EXERCISE REPORT // ‘DIAMOND SHIELD’
The Royal Australian Air Force’s 2019 Air Warfare Instructors Course (AWIC) attracted significant participation from around the Pacific, including the 18th Aggressor Squadron, which came all the way from Alaska.
THE EQUIVALENT OF US Air Force ‘patch-wearers’ — the air warfare instructors (AWIs) of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) — are the leaders and experts in their respective fields. They are also expected to be well-versed in the bigger picture of the RAAF’s cross-domain war-fighting capabilities.
Having been established in 2016, the RAAF Air Warfare Centre (AWC) may have built on an existing base of separate courses, but it wasted no time in setting up the first Air Warfare Instructors Course (AWIC) in 2017 and is aiming for two six-month evolutions every year. The directorate draws together a pool of senior and highly experienced RAAF personnel for tactics development. Its sub-unit, No 88 Squadron, is responsible for training the AWIC students and developing the progression of its associated exercises.
Following the success of the inaugural course, a second was held in the first half of 2019. Around 36 students were first put through a two-week common acad…
