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As a member of the Officer Aviation Family, during your career you may be may be employed in flying and non-flying roles at almost any location across the country or overseas, however initially training will tailored to achieving operational readiness. Therefore your early posting will likely be to:

<div class="p" >Queensland 
1SQN, RAAF Base Amberley
6SQN, RAAF Base Amberley</div>

<div class="p" >New South Wales 
3SQN, RAAF Base Williamtown
77SQN, RAAF Base Williamtown</div>

<div class="p" >Northern Territory 
75SQN, RAAF Base Tindal</div>

You will be paid while you study. On completion of your degree, Initial Military Training and Initial Employment Training, you'll earn at least:

Training

Your salary while completing your studies

Trained

Your salary once trained

In the Air Force you'll get paid a good salary from day one regardless of your age, experience or qualifications; and your pay increases as you progress through training. In addition to your salary you'll receive a variety of allowances, extra pay for relevant qualifications – plus 16.4% superannuation, a far higher rate than you're likely to find in the civilian world.

Officer Entry: Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA)

Officer Entry: ADFA

If you are streamed to go down the Fast Jet Pilot (FJP) pathway you will be required to complete the following courses:
<ul>
 <li>Introductory Fighter Course &ndash; type conversion and advanced flying training (6 months). Remaining at RAAF Base Pearce, you will undergo training on the Hawk Lead-in fighter at No. 79 Squadron.</li>
 <li>Introductory Fighter Course &ndash; tactical flying training (6 months). Once you have learnt the basics of flying the Hawk and operating at higher airspeeds, you will be posted to No. 76 Squadron at RAAF Base Williamtown to learn how to operate the Hawk in a tactical environment (air-to-air and air-to-ground). At the end of this course you will be selected for training on one of the following operational combat aircraft:</li>
 <ul>
 <li>F-35A Lightning II, </li>
 <li>F/A-18F Super Hornet, or </li>
 <li> EA-18G Growler.</li>
 </ul>
</ul>
Operational Conversion Courses (OPCONs) (6-11 months). At the end of the advanced courses you will be selected for operational conversion onto one of the following platforms:
<ul>
 <li>F-35A Lightning II (No. 2 Operational Conversion Unit). The 6-month OPCON for Lightning II is conducted at RAAF Base Williamtown (just outside of Newcastle).</li>
 <li>F/A-18F Super Hornet (No. 82 Wing Training Flight). The 6-month OPCON for Super Hornet is conducted at RAAF Base Amberley (just outside of Brisbane).</li>
 <li>EA-18G Growler (No. 6 Squadron). Growler OPCON training takes 11 months and is conducted in Washington State, USA by the US Navy, with bridging training on return to Australia conducted at RAAF Base Amberley (just outside of Brisbane).</li>
</ul>
Once you complete your OPCON, you will be a fully qualified FJP ready to contribute to the application of air power and the defence of Australia.

You will be paid while you train, and on completion of your Initial Military Training and Employment Training, you’ll earn at least:

Your starting salary

Officer Entry: Officer

If you are streamed to go down the Fast Jet Pilot (FJP) pathway you will be required to complete the following courses:
<ul>
 <li>Introductory Fighter Course &ndash; type conversion and advanced flying training (6 months). Remaining at RAAF Base Pearce, you will undergo training on the Hawk Lead-in fighter at No. 79 Squadron.</li>
 <li>Introductory Fighter Course &ndash; tactical flying training (6 months). Once you have learnt the basics of flying the Hawk and operating at higher airspeeds, you will be posted to No. 76 Squadron at RAAF Base Williamtown to learn how to operate the Hawk in a tactical environment (air-to-air and air-to-ground). At the end of this course you will be selected for training on one of the following operational combat aircraft:</li>
 <ul>
 <li>F-35A Lightning II, </li>
 <li> F/A-18F Super Hornet, or </li>
 <li> EA-18G Growler.</li>
 </ul>
</ul>
Operational Conversion Courses (OPCONs) (6-11 months). At the end of the advanced courses you will be selected for operational conversion onto one of the following platforms:
<ul>
 <li>F-35A Lightning II (No. 2 Operational Conversion Unit). The 6-month OPCON for Lightning II is conducted at RAAF Base Williamtown (just outside of Newcastle).</li>
 <li>F/A-18F Super Hornet (No. 82 Wing Training Flight). The 6-month OPCON for Super Hornet is conducted at RAAF Base Amberley (just outside of Brisbane).</li>
 <li>EA-18G Growler (No. 6 Squadron). Growler OPCON training takes 11 months and is conducted in Washington State, USA by the US Navy, with bridging training on return to Australia conducted at RAAF Base Amberley (just outside of Brisbane).</li>
</ul>
Once you complete your OPCON, you will be a fully qualified FJP ready to contribute to the application of air power and the defence of Australia.

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After you complete Initial Officer Training course, you will start Basic Pilot Course at No 1 Flying Training School on the Pilatus PC-21 at RAAF Base East Sale. After this, you will continue your ab-initio pilot training at No 2 Flying Training School at RAAF Base Pearce near Perth.
If you are selected for Fast Jet Pilot during your training, you then undertake introduction to fighter training on the Hawk 127 aircraft with No 79 Squadron at RAAF Base Pearce and then again later with No 76 Squadron at RAAF Base Williamtown near Newcastle.
There are three types of fast jets in the Air Force: F-35A Lightning II, F/A-18F Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler Electronic Attack. The type of fast jet you will be chosen to fly will be based on your preference, your performance during training and availability of positions.
The F-35A Lightning II: This is a single seat, high-performance, stealth fighter that employs state-of-the art weapons. This flying &lsquo;supercomputer&rsquo; is not just a fighter jet, it is also communications node that provides battlespace information to the Army, Navy and friendly forces. F-35A pilot training is conducted at No 2 Operational Conversion Unit at RAAF Base Williamtown.
F/A-18F Super Hornet: Team up with your Weapons System Officer and conduct a variety of combat-related missions, including air-to-air combat and air-to-surface weapons employment.
EA-18G Growler: Like the Super Hornet, you will team up with your Weapons System Officer using the advanced technology in this electronic attack aircraft to disrupt, deceive or deny a broad range of military electronic systems, including radars and communications.
Click on this link for more information on the other streams within <a rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://airforce.adfcareers.gov.au/jobs/officer-aviation" target="_blank">Officer Aviation</a>.

Upgrade your pilot ambition to flying one of the world’s fastest fighter aircraft, operating advanced weapons and electronic warfare systems to provide superiority within the airspace.

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Fast Jet Pilot

Benefits you won't see anywhere else

You’ll enjoy the following:

Great salary from day one, which increases with experience

Generous superannuation of 16.4% – a huge 4.9% over the Australian standard

Help to buy a home, a subsidised home loan or rent allowance

Free medical and dental for you, and subsidised healthcare for you and your family

Fully paid training

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