2.16 Ascent must ensure that all aircraft, apart from the Hawk T2, are available for courses. Except for helicopters, both Ascent and the Department have experienced aircraft availability problems, leading to delays and cancellations. In the four months up to July 2019, for training packages fully introduced, availability ranged from 113% (meaning training requirements had been met) to 38% per aircraft type (Figure 11 overleaf). In particular:
• Elementary flying training: In the four months up to July 2019, aircraft have been available for 72% of the required time, with a low of 67% in May 2019. Reduced availability was due to various factors including difficulties obtaining spare parts, a lack of engineering resources and aircraft being modified to meet the required specifications. The Department and Ascent told us they expected to complete these modifications by March 2020.
• Multi-engine training: Factors affecting aircraft availability include an in-flight collision between two MFTS aircraft and technical issues with a third.
• Advanced-jet training: The Department contracts with BAE Systems to maintain 28 Hawk T2 jets. Given technical problems, the Department averaged 12 available aircraft per day against a required 18. The Department and its industry partners recognise that they need to improve availability and that the training provision is extremely sensitive to the availability of aircraft and instructors. The Department forecasts that for 2019-20, these aircraft will be available for 7,100 of the required 9,200 hours (77%).