Hornet conversion courses run for six months, after which graduates are posted to one of the RAAF's front-line fighter units, No. 3 Squadron or No. 77 Squadron at Williamtown, or No. 75 Squadron at RAAF Base Tindal, Northern Territory. Students must first gain their instrument rating on the Hornet, and are then taught basic fighter manoeuvres, air combat techniques, air-to-air gunnery, and air-to-ground tactics. The course culminates with Exercise High Sierra, a biannual event that was first run at Townsville, Queensland, in 1986. The exercise lasts several weeks and involves day and night flights, including precision strike sorties with practice and live bombs.