The Training Renaissance

摘要

An Air Force technical training revolution is in full swing, driven both by manpower shortages-in particular, pilots-and a new wave of effective teaching technologies leveraging virtual reality (VR), artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and processing power. Almost every aspect of USAF training will change over the course of this decade. These technologies "are not coming-they're here," 19th Air Force commander Maj. Gen. Craig D. Wills said in a July interview. He described changes underway for training pilots, maintainers, and RPA (remotely piloted aircraft) operators, as well as survival training. While cost savings could be a benefit, in the long run, the aim, Wills said, is to help Air Force technical schools produce higher-quality graduates, and to get them through training faster while delivering more ready Airmen to front-line units. In some cases, he said, the new methods can cut training time in half, with no loss to graduates' technical capability.