Captain Riggle returns

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Agneta Murnan
  • 71st Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  The third of five Vance instructor pilots returned from Forward Operating Base Warrior, Kirkuk, Iraq, last month. Capt. Brian Riggle, assigned to the 32nd Flying Training Squadron, spent the year as part of the Coalition Air Force Training Team. Their job was to train future Iraqi air force pilots and help build an Iraqi flying training wing.

When Captain Riggle arrived in Iraq November 2007, the team had started flying student sorties, but had just begun establishing some key components of the flight school together with five Iraqi instructors remaining from the old Iraqi air force. While each instructed student sorties, the Vance IPs tackled different areas to get the flight school established.

"I worked with Lt. Col. Scott Voskovitch of Whiteman Air Force Base [Mo.] to develop a master question bank and boldface procedures for 'stan/eval' [short for standardization and evaluation program] specific to the new flying training squadron, and then I moved to help advise the Iraqi Flying Training Wing staff on scheduling issues," the captain said. 

This question bank would be used to test the students' knowledge of flight and emergency procedures on the Cessna 172 Skyhawk, a four-seat, single-engine, high-wing airplane. This is the current primary trainer for the Iraqi student pilots. The boldface procedures are used by both students and instructors to remedy aircraft emergency situations. The Iraqi air force uses the Cessna 208 Caravan, equipped with a single turboprop engine and fixed landing gear, for advanced navigation training.

"A common thread I saw between Iraqi and American students was the struggle to get them to develop effective study habits. Iraqi students were used to receiving information through verbal instruction, so it was difficult to get them to study on their own. As the students began to understand the benefits of self-study, we noticed improvement in both their flying skills and general knowledge," Captain Riggle said.

In addition to the language barriers and shift to more independent study, the instructor described a major mentality shift between the Western style of flight training and the Soviet style that Iraq had previously used. "From what I learned, the Soviet model didn't place a lot of trust in the students. It didn't give the students a lot of opportunity to learn."

When Captain Riggle began flying with the students, there were only three to six student sorties flown each day. By the time Captain Riggle left Iraq, there was an average of 18 student sorties each day.

"The biggest challenge we faced in helping the Iraqis develop a school of their own was the lack of qualified Iraqi instructors," Captain Riggle explained. "The school had only five Iraqi instructors, and with their vacation or "mujas" schedule, only two Iraqi instructors were working at any given time. However, the Iraqi instructor pool will grow in the very near future. The school recently acquired its first FAIP [first assignment instructor pilot] and three more Iraqi instructors are currently attending pilot instructor training.

"The graduation of the first three students was the most meaningful part to me. Being able to fly with those guys when they were on their fourth or fifth ride, and then to watch them graduate was my greatest pride. Some had never operated a motor vehicle or ever driven a car.

"All the work that went into generating the school and generating the pilots -- the last time Iraq had a graduation of pilots was in the early 1990's, so it was pretty monumental." 

As more students graduate from the school, the foundation of knowledge and practices that the Vance IPs brought to the new generation of Iraqi pilots will be carried forward.

"We have definitely taken the first step towards developing an Iraqi flying training wing at Kirkuk. There is a long road ahead, but the continued efforts of our Airmen will pay huge dividends, not only towards developing the flying training wing, but towards providing security and stability in the region."

After spending time with family, Captain Riggle will instruct in the T-1 at the 32nd FTS. Although he was a C-5 Galaxy pilot prior to his assignment at Vance in July 2005, his next assignment will be operating the C-17 Globemaster III.