M1 Support Services (M1) announced today it has been selected to advance to the fourth and final phase of the U.S. Army’s Flight School Next competition.  Flight School Next (FSN) is an important Army initiative to modernize Initial Entry Rotary Wing (IERW) training.  

“We are honored to advance to Phase IV,” said George Krivo, Chairman and CEO of M1.  “In this next phase, Team M1 will demonstrate our comprehensive, innovation-rich solution to produce more proficient Army Aviators on time and on budget.”

M1’s “Flight School First” is a comprehensive, turn-key training and simulation solution featuring an AI-enabled virtual training environment, advanced simulation, proficiency based learning, and safe, rugged, and reliable Robinson R66 training helicopters.  

“We are excited to demonstrate several game-changing technologies to accelerate learning and build student pilot proficiency,” said Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Tom Drew, M1’s Executive Program Director for FSN.  “M1 brings an immersive training experience and significant increase in flight hours to fundamentally transform Army flight training.”

M1 supports all branches of the military in managing, operating, and sustaining large scale aviation training enterprises, including Army flight training at Fort Rucker.   At Fort Rucker, M1 currently supports more than 500 rotary-wing aircraft dispersed across five primary airfields, flying up to 400 sorties per day and 240,000 flight hours per year.  

M1 Support Services (M1) brought together the best of industry, civil aviation, academia, and senior Army Aviation subject matter experts (SME) to develop Flight School First.  Team M1 consists of M1, General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT), Robinson Helicopter Company (RHC), Quantum Helicopters, and the University of North Dakota Aerospace Foundation (UNDAF), each of whose best-in-class capabilities are featured in Team M1’s solution.  M1’s SMEs worked closely with these teammates to deliver leading technologies and commercial best practices to exceed the Army’s objectives for FSN.  M1 is ready now to train more proficient Army Aviators for this no-fail mission.

About M1 Support Services, a Cerberus Capital Management Company

M1 Support Services is a mission-first, force-multiplying partner solely dedicated to providing aviation solutions to the U.S. Department of Defense, Allies, and partner nations. Our complete spectrum of services includes flight training and simulation, maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), flight operations, logistics, aircraft modifications and upgrades. The only company of scale focused solely on aviation solutions, we execute large, complex programs of National and International significance, supporting the most advanced military aircraft in the world. Learn more at www.M1services.com.

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