17 Implementing the new core training has been complicated by budget reductions, scope reductions and changes in the planned approach to financing. These changes have undermined the Department's original assumptions about how its long-term contract with Ascent would work. The legacy of these changes has understandably taken the Department time to resolve and has resulted in lengthy delays. The new core training has not been fully implemented and there is much to do if the Department is to get the planned benefits of the new approach.
18 Combining military and industry involvement in flying training has been challenging, particularly in relation to ownership of risk. The contracts already let have not effectively incentivised industry to help the Department achieve its aims for new core training. The Department needs to more fully understand training performance and what affects it before it can leverage significant improvements in core training. If the Department does this, and its training requirements do not fundamentally change again, there remains a significant opportunity to improve the value for money of military flying training. If it does not, there is a real risk that moving to the new core training will affect the military's ability to train the right number of aircrew at the right time.