AirForces Monthly – June 2018

these exercises as representatives of TLP. They

present new developments from the course to

allied nations, so they can integrate them too.

AFM: Are specific missions created

for helicopters and how do they

integrate with fixed-wing aircraft?

Col Villar: The missions try to reproduce

the conditions of a real operation, which

means that helicopters and transport

aircraft participate. Helicopters will

be protected during the transit to the

area of operations or while extracting

a downed airman, for example.

AFM: What kind of management work

is required to stage a TLP course?

Col Villar: One of the biggest complications

is the co-ordination of participating assets,

not only the pilots on the ‘friendly’ side, but

also the opposition forces. These include

fighters simulating different real-world threats,

land-based and portable air defence systems

and electronic warfare systems, directed

against communications, radar and infrared.

Each mission is planned in great detail.

The objective is to provide a threat

proportional to the scale of the course and

with the ability to adapt the pressure of

the threat according to the development

of the mission. This offers the best

possible training and ensures the crews

meet the learning objectives set for each

mission. The ‘hostile’ systems are provided

by participating nations and electronic

warfare simulators and ground-based air

defence systems are sometimes used.

Another important issue is co-ordinating the

engineering side. The units have to generate

additional sorties alongside their normal

programming, which distorts maintenance chains.

AFM: How many countries

have participated, and how many

courses have been run?

Col Villar: Participating nations include

the ten nations that make up the Tactical

Leadership Programme: Belgium, Denmark,

France, Greece, Germany, Italy, the

Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom and

the United States. There are also invited

nations that have included Austria, Bulgaria,

Canada, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia,

Finland, Hungary, New Zealand, Norway,

Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia,

Switzerland and Turkey, among others.

More than 200 flight courses have been

carried out since the beginning of TLP in

Germany, with almost 6,000 pilots graduating.

Since the move to Albacete, more than 100

academic courses and 28 flying courses

have been carried out, with 25,500 people

participating. Approximately 1,000 pilots

have graduated from flying courses since the

relocation to Los Llanos, including 92 from

the Spanish Air Force [Ejército del Aire].

AFM: How important is TLP to the

region and the Spanish Air Force?

Col Villar: TLP is already part of the city

of Albacete, the co-located Ala 14 and the

air force. The local population identifies

strongly with the air base and has become

accustomed to the temporary ‘invasions’ of

personnel from all over the world. The most

requested course is usually September,

which coincides with the Feria de Albacete

festival, popular among allied forces. TLP

also provides jobs to the local community and

participants contribute to the local economy.

AFM: How do Spanish Air Force

pilots and aircraft compare to those

of other participating countries?

Col Villar: Since Spain’s Ejército del

Aire began to participate in multinational

operations, our pilots have always had

international recognition, evidenced by

the fact that they have served as mission

commanders in operations since the

Balkans campaigns. Aircrew have kept

pace with aircraft capabilities. The EF-18 is

in very good shape after systems upgrades

including electronic warfare, and the

Eurofighter’s capabilities are still advancing.

Above: One of the rarer types involved at TLP 2018-1 was this Spanish Air Force TM.12D electronic

intelligence (ELINT) platform. TM.12D-72 ‘47-12’ is the sole example now operated by 472 Escuadrón based

at Torrejón. Stephan de Bruijn Below: Taking part in TLP 2017-3 last October, C.16-71 is a Tranche 3A EF2000

that had only recently been delivered to Ala 14 and was still without its fuselage serials. Spain’s expanded

presence in international operations since the mid-1990s has been paralleled by a more active role in TLP.

An Ejército del Aire Hornet pair on the runway threshold at Albacete for a TLP 2018-1 mission. The varied mission programme at TLP ranges from no-fly zone

enforcement to anti-surface warfare and from high-value asset defence to low-level attack. Stephan de Bruijn

AFM

84 // JUNE 2018 #363 http://www.airforcesmonthly.com

Tactical Leadership Programme