Airforces - Typhoon school

(Jacob Rumans) #1

t’s a crisp December morning
with surprisingly few clouds
in the sky above the flat
Lincolnshire countryside. Flt Lt Phil
emerges into the chilly air from the
operations control building at No
29 Squadron and briskly walks
down the narrow path and out
onto the vast concrete pan to
his allocated Typhoon FGR4
on ‘the line’. Greeted by a
suitably togged-up engineer
braving the elements, this is a
significant day for both. For the
engineer, it’s a final checkout
on the busy flight line, part of
his training towards a frontline posting.
For Phil, it’s his first solo flight in the Typhoon.
With just an hour of live flying time in the RAF’s
premier multi-role fighter under his belt, it’s
time to bring together seven years of training.
No 29 Squadron is the RAF’s Typhoon
Operational Conversion Unit (OCU) and its
biggest fast jet squadron. It has 18 aircraft on
its books, 25 Qualified Flying Instructors (QFIs)
and it typically runs three or four concurrent pilot
training courses, as well as training brand new
engineers. It’s also the home of the Typhoon
Qualified Weapons Instructor (QWI) course – the
highest qualification in air tactics, operations
and instruction a RAF officer can gain.
This squadron underpins the RAF Typhoon
Force, the cornerstone of the UK’s combat air
capability. “I often walk through our hangar on a
Friday afternoon to help me appreciate the sheer
scale of what we do here,” says Wg Cdr Andy
Chisholm, Officer Commanding No 29 Squadron.
“This is a big responsibility, and something I’ve
wanted to do since I was ten years old. The
Typhoon Force thrives or fails right here.”
Wg Cdr Chisholm is a man with significant
responsibility, and his remit extends well beyond
the pilot side of the house, which inevitably


Training a


I


Right: Although in the past the Typhoon OCU has mainly operated
two-seat Typhoon ‘T-birds’, it now favours the single-seat ‘fi ghter’
FGR4. All photos Jamie Hunter Below: The prize – the cockpit of the
Typhoon. The layout of the Hawk T2 cockpit is almost identical to the
Typhoon, designed to smooth the transition between the two.

t’s a crisp December morning
with surprisingly few clouds
in the sky above the flat
Lincolnshire countryside. Flt Lt Phil
emerges into the chilly air from the
operations control building at No
29 Squadron and briskly walks
down the narrow path and out


significant day for both. For the


his training towards a frontline posting.


68 // APRIL 2018 #361 http://www.airforcesmonthly.com

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