CAE today announced that CAE Australia Pty Ltd has signed a teaming agreement with Cobham Aviation Services to establish Team AUStringer, which will respond to the Project AIR 5428 Phase 3 Aviation Mission Training System solicitation for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF).
The newly formed Team AUStringer will combine best-in-class training, leading-edge training technology and proven operational expertise to present a proposal to the Commonwealth for a sovereign, transformative and enduring mission training system.
The Aviation Mission Training System (AMTS) will be utilised to train the RAAF’s mission aviators, including electronic warfare officers, maritime patrol and response officers, air battle managers, air traffic controllers and other mission specialists. The AMTS, to be deployed at the Air Academy located at RAAF Base East Sale in Victoria, will feature a comprehensive training solution, including ground-based and airborne training and a digitally-enabled integrated learning environment.
“We look forward to leading Team AUStringer and leveraging our collective experience to develop a modern, integrated mission training system that leverages the latest digital technologies to optimize the blend of live and synthetic training capabilities to produce RAAF mission aviators,” said Matthew Sibree, Managing Director, Indo-Pacific, CAE Australia Pty Ltd. “As the world’s leading platform agnostic simulation and training pure play company, CAE is ideally suited to lead this pursuit by leveraging our training systems integration capabilities and the significant investments made in our digitally immersive training technologies capable of producing high-quality mission-ready aviators more efficiently and effectively.”
Team AUStringer’s AMTS will transform the way the RAAF trains its mission aviators. The integrated and comprehensive training solution will provide the knowledge, skills, ground-based training and live airborne training necessary to develop proficiency to operate in a fifth-generation mission environment. Graduates will proceed to operational conversion training at RAAF frontline units for assignments on a variety of aircraft types, including the P-8A maritime patrol aircraft, F/A-18 Super Hornet multi-role fighter, E/A-18 Growler electronic warfare aircraft, E-7A Wedgetail airborne early warning and control aircraft and others. The AMTS will also deliver all the instruction necessary for air traffic controllers and operations officers to develop the fundamental aviation knowledge required to support RAAF missions.
“Cobham, as the largest employer of mission aircrew in Australia outside the Australian Defence Force, is well positioned to provide deep airborne operational capability and mission expertise as part of Team AUStringer,” said John Boag, CEO, Cobham Aviation Services. “Cobham has more than 25 years experience in delivering aviation services to the Australian government. We recruit, train and deploy our own mission aviators to conduct a range of special operations in complex environments. We are thrilled to be teaming with CAE Australia to build Australia’s sovereign industry capability.”
The moniker “Team AUStringer” draws its name from Austringer, a word of French origin related to falconry and training birds of prey to hunt. Since the Aviation Mission Training System will be responsible for training RAAF mission aviators on tasks such as command and control, submarine hunting, and electronic warfare, the companies believe the name “Team AUStringer” offered an appropriate connection.
As the prime contractor leading Team AUStringer, CAE will leverage its vast global experience training military aircrews. For example, CAE currently supports the initial training of United States Navy naval flight officers (NFOs) who graduate from training at Naval Air Station Pensacola and proceed to some of the same operational aircraft in service with the RAAF, including the P-8A Poseidon, F/A-18 Super Hornet and E/A-18 Growler. The U.S. Navy makes extensive use of the CAE-built Multi-Crew Simulator for training mission aviators and CAE also delivers academic and simulator instruction
CAE’s Defence & Security business unit is at the leading edge of digital innovation providing training and mission support solutions across multi-domain operations – air, land, maritime, space and cyber. Our training and operational support solutions are developed and delivered to customers who operate in complex, high-stakes environments where mission readiness and successful outcomes are critical. Our acquisition of L3Harris’ Military Training business in 2021, including Link and Doss Aviation, has enabled us to create the world’s leading pure play, platform agnostic training and simulation company serving the global defence market.
CAE is a high technology company, at the leading edge of digital immersion, providing solutions to make the world a safer place. Backed by a record of more than 70 years of industry firsts, we continue to reimagine the customer experience and revolutionize training and operational support solutions in civil aviation, defense and security, and healthcare. We are the partner of choice to customers worldwide who operate in complex, high-stakes and largely regulated environments, where successful outcomes are critical. As testament to our customers’ ongoing needs for our solutions, over 60 percent of CAE’s revenue is recurring in nature. We have the broadest global presence in our industry, with approximately 11,000 employees, 160 sites, and training locations in over 35 countries. www.cae.com
Cobham conducts airborne surveillance and search-and-rescue operations spanning the country’s exclusive economic zone and international SAR region utilising highly modified ISR aircraft. Cobham’s non-pilot aircrew operate a sovereign, Australian-developed mission management system integrating a range of sensors and communication systems to deliver operational outcomes in the national interest. As a leading specialist aviation operator in Australia, Cobham also provides fly-in, fly-out services in support of mining, oil and gas projects; critical freight and VIP charter flights.
