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Hawk-A year of success in Canada

04 Sep 2001

The BAE Systems Hawk Mk115 has been an unqualified success during its first twelve months of operation with the Canadian NFTC (NATO Flying Training in Canada) programme.

Seventeen Hawk Mk115 aircraft (designated in-country as CT-155s) are currently operating from Canadian Forces Bases (CFB) at Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, and Cold Lake, Alberta. Between them, they have amassed over 3,500 flying hours, enjoying remarkable flight line availability in their first year of operation. The first Hawk to join the NFTC programme is already approaching 500 flying hours. Pilots from Canada, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Italy, Denmark and Germany have all flown the NFTC Hawk Mk115s during the last year, and the first student pilots have now graduated from the Hawk courses.

The Hawk Mk115 plays a key role in the NFTC programme, being used for both the Advanced Jet Training (Phase III) and Tactical/Fighter Lead-In Training (Phase IV) phases of the programme. NFTC has so far ordered 20 Hawk Mk115 aircraft from BAE Systems to carry out these phases. Student pilots undertake Basic Flying Training (BFT) on the Raytheon T-6A turboprop trainer, which is known as the Harvard II in Canadian Forces service.

Eleven Advanced Jet Training student pilots, including the first two from the Royal Air Force, have received their coveted national 'Wings', having graduated from Phase III at Moose Jaw

At Cold Lake, where the Tactical/Fighter Lead-In Training (Phase IV) phase of the NFTC programme is conducted, 21 students from the United Kingdom, Canada and Singapore are currently undergoing training, being instructed by a truly international team of instructors from the UK, Canada, Denmark, Singapore, Italy and Germany. The first eight students, including six from the Royal Air Force, have recently graduated from Phase IV.

The Hawk115 has confirmed its reputation for excellent performance, outstanding reliability, flight-line availability, and ease of maintenance. After having trained on the Hawk, NFTC graduates should be well equipped to move on to operational training on the combat aircraft of participating allied nations. Commenting on the success of Hawk's first year of NFTC operations, Lieutenant General Lloyd Campbell, Canada's Chief of the Air Staff, said, "We have been delighted with the Hawk so far. I have flown the aircraft and can attest to its excellent handling characteristics and state-of-the-art avionics. It is an ideal training platform for NFTC student pilots."

Hawk is the world's most successful advanced jet trainer and light combat aircraft, outperforming and outselling all other aircraft in its class. To date, Hawk has been ordered by seventeen customers worldwide and Hawk variants operate in a wide variety of climates, ranging from the extreme cold of Finland in the Arctic Circle, to the extreme heat of the Middle East and the sweltering humidity of the Far East. Hawk has been highly successful in the last three Advanced Jet Trainer competitions, securing orders from Australia and Canada, and more recently, from South Africa.