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March 18, 2021

‘Accelerated Path to Wings’ (XPW) USAF Pilot Training Makes History

Undergraduate Pilot Training Curriculum Only Utilizes One Airframe -- The T-1 Jayhawk

Seven Airmen made history as the first “Accelerated Path to Wings” program graduated and they transitioned from students to Air Force pilots during a ceremony March 12. Nicknamed the “XPW” program, the course is part of Air Education and Training Command's current pilot training transformation efforts and consists of students completing an undergraduate pilot training curriculum that only utilizes one airframe, the T-1 Jayhawk.

Well-Known Test Pilot and Airshow Pilot Lost

The International Council of AirShows reports that Major General Des Barker (South African Air Force, retired) died Wednesday afternoon in an aircraft accident near the city of Gqeberha, about 450 miles due east of Cape Town on South Africa's southern coast. Barker's wife reported to ICAS that Des was conducting a check-ride in a museum's Patchen Explorer when it experienced a likely engine failure and crashed short of the runway at Swartkop Air Force Base. Both Des and another retired air force officer were killed in the accident.

Twenty More Cadets Were Recommended For Acceptance To The USAF Prep School

Nearly 100 Civil Air Patrol cadets from 35 wings are receiving academic and flight scholarships worth a combined total of $155,500 in 2021. Twenty more cadets were recommended for acceptance to the U.S. Air Force Preparatory School in Colorado Springs. In all, 61 academic scholarships account for $120,500 of the total amount, with 32 flight scholarships totaling the remaining $35,000. “You had tough competition, and you should be proud of your selection,” Maj. Gen. Mark Smith, CAP’s national commander and CEO, said in a congratulatory message prepared for the scholarship recipients.