Luftwaffe PA-200 Tornados

On 1 May 1996, at Holloman AFB the German Air Force Tactical Training Center (TTC) was established in concept with the 20th Fighter Squadron which provided aircrew training in the F-4F Phantom II. The TTC served as the parent command for two German air crew training squadrons. The F-4 Training Squadron oversaw all German F-4 student personal affairs, and provided German instructor pilots to cooperate in the contracted F-4 training program provided by the U.S. Air Force (20th Fighter Squadron). On 20 December 2004 the 20th Fighter Squadron ("Luftwaffe Silver Lobos") was inactivated.

A second TTC unit, the Tornado Training Squadron, provides academic and tactical flying training, by German Air Force instructors, for German Tornado aircrews. The first contingent of Tornado PA-200 aircraft arrived at Holloman in March 1996. More than 300 German Air Force members are permanently assigned at Holloman to the TTC, the only unit of its kind in the United States.

The Tactical Training Center (TTC) was redesignated the German Air Force Flying Training Center (GAFFTC) on 1 July 1999 in conjunction with its growing mission, and officially activate on 31 March 2000. It is today the largest training facility of the German Air Force.

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