Mother's Worry List

We regularly check on line to see what our son's daily training schedule will be, or what he has been doing the past few days. Last night my wife text me, "Do you know what Tim did today[?]" A colleague of mine finished his service as a flight instructor at NAS Corpus Christi after he returned from Vietnam. He happened to have been in the same training squadron as my son - only forty-five years earlier. He said his dad would have given anything at that time to have been able to follow his training progress on the Internet, like we do today. Now that our son is at NAS Kingsville, seeing whether the type of activity[ies] for the day will be an exercise in the simulators (Sim C) or time flying (Flight),  is usually enough to meet our curiosity. But once-in-a-while, I will cut-and-paste the Event code into the Web browser and look up the PowerPoint briefing for that event. This next Monday's 1.3 hour event is titled: 

MPTS IJET FRM2101 

Mission 

FORMATION EP SIMULATOR

   
All of this jargon has to do with preparing several students for flying close to one another in formation (1). Below is the Recommended Flight Conduct for the event from the brief, shown with my interpretation of what a mother of a naval jet pilot in-training would see when read: 

start Malfunctions

ground Emergencies

interval Abort

interval take off with Emergency

parade visual flight rules

instrument flight rule

engine Emergencies

flight control Emergencies

electrical Emergencies

environmental control system Emergencies

fuel system Emergencies

turns 

echelon

Precautionary approach

section approach 

Missed approach with Emergency

visual flight rules Recovery and pattern Emergencies

visual flight rules landing pattern  

landing 

touch-and-go 

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(1) Just as my son was taking the freeway exit into Kingsville last autumn when we helped him move from Corpus Christi, several T-45's in formation were doing their break away pattern to land. It was pretty exciting to see. Tim is now preparing to do the same - a bit of a scary thought - several inexperienced ensigns learning to flying in formation together.

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Postscript, April 6, 2012: The F/A-18 crash in Virginia Beach yesterday, made this blog posting about emergency procedure training sobering. A news video clip can be viewed clicking here.

Another Bird Learned

Navy Boeing T-45 Goshawk

It was just 15 months ago that we were watching the Blue Angels from the field at the Naval Academy, right before the Class of 2010 Graduation. With our son finishing Primary Flight School earlier this week, the news yesterday was what his next training platform would be and the kind of pilot he would be. The word yesterday around 1400 Eastern Time: JETS. My vocabulary is expanding when it comes to knowing different naval aviation planes. In the paragraphs below are a few that are being added to the check-off list - like the birds in my back yard.

Over 200 students a year report to Training Air Wing TWO for Undergraduate Jet Pilot Training. These students report to one of two training squadrons, Training Squadron TWENTY ONE or TRAINING SQUADRON TWENTY TWO. The Training Air Wing is responsible for providing the fleet with newly winged Navy and Marine Corps aviators. The Air Wing consists of approximately 250 student naval aviators, 75 instructor pilots, 80 civilian personnel, and 100 T-45A and T-45C "Goshawk" aircraft. Introduced to NAS Kingsville in 1992, the Goshawk is part of the T-45 Training System (TS) developed by McDonnell Douglas, now Boeing Aircraft Company. The Wing is in the process of upgrading all T-45A aircraft to the T-45C configuration, which more closely matches the avionics found in tactical fleet aircraft. In a historic partnership with the Navy of India, Training Air Wing TWO began training Indian Naval Students in 2006 and graduated the first class for the Indian Navy in 2007. All students undergo a rigorous syllabus in the T-45 Goshawk on the way to earning their Wings of Gold.

The Training Wing TWO Ground Training Department provides for classroom instruction, computer aided instruction, and flight simulation in instrument and operational flight trainers. Contract maintenance and support departments provide the Navy with maintenance and upkeep for the aircraft, support for the aircrew's flight gear, and support for all of the ground and simulator instruction.
Training Air Wing TWO enjoys operating in a very favorable community climate. The residents of Kingsville have always been ardent supporters of the base and continue to provide opportunities for local involvement in a variety of recreational, educational, and entrepreneurial activities. In conjunction with the NAS Kingsville base personnel, Training Air Wing TWO personnel are actively involved in the local schools, providing role models and mentors to the future of our nation.
 (1)

Student Naval Aviators selected for Tailhook training are assigned to NAS Kingsville, Texas or NAS Meridian, Mississippi flying the T-45C or T-45A. NAS Meridian uses only the T-45C while NAS Kingsville is nearly completely transitioned to the T-45C. The syllabus incorporates basic instrument flying, formation, night familiarization and airway navigation over approximately 58 graded flights lasting approximately 27 weeks. At the completion of the Tailhook syllabus, approximately 80% of those SNAs are selected for Advanced Strike training, leading ultimately to tactical jets like the F/A-18 or AV-8B (Marine Corps only). The remaining 20% receive further training in the E2/C2 pipeline, ultimately leading to assignment flying either the E-2C or C-2 Greyhound. Marine Corps SNA's automatically continue in the Advanced Strike syllabus and will ultimately fly either the F/A-18, AV-8B, or EA-6B. (2)
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(1) From Training Air Wing Two.
(2) From Wikipedia United States Naval Aviation.