NATO Flight Training in Canada (NFTC) is a military

flight training Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a st ...

program for

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

and allied air forces provided by the

Canadian Forces } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Ai ...

. Located at

2 Canadian Forces Flying Training School 2 Canadian Forces Flying Training School (2CFFTS; french: links=no, 2e École de pilotage des Forces canadiennes) is one of the Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air ...

, 15 Wing,

CFB Moose Jaw Canadian Forces Base Moose Jaw , also known as 15 Wing Moose Jaw, is a Canadian Forces base located south of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. It is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and is home to RCAF Pilot trainin ...

in Saskatchewan and 4 Wing,

CFB Cold Lake Canadian Forces Base Cold Lake , abbreviated as CFB Cold Lake, is a Canadian Forces Base in the City of Cold Lake, Alberta. The facility is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and is approximately south of the ...

in Alberta, the program is delivered as a cooperative operation between a civilian contractor, CAE Inc. (CAE Training Centres), and the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environ ...

(RCAF). Two types of aircraft are flown at NFTC: the CT-156 Harvard II and the

CT-155 Hawk The BAE Systems Hawk is a British single-engine, jet-powered advanced trainer aircraft. It was first flown at Dunsfold, Surrey, in 1974 as the Hawker Siddeley Hawk, and subsequently produced by its successor companies, British Aerospace and BAE ...

. NFTC training consists of Phases II, III, and IV. Phase II is subdivided into IIA and IIB. All pilots in the NFTC program undertake Phase IIA (Basic Pilot Training), which consists of 95.1 flying hours on the CT-156 Harvard II. After Phase IIA, students are split into 3 streams: fast-jet trainees (future instructors and/or fighter pilots); multi-engine trainees; and helicopter trainees. Those moving on to Phase III training on the

Helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attribut ...

and Multi-Engine tracks go to

3 Canadian Forces Flying Training School 3 Canadian Forces Flying Training School (3 CFFTS; french: 3e École de pilotage des Forces canadiennes) is located at the Southport Aerospace Centre just south of Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, Canada. 3 CFFTS conducts Primary Flight Training on ...

in Manitoba. Those selected for the Fast

Jet Jet, Jets, or The Jet(s) may refer to: Aerospace * Jet aircraft, an aircraft propelled by jet engines ** Jet airliner ** Jet engine ** Jet fuel * Jet Airways, an Indian airline * Wind Jet (ICAO: JET), an Italian airline * Journey to Enceladus a ...

track complete Phase IIB (another 45 flying hours on the Harvard II). Fast-jet candidates then move on to Phase III in Moose Jaw (69.8 flying hours). At the completion of Phase III, pilots are awarded their Pilot's Wings (Canadian Forces Flying Badge). Future fighter pilots move on to Phase IV, still on the Hawk, but now at

419 Tactical Fighter Training Squadron 419 Tactical Fighter Training Squadron (French: ) is a unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force. The squadron was originally formed during the Second World War and is currently based at CFB Cold Lake. It is responsible for advanced tactical fighte ...

in Cold Lake. Phase IV consists of 48.9 flying hours. Successful graduates of Phase IV are then trained on the

CF-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet (official military designation CF-188) is a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) variant of the American McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet fighter aircraft. In 1980, the F/A-18 was selected as the winner of the New ...

(CF-188) at

410 Tactical Fighter Operational Training Squadron 410 Tactical Fighter Operational Training Squadron (French: ), nicknamed the "Cougars", is a Royal Canadian Air Force aircraft squadron currently located at Canada's primary training base for the CF-18 (Canadian Forces version of the McDonnell Do ...

. Division of responsibilities between DND (RCAF), CAE, and participating Air Forces is as follows: RCAF: All in-aircraft flying instruction is given by military pilots from the Canadian Forces. DND oversees training standards, provides Canadian military trainees, provides airspace, and dictates the syllabus. CAE: The NFTC aircraft are owned by the Government of Canada, then leased to and maintained and serviced by CAE. Academic and simulator instruction is given by CAE employees (who must have had previous military flying instruction experience). CAE also operates infrastructure (buildings) and provides food services. Other participating Air Forces: International program management, foreign military flight instructors, foreign military students, quality control.

References

External links

NATO Flying Training in Canada
{{Royal Canadian Air Force Royal Canadian Air Force NATO Air forces education and training

See also

References

External links