{"id":1786059,"date":"2022-12-01T15:50:14","date_gmt":"2022-12-01T20:50:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2022\/12\/01\/can-the-air-force-train-nearly-1500-pilots-this-year\/"},"modified":"2022-12-01T15:50:14","modified_gmt":"2022-12-01T20:50:14","slug":"can-the-air-force-train-nearly-1500-pilots-this-year","status":"publish","type":"station","link":"https:\/\/platoaistream.com\/plato-data\/can-the-air-force-train-nearly-1500-pilots-this-year\/","title":{"rendered":"Can the Air Force train nearly 1,500 pilots this year?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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ORLANDO \u2014 The Air Force aims to train around 1,470 new pilots in fiscal 2023, which remains a lofty goal amid an enduring shortage of flyers.<\/p>\n

Though the target is close to the service\u2019s plan to graduate 1,500 pilots per year by 2024, hitting it will be a challenge, said Air Education and Training Command boss Lt. Gen. Brian Robinson during a live taping of the \u201cWar on the Rocks\u201d podcast here Wednesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are doing the best we can with the resourcing levels that we have, in terms of manning, weapons system sustainment, parts and supply, things of that nature,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The service has spent the past several years modernizing that curriculum, hoping to speed up pilot production while helping airmen retain more information.<\/p>\n

Robinson said he\u2019s concerned about meeting the twin needs of improving flight school while also preparing for a possible conflict with a country like China or Russia. If a crisis requires the Air Force\u2019s pilot training bases to start six- or seven-day workweeks, he said, then so be it. But that\u2019s unlikely unless the U.S. goes to war with another world power and urgently needs more pilots.<\/p>\n

Still, some instructors say they are struggling with a crushing workload. Flight simulator instructors are also hard to come by, with many heading to commercial airlines or other private companies even as the Air Force increasingly turns to virtual training.<\/p>\n

A widespread ejection seat issue that required the Air Force to check hundreds of training aircraft to see whether the seats would work as intended also waylaid the enterprise this year.<\/p>\n

Robinson suggested it\u2019s time to rethink the training pipeline altogether.<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably, I need to get away from calling it the \u2018pipeline,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHere\u2019s the training criteria, the competencies you need to demonstrate, and once you\u2019ve demonstrated them, you\u2019re on to the next piece,\u201d Robinson said. \u201cBut \u2026 you can\u2019t move them through without regard for the other portion of the system.\u201d<\/p>\n

That can cause another problem, though: an unpredictable, fluctuating volume of student pilots at various points in the program. Robinson also worries airmen won\u2019t feel as connected to their pilot training cohort if courses are more individualized.<\/p>\n

\u201cCulturally, that\u2019s a challenge. We\u2019ve experienced some of this as we looked at Pilot Training Next,\u201d he said, referring to the flight school program that uses iPads and other technology to streamline those lessons.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we think about esprit de corps and unit camaraderie and unit identification, it\u2019s disruptive to that model,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Still, Robinson suggested the Air Force could break its traditional undergraduate pilot training model. Students join one of several classes that start throughout the year on a rolling basis, and graduate alongside that same cohort at the end of several weeks together.<\/p>\n

A new approach could start trainees at the same time, but group them into new graduating classes based on when they\u2019re ready to move on.<\/p>\n

That could give slow learners more time to learn the material before advancing to more complex aircraft, without holding back those who pick up the lessons sooner.<\/p>\n

What matters is that operational units receive well-prepared airmen in a timely manner, not just whether an airman followed a particular training schedule, Robinson added.<\/p>\n

The service\u2019s annual pilot production goals often prove elusive, as does a long-term solution for retaining experienced aviators. In practice, that shortfall means pilots are assigned to fly more missions and longer sorties instead of training or resting.<\/p>\n

More than 12,000 pilots serve in the active duty Air Force. The service typically falls about 2,000 pilots short of its overarching goal of 21,000, including those who fly for the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll find that sweet spot that balances the quality of life for our airmen and their families and the quality of service for delivering the capability for the nation,\u201d Robinson said.<\/p>\n

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Rachel Cohen joined Air Force Times as senior reporter in March 2021. Her work has appeared in Air Force Magazine, Inside Defense, Inside Health Policy, the Frederick News-Post (Md.), the Washington Post, and others.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n