and HAP combat support variants), along with any subsequent versions developed for export.
What is known is that the syllabus must be in place before delivery of the first German Tiger in 2001 and for the French army two years later. As now planned, Tiger training will take between 19 and 28 weeks - on top of the existing training period - so that the first pilots should be qualified by 2004. By 2006/7, there will be 14 German and 13 French Tigers at the EFA, and 11 or 12 simulators. The school will have a total strength of 330 students and instructors (160 French and 173 German) and expects to qualify 87 German and 72 French pilots a year.
Up to 70% of training will be carried out on simulators and procedures trainers. Three consortia will bid for the contract to supply the Tiger training devices. The specifications are about to be drawn up by a joint working group formed by the ALAT, its German counterpart the Heeresflieger and industry. Guyot describes this process as "-very unusual, because we are asking industry to come up with more than just the simulators". They will also be expected to help define the best mix of full mission simulators, cockpit procedures trainers and computer- assisted trainers.
CONTRACT CRITERIA
Guyot says the training system contract will go to "-the group that offers the most cost-effective way of complementing Tiger flight training. This is a very expensive and complex helicopter and we want to ensure we have the most efficient training system".
Three consortia have been selected to compete for the contract: CAE/Sogitec/ESG; Thomson Training & Simulation and STN Atlas; and Daimler-Benz Aerospace. The call for offers was made in January and proposals are due in December. Final selection is set for a year later, with entry into service in July 2002.
The EAALAT now operates a Puma/Super Puma full flight simulator built by Sogitec. It is equipped with a 180í dome visual system. This has been in operation since 1995.
The changes the EAÊALAT is going through will doubtless leave it in better shape to prepare pilots for the kind of regional conflicts that have replaced the Cold War scenario for which they would originally have been trained. The pressure is on - it is only two years before the hills around Luc en Provence echo to the beat of the Tiger's rotor.
Source: Flight International
