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German pilots join IFTS

30th September 2021 - 16:00 GMT | by Shephard News Team in London

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The M-346A is used by IFTS for Phase IV training. (Photo: Leonardo)

Germany has sent two pilots to the IFTS fast-jet training course as part of an evaluation programme.

Germany has sent two pilots to undertake Phase IV fast-jet pilot training at the International Flight Training School (IFTS) at Lecce airbase in Italy.

IFTS is a joint effort between the 61st Wing of the Italian Air Force and Leonardo. As well as Italian pilots, IFTS is currently training pilots from the Qatar Emiri Air Force who started their course in June.

This arrangement also includes an industrial partnership between Leonardo and CAE for the maintenance and support of the aircraft fleet and synthetic training equipment.

According to Leonardo, the Qatari pilots have completed the synthetic training modules on the T-346A Partial Task Trainer (PTT) and the Full Mission Simulator (FMS) and have now begun the in-flight instructional training phase.

A new wider IFTS campus is under construction at Decimomannu Air Force Base in Sardinia, a flight academy capable of hosting students and technical staff, in addition to accommodation, recreational areas, a cafeteria, and sports facilities.

The use of IFTS by Germany is a significant event given that Leonardo is pursuing the NATO Flight Training Europe (NFTE) programme.

Historically, Germany has sent its fast-jet pilots to Sheppard AFB to train on the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training Program (ENJJPT).