It's calm and peaceful in the 72(R) Squadron crewroom when we arrive at Linton, having pitched up at the main gate at 0730 as planned, to be met by Flt Lt Martin Wintermeyer, WSO instructor with 76(R) Squadron and 2010 Tucano display manager. With one course on ground-school and another on detachment at Kinloss this would not be 72(R)'s busiest day, but aircraft are already being towed on to the flightline ahead of a full day's flying with other resident squadrons, giving GAR a great opportunity to take an in-depth look at Linton's vital training role and also the chance to discuss the 2010 Tucano display with Martin and display pilot Flt Lt Tom Bould.
Tom, a Creamie instructor on 72(R) Squadron, has been at Linton for a little over two years and will complete his tour at the end of the airshow season before returning to Valley for a refresher course on the Hawk, then 19 Squadron for tactical weapons training and, he hopes, on to the Typhoon. He's extremely well placed to answer a few questions about the BFJT (Basic Fast Jet Training) syllabus and what is expected of the students at Linton having completed EFT (Elementary Flying Training) on the Tutor.
"When they arrive here the students have all flown before so they have some experience in the air and of the airmanship skills that are expected of them. The biggest initial difference between the Tutor and the Tucano is that they are in the cockpit on their own; it can take a little while to adjust to that and it is definitely a different feeling.
"In essence though they start from scratch as they have to learn to fly a new aircraft; but the learning curve is very steep here and once they have soloed we develop their general handling, instrument flying and also navigation. This is another big step for the students as in the Tutor they navigated at 120 kts and 500 ft; here they navigate at 240 kts and at 250 ft. After that we move in to the advanced phase of the course which includes formation flying and develops their navigation skills."
It is important to remember that every student who arrives at Linton has already been streamed as suitable for fast jets. This is one of the big changes from days gone by when any student completing their first phase of pilot training would have gone on to the Jet Provost and only been streamed for fast jet, rotary or multi-engine after (or during!) that course.
The Tucano has been, and will continue to be, a great success fulfilling its role in this intermediate step of a pilot (or WSO's) training, bridging the gap between the Tutor and the Hawk. For pilots that means nine or ten months at Linton and approximately 120 hours in the air and the same in the Tucano simulator run by Thales.
"It really is an ideal transitionary aircraft," says Martin.
"It's got good performance, for the pilot training it is ideal for teaching general handling and with it being a tandem two seat aircraft it has an operational feel which is important to experience before going on to the Hawk.
"The speed bands are perfect with it being much quicker than the Tutor but not as quick as the Hawk, and it is also important that it is a turboprop as it delivers instant power when you need it, which is useful experience before moving on to jets," adds Tom."
As we learned from our visit to 208 Squadron at RAF Valley, capacity, or perhaps a lack of capacity truth be told, is one of the biggest pitfalls facing students and Linton is no different, be they hopeful pilots or WSOs. Every student is different though and some will naturally cope better than others as Martin explains.
"You can teach a student something which they will get hold of very well. On their next sortie they are expected to remember that along with something new that they've just been taught and, when they start to reach capacity, it gets harder and harder for them to retain each piece of information and essentially recall everything they have been taught.
"In many ways it is like learning to drive. Changing gear and such like seems almost impossible to start with but after a while you barely even think about it. We're trying to build their capacity so that they really don't have to think too much about the flying as they need to concentrate on tactical elements such as the formation, the weather and releasing weapons in the right place and at the right time.
"What we also have are some of the most expertly trained instructors around and also ways in which students can be assisted should they need to try and build their capacity.
"Coaching has been used in the business and sports world for a long time now and this is available to us as a powerful tool which helps people carry out their job more effectively. This is about the mental approach and we've seen some success in aiding people to increase their capacity."
The practical side of this approach is very similar to that which we saw at Valley and any student who is struggling in this regard will be given a package of additional sorties and training to help them get through a sticky patch on the course.
"Our job is get students through the course and on to Valley, not to fail them," says Tom.
"So, if a student does wobble or experience a bad trip then we will do whatever we can to help them get through it, whether it's extra work or even just a flight with a senior instructor.
"The CFS (Central Flying School) instructor training course actually teaches you how to put that package together and there is also an emphasis on the different ways of teaching it. If something isn't working for a student then we can approach it from another direction and try that instead."
For WSOs, navigators in old money, Linton features in their training regardless of their eventual operational role, be it fast jet or multi-engine as Martin explains.
"They go to Cranwell for a basic ground school and some experience in the Tutor before coming to Linton and their learning curve here is pretty phenomenal really. They go from navigating at relatively slow speeds to flying at low level and flying quite complex sortie profiles - all in 22 trips. We assess their capacity and suitability for fast jet or multi-engine and when they finish here they have role streaming and then return to Cranwell for further training, this time on the Dominie."
After a lengthy sit down with Tom and Martin we head across to one of Linton's large hangars to take a closer look at some of the Tucano fleet, following which we head off to talk to some of the students in person to get their perspective on training to reach what for many of them is a lifelong goal.
For the student pilots we meet cramming is the order of day, many of them revising check-lists as they prepare for their afternoon sorties and admitting that when they're not flying or in the simulator (which we visit later in the day) then extra work or revision is necessary to give them the best chance of success. Following a course on human factors (studying other people's errors to avoid making them yourself) and a trip to the centrifuge for a test of their g tolerance it was back to Linton and ground-school, which meant hitting the textbooks; vital preparation for when they started flying just two weeks before our visit.
"I think most of us would admit that it is even better than we were expecting," says one.
"It is a lot of work though and very different to EFT where we went solo after something like 14 dual trips - here you are expected to know a lot more before you even go on trip number one, so there is pressure to revise and make sure you know everything."
The aforementioned jump from Tutor to Tucano is also one which stimulates lively debate.
"It's a pretty big jump and being sat up front on your own is very different as you can't obviously see your instructor any more, you can only hear their voice through the radio. The engine power is a massive improvement too!"
The students admit that the early stages of the Linton syllabus are comparable to that at Cranwell, although they are equally aware that the pressure level will increase throughout the course and that their flexibility and capacity (that word again!) will be tested more and more as they progress.
"We know that there are less single seat fast jet slots available these days but I think that most of us try to put that to the back of our mind. Just graduating from Linton with RAF wings would be a massive achievement."
For the WSO students we meet at 76(R) Squadron life is very similar but their current options for posting are a little more limited. The vast majority of student pilots hope to reach Typhoon, but Tornado GR.4 and Harrier remain potential options, with the latter obviously key for Royal Navy students. The WSO students currently have just two possibilities however - Tornado GR.4 for those adjudged suitable for fast jet or Nimrod MRA.4.
"We are currently on the low level element of the course which means plotting a route to a target at 250 ft and ensuring you stay on track and on time," says one of the six students sat in front of us in the 76(R) crewroom.
"How are you finding this phase," I ask, "good fun?"
"It's awesome," is the synchronised response from all six!
A duff question perhaps, although low level fast operations are not for everyone, with the group admitting that air sicknesses can be a problem although generally speaking people acclimatise to the heat and confines of the cockpit and oxygen mask soon enough and can overcome this.
"The pressure steadily builds through the course but I think we all put a lot of pressure on ourselves as well. We know that not everyone can go on to the GR.4 yet we all want to get a fast jet slot, so you really want to try and show that you are good enough for this before streaming takes place at the end of this course and our return to Cranwell."
During our visit we were afforded a visit to the Tucano simulator, one of a number of synthetic training facilities utilised for both student pilots and WSOs. It's comparable to the Hawk simulator we sampled at Valley and, similarly, students will become very familiar with it throughout their time at Linton. It's interesting to watch and listen as a student is talked through some basic handling by the sim instructor, himself a very experienced pilot, before he returns to a virtual Linton for an approach and landing. It's obvious that these hour long sessions are quite intense for the students and of great value before they are let loose to try out each new skill in the air.
After a quick trip to the runway caravan via Linton's nearly new state of the air traffic control tower (it opened in November of last year) we race back to the balcony of the old tower to watch Tom's third and fourth practises of the day before heading down on to the flightline to see some of the students we spoke to earlier as they leave on training sorties. Faces are hidden by visors and oxygen masks but the enthusiastic waves as they taxi are sign enough that despite the pressures of trying to make the grade, flying is what binds them all together and on a beautiful day like this who can blame them?
It is far from easy to succeed in the world of military aviation, whether it be as pilot or WSO. What is very clear from our visit to Linton however is that the career is still an attractive one to a legion of young men and women and, those adjudged good enough to enter the training cycle will be afforded to best instructors, expertise and equipment. In the shape of the Shorts Tucano they are also able to learn in one of best and most successful aircraft of its type. RAF Linton-on-Ouse and its students are in very good hands.
GAR wants to interact with its readers so if you have a question for the author or a comment to make on this feature, please click on the button below. The best comments will appear right here on GAR.
If you would like to discuss using any of our imagery or feature content please contact us.