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categ0<?Uesti°as are made up in advance in a full range of rules1£S’ Suc*1 as tactics, emergency procedures, course ate u’ ai?d hodgepodge questions, but only five questions diffj | at any one time. The questions should range in The s / t0 c°incide with the appropriate point values. Standi f.^^aval Air Training and Operating Procedures questi lzati°n Department makes up and maintains the Thr nS’ S0 d°es not participate in the game.
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and a-. *s the key; the “scorekeeper” does just that
nies (jyjQ?PP*e can run the game: the “master of ceremo-
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^Uesti0ectlng the next question. If no one answers the <;ndCom*tly , it is thrown out, and the last team that
•hat |6rS CaC^' ^ *s designed with three lights, a switch terniC ears the lights and resets the circuit, and three input hasa s’ one for each team’s main wire. Each main wire three' 'nPut terminal on the game box, and
pUsh 'n(t'vidual wires spliced into it to which a hand-held butto Utt°n *S attached. When any one of the nine push ciosesS arC ^ePressc(h 't activates two relays; the first rejaa tthcuit and lights that team’s light; the second The f[enioves the other two teams’ lights from the circuit. illum'Tf ^utton to be depressed will be the only one that
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the Sen-1Sts *n the set up; the presiding “judge” is one of team t^°r°fficers and settles all disputes. The MC picks a categ0rStart the game. The team selects a question by thr°u jT and point value. The MC reads the question Sec°ndsUnt'- 3 'S illuminated. The team then has ten °r theirS l° ^*Ve an answer- If that team exceeds their time Suhtractai|SWer wrong> the point value of the question is Pate jn fi~ ^rom their score, and they can no longer partici- starts re tlUestion. The MC then resets the circuit and °0e 0f a ln§ the question again to the other two teams. If valUe of ® teams answers correctly, they get the point lege of ,at ^luestion posted to their score and the privi-
correctly picks another question.
The game is played in three parts: Jeopardy, Double Jeopardy, and Final Jeopardy. In Jeopardy, the point values range from 10-50 points. All point values double in Double Jeopardy. In Final Jeopardy, each team bets any portion of their score in an effort to win the game. The bets are made secretly, and the MC collects them and reads the question. All teams should be given ample time to write down their answers. The results are then made public, and the winning team is declared.
These techniques work for some, but they may not work for everyone. They may not produce the same results. People make the difference. The command and each individual must be willing and supportive. For aviation safety to be effective, it must include everyone involved with aviation. It is impossible to place the responsibility on any one group. If there is one thing that can make or break the success of aviation safety, it would have to be the concept of professionalism. The accident rate cannot be zero unless no one flies. Living in an imperfect world will always make room for the unexpected and the unavoidable. The best we can hope for is that we would all strive earnestly to be the very best we can, while keeping safety the number one priority.
Captain Petroff is a member of the transport helicopter community. After he finished flight school in 1981, he was assigned to a CH-53 A/D squadron on the West Coast. He is currently with the Naval Air Training Command.
Lieutenant Wicker’s first tour of duty out of flight school was at a Coast Guard Air Station in the northwest United States. He is currently assigned to the Naval Air Training Command.
Editor’s Note: This essay is the winning entry of the Naval Aviation Safety Leadership Essay Contest, organized by the Aviation Safety Office, NAS Pensacola
preaihingV(^ naval aviator, I grew up •friers. \y, king Navy jets on and off i ecatneSn mk dream became reality, !,k for a]j ^ncerned for my safety. Luck-
y>e
./ ‘Or a]l . - ------- >1I; ouivi; . x^vx^
rnidH|aVlators’ ‘he Navy was and is .die of a u
r^paig ® °f a huge public relations J§ht^—0 bring safety into the lime-
^°r B”‘ it the number
. r everv " ■■ “>v- iiumuer one priont; QllS Mio a family man witi
toi
*s.
one priority
o ________________ y man with
h0Drmedak. may be naval avia-
% enim° ,not only to be there to set dtake ;, their “wings of Gold,” bu
for
# TV nigs oi \jOIu, Dili
the sr, i*S safe for them as it has been
; so far : hair
The [ra •
^ a safpl'11® comrnand by nature has t<
l ^Cone v,,ioj0.r'cntcd program. To take
With . j/tugiam. iu laivc
w° left feet and teach him
think about safety. Many students have never left the ground before. But, by the time each one completes his flight instruction, he is a fledgling aviator, looking toward the fleet. He packs up his 200 flight hours and heads to the replacement air group (RAG).
Some arrive at the RAGs with swelled heads, thinking that they already know everything and can bend their airplanes to their limits under any circumstances. These fledgling pilots fall into the less- than-500-hours window—the pilots most likely to have an accident. Lack of experience is a contributing factor to many accidents, but if each nugget would remember his lack of flight time and experience, and take it into account, many
“pilot error” accidents would never occur. It takes the entire RAG syllabus and first cruise cycle to gain the experience to become a fleet aviator. 1 call this experience gap between nugget and fleet aviator “the gray area.” Those who attempt to skip the gray area are usually the ones who overstep their limits and have accidents.
