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IqAF pilot earns unprecedented position

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Mike Meares
  • 321st Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
BAGHDAD --  An Iraqi pilot has recently accomplished a feat no other Iraqi pilot has to date -- earned a slot as a first assignment instructor pilot in the T-6 Texan II.

Lt. Hassan Ali Al Saedi, Squadron 203, Tikrit Air Base, Iraq, has spent two and a half years training under the tutelage of U.S. Air Force instructor pilots and advisors learning to defend his country from the air. According to Iraqi Training and Advisory Mission- Air advisors, Hassan has continuously excelled above and beyond his peers while learning his craft.

"As one of the Iraqi Air Force's first T-6 FAIPs, Lieutenant Hassan is going to rapidly gain experience flying and instructing future pilots--his potential is limitless right now," said Maj. Kent Bolster, training flight commander and air advisor to the Iraqi air force, from the 52nd Expeditionary Flying Training Squadron. "Hopefully, for Lieutenant Hassan, the future will hold a long and successful career as an officer and pilot in the Iraqi air force providing peace and stability for his country."

During flight training, Hassan spent 14 months flying Cessna 172 and Cessna 208 aircraft and another 13 months in the T-6 Texan II. The Texan II is a single-engine, two-seat primary trainer, designed to train Joint Primary Pilot Training students in basic flying skills common to U.S. Air Force and Navy pilots.

Trained by both U.S. and Iraqi instructor pilots, the lieutenant has earned a qualification rating in the C-172, the C-208 and most recently the T-6, where he earned an 'Exceptional-Qualified' rating on his instructor check ride. 

Hassan has not only excelled in the technical areas of piloting aircraft, but has shown he is willing to learn how to lead the next group of Iraqi pilots, said Bolster.

"Students who excel in training are identified not just because of their skills in the aircraft, but also for their leadership capabilities, character and their potential to be a good instructor," Bolster said, who is deployed from Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas. "When all these characteristics are present, we have a pilot who has the maturity and ability to lead and instruct by example, not only to his peers, but also to higher ranking officers."

The Iraqi flight school is currently teaching the Primary Pilot Training and the Pilot Instructor Training course where Iraqi airmen are trained and evaluated using the same standard of performance U.S. Air Force pilots are evaluated on for selection as a FAIP. Though they do not currently have an official FAIP program, Hassan has individually shown U.S. advisors that Iraqi air force airmen are willing to take on a challenge.

According to Col. Mark Slocum, ITAM-Air senior advisor, Hassan's selection to be an instructor pilot right out of school is a milestone for the IqAF.

"This is a significant paradigm shift for the Iraqis to follow the U.S. model of allowing (student pilots) to graduate from pilot training, then immediately go into training to become instructors, rather than going out to fly operational aircraft for years before becoming instructors," Slocum said. "So they have a lieutenant now empowered to teach, often to higher ranking pilots."

In the coming months and years, the lieutenant has high hopes for his country and for his air force now that pilots are being trained so thoroughly.

"It is something very big and special to me," Hassan said. "I expect a shining new future, new flying experiences and the capability to grow and sustain the new Iraqi air force."

For now, Hassan is active in the organization and is taking on a lot of responsibility. He is currently learning how to set up a standardization and evaluation shop for his squadron. His unit is responsible for creating standards and policies for the squadron and ensuring pilots are current and qualified to fly through the evaluation process.

In the time since Hassan became the first T-6 FAIP, two other Iraqi pilots have followed his example as FAIP at the air base -- an example Hassan's leadership thinks is a shining example of the Iraqi Air Force's future.

The 52nd EFTS is a subordinate unit of the 321st Air Expeditionary Wing, which is the wing responsible for the Iraq Training Advisory Mission-Air. ITAM-Air advises, trains, and assists the Iraqi air force to develop as a professional and credible regional airpower partner, with the ability to maintain internal security and defend against external threats.