Defense
- Every year, the Air Force turns hundreds of officers into pilots, and the service's instructor pilots are the ones imparting that knowledge.
- But those instructor pilots have to get their start somewhere too, and that's where the specialized courses at Columbus Air Force Base come into play.
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Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi (AFNS) - A US Air Force instructor pilot's job is to nurture the transition of a casual officer into becoming a world-class aviator. Instructor pilots feed the fight directly and have a significant role, not only in the Air Force but the Department of Defense as a whole.
At Columbus Air Force Base, more than 300 instructor pilots are responsible for graduating close to 350 student pilots a year from programs such as Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training, Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals and the Aviation Leadership Program.
After being selected for an instructor-pilot position, pilots train four to five months at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas. At Pilot Instructor Training (PIT), instructor pilots are certified to teach specific tactics in the T-6 Texan II, T-38 Talon or T-1 Jayhawk.
Pilots who have been flying cargo or refueling aircraft operationally can either be an instructor for the T-1 or T-6 and pilots who have been flying fighter and bomber aircraft operationally can be an instructor for the T-38 or T-6.