Selection for Flight Screening Program
Selection process
The
Flight Screening Program compares applicants from across Australia. ADF
Pilot Selection Agency staff select applicants to undertake the program
based on:
- pilot aptitude
- commissioning test scores
- recommendations by the psychologist and recruiting officer.
This process is based entirely on material received from Defence
Force Recruiting and does not require another interview.
The ADF Pilot Selection Agency receives more
applications than there are flight screening positions, therefore gaining a
position on a flight screening course is competitive.
To make themselves as competitive as possible
candidates should ensure that the most up-to-date information is passed to
Defence Force Recruiting for inclusion in their dossiers prior to them being
sent to the ADF Pilot Selection Agency. Australian
Defence Force Academy (ADFA) applicants are considered separately to
Direct Entry Officer applicants, so they can compete for courses during school and
uni holidays.
Selected applicants will be allocated to the next available Flight
Screening Program course (preferably that nominated at the recruiting
stage). Applicants who are selected are informed in writing. Travel
will be organised by Defence Force Recruiting or, for in-Service
applicants, their Career Management Agency.
Some applicants will have to start or even complete specialist
medicals prior to attending Flight Screening Program due to the short
period between the end of their course and possible appointment to the
ADF. These particularly tight time-lines will be advised to Defence
Force Recruiting well in advance.
The Flight Screening Program
The Flight Screening Program is a flying-based assessment of
potential candidates conducted at the BAE Systems Training Academy at
Tamworth. The program is divided into two courses, Basic and Advanced.
Courses are based on CT-4B and CAP 10 aircraft, with two simulator
sorties in an IF Synthetic Trainer. Both courses encompasses 15 hours
of flight time and are two weeks in duration. Scores are awarded on a
per sequence basis for a number of sortie profiles.
The profiles are designed to investigate an applicant's suitability
for the airborne environment with particular emphasis on suitability
for subsequent training as a military pilot. A raw mean score is
derived at the end of an applicant's course. For the Basic Course, this
is an average of scored sequences over 98 profiles; while for the
Advanced Course the average is over 115 profiles. Although these scores
are indicative of aptitude and suitability for training as an ADF
pilot, the ADF Pilot Selection Agency also relies heavily on the
qualitative assessments of applicants made by Flight Screening Program
instructors, in particular:
- demonstrated rate of learning
- ability to respond to instruction
- personal application
- motivation
- maturity.
On the last day of this two-week flying program, applicants are interviewed by the Officer Selection Board to assess overall suitability for entry into the ADF as a pilot.
Air Force Training Group is the contract manager and is directly
responsible for the implementation of the Flight Screening Program. The
program is facilitated by the ADF Basic Flying Training School as a
means of testing pilot aptitude. The program was commissioned in 1991
and has screened over 2000 applicants.
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