German Air Force pilots have begun preparing to operate Germany’s future CH-47F Block II Chinook fleet through training at a U.S. Army simulator complex in Germany. Two pilots from the first group expected to fly the aircraft trained recently at the Illesheim Flight Simulator Complex, or IFSC, at Storck Barracks in Illesheim, according to Defense News, citing a U.S. Army release.
Germany is preparing to receive 60 of the heavy-lift, tandem-rotor helicopters beginning in fall 2027. The future fleet is intended to strengthen the Bundeswehr’s heavy-lift and transport capabilities and will be based at two German military installations. The two pilots who trained at Illesheim are expected to join the first cohort operating the new aircraft.
The simulator gives the pilots a controlled environment for practicing procedures that would be difficult or dangerous to rehearse in an aircraft. The training includes emergency procedures, challenging landings and operations in extreme weather. “In the simulator you can train all the scenarios you do not want to experience while flying a real aircraft,” Lt. Col. L, one of the visiting pilots, said in the Army account. The German Air Force withholds the names of its pilots as standard practice, so the pilots were identified only by rank and initial.
The two aviators also trained at the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence at Fort Rucker, Alabama. Beginning in 2028, German Air Force aviators are scheduled to travel there annually for initial helicopter instruction and track training, including qualification on the CH-47. Germany has already started sending helicopter pilots for conversion training to the Chinook platform.
The German program is expected to require more than 200 trained pilots to operate the future fleet. The Army did not specify how many German aviators will attend Fort Rucker each year. The training described in the Army account includes instruction in the United States and simulator access at an American installation in Europe.
That European access reduces the travel burden for advanced simulator training. From their home station, German pilots can reach the IFSC by driving three to five hours, rather than traveling across the Atlantic. The facility is operated by U.S. Army Europe and Africa and supports U.S. Army aviation training while also routinely accommodating pilots from at least five NATO partner countries.
The simulator is not configured specifically for German aircraft. Its software is tailored to U.S. Army aircraft configurations, meaning German pilots will need additional instruction to transition from the simulator’s setup to the configuration of the Bundeswehr’s Chinooks. The IFSC nevertheless provides Germany with a training venue before the helicopters arrive and avoids the need to build a separate simulator complex.
The Army account describes the Illesheim facility as a center for aviation training within the NATO community. Its schedule prioritizes U.S. Army soldiers, but the complex also supports pilots from partner nations. The German pilots’ training there is part of the preparation now underway for the country’s planned Chinook fleet, with additional helicopter instruction and CH-47 qualification training scheduled at Fort Rucker beginning in 2028.