Vanguard Magazine

Jun/Jul 2015

Preserving capacity, General Tom Lawson, Chief of the Defence Staff, Keys to Canadian SAR

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T TRAining www.vanguardcanada.com JUNE/JULY 2015 39 percent. With the help of ATTR, that well-honed balanced ap- proach of practical and e-learning has delivered a 45-day course. A smaller Recognizing Air Weapons program that was seven and a half days has now been reduced to two. "We are reducing training time and we are getting people through quicker," Hallett remarks. "And we're confident the training is better. Pass marks have gone up, too. Students expect to be trained in a modern manner. And they like it, which is the critical factor – that assists with recruiting and retention." "The whole point is to provide the learning they need when they need it," Blanchette adds. "Sadly, they are not allowed to take an aircraft home and just start testing things. But with this, they can work on courses whenever it fits their schedule." The initial success of the ATTR project has not gone unnoticed. Combined with the multiple successes of the Training Innovation Cell, there has been a sharp increase in demand for this type of enhanced training. "As soon as we started producing more in- ternally, others started asking for assistance," Blanchette says. "I have a waiting list of about 30 projects that people would like us to start. I don't have the resources to start, but it goes to show that appetite from the instructors is now there." Though Tutors are hardly the best representation of where the air force is going, they are a reminder that the force must still maintain multiple fleets of legacy aircraft. However, for ATTR, the focus is very much on the latest and next generations of fast jets, helicopters, transport aircraft, and even unmanned systems. To capitalize, Calian has begun engaging original equipment manufacturers to discuss how the specific requirements of their complex systems could be integrated into future training mod- ules. "From Calian's point of view, we are building a story," Hal- lett says. "We're not just providing bodies, we are providing a capability as a product. Can we do it for other schools? Can we do it in the civilian sector?" For Blanchette, "this is a simulation and training strategy that goes well beyond the future fighter; we are looking very far ahead." With the help of others in industry, the Innovation Train- ing Cell has already adapted Xbox technology for its Air Mar- shalling Virtual Trainer and he can see a day when Google Glass will become the mechanism for both students and deployed tech- nicians to access technical applications and step-by-step instruc- tions. "We're developing that capability now." "We learned we need to keep talking and sharing ideas. nothing is developed in isolation. The more we talk, the closer it will be to what the end user wants." – Paul Hallett

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