Eight decades keeping air power flying

Eighty years after it opened in Wagga, the RAAF School of Technical Training (RAAFSTT) paraded its King’s Colour to celebrate the people who keep Defence aircraft flying.

CO RAAFSTT WGCDR Richard Poole led the anniversary colour parade, joined by seven of his predecessors whose time in charge spans more than 45 years.

“We’ve been training aviation technicians here for 80 years,” WGCDR Poole said.

That story began on February 4, 1946, when the Ground Training School opened just after World War II – a home the Riverina community worked hard to secure.

“The community did some really good lobbying with Air Force and government,” WGCDR Poole said. 

“We’ve been an integral part of the local community ever since.”

Over the decades, the school grew to train all three services, welcoming Army Aviation in 1969 and Navy in 1993. In 1971, it became the first RAAF unit to receive a Queen’s Colour – now the King’s Colour paraded at the anniversary.

Today, RAAFSTT runs more than 30 technical courses a year. Just over 700 trainees started this year, and about another 400 technicians returned for upgrade courses.

For WGCDR Poole, those trainees are the best part of the job.

“We’ve got some amazing young trainees who want to learn technical trades,” he said. 

“It’s very rewarding.”

It’s a feeling his predecessors know well. 

GPCAPT Chris Ellison, CO RAAFSTT from 2014 to 2016 and now Director of Operations at the Australian Defence College, paraded for the school’s 70th anniversary a decade ago.

“The trainees arrive eager to learn and staff are entirely invested in passing on their knowledge,” GPCAPT Ellison said. 

“They form friendships that carry through their careers and, one day, they will come back together, like we have today.”

The longest connection on the day belonged to Colin Bradford, former AIRCDRE and CO RAAFSTT from 1981 to 1983, whose name lives on in a street on base, Bradford Close. During his tenure, he split the school into three units, each with its own commanding officer.

“Because of the size of the school, the hardest part was being able to get around and see people, and for them to see you,” he said. 

“Everyone knew me because I was the CO, but it was hard to get to know individuals and hear the day-to-day stories.”

WGCDR Poole said memories such as those are exactly why milestones matter.

“History is vital for a military organisation. We look at how we trained in the past and what we can apply to the future,” WGCDR Poole said. 

“Looking back on what our predecessors achieved inspires us to keep striving.”

Eighty years on, the school’s motto, ‘Staunch’, still holds true as RAAFSTT prepares the skilled workforce that generates, projects and sustains ADF air power.