The completion of respective months of training in the U.S. was only the first step for Polish pilots and SIL soldiers to operate Apache with a chessboard on their tail. AH-64D chopper leasing Poles may number further training stages over Vistula, but under the supervision of American specialists.
Late July 56 Inowrocław Air Base (56 BLOT), subject to the 1st Air Force Brigade (1 BLWL), informed of the completion of the ‘Transition Echo to Delta’ pilot training. Colonel Bartłomiej Lipiński, deputy commander of 56 Blot, thanked the American instructors for their commitment and work, which was aimed at familiarizing Polish pilots with a different version of the chopper (AH-64D – Delta) than the 1 they had encountered in the US (AH-64E – Echo). It was Delta that went to 1 BLL as part of leasing agreement, preceding the transportation of 96 AH-64E helicopters from 2028 to 2032.
The first 4 Deltas reached Inowrocław in June. full leasing agreement that assumes the transportation of 8 AH-64D Apache helicopters, to be realised before the end of the year. Major Pil. Mariusz Strzyżewski, commander of the Apache 56 BLOT chopper squadron, explains that after “transition training” from Echo to Delta, Polish pilots and SIL soldiers began another phase under the guidance of the Americans from the TAFT (Technical Assistance Field Team). The participation of Americans in the training of Poles will be essential until our soldiers with teacher privileges scope the highest, first level of training. Current training at the Air Base in Latków close Inowrocław (Kujawsko-pomorskie) aims to decision from 3rd level to second level.
– The transition to the higher level must not last longer than 90 days, as after this period the student returns to the starting point. We follow the agenda and presume that by the end of the year we will have the first full trained instructor-pilots, says the commander of the Apache chopper squadron.
Currently, pilot training takes place day and night, but does not include tasks utilizing weapons. In the U.S., Poles had a taste of specified activities, but at that phase it was only about learning the specificity of operating systems without the tactical tasks assigned. In Poland, tactical flights will only be carried out erstwhile moving from second level to first level. The leased Apaches with a chessboard on their tail will besides not participate in military exercises in the close future.
– We are inactive trained to accomplish operational capabilities, and although the participation of the Polish AH-64D in military exercises is not planned, of course we will do so in the future – said Major Pil. Mariusz Strzyżewski. By the way, he appreciates the attitude of superiors who are open to American training methods. “For TAFT instructors it is crucial to be professional, that is to say, proficient, efficient in the performance of tasks. American instructors don't make us do all operation 20 times, due to the fact that that's what the program says. If the pilot performs the maneuver correctly after 5 attempts, the teacher says “enough” and moves on to the next issue – he explains “Cry”.
Helicopters AH-64E Apache will be delivered to Poland from 2028 to 2032. Under the agreement of August 2024 worth about $10 billion, the Polish Army will receive 96 machines along with a logistics and training package and a comprehensive set of combat measures and spare parts. According to MON, AH-64E impact helicopters Apaches will supply ground military aviation with fresh capabilities to destruct targets and reconnaissance. The full task represents an epochal change in the modernisation and improvement of the aircraft of the Polish Armed Forces, making Poland the second largest user of Apache in the planet after the United States.
