Background Current geopolitical and financial situation in the European continent creates an unstable environment and new challenges for European and national security systems. A constant growing number of armed conflicts in the southern periphery of Europe (e.g. Eastern Mediterranean Sea), created a flow of illegal immigrants to the southern European states such as Greece, Italy and Spain. In order to meet the current security demands and challenges, the European Union has identified the need to launch cooperation in the Military Higher Education Area (MHEA) by providing targeted education and training to military officers, in the field of European Security & Defence Policy (ESDP). In line with the political mandate, the declaration on the European initiative for the exchange of Military Young Officers (EMILYO) inspired by Erasmus, was signed by the European Ministers of Defence in November 2008 (see attached documents). Its main task is the harmonization and not the standardization of the Basic Officer Education (BOE) promoting “quantitative and qualitative exchanges of knowledge and know-how through mobility” of students and personnel of military education and training institutions. It is believed that maintaining a secure and stable EU, demands a creation of certain conditions that allow military students, during their Basic Officer Education, to actively participate in the mobility forms of education. It would provide them with the opportunity to spent time abroad, meet their peers from different cultures and improve their leadership skills, competences and knowledge. A significant support is required in order to provide equal opportunities for military education. Currently, military students constitute a specific group that is discriminated by mobility opportunities of Erasmus+. It is not the case of an intentional or institutional discrimination, but a result of national legal framework and regulations of Air Force Institutions, which, according to the state law, are obliged to fulfil requirements of both Ministries of Defence and Education. The solution to this really undesirable situation is to establish a Strategic Partnership among Air Force Institutions (universities, colleges, academies), in order to develop a Common program of studies in the field of Basic Air Force Officer Education. This will be an undergraduate Common Programme of studies called “International Air Force Semester”, aiming at providing students (officer cadets) the opportunity to study in EU countries, without facing problems to recognize the studies done abroad. It will also help Air Force Institutions to be reformed in order to fulfill the requirements of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), as well as those of the Bologna Process, by developing innovative intellectual outputs and increasing the number of students sending abroad. Objectives and activities The primary objective of our project is to create a Common Semester in order to facilitate and promote long term students’ exchanges. The core activities of the Strategic Partnership will be the following: • Development of a common programme of studies called “International Air Force Semester” consisting of 30 ECTS. • Development of intellectual outputs such as e-books, study material, e-learning platform, teaching tools and assessing tools in order to improve the quality of the education process. • Dissemination of the intellectual outputs as described below. The participating organizations are the following: Hellenic Air Force Academy (Lead institution) Air Force Academy “Henri Coanda” (Romania) Portuguese Air Force Academy Expected outcomes -The adoption of the curriculum of the “International Air Force Semester” both from the participating organizations and the Air Force Institutions outside the partnership will provide the opportunity to exchange students without facing problems to recognize studies have done abroad. -To attract students from Military institutions across Europe which are not capable of providing specialized studies in the field of security and defence Dissemination activities and longer-term benefits The partnership will intend to organize two (2) international conferences (multiplier events) in order to disseminate the results of the IAFS. In addition to this a variety of widely known ways of communication including publications to international magazines, presentations to international forums, development of an official website and presentations to the Erasmus+ dissemination platform will be used to promote and support the activities of the project. Taken into consideration the above-mentioned summary, the partnership is convinced that the development of the International Air Force Semester, will promote closer cooperation among European Air Force Institutions, resulting in providing students the necessary skills and competences to serve their countries and the Union.
The primary objective of the project was to create a common semester in order to facilitate and promote long term students’ exchanges among European Air Force Academies. Based on the national legal frameworks and regulations of Air Force Academies, which, according to the state laws, are obliged to fulfil requirements of both Ministries of Defence and Education, the exchange of student was not possible unless there was a common curriculum in which the students at any institution acquire the same education. Thus, the specific project provided the opportunity to develop such a common curriculum to enable the partners to exchange cadets and enhance the quality of education provided to them. Furthermore, through the project, a Common European culture in Security and Defence will be promoted through the development of relevant modules, targeted knowledge will provided, by teaching the cadets the basic principles of CSDP Missions and Operations, skills and competences which are necessary to cooperate and work in a multinational environment will also be developed, students experience by applying the lessons learnt from the EU missions will be enriched and finally a network among future officers within the European Union will be created.
Current geopolitical and financial situation in the European continent creates an unstable environment with several internal and external threats and new challenges for European and national security systems. In this context, the European Union has identified the need to launch cooperation in the Military Higher Education Area by providing targeted education and training to military officers, in the field of European Security & Defence Policy (ESDP). This was pursued through the European Security and Defence College and the EMILYO initiative. However, military students did not have any mobility opportunities via Erasmus+ programme since they had problems to recognize the studies done abroad if the curriculum attended was different from the one at the home institution. Through the implemented semester, cadets will have the opportunity to attend innovative intellectual outputs that respond to the new challenges in the European area and also participate in mobility exchanges visiting other Europeans Air Force Academies.