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JBSA News
NEWS | Nov. 3, 2008

New UAS program at Randolph simulates air battle space

By Sean Bowlin Staff writer

A first-of-its-kind combat familiarization program for pilots slated to fly unmanned aircraft systems, or UASs, will soon launch at Team Randolph's 563rd Flying Training Squadron. 

The four-week long Unmanned Aircraft Systems Fundamentals Course, or UFC, will begin instruction on Nov. 21. It's designed to give initially ten newly winged graduates of Undergraduate Pilot Training a feel for the air- and ground-based battle space environment in 100 hours of combined simulator and academic classes. 

The UFC will do that by providing the new pilots, the vast majority of whom have no operational experience, a computer-based simulation based on high-end gaming technology and exposure to integrating all Air Force strike aircraft in on the cyber-aerial battlefield against "threats." 

"It simulates the real-world ground combat and air combat environment for the UFC students," explained Lt. Col. Scott Cardozo, 563rd FTS Director of Operations. 

Capt. Tom Moore, 563rd FTS UFC flight commander, plus civilian contract instructors and combat systems officer instructors from the 563rd FTS will teach, brief, observe, coach, test and critique newly winged pilots through simulated computer-based airstrikes in a real-time, extremely high-fidelity air combat picture, occasionally adding realistic, yet simulated twists to test student responses. 

UFC instructors project eventually that 100 UFC graduates per year will learn to fly UASs at Creech Air Force Base, Nev., and eventually work with the UASs' enlisted sensor operators on the job throughout the world. 

After that, qualified UAS pilots will garner flight experience in manned aircraft and possibly move between manned and unmanned vehicle piloting as their Air Force careers progress. 

Captain Moore explained that UASs can provide "persistent air cover" and reconnaissance capability to ground combat commanders for a lot less money than it would take, for example, two pairs of F-15E Strike Eagles to fly combat air patrols above a friendly unit, link up with fuel tankers repeatedly and risk losing or damaging airframes or highly experienced pilots who are very expensive to train -- and still strike threats and provide real-time information to commanders. 

Captain Moore said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz has embraced the concept of the development what will be a hopefully seasoned Air Force corps of UAS pilots. Eventually, he added, a UAS career field with a knowledge base of its own will develop. 

"It's a paradigm shift," he said. 

Colonel Cardozo said the UFC was approved approximately six weeks ago at the Headquarters Air Force level. It costs about $3 million to acquire civilian contract instructors, prepare a classroom and acquire computer equipment and simulation software. The concept for the course took two years to develop and materialize 

Colonel Cardozo, who praised the 12th Flying Training Wing's leadership for supporting the concept, added that eventually, specialized UAS war fighting software will be developed that UAS pilots can put on their home computers to practice on.