My first sea tour was a lucky one—all three commanding officers made safety their number one priority. The safety officer and safety department maintained a sound safety program. Although the safety officer has a direct line to the commanding officer, a safety program will not work well without a self-starting safety chief running it. This individual
October 1986
133
must be one of the best chiefs in the squadron—he is the guy “down in the trenches” who makes sure the program is working. He should be persistent, with his nose into everything. Well liked or not, he will get the job done.
Equally as important is the selection of self-motivated work center safety petty officers. The minutes from the enlisted safety council meetings should be distributed throughout the squadron, placed on each shop’s “All Read Board,” and discussed at shop training meetings by the shop’s safety petty officer to provide direct feedback to the troops.
Sound maintenance practices alone will not guarantee a squadron a good safety record. The aircrews have to operate the aircraft safely. The safety program
phasis on at-sea time, in addition to the training instruction’s minimum requirements. The squadron held a weekly NATOPS training session, consisting of a lecture, the return of an open-book quiz given the week before, taking a closed- book exam on the previous week’s open- book quiz and lecture material, and handing out another open-book quiz on the current lecture topic. The open-book quiz required the aircrew members to use the books to review that particular subject— the closed-book quiz completed the learning cycle. All scores were recorded and placed on the squadron’s “Greenie Board,” visible to all—especially the commanding officer. There is nothing more motivating than having your NATOPS grades posted for the com
The safety program should not be c ^ posed entirely of aviation concerns- strong program deals with driving s home safety, cardiopulmonary res*fany. tion training, electrical safety, an thing else concerning squadron ,T,en' d Each of these topics should be ^1SCe6t- at safety standdowns, all officer ings, and the enlisted safety ^°wrj(- meetings. Pamphlets then should e ^ ten by the safety department, and 1 uted or mailed to squadron farm ie • Some of the best aviation train'^nal nior officers receive is during lttQS^. ready room discussions, i.e., sea0f The people with the most exPerlf gXecu- course, are the commanding an jt. tive officers. Currently, the b; 0ffj- tempts to keep a pilot commanding^ cer and a naval flight officer a executive officer, or vice versa. aS few cases are there two NFOs se ^jS commanding and executive officer • causes no major problem, but it1c0lll. thing to consider. Usually, a PI 0 the manding officer closely monl°a pilot progress of his nuggets. Howeve ^
extent
cause he is not in charge. But, take charge of the squadron s P ^ ^ without his experience and watc newly reported nugget will no ^
------ , OD- . n — be
the same training and informs i would have with a pilot skipper- ^ pjiot My nugget experience was wi ^ 0f skipper. Each time I climbed m ^ I the squadron’s aircraft and t0° yjiel' could feel his eyes on the back o . ,0 met. And each time I did not.^uerea^ his standards, he was waiting me> bn1 room. It was frustrating at the ^at he when I look back now, I ^n0 -j0t. pushed me to become a better P first
When a nugget arrives
Aviators—from nuggets to seasoned instructors—must avoid complacency, or the ever-beckoning threat may score and end careers, aircraft, and lives.
supplemented by a good Naval Air Training and Operating Procedures Standardization (NATOPS) program may prevent that one potential pilot-error accident the squadron would have had without them. The training plan instruction that guides the squadron’s training program provides for quarterly and annual NATOPS training. The program alone is the minimum required training.
In my last squadron, the NATOPS program was designed to place heavy em-
manding officer to see.
Additionally, on each open-book quiz, a situational-type question was asked to further supplement training, such as: “Your aircraft (a two-engine aircraft) experiences a fire warning light while on a night surface search contact hop at the boat. The boat is stationed 150 miles from Naval Air Station, Anywhere. You are currently 50 nautical miles from the ship in the direction of Naval Air Station. Weather at the ship is 15-overcast-3 with light rain. Naval Air Station is reporting visual flight rules. What are you going to do?” Asking these types of questions may save an aircrew valuable time in the air because its members have already developed a plan, which might save them from an accident.
at hlS with every1 dlots
an0
knows, all nuggets, both P* veter' . ■ , . oneu
NFOs, are trained with season^ ^eCo-
rs,
partment heads. I was fortunate t^ pest
ans, usually the commanding
tive officer, other comm:
anders
or
de'
ohav6.‘
crew of all lieutenants. It W^a(j thecC>' cruise a nugget could have. I .eUten:
i3l>tS
lective experience of three pie,
(one on his third cruise) fiyin^r 0fficer’ without the pressure of a seru , apug' One squadron in the air wing the
get who was assigned to gaSy f°
skipper. Although this mad nUgg' the skipper to keep an eye on
th«
tuv^ oivipjzvi IVZ «vvj/ , _ qH
it placed a lot of undue s r ajready fledgling aviator. Nuggets ar ■
up1
on 1
under a great deal of pressure rival—no need to add to it- seCp 1 A threat to safety that I ha
134
Proceedings
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it” attitude. The skipper must detect an individual who is not feeling up to par. In particular, he must let his command know that any pressures on a sick aviator should be pressures to stay grounded until he feels better—not the other way around. Operations, schedules, or even the skipper or executive officer could cause an aviator to second-guess how he feels; the next thing you know is that you have lost an aircraft because of a sinus block or other medical problem.
Complacency is by far the single largest threat to safety facing all aviators. Those aviators who fall into the 1,000 to 1,500 flight hour window, specifically those returning to their second sea tours in the same community, must fight complacency more than others. They have flown the aircraft before and tend to feel they know it all. Each aviator should develop his own built-in alarm system to fight off complacency.
Now that I have returned to the training command, I have a different perspective
__________ Nautical Talk_____________ on flying. Many students fly with instructors thinking “this instructor can get me out of any trouble.” But, each student should evaluate his instructor’s ability, just as the instructor evaluates him. Everyone makes mistakes. I wonder how many accidents could have been avoided if the student had been alert and realized that the instructor just made a mistake.
As long as the Navy has the foresight to place safety at the top of the priority list and continue the full press coverage of naval aviation safety, the Navy will set new safety records in the years to come, and will be able to maintain a high state of readiness.
Lieutenant Sparks attended the Naval Academy Prep School in Newport, and the U. S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, where he graduated in 1979. After receiving his wings at Naval Air Station Meridian in 1981, he toured at sea flying EA-6Bs with Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 133 on board the USS Enterprise (CVN-65). He now instructs student NFOs in TA-4s in Training Squadron 86, Pensacola.
When I returned from my first patrol as commanding officer of USCGC Vigorous, my six-year- old daughter, Jill, was among those who greeted us. She was quite impressed with her brief tour of the ship, and she was particularly curious about the mess deck. A few weeks later, she was on board again, this time with her new neighborhood friend. Anxious to impress with her knowledge of her dad’s ship, she blurted, “Let’s show Lynn the junk room!” Kenneth W. Thompson
Vincent Astor Memorial Leadership Essay Contest
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The United States Naval Institute and the Vincent Astor Foundation take pleasure in announcing the Eleventh Annual Vincent Astor Memorial Leadership Essay Contest for Junior Officers and Officer Trainees of the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. The contest is designed to promote research, thinking, and writing on the topic of leadership in the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.
FIRST PRIZE: $1,500, a Naval Institute Gold Medal, and a Life Membership in the Naval Institute.
FIRST HONORABLE MENTION: $1,000 and a Naval Institute Silver Medal.
SECOND HONORABLE MENTION: (two to be awarded) $500 and a Naval Institute Bronze Medal.
The first prize essay will be published in the U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings. The Institute’s Editorial Board may elect to publish any or all of the honorable mention essays in any given year, but is not obligated to do so. The Editorial Board may, from time to time, publish collections of the award winning essays and other essays in book or pamphlet form.
This contest is open to:
- Commissioned officers, regular and reserve, in the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard in pay grades 0-1, 0-2, and 0-3 (ensign/2nd lieutenant; lieutenant (junior grade)/1st lieutenant; and lieutenant/captain) at the time the essay is submitted.
- U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard officer trainees within one year of receiving their commissions.
ENTRY RULES
1. Essays must be original and may not exceed 4,000 words.
- All entries should be directed to: Executive Director (VAMLEC), U.S. Naval Institute, Annapolis, Maryland 21402.
- Essays must be recieved on or before 1 March 1987 at the U.S. Naval Institute.
- The name of the author shall not appear on the essay. Each author shall assign a motto in addition to a title to the essay. This motto shall appear (a) on the title page of the essay, with the title, in lieu of the author’s name and (b) by itself on the outside of an accompanying sealed envelope. The sealed envelope should contain a typed sheet giving the name, rank, branch of service, address, and office and home phone numbers (if available) of the essayist, along with the title of the essay and the motto. The identity of the essayist will not be known to the judging members of the Editorial Board until they have made their selections.
- The awards will be made known and presented to the successful competitors during the graduation awards ceremonies at their respective schools, if appropriate, or at other official ceremonies. Mrs. Astor or her personal representative will be invited to present the first prize each year.
- Essays must be typewritten, double-spaced, on paper approximately 81/2 x 11". Submit two complete copies.
- Essays will be judged by the Naval Institute’s Editorial Board for depth of research, analytical and interpretive qualities, and original thinking on the topic of leadership. Essays should not be merely expositions or personal narratives.
Deadline: 1 March 1987
WIN $1,500
United States Naval Institute, Annapolis, Maryland 21402 (301)268-6110
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