Approach articles from February 2002

Approach archives from February 2002

Rudder hardover: this time I saved the jet.
February 1, 2002... It started out as a good-deal ACM hop. It would end as a day that a young, 250-hour, Cat I pilot and I never would forget. It was a cold, clear and blustery January day at NAS Oceana, with the winds at a steady 25 knots out of the northwest....

Demon HAC. (helicopter aircraft commander).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... We had a HAC on our cruise whom everyone despised. All the H2Ps would play cards, and the loser had to fly with the demon HAC. I won at cards most of the time, but, when I did lose, I would trade my flight for standing an extra shore-patrol...

Teaching old dogs new tricks.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... I was scheduled as the mission commander for a double-cycle flight in our trusty Hummer, early in our WestPac cruise. The mission for both cycles was to QA other air controllers in the battle group during an air defense exercise. The unbriefed...

Birds! duck!(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... We were on the final leg of a three-leg, round-robin flight around Texas, near the end of T-34C intermediates. The previous two flights were mostly in and out of clouds, but since these were RI flights, I wasn't too concerned. However, climbing...

A close encounter of the worst kind.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... It was a very dark night at the end of our fifth month of cruise and our fourth continuous month in the Arabian Gulf. We were manning up for what would be the XOs' final night event of the deployment (sorry, no commander's moon tonight). At...

Using the noggin.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... "This manual contains information on all aircraft systems, performance data, and operating procedures required for safe and effective operations. However, it is not a substitute for sound judgment." The preface to all aircraft NATOPS...

Wind the clock before an emergency.
February 1, 2002... The flight. We had a normal startup and Case 1 takeoff. Then, 45 minutes into flight, after we completed the mission, we observed high oil pressure on No. 1 engine at military power. The crew retarded the throttle to idle and monitored...

That's not a boat, that's an H-46.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... We were flying a night SAR for an LHD off the West Coast. It was the fifth hour of the exercise, and we were in low-light conditions. We wanted to get our unaided qualifications, so we didn't use night-vision goggles. The Marine helicopter...

Sucking rubber ... not!
February 1, 2002... We were on the second leg of our transit to NAS Roosevelt Roads for an orange air detachment after stopping at NAS Key West for gas. Weather and winds looked good for our 1,045-mile trip to Puerto Rico over open ocean. A few suitable diverts...

Wait! Standing Operating Procedure says no compound unrelated emergencies.
February 1, 2002... Our cruiser had conducted contingency operations near Taiwan for several weeks. A previously tense operating environment had become routine, reminiscent of Arabian Gulf flight ops. You remember those: sweating during the preflight, launching,...

Bad hook-up.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... The title implies a blind date gone bad, but it's really the story behind my first cat shot on Indy. I was a brand new CAG LSO. I already had been introduced to Iwo Jima FCLPs, and this was my first at-sea period on the last of the small-deck...

Take a seat.(Brief Article)(Cover Story)
February 1, 2002... I was in the backseat for a student's first Nay hop in the syllabus, known also as a low-level. As a new instructor at the Fleet Replacement Squadron, I was fired up by the student's performance on the low-level navigation portion. It was a...

Last in the line of defense.
February 1, 2002... It was a great day in naval aviation. I was scheduled for two flights; my annual frontseat NATOPS check in the afternoon and a backseat, high-value-asset flight in the evening. It was a welcome change from the past few days of carrier...

Don't forget to check under the hood.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... The H-60 series of helos is equipped with a large, electronics-compartment door on the nose of the aircraft, which makes servicing avionics and related gear a snap. The engineers at Sikorsky clearly had ease of maintenance in mind when they...

Ever had vertigo? If not, just wait. (Crew Resource Management).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... It was late summer 1996 when I arrived at VT-28, eager and ready to start my career as a Navy pilot. As I learned my way around the squadron and met with instructors, I had an enlightening conversation with the XO. We spoke of his career as a...

A note from the aeromedical division.(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Lt. Maini has provided us with a terrific story describing spatial disorientation in detail. The physiological event described in the article is actually a vestibular illusion, most likely the somatogyral illusion, not vertigo. Vertigo is a...