Combat Edge articles from February 2004

Combat Edge archives from February 2004

Accent on safety: learn from other people's mistakes.
February 1, 2004... "There is no way to live long enough to make all the mistakes yourself... you have to learn from other people's mistakes." --Mr. Jim Glenn a retired Air Force pilot Mr. Glenn's sentiment matches the goal of THE COMBAT EDGE. We try...

Python 1 you're on fire! Two and a half years ago, I took off in my A-10 on a Basic Fighter Maneuver (BFM) instructor upgrade sortie with my squadron commander. It was a memorable one, and it still feels like yesterday that this all happened to me.
February 1, 2004... Our plan was to accomplish some heavyweight Visual Flight Rule (VFR) patterns to fill some chased-pattern squares. After the second low approach, I was about 100 feet Above Ground Level (AGL) with my gear just cleaned up. As I raised my flaps...

Wow! I'm really messed up.
February 1, 2004... The next morning I grabbed my gradebook with anticipation to see what impressions my Instructor Pilot (IP) had on my last ride. Much to my surprise, the IP had written a rather benign statement, "big learning curve with poor weather--much...

Trail blazers.(Black History Month)(Cover Story)
February 1, 2004... February is Black History month, a time which gives us an opportunity to highlight the significant role African Americans played in U.S. military history. One group the Tuskegee Airmen went on to have the enviable record of not losing a single...

Aircrew Safety Award of Distinction.(Monthly Award Winners)
February 1, 2004... Capt Kent Payne, 2Lt Michael Fessler, Lt Col John O'Connor, and 1Lt Shalin Turner distinguished themselves in their handling of a serious in-flight emergency while flying a B-1B aircraft on a local training sortie. During a low level training...

Crew Chief Safety Award of Distinction.(Monthly Award Winners)
February 1, 2004... SSgt Dury displayed uncommon presence of mind during a local Phase II Operational Readiness Exercise SHARP-SHOOTER 03-07. While securing test equipment, he heard a loud crash and saw the aircraft rocking back and forth. He quickly went around...

Ground Safety Award of Distinction.(Monthly Award Winners)
February 1, 2004... SSgt Sullivan detected a fuel leak on an F-15E while conducting an end of runway (EOR) check on the Advanced Programs centerline pylon and Fiber Optic Towed Decoy pod. Noticing an excessive fuel leak dripping onto the pod, he notified EOR...

Flightline Safety Award of Distinction.(Monthly Award Winners)
February 1, 2004... SrA Grunert reported for a local training mission, which was scheduled to fly reconnaissance over the Southeastern United States. After his normal Computer Display Maintenance Technician preflight, SrA Grunert proceeded into the lower...

Pilot Safety Award of Distinction.(Monthly Award Winners)
February 1, 2004... The sortie was briefed as a 4v5 with one additional dedicated striker Blue Air OCA sortie, with Lt Col O'Mara as Number 3 in the formation. Preflight, start, taxi, and takeoff were all uneventful. Weather was skies clear, with light winds. The...

Weapons Safety Award of Distinction.(Monthly Award Winners)
February 1, 2004... SSgt Thetford, an Additional Duty Weapons Safety Representative (ADWSR), maintains an outstanding weapons safety program in the 3rd Combat Communications Group (3 CCG) for the 32nd Combat Communications Squadron (32 CCS). When he took control...

Stupid driving decisions: integrity means doing the right thing when others are not looking!
February 1, 2004... I'd like to share with you two incidents involving a few airmen assigned to Beale, and the antics they pulled while driving their personal vehicles. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Situation No. 1: I was riding off base with two other...

A trip plan saved our lives!
February 1, 2004... Sometimes even the best of plans go bad. That was the case for three Elmendorf aircraft maintainers who went on a 4-day hunting trip at a remote lake near Glennallen, Alaska. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] MSgt Eric Hoffman, SrAs Dave Strunk...

Cold can hurt!
February 1, 2004... A popular motivational anecdote goes something like this: "That which does not kill you makes you stronger." How many times have you heard that one? While this oft-quoted line might have some fundamental truth, it forgets to mention that those...

Ice fishing: winter safety.
February 1, 2004... Picture this: A misty white view of frozen Canandaigua Lake accompanied by the cold chill of a winter morning. The snow-covered ice makes an eerie crunch noise beneath each step. A seasoned ice fisherman leads a novice out on the ice to...

Fleagle.
February 1, 2004... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Mishap statistics scoreboard.
February 1, 2004... Aircraft Notes Kudos for a safe December. Despite an RQ-1 Class A, this CY 4th quarter (Oct to Dec) had the fewest Class As since 1999. Well done! Continue to be involved safety leaders and use ORM to keep up the good work. ACT: Assess the...