Approach articles from July 2001

Approach archives from July 2001

Reporting Aboard.(new editor)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... Many years ago, when I was student teaching as a phys ed major, my elementary school instructor watched as I lost control of my class. We were in the gym using scooters. The kids were having a great time going fast, driving hard, and playing...

Ingenious!(aircraft system design)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... At the risk of damaging my ego, let me tell you about a situation I feel very lucky to be able to write about. I was a senior lieutenant and functional-check pilot, doing a routine track and balance on an SH-60B. My copilot was an O-4 select...

Who's on the Ball.(communication breakdown while landing on carrier)
July 1, 2001... ... from high above the glideslope to well below, all to the tune of blood-curdling power calls, and then finally the waveoff. In the cockpit, I heard none of it... We've reached the midpoint of our deployment to the Mediterranean and the...

Heck, the Skipper's Flying--What Could Go Wrong?(communications breakdown)
July 1, 2001... It was August in the Arabian Gulf, and we were the early launch for the last event of the day. Unlike the four-hour Operation Southern Watch (OSW) missions we'd been flying for two months, this night flight was single-cycle. unit-level...

One Sandbag, No Waiting.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... It was another clear, summer night in Milton, Fla.--a perfect evening for a few of of my last flights in the HTs. I had just finished RIs and was finally an instrument-rated pilot. All that stood between me and my wings were a couple of...

Fatigue, Frustration and ... How Many Points Does That Deer on the Runway Have?(flight risk assessment)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... Our squadron had been back from cruise for only two months when we again began bouncing lot the boat. Deck certifications and CQ requirements made it seem we were right back where we had been a year ago, at the peak of the work-up cycle. The...

Keep Your Head Out of the Cockpit.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... It was a typical summer evening at our air-station training base in South Texas. I was in my second year as a T-2 SerGrad, closing in on my 1,000-hour patch and working hard to make Instructor of the Month (by flying the most hours). The...

VFR IN A THUNDERSTORM (NO, NOT US, THE OTHER GUY!).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... So there we were in our EA-6B on another dark and stormy night over southern Japan. The weather was starting to break up, and our plan was to practice flying the ball during several GCAs. Thunderstorm cells were sitting all around Atsugi, but...

SEAL Versus Steel.(Navy SEAL mission accident)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... This story is the hardest one I've ever written. I was the crew chief during a Helicopter. Visit, Board. Search and Seizure (HVBSS). We were operating off the coast of South Korea. It was a moonless night. The sea had a slight chop, and there...

Just Park It, We Can Walk from Here.(always communicate with air traffic control)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... The brakes not only were hot, they were fused, which left us stuck in the middle of the taxiway. So far, the week had been painful for the squadron, thanks to numerous aircraft maintenance problems. We were doing night FCLPs in the Land of...

Engine Fire at High Power.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... The importance of the aviator's relationship with maintainers became very evident one December afternoon in Sigonella, Sicily, while I was serving as the squadron taxi pilot. The operational tempo during this part of our deployment was high,...

Man, That's Bright! (or, What the Pilot Saw).(flight system troubleshooting)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... I had briefed as part of a section of aircraft on an air-intercept upgrade sortie. It was a dark night, but I was flying with a good nugget, and this would be a simple event for him. It was 2 v 2 for some air-to-air training, and I figured the...

No, I'm Not Superstitious.(fighter pilot relates Ouija Board incident)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... One evening in 1968, when I was 8 years old, my sister and I were playing with an Ouija board. Most folks view Ouija boards as harmless parlor entertainment, but some people think the device lets them communicate with spirits. My sister and I...

Red Line Fuel (and How We Got There).
July 1, 2001... During our transit home from WestPac, we finally had a chance to catch up on our night-shipboard-currency requirements. We transited from Darwin, Australia, to New Caledonia beneath a big, bright moon, and there's nothing that pilots who don't...

No News Is Not-So-Good News.(aircraft mishap)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2001... We usually think of the airborne phase of a sortie as the most likely time for a mishap. However, the risks start while you're still on deck, and a few moments of inattention can lead to extreme peril before a single aircraft is launched. ...