Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology is forging a bond between its aerospace instructors, the U.S. military and Afghan airmen.
Spartan announced Wednesday that it will train U.S. Air Force personnel to fly and repair small aircraft as part of a $12 million, five-year Defense Department contract. Air Force members will use their training to help rebuild Afghanistan's air force.
"It's a very difficult process to get contracts like this," Spartan President and CEO Jeremy Gibson said. "The Air Force is very direct and has a very rigorous process."
At a news conference at Spartan's hangar at Jones-Riverside Airport, officials of the vocational training school said the contract will cover education on Cessna T182 and 208 aircraft. The school will also supply maintenance training on the Beech King Air 350.
The course will train about 30 members of the Air Force annually for the next five years, Gibson said. The Air Force then will train members of the Afghan military, who will use the small aircraft on transport and reconnaissance missions.
Training will include maintenance, flight instruction as well as avionics, such as radar systems, Gibson said.
"These really are different planes from what they are used to maintaining in the Air Force," said Ron Worthington, a maintenance instructor at the school. "Don't get me wrong. These guys are good mechanics and know what they're doing, but every plane has its own little quirks."
The Cessna aircraft are among the most popular in the world by numbers because of their small size and affordable price for amateur fliers. The Cessna T182 and 208 carry four passengers but can be outfitted with cameras and other reconnaissance equipment.
The Beech King Air 350 holds 12 passengers and is popular because of a large cargo compartment under the fuselage.
Spartan actually started training its first group of three Air Force maintenance mechanics this week, Gibson said.
The exact size of the contract isn't set, Gibson said. But with about 30 members coming through every year, the duration of the program should bring in close to $12 million, he said.
The contract, part of the Air Force Advisor Program, will bring in Air Force personnel for two to three weeks of training at a time.
Maintenance and avionics training will take place at Spartan's campus in north Tulsa, while flight instruction will be conducted at Jones-Riverside, near 81st Street on the west side of the Arkansas River.
Spartan had a similar contract in 2007 for the Iraq War.
"The Air Force didn't want us to make that program public because they didn't want to create any targets," Gibson said.
That contract also brought in about $12 million, he said.
Spartan's new Air Force contract
Training: Flight instruction, maintenance, avionics
Approximate value: $12 million
Participants: About 30 a year for five years
Aircraft: Cessna T182 and 208, Beech King Air 350
Kyle Arnold 918-581-8380
kyle.arnold@tulsaworld.com
Original Print Headline: Spartan, Air Force ink $12M deal
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