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Following
dad’s flightpath
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Officer
Cadet Joshua Eicke receives the No. 6 Initial Officer Course
Leader and Military Qualities Award from Air Marshal Angus
Houston.
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An
Orion from No. 92 Wing stages a flypast during the parade.
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Officer
Cadet James Barden is congratulated by his dad, Jim, a former
Mirage and Hornet pilot.
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Officer
Cadet James Barden, who graduated from Officers’ Training School
on November 8, has had a fascinating launching pad for what he plans
will be a career flying fast jets.
OFFCDT Barden is keen to follow in his father Jim’s flightpath
and fly F/A-18 Hornets. He already has about 800 flying hours in
his logbook, having flown Cessna 182 light aircraft to muster cattle
in the Mt Isa-Camooweal area of Queensland.
He now has pilot training ahead of him with the ultimate aim of
a posting to a Hornet squadron.
His dad attended the RAAF Academy at Point Cook in the 1970s and
graduated to fly fighters. He flew both Mirage and Hornet jets before
leaving the Air Force in 1988 and joining Qantas, then later the
safety department at Virgin Blue.
OFFCDT Barden travelled with his family and spent much of his time
watching aeroplanes.
After school he began a Bachelor of Engineering degree but half
way through decided he wanted to fly, so he studied and achieved
an Advanced Diploma in Aviation and went commercial flying in the
outback.
“I always wanted to join the Air Force, so I did my own pilot
training and ended up here,” he said.
The outback experience included “a lot of low-level flying,
lots of cows, and plenty of hot weather”.
His family travelled from Brisbane to Point Cook to see him graduate.
Jim Barden said, “James went and worked for it and got it.
I didn’t push him, he had a goal and achieved it. F/A-18s are
what he wants to do and now it is up to him.”
Jim accumulated 2200 hours during his Air Force career. He served
at RAAF Butterworth in Malaysia and at RAAF Williamtown, and also
went to the United States to bring the Hornet simulator to Australia.
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