KABUL, Afghanistan (Oct. 30) -- Building an air force almost from scratch would be tough for any country; for Afghanistan, where the clock is ticking on U.S. support, it's even more daunting.
Many observers are focusing on 2011, the year when U.S. troops are expected to begin drawing down. But just as important is 2016, when the Afghan air force, a key part of the country's armed forces, is expected to operate independent of U.S. support and assistance.
U.S. Air Force Col. Creig Rice, the vice commander of the Combined Air Power Transition Force, said the biggest challenges in building the Afghan air force are "literacy and English language" among the recruits.
Sharon Weinberger, AOL News
The Afghan air force has slightly more than 4,000 personnel, including these pilots. Finding and training qualified recruits is proving to be a challenge.
The Afghan air force operates a mix of Russian and Western aircraft that includes Russian-built Mi-17 troop transport aircraft, Mi-35 attack helicopters, Antonov transport aircraft and recently acquired Italian C-27 airlifters. Soon, the military will get Western-built light attack aircraft as well as a Western fixed-wing training aircraft.
But for now, aircraft aren't the problem, it's people, according to Rice, who is also the commander of the 438th Air Expeditionary Wing in Kabul. "The personnel piece is the one that's lagging," he said.
The Afghan air force has slightly more than 4,000 personnel. It is scheduled to reach more than 8,000 at its projected full force in 2016. Rice believes the air force will ultimately meet this schedule, but he said he'd like to see several hundred more recruits already.
But finding and training qualified recruits, particularly for pilot positions, is part of what makes the 2016 timeline so challenging. "The time it takes to train a new pilot is 18 to 20 months in the best case," Rice said. "Worst case would be 2 1/2 to three years."
English language, another requirement because it is the international language of pilots, becomes a double-edged sword. Once they learn to speak English well enough to be a pilot, they may choose to work as a translator, which often pays several times more than a military pilot salary.
Another problem is integrating the older pilots with the new, Western-trained recruits.
"I would tell you I don't think it's working that well," said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Greg Roberts, the commander of the 438th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron, which is helping to train the pilots. "I think there's a lot of perceived competition from the older guys; they've been here 30 years and feel like they've got land rights because they've been doing it longer than these whippersnappers."
Many of the older pilots -- the average age is 46 -- flew under Northern Alliance, the loose confederation of groups that battled the ruling Taliban until the United States dislodged it in 2001. The Northern Alliance, which operated a fleet of rickety Mi-17s, even ran its own flight school.
"They are competent," Rice said of those pilots. "They can drive the tractor well."
By contrast, the younger pilots speak English and have been trained in the West, which means they understand modern instruments, can fly with night-vision goggles and understand how the International Civil Aviation Organization works. "English language alone is a reason for them to be jealous," Roberts said.
He noted that the older pilots, if they know a foreign language, typically speak Russian. "There's a lot of room for resentment, and you can see it on a day-to-day basis," he said.
The Afghan air force rescued some 120 people and helped transport almost 2,000 people, including aid workers, around the country.
That progress, Roberts argues, should not be discounted. "It's an important mission," Roberts said of U.S. work to build the Afghan air force, "and it's succeeding."
But will it succeed by 2016?
"There's a plan," Roberts said. "How realistic is that plan? I don't know."
But for now, aircraft aren't the problem, it's people, according to Rice, who is also the commander of the 438th Air Expeditionary Wing in Kabul. "The personnel piece is the one that's lagging," he said.
The Afghan air force has slightly more than 4,000 personnel. It is scheduled to reach more than 8,000 at its projected full force in 2016. Rice believes the air force will ultimately meet this schedule, but he said he'd like to see several hundred more recruits already.
But finding and training qualified recruits, particularly for pilot positions, is part of what makes the 2016 timeline so challenging. "The time it takes to train a new pilot is 18 to 20 months in the best case," Rice said. "Worst case would be 2 1/2 to three years."
English language, another requirement because it is the international language of pilots, becomes a double-edged sword. Once they learn to speak English well enough to be a pilot, they may choose to work as a translator, which often pays several times more than a military pilot salary.
Another problem is integrating the older pilots with the new, Western-trained recruits.
"I would tell you I don't think it's working that well," said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Greg Roberts, the commander of the 438th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron, which is helping to train the pilots. "I think there's a lot of perceived competition from the older guys; they've been here 30 years and feel like they've got land rights because they've been doing it longer than these whippersnappers."
Sharon Weinberger, AOL News
A Russian-built Mi-17 troop transport helicopter is one of the aircraft used by the Afghan air force.
"They are competent," Rice said of those pilots. "They can drive the tractor well."
By contrast, the younger pilots speak English and have been trained in the West, which means they understand modern instruments, can fly with night-vision goggles and understand how the International Civil Aviation Organization works. "English language alone is a reason for them to be jealous," Roberts said.
He noted that the older pilots, if they know a foreign language, typically speak Russian. "There's a lot of room for resentment, and you can see it on a day-to-day basis," he said.
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For all the challenges the Afghan air force faces, it has made substantial progress over the past few years, Roberts said. But he worries that those accomplishments are often ignored by the American public. Most notably, in September, during the Pakistan floods, Afghanistan sent four of its Mi-17 helicopters to help in relief operations there.The Afghan air force rescued some 120 people and helped transport almost 2,000 people, including aid workers, around the country.
That progress, Roberts argues, should not be discounted. "It's an important mission," Roberts said of U.S. work to build the Afghan air force, "and it's succeeding."
But will it succeed by 2016?
"There's a plan," Roberts said. "How realistic is that plan? I don't know."