08:09 GMT, October 8, 2009 Defence and support services company VT Group has taken delivery of an initial batch of seven Grob Tutor G115 aircraft as part of its expanded Elementary Flying Training (EFT) role for the UK Ministry of Defence.

VT will eventually take delivery of at least 23 Grob Tutors to augment an existing fleet of more than 90 VT-owned Tutors which already provide air experience, pilot assessment and initial flying training for the UK military. The remainder of the aircraft are scheduled for delivery by Spring next year.

As part of the enhanced contract, VT will replace existing Firefly aircraft with the new Grob Tutors which will be used for activities including assessing Army aviators and RAF multi-engine crew training.

The major enhanced feature of the latest Grobs is a partially digital cockpit which replaces analogue instrumentation and prepares the pilot highly effectively for subsequent training.

“The Grob Tutor is a great platform on which to teach military pilots and prepare them for the next level of training,” says Group Captain Andy Naismith, Officer Commanding No 1 EFTS.

Steve Power, VT’s Light Aircraft Flying Task Regional Manager added: “We have increased our activities by some 20 per cent as a result of the expanded contract and having one common aircraft to deliver the full service will improve efficiency.”

VT started the new contract to provide initial flying training in April this year. This tasks the company with delivering up to 57,000 hours of flying a year through the provision of aircraft and associated support, including instructors, to all three Armed Services.

Caption for photo: Steve Power (left), VT’s Light Aircraft Flying Task Regional Manager, and Group Captain Andy Naismith, Officer Commanding No 1 EFTS mark the arrival of the first of the new Grob Tutor aircraft at RAF Cranwell.