By Lieutenant Commander Jim O’Keefe

TT oday, Helicopter Training Squadrons(HTs) 8 and 18 provide helicopter trainingfor the United States Navy, Marine Corps,Coast Guard and many allied nations atthe south airfield aboard NAS WhitingField, Fla.

Navy helicopter training began in 1943with the Navy’s purchase of its firsthelicopter, the HNS. The training site wasFloyd Bennett Field, Brooklyn, N.Y., untilafter WW II, when operations weremoved to NAS Lakehurst, N.J. In 1950,with the onset of the Korean War, thedemand for fleet helicopter detachmentsincreased dramatically. In that year, HT-8was originally established as HelicopterTraining Unit (HTU) 1, flying the HTL fromEllyson Field, Pensacola, Fla. Thesquadron was redesignated HT-8 in1960. In 1972, with still expanding fleethelicopter pilot requirements, HT-8 split,forming HT-18. HT-8 and HT-18 becamethe training tandem stepping stones forthe student Naval Aviator (SNA) along thepath to the coveted Wings of Gold.

Today, HT-8 retains the mission oftransition helicopter training, takingstudent aviators with roughly 100 hoursof fixed-wing primary and intermediateT-34C Turbo-Mentor time and teachingthem how to fly a helicopter. To HT-18went the tasks of helicopter basic andradio instrument training, as well asf o r m a t i o n , t a c t i c s a n d c a r r i e rqualifications.

HTs 8 and 18 train over 600 U.S. and40 foreign student Naval Aviatorsannually. HT-8 also provides a helicopterflight syllabus for one-third of all U.S.Navy and many allied student flightsurgeons.

Flight instructors have always beenand will always be the principal tools ofmission accomplishment in the Naval AirTraining Command. For HTs 8 and 18, theproