Accm quicklinks4/25/2023 ![]() This close proximity allows upgrade training to occur with low logistical overhead and zero TDY costs. Operational units also send their Airmen to the FTU for certain upgrade training like Aircraft Commander and Instructor upgrade. Often the FTU will draw on operational units’ instructors to support student training. There is also natural synergy due to the 19 th SOS being co-located on Hurlburt Field with most of AFSOC’s operational units. This level of real-world operational experience is critical in developing students into mission ready operators and ensuring training remains relevant to current TTPs. Additionally, ops units will rotate operators with a handful of deployments under their belt into the FTU for a few years. Many of the “blue-suiters” spent an entire Active-Duty career flying an aircraft like the AC-130 gunship and become FTU instructors after retiring. In order to train to the most current Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) the 19 th SOS is able to cross-pollinate with ops units and leverage the veteran experience of its contract instructors. After completing theater specific ground training and ensuring all medical and fitness requirements are current, they are considered Combat Mission Ready and able to be sent on real-world missions. The ops unit will typically perform an informal sortie with an in-house instructor who ensures they are ready to deploy, but it is assumed based on past results that the student is fully mission-ready. Once they graduate from the 19 th SOS, they are considered mission ready and join an operational unit. If they do not progress, they are removed from training and are usually sent to a less-demanding non-combat aircraft. Students must also pass an evaluation after each phase. These methods are a large part of what makes them so successful at creating high-performing operators. The 19 th SOS also follows Coyle’s process to create proficiency through high repetition, high feedback training with vivid memorable rules of thumb, where models of excellence are demonstrated. Chair-flying is walking through mentally, verbally, and/or physically what one should do when faced with certain challenging scenarios and is a well-known technique within the flying community. The training is demanding and requires significant preparation including “chair-flying” to be successful. Students are under direct supervision of an instructor during every training sortie which allows tailored demonstrations and ensures safe operation of the weapon system. ![]() The basic phase focuses on academics and checklist operations, while the Intermediate and Advanced phases place students in highly stressful situations that solidify the skillset needed to perform the special operations mission. The 19 th SOS typically breaks down their MQT syllabus into Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced training which like it sounds correlates to a crawl, walk, run approach. They then learn how to employ the special operations mission in that aircraft which is considered Mission Qualification Training (MQT). ![]() They then transition to the 19 th SOS, AFSOC’s FTU, where they are trained how to fly their specific aircraft, which is considered Initial Qualification Training (IQT). An AFSOC pilot begins their journey at one of four Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) locations where they gain basic flight skills and earn their wings. This model of excellence has been refined over decades and effectively produces tip-of-the-spear operators. In order to increase the quality of cyber operators and to meet the burgeoning demands within the cyber domain, the Air Force should take the best practices from a mature Formal Training Unit (FTU) like Air Force Special Operations Command’s (AFSOC’s) 19 th Special Operations Squadron (SOS) and apply them to their cyber training pipeline.ĪFSOC is known for their elite operational capabilities and high training standards for their special mission crews. The Air Force is in the process of revising their pipeline, but has failed to capitalize on lessons learned from over a century of aviation training development. United States Cyber Command (USCC) sets joint training standards, but each service is left to develop their own training pipeline. ![]() Although CMF teams have been operating at differing levels for a decade, training and tactics development should not be considered mature. The Cyber Mission Force (CMF) was authorized in 2012 and 133 CMF teams reported initial operating capability in 2016. When compared to the flying community which has existed since World War 1, the cyber community is still in its infancy stages.
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