Australian Army pilot Captain Jonathan Hogan describes his training as an instructor on the Apache attack helicopter in Alabama.
When I earned my Australian Army pilot wings in 2015, I did not expect to be flying Apaches over the peanut and cotton fields of southern Alabama.
But nearly a decade later, that is exactly where I have landed - serving as an Instructor Pilot on the AH-64E Apache in the 1st Battalion, 14th Aviation Regiment, at the United States Army Aviation Center of Excellence, Fort Rucker.
I arrived at Fort Rucker in 2023 alongside Major Matthew Stubbs and Captain Alexander Paranthoiene as part of a small group transitioning from the Tiger. Over the course of the year, I completed both the AH-64E Aviator Qualification Course and the Instructor Pilot Course, which allowed me to begin instructing on the Apache in early 2024.
For a while, I was the only one broadcasting a thick Aussie accent across the local airwaves at Hanchey Army Heliport - the home of Apache training.
That changed with the arrival of Captain Craig Burger, another former Tiger pilot who is now also part of the instructor cadre. Between the two of us, the occasional "G'day" has turned into something of a cultural exchange program every time we key the mic.
The art of teaching Apache
The Instructor Pilot Course is a demanding and professionally rewarding experience. It is not just about being able to fly the aircraft - it is about being able to teach others to fly it confidently and safely, in both crew stations, under complex and often dynamic conditions.
You are expected to demonstrate, guide, adapt and improvise, all while maintaining safety and composure in the cockpit.
The course runs through multiple stages and covers a broad spectrum of training: basic manoeuvres, instrument flight, night-vision systems, emergency handling, gunnery and tactical scenario-based instruction. The goal is not just to perform each task to standard, but to teach it effectively, tailored to each student's background and learning style.
Fortunately, the Australian Army's robust training continuum - from fixed wing to operational rotary-wing conversion - sets us up well. The emphasis back home on airmanship, systems knowledge and airborne instructional technique translates effectively into the Apache environment, even with the scale and pace of US Army training here at the school.
One of the more novel aspects of Apache instruction is teaching students to fly using the Pilot Night Vision Sensor.
Unlike traditional helmet-mounted night-vision goggles, the Apache projects an infrared image from a nose-mounted sensor into the pilot's right eye via a monocle, overlaid with symbology. We train aircrew to use this system in what is affectionately called 'the bag' - a completely blacked-out cockpit where pilots rely solely on the sensor feed.
It is quite unnatural at first - flying with one eye in a glowing tunnel of infrared, using a sensor mounted metres away from your head - but once students push through the learning curve, it becomes one of the most confidence-building milestones in the course. It is also what sets the Apache apart: the ability to operate in total darkness without ambient light gives us an edge against our adversaries.
A classroom without borders
Since beginning instruction, I have had the privilege of working with pilot trainees from across the globe - Poland, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, India, the United Kingdom, the United States, and of course, Australia.
Each brings a unique mix of language, aviation background, and operational mindset, which keeps every sortie fresh and every brief a little different.
'Flying is a universal language - it has rhythm, logic and a shared understanding that cuts across cultures and accents alike.'
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to instruction in a setting this diverse. When English is not a student's first language, concepts often need to be broken down to their simplest form - clearly, slowly and with plenty of flair. I have pantomimed my way through more than a few lessons, with gestures that teeter on interpretive dance.
But in the air, the barriers tend to fall away. Flying is a universal language - it has rhythm, logic and a shared understanding that cuts across cultures and accents alike.
Life in the Deep South
Southern Alabama has been an unexpected but welcome chapter for my family. The pace of life reminds us of Darwin - though instead of crocs and waterfalls, it is catfish noodling on the Chattahoochee, swamp boats selling boiled peanuts, and hunting camo so well-coordinated it could walk a runway at Bass Pro.
Folks wave from their porches whether they know you or not, and the air smells like crawfish boils and fried chicken, all seasoned with Southern hospitality.
Enterprise, our hometown, has proudly built its identity around the boll weevil - yes, an actual pest. After it devastated local cotton crops, the town pivoted to peanut farming and thrived.
In tribute, they erected statues all over the place, including one downtown with a boll weevil held high on a pedestal like a tiny agricultural war hero. It is said to be the world's first monument to a pest, and there is something charmingly Southern about turning a crop-eating beetle into a town mascot.
And of course, I have learnt that around here, saying "Roll Tide" is not just about college football, it is a greeting, a farewell, and sometimes even an entire conversation.
Looking ahead
When my posting ends in January 2026, I will return to Townsville to instruct and help stand up the AH-64E at the newly relocated 1st Aviation Regiment and School of Army Aviation.
Introducing the Apache into Australian service is more than a platform replacement - it represents a generational shift in Australian Army Aviation. We are not just introducing a new helicopter; we are building a modern, connected and combat-ready attack aviation capability designed to meet the demands of future multi-domain operations.
Together with Captain Burger and a team of experts back in Australia, we have been contributing to the development of airworthiness policy, training frameworks and operational procedures to support the aircraft's entry into service.
The AH-64E brings a change in capability - Link 16, advanced sensors, video transmission, unmanned aerial system teaming, and a proven combat record. Integrating all of this into the Australian context requires more than technical adaptation - it demands a shift in mindset, training philosophy and doctrine.
'Introducing the Apache into Australian service is more than a platform replacement - it represents a generational shift in Australian Army Aviation.'
Just as critical is the opportunity to train shoulder-to-shoulder with our US Army counterparts. The strength of the Australia-US defence relationship is grounded not just in shared values, but in lived experience. By learning in the same classrooms, flying the same aircraft and speaking the same tactical language, we are laying the foundation for genuine interoperability.
It means that when Australian and US forces deploy together on operations where coordination and trust are critical, we do so as a truly integrated team with a shared culture. That partnership does not just enhance capability, it underpins it.
What I will take home
Serving in the heart of Dixie has been more than just a career milestone - it has been a chance to grow as an instructor, refine how I communicate and learn just how adaptive and inventive one needs to be when teaching in a diverse, fast-paced environment.
From animated briefings to the occasional full-body demonstration, I have learnt that good instruction depends as much on connection as it does on content.
But the real value of being here goes far beyond the day-to-day. Having Australian instructors embedded in the US Army's training system, plus our students rotating through, builds habits of cooperation that cannot be replicated any other way. It deepens trust, aligns how we operate, and ensures that when our two nations fly together, we are already speaking the same tactical language in and out of the cockpit.
I will return home with a sharper instructional toolkit, a broader view of Apache operations, a renewed appreciation for just how strong the Australia-US partnership really is, and how critical this shared experience is to keeping it that way.
And yes, I will also be leaving with a healthy respect for the Crimson Tide, barbecue that borders on religion, and weather so thick you could just about chew it.
Roll Tide.
