News

New training tools save time, money

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Chad Padgett
  • 436th AW Public Affairs
Dover Air Force Base, Del --  Dover Air Force Base recently received new tools to assist the 3rd and 326th Airlift Squadrons in accomplishing some of their Quarterly Based Training.

The Boeing Learning Center and Reconfigurable Desktop Simulator opened two weeks ahead of schedule to offer pilots and loadmasters a place to train.

Now crewmembers are able to take a short walk down the road to get some of the training they need on their own time.

The Boeing Learning Center consists of three desktop computers with printouts of all the controls pilots will see when actually flying the aircraft.

"We have the placards up that have the panels that are used throughout the aircraft so that as the student works through the CBT lesson, they can use the panels literally at their fingertips to discern exactly where it's at," said Ted Clever, C-17 Globemaster III Aircrew Training System lead loadmaster instructor. "The placards are kept up to date with the current version of the aircraft."

"They can come in here and actually fly the airplane from almost any airfield, they can build a route in the learning center and fly it here in real time in the RDS," said Eugene De Paolo, C-17 ATS lead pilot instructor.

The RDS is a no-motion simulator; the simulator can be used to plan and fly routes in real time, but does not move the pilot up or down.

"They can do enough here that it gives them a lot of familiarization with the mission computer and aspects of the aircraft," said Mr. De Paolo. "Having the training on this base is a giant step for the base and the crews."

Even more features are around the corner with a Weapon Systems Trainer, which is a full-motion C-17 simulator, and a stationary loadmaster trainer station which will be unveiled in a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Dec. 5.

"This is hands down a better option for us. It's less time on the road and more time getting the training we need and back in the mission," said 1st Lt. Noah Ayers, 3rd AS first pilot.