airacademy

Discovering Cartagena

More Articles By Phillip Bruce www.raxomnium.com

THE SPANISH AIR FORCE ACADEMY

San Javier is the place where all Spanish air force pilots are trained and the courses are intensive and demanding.

Flying boats operated in the area from the start of the 20^th century. The calm waters of the inland sea, the Mar Menor, made operating these aircraft easy and there are interesting photographs of early operations.

The Spanish Navy Air Corps proposed in 1926 the establishment of a new air base close to Cartagena in 1926. The port city was a key strategic facility and an important industrial centre.

A large amount of flat land on the alluvial plain at Santiago de la Ribera was acquired and work started on constructing the San Javier Air Base in 1928. The base was very close to the Los Alcazáres Air Base, where Spanish Military General Aviation had been operating from 1919, mainly with floating aircraft.

At the end of the Civil War, the Spanish Air Force was created on October 7, 1939 and all Navy Air Corps assets were transferred to the new organisation. Personnel initially came from the army and navy. A short time later, pilot training started at the San Javier Air Base.

In 1943, the Academia General Del Aire, or Spanish Air Force Academy (SAFA), was set up at San Javier, on 28 July, with the role of training officers in military, aeronautical and other subjects. The first students started training on September 15, 1945.

Since then, the academy has been at the heart of Spain’s air force training. Distinguished students include His Majesty King Juan Carlos, who studied from September 1958 to July 1959 and received his wings at the July 15, 1959, graduation ceremony. His Royal Highness Prince Felipe de Borbon, studied at the academy during the 1987/88 academic year and was commissioned as a Lieutenant on July 10, 1989.

Since its creation, more than 7,000 students have passed through the school, which is commanded by a colonel.

Cadets belong to various parts of the air force. These include the General Corps (Superior and Intermediate Grades); the Administrative and Engineering Corps (Superior Grade); Specialist Corps (Intermediate Grade); Engineering Corps (Technical Grade) and Contract Officers. On completion of their studies, students are commissioned as First or Second Lieutenants.

Since 1945 over 800,000 flight instruction hours have been logged at San Javier, in about 17 types of aircraft. These include the Bücker, Mentor, T-6, DC-3, E-24 “Bonanza,” T-12, and Aviocar, to the present-day E-26 “Tamiz” and E25 “Mirlo.”

Another major milestone was achieved at the academy on March 2, 2004, when the CASA C-101 Aviojet surpassed 176,124 hours of flight, beating the former record held by the Bücker Bu-B1 Jungmann.

Study and Instruction at the Spanish Air Force Academy

The academy at San Javier carries out a wide range of duties. It provides

	Integral training (military, aeronautical and academic) for the Superior and Intermediate grades of the Spanish Air Force General Corps.
	General military training for the following Corps and Grades of the Spanish Air Force: Administrative Corps; Engineers, Superior and Intermediate Grades; Specialists, Intermediate Grade.
	Complementary training for the qualifications required to join the Administrative Corps of the Spanish Air Force.
	Basic military training for the Armed Forces General Corps (Lawyers, Medical Services, Auditors and Music Directors) as ordered by the General Director for Training and Recruitment of the Ministry of Defence. This training is also similar for Contract Air Force Officers.

In addition to its training activities, the Spanish Air Force Academy, like any other unit, carries out operational missions assigned to it by the Air Command to which it belongs (the Mando Aéro General) or the Air Combat Command.

Study Plans

Study plans follow these criteria:

	Guarantee the full development of the personality and the complete education of the person.
	Encourage social co-existence and related constitutional values.
	Promote general formation and core specialization of every corps and degree.

Plans of studied are structured according to professional needs, considering human, physical, military and technical education factors. They are carried out through compulsory and elective courses in a manner that allows each student to develop a personal curriculum.

Duration of Study

Students of the Superior Grade must complete five years of study, while those of the Intermediate Grade must complete three, attaining a course load of 450 and 270 credit hours, respectively, in a manner similar to the Spanish General Education System.

However, for those students who directly enter into a Corps requiring a previous degree or specific educational background, the time of study at the academy is one year. For students who are already enlisted and enter via the internal promotion route, the maximum study time is two years, which takes into account their previous technical and military education.

Upon completion of their studies, Superior Grade students obtain the rank of First Lieutenant (Superior Grade) and those of the Intermediate Grade the rank of Second Lieutenant (Intermediate Grade).

Departmental Structure

The integration of the military education system into the general education system requires that, as at universities, military training centres are organised into departments. The academy’s departments are:

	Social and Juridical Sciences.
	Physical and Mathematical Sciences and Applied Technologies.
	Languages.
	Logistics, Economics and Administration.
	Techniques of Flying and Aerial Navigation.
	Tactics and Weapons Systems.
	Instruction and Training

The academy has an outstanding record of success with an academic attrition rate of less than five per cent – attributed to a very rigorous selection process.

Flying Instruction

Flying instruction is divided into three phases:

Phase 1 (Elementary Flight)

During this phase, the student receives approximately 48 hours of flight instruction in a conventional trainer aircraft, the Enaer T-34 Pillán. The student must qualify in a wide range of maneuvers, including acrobatic flight and basic formation flying. In less than 20 hours, the student must obtain the necessary qualifications to be able to fly solo.

Phase 2 (Basic Flight)

This phase of flight training includes 108 hours in the CASA C-101 jet trainer, which is built in Spain. The programme is structured as follows:

	Transition Phase: Familiarisation, acrobatics and traffic patterns.
	Training Phases: Techniques and procedures in formation flying of two, three and four aircraft.
	Instrument Phase: Basic techniques of instrument flight, proximity and navigation.
	Low-Introduction. Five low-level missions for students who qualify for jet training, as an introduction to that phase.

Phase 3 (Advanced Flight)

After completing the previous two phase, students are selected for further specialisation in the following categories:

	Fighter and attack.
	Transport.
	Helicopters

This training takes place at the flight schools, respectively, of Palaver la Real (Badajoz); Matacán (Salamanca); and Armilla (Granada).

The student success rate for flight training is between 85 and 90 per cent. Those students who do not pass the flying phases at the academy still continue their studies in the area of Support of Air Operations, which includes responsibilities such as Command and Control and Security.

Military Instruction and Physical Training

Special attention is paid at the academy to military instruction and physical education. This includes all the activities that aim at learning specific professional military development skills. The principal objective is to highlight leadership qualities, self-discipline and sense of responsibility in the context of a demanding environment. In order to attain these objectives, the curriculum includes the following activities, carried out in the Cadet Squadron:

	Parade training and academic presentations.
	Combat instruction and shooting exercises.
	Command and control exercises.
	Reconnaissance patrols.
	Search and rescue training.

The Physical Education section carries out a programme of physical preparation and sports which includes periodic physical aptitude examinations. Students must pass, in a progressive manner, the minimums established for these tests. In addition, a programme of sports activities includes:

	The biennial Spanish Military Academies Sports Competition.
	Bilateral sports competitions with the Air Force Academies of France, Italy, Germany and Morocco.
	The EUAFA Sports Competition.
	Bilateral competitions with local and national universities.

Patrulla Águila

The Spanish Air Force Aerial Demonstration Team, the Patrulla Águila, or Eagle Patrol, is made up of volunteer instructors from the academy. This subject is covered elsewhere on our site.

Source information: Spanish Air Force Academy. With thanks. Phillip Bruce.

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