The Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training (CNATT) headquarters staff celebrated the organization's 15th birthday with a luncheon and cake-cutting ceremony at the Naval Air Station Pensacola Morale, Welfare and Recreation Portside Entertainment Complex Feb. 8.

CNATT serves as the aviation training arm of Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) and the Naval Aviation Enterprise (NAE) overseeing 28 learning sites located throughout the continental United States, Hawaii and Japan.

"We're in the business of getting the best, most capable and highly trained Sailors and Marines out to their ultimate duty stations to continue the tradition of excellence Naval Aviation has historically embodied," said Capt. Eric J. Simon, CNATT commanding officer. "Each and every service member and civilian employee who is part of the CNATT Team is playing a critical role in the success and legacy of our Navy's aviation assets, the most important of which are the Sailors and Marines going through the courses our learning sites administer."

CNATT learning site instructors teach nearly 1,000 courses for more than 20 naval aviation ratings and Marine Corps Military Occupational Specialties (MOS) and 29 Navy and Marine Corps aviation officer career fields. The organization's nearly 3,000 staff members develop, deliver and support aviation technical training for nearly 100,000 students annually.

"What we are accomplishing for our existing maintainers and aviation professionals continues to grow," said Simon. "The successes that our squadrons and aviation maintenance facilities achieve are directly attributable to the work this headquarters staff invests in our units', detachments' and learning sites' mission of training the service members who attend our classes. The young men and women who support and maintain our aviation assets in the fleet are our priority, and I couldn't be more proud of the efforts of the CNATT staff across all of our locations."

Simon also presented awards during the birthday celebration, citing Civilians of the Quarter and Year, as well as recognizing individual and command-wide accomplishments. The CNATT headquarters MWR committee provided lunch and the organization's safety department, total force directorate and the CNATT anti-terrorism officer provided annual training opportunities.

As one of the largest training agents under the NETC umbrella, CNATT maintains the constant flow of qualified and proficient technicians to aviation maintenance units globally. Simon stressed the importance of continuing to be on the leading edge of a rapidly changing training environment to meet manpower goals throughout the fleet.

"We're constantly improving the manner in which we are preparing these service members for duty around the world," said Simon. "We're leveraging technology as never before, increasing course content while decreasing the time a student waits for instruction, and continuing to produce the best-trained and fleet-ready Sailors and Marines. We are truly forging the future of naval aviation with the training we provide every day. Fleet readiness truly starts here."

CNATT is the technical training agent for the NAE, an organization designed to advance and sustain naval aviation warfighting capabilities at an affordable cost under NETC.

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