Franco-Belgian Advanced Jet Training School closes
A CEREMONY on October
11 marked the formal
closure of the Franco-
Belgian Advanced Jet
Training School (AJeTS)
at Base Aérienne 120
Cazaux, France. The joint
unit, flying the Alpha Jet,
had trained Belgian and
French pilots since 2004.
Since its inception, the
AJeTS flew more than
50,000 flight hours, training
165 Belgian and 215
French pilots. From 2019,
Belgian fighter pilots will
train in the US with the
Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot
Training programme and the
US Air Force’s 80th Flying
Training wing at Sheppard
Air Force Base, Texas.
The Belgian Alpha Jets,
which have gone through
a mid-life update, including
new head-up display andGPS navigation, will remain
at Cazaux for now, but have
now been put up for sale,
although they will not be
available until December
next year. In the meantime,they will continue in use for
training French Air Force
pilots. Bids have already
been invited by the Belgian
Directorate General Material
Resources for the 25Belgian Alpha Jets at the
base, along with engines,
other equipment and a
simulator, with a deadline of
November 7 set for offers to
be submitted. Dave AllportAbove: Since 2004, the Belgian Air Component’s 11 Squadron was permanently detached to
the AJeTS at Cazaux, where it was incorporated within the École de Transition Opérationnelle
(ETO ) 2/8. Alpha Jet 1B+ AT24 (c/n B24) was seen in 11 Squadron centennial markings at
Beauvechain in September. Benoît DenetSubscribe to http://www.airforcesmonthly.com
for breaking news stories. E-mail the news team
at [email protected]http://www.airforcesmonthly.com #369 DECEMBER 2018 // 7
Belgium chooses F-35 to replace F-16s
BELGIUM HAS selected
the Lockheed Martin F-35A
to replace its F-16s, with
the country’s Council
of Ministers choosing
the fighter ahead of the
Eurofighter Typhoon on
October 25. The Dassault
Rafale was omitted from
the competition after
France failed to provide
a formal of fer. As well as34 F-35A Block 4 jets,
the council approved
acquisition of two MQ-9B
SkyGuardian unmanned
aerial vehicles for the
Belgian Air Component.
Defence minister
Steven Vandeput said
the F-35 was “the best
choice for our country
in financial, operational,
and industrial terms”.Belgium will pay €3.8bn
for the 34 F-35As, plus two
flight simulation centres,
equipment and information
and communications
technology for operational
and technical support, and
pilot helmets. The contract
will also cover training of
pilots and technicians and
technological development
until 2030. The firstaircraft are expected to
be delivered by 2023.
The MQ-9Bs will operate
from Florennes air base,
to where the drones will
be delivered from 2022-24,
becoming fully operational
by 2025. Each system
will cost €180m and
plans call for two further
systems to be procured
and in service by 2030.F-
grounding
ON OCTOBER 11 the
F-35 Joint Program
Office (JPO) grounded
most of the Lightning II
fleet to inspect fuel tubes
in the aircraft’s engine.
The decision followed
the loss of a US
Marine Corps F-35B
in an accident on
September 28.
Within a week of
the grounding, 80%
of operational F-35s
were returned to flying
status and at the time
the JPO expected the
remaining F-35s to be
cleared for flight “over
the coming weeks”.
Any defective fuel
tubes were replaced with
items from the current
spares inventory, while
engine manufacturer
Pratt & Whitney urgently
procured more parts
to speed up repairs for
the remaining jets.
A faulty fuel tube is
at the centre of the
investigation into the
F-35B crash near
Marine Corps Air
Station Beaufort, South
Carolina. The USMC
pilot safely ejected from
the aircraft, which was
assigned to Marine
Fighter Attack Training
Squadron (VMFAT) 501.
At the time of the
stand-down, 22 of the
F-35Bs delivered to the
USMC were involved in
operations in Japan and
Afghanistan, according
to the service’s deputy
commandant for aviation,
Lt Gen Steve Rudder.Tyndall hit by Hurricane Michael
THE US Air Force’s Tyndall
Air Force Base in Florida
felt the full weight of
Hurricane Michael, which
struck the base on October
- Among others, Tyndall
is home to the F-22A
‘schoolhouse’ under the
325th Fighter Wing (FW).
Visiting the base after
the storm, Vice President
Mike Pence announced
that the government
would “make sure all of
the resources, all of the
support is made available”.
All flyable Tyndall F-22s
were evacuated to Wright-
Patterson AFB, Ohio,
before the storm hit. They
then moved to Joint Base
Langley-Eustis, Virginia.
A total of 17 F-22s were
unable to leave Tyndall
because of maintenance
issues and some of thesewere damaged. Secretary
of the Air Force Heather
Wilson said that although
95% of Tyndall’s buildingswere damaged and hangars
were “in terrible shape”
there was “less damage to
aircraft than we feared”.Other aircraft were
temporarily evacuated
from bases in Florida and
Georgia as Hurricane
Michael prepared
to make landfall.
The USAF says it has
now flown all but three
F-22s out from Tyndall
and that Raptor flying
training with the 43rd
Fighter Squadron will
temporarily move to nearby
Eglin AFB, Florida, until
missions can resume from
Tyndall. The operational
95th FS is to disperse
personnel and aircraft
to JB Langley-Eustis, JB
Elmendorf-Richardson,
Alaska and JB Pearl
Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii.Above: A pilot from the 27th Fighter Squadron, from Langley AFB, prepares to fl y an F-22A from
Tyndall AFB, following Hurricane ‘Michael’, on October 24. USAF/Airman 1st Class Kelly WalkerA Belgian Air Component F-16AM takes off from Rovaniemi Air Base during Exercise Trident Juncture 2018. Allied Joint Force
Command Naples/Minna-Leena Piirainen