ADF Gap Year participants meet Chief of Air Force at Australian International Air Show 2015.

ADF Gap Year participants meet Chief of Air Force at Australian International Air Show 2015.

When you are potentially looking at a future career in the Air Force there is no better advertisement than the Australian International Airshow at Avalon.

On February 25, a group of 54 Air Force Gap Year Cadets were flown from No. 1 Recruit Training Unit (1RTU) at RAAF Base Wagga in a C-130J Hercules to Avalon to see the airshow, Air Force’s assets and its people in action.

Chief of Air Force Air Marshal (AIRMSHL) Geoff Brown surprised the students, meeting them at the F-35A Lightning II display where they spoke about the benefits of service and what the future holds.

Speaking with the Gap Year Cadets, he said “Air Force is a complicated organisation and not just about flying aircraft. There is enormous scope for people who want to join. Hopefully you will go away with a good feel and a bigger view of Air Force.”

He also took the opportunity to speak about Plan Jericho, which will be well underway by the time the Gap Year Cadets graduate. Air Marshal Brown explained that moving to fifth-generation aircraft without changing the organisation, would be like buying an iPhone and operating it like a Nokia. There is more potential that can be unlocked, and we need to maximise the technology and capability available.

“Air Force has “enormously capable platforms and this is an incredibly busy time for Air Force”.

“Hopefully today gives you a taste of what the Air Force is all about,” he said.

ACR Connor Haas from Hobart is in his seventh week of training and said he joined the program to get a taste of life in the Air Force, follow his interests and hopefully go to the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA).

“I am interested in security and aviation,” he said.

“It hasn’t been easy. At times it has been challenging, but rewarding. It is hard to explain to people what it is like who don’t know the military.”

ACR Haas said the best part of his training was seeing the change in him and becoming an airman.

“I compared myself from who I was to who I am now,”he said.

“The Air Force helped me to do that.”

Fellow Gap Year student ACWR Elaina Elder-Robinson agreed that the training had benefits.

“It has been challenging and tough at times but I just pushed through,” she said.

“I have seen positive changes in my mental state. In high school they pushed us along and it was all easy whereas here it was different – you see results.”

ACWR Elder-Robinson said she was looking at university and some reserve service with Air Force but her options remained open.

“I am also looking at ADFA,” she said.

“Avalon was a great experience, especially coming in on the C-130J.”

More images: http://raaf.gov.au/17xmWhW

Information on Gap Year: http://ift.tt/1DXk0Jz

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