On their fifth day at Sintra, all remaining
candidates begin their inflight screening, flying
up to seven general-handling flights. Basic
aircraft manoeuvring, straight-and-level flying,
turns, climbs and descents are demonstrated
to them and they are required to ‘copy’ these
manoeuvres, closely monitored by the instructor
in the back seat. More complex stalls and
traffic patterns are also taught. The instructor
will introduce some elementary aerobatic
figures in the latter stages of the selection
process to assess the candidates’ aptitude.
Each candidate flies with two different
instructors to guarantee a fair appraisal
and will be evaluated on their seventh
flight by a third check-pilot.
Candidates frequently drop out during the ESV
phase and departures are often self-triggered.
Reasons range
from an initial
misconception
about the‘art of flying’ to difficulties
adapting to military life.
To prevent excessive flying
hours, Esquadra 802 IPs
will also prematurely end a
candidate’s screening if there’s
clear evidence of limited progress and/
or airmanship or even a lack of esprit de corps.
Once successfully streamed through the ESV,
all candidate cadets go to a military ‘boot camp’
before entering the AFA in September. On
average, 50% of all candidates will get this far.AFA syllabus
All AFA students, including those destined
to become operational pilots, complete
four-and-a-half years of instruction at the
institute, and are exposed to a wide variety
of academic lectures and study material.
During the academic phase at the AFA,
pilot students will also get back into
the cockpit of Sintra’s Chipmunks.The first year of AFA flying is dedicated
to basic ‘contact’ work (C1 Contacto
Basico). Students are instructed on take-off,
landing, traffic patterns and basic aerobatic
techniques during a 12-mission course.
At the end of their first year, all students
will go solo during their 20th Chipmunk flight
(a total that includes the seven ESV flights).
During the solo, students perform three local
traffic patterns, plus touch-and-go landings.
Requirements for this flight include runway
crosswinds below 5kts, at least 3.1 miles (5km)
visibility and a cloudless sky below 3,000ft
(914m). Since the Chipmunk training syllabus
is of secondary importance within the overall
AFA curriculum, some students only go solo
well into their second year at the academy. Out
of solidarity with their co-students, the pilot
students in each individual class only receive
their ‘Chipmunk solo’ patches after the
last of their cohort has soloed.
To assist first-year students and
ESV candidates in mastering the
Chipmunk, two fifth-year AFA
cadets developed a low-cost
Chipmunk simulator using a
redundant DHC-1 fuselage.
Students frequently use this
for emergency procedures and
cockpit switchology work.
During their second year at the
AFA, students complete the advanced
contact course (C2 Contacto Avançado),
again over 12 sorties. This introduces
aerobatics to the programme. Simulated flame-
out landings are also conducted, by bringing
the engine to idle at various relative starting
points, altitudes and airspeeds over the airfield.Navigation fl ying
Towards the end of their time at the AFA,
students receive tuition in navigation (N1
Navegaçao VFR) and formation (F1 Formaçao),
totalling some 15 missions. The seven low-level
visual flying rules navigation missions utilise the
FAP’s standard tactical pilot charts, also used
by the Epsilon-equipped Esquadra 101 (the
FAP’s dedicated initial training squadron). Tocandidate’s screening if there’stheir ‘Chipmunk solo’ patches after the
last of their cohort has soloed.
To assist first-year students and
ESV candidates in mastering the
Chipmunk, two fifth-year AFA
cadets developed a low-cost
Chipmunk simulator using a
redundant DHC-1 fuselage.
Students frequently use this
for emergency procedures and
cockpit switchology work.
During their second year at the
AFA, students complete the advancedChipmunk serial 1319 (OGMA-09) over the Atlantic
coast. The most important modifi cation made to
the type was the installation of a new and more
powerful 180hp Lycoming O-360-A1A engine.The ‘steam gauge’
cockpit of the DHC-- Modifi cations
associated with
the Chipmunk’s
return to service
as a trainer
in the mid-
1990s include
a new radio
and an IFF
transponder.
42 // DECEMBER 2018 #369 http://www.airforcesmonthly.comPortuguese Chipmunks