A Message from Group Captain Iain Carty, CSM, –RAAF Wagga Senior Australian Defence Force Officer

It is my great pleasure to welcome you to our home, the ‘Home of the Airmen’ here in Wiradjuri Country. From the moment you enter our gates, I hope that you can experience the dedication and pride that we have in educating and training our next generation of airmen.

Every recruit’s journey starts at RAAF Wagga, and over 11 weeks we teach, train, coach and inspire our graduates to embody the Air Force values of respect, excellence, agility, dedication, integrity and teamwork. We are a highly trained and technical air force, and we need our graduates to be prepared to learn, to innovate and to change so we can contribute airpower capability to the Defence of our Nation and its interests.

Learning is the central focus of our efforts here at RAAF Wagga and we provide a wide range of course offerings each year to Navy, Army and Air Force personnel at all stages of their career. Our graduates have a wide range of skills including aircraft technical trades, administrators, engineers, logistics trades, air power expertise, leadership and instructional technique. They have access to modern facilities, cutting-edge simulators and world-class instructors.

But not everything is new and around our Base there are many lasting examples of Air Force history. We have been preparing Air Force personnel for their future military roles since 1940 and our graduates serve the Australian Defence Force and our nation with pride, professionalism and distinction. During your time here I highly encourage you to learn more about this history, through the excellent exhibits and displays at the Heritage Centre, located at the front gate.

The RAAF Base is also an integral part of the wider City of Wagga Wagga community and through staff, students and our extended family we are proud to support local business and industry.  The RAAF Base at Forest Hill is synonymous with Wagga history and it will continue to be a long standing part of the Wagga community.

This magazine describes the broad scope of the induction, training and education conducted at RAAF Wagga. Within, you will also learn about the beautiful Riverina, the supportive community that is our host, including some information on the custodians of this land, the Wiradjuri people. This base and our community are the foundation of all that we do here. Together, we achieve great things.

On behalf of all our staff, welcome to RAAF Wagga.