EPRC participated on the 12th Helicopter Tactics Symposium organised by the European Defence Agency (EDA), at the Helicopter Training Point Ostrava, the training facility for Czech Republic Air Force located next to Ostrava Airport.
This 3-day event gathered helicopter experts from EDA Helicopter Exercise Program (HEP)’s contributing Member States and other partners and stakeholders, who presented their view on current tactics and techniques and shared their training and operational experience. Some Helicopter training initiatives were also presented during the symposium, including the above-mentioned EDA HEP, and others as the EDA Helicopter Tactics Course, the EDA Helicopter Tactics Instructor Course and the next iteration of the Fire Blade Exercise series.
The EPRC was kindly invited to the Symposium to present the Centre and its contribution to the Education and Training of helicopter crews. The EPRC presentation was divided into two blocks, with the first part describing the Centre, its structure, mission and activities, and the second one focused on the APROC, as a valid training opportunity for helicopter pilots (among others). The briefing contained the APROC´s background, some elements on the 2021 edition, as the first edition with a new setup, and the expectations and challenges for the future. Despite the APROC being an already well-recognised and appreciated event in the helicopter world, the updates presented during the briefing awakened the interest of the attendees and the EDA representatives.
.This event constituted a great opportunity to progress on the standardisation and interoperability among European helicopter crews, as well as a perfect event to establish new ties with EPRC’s major counterparts as EDA, NSHQ, JAPCC and representatives of the EDA Member Nations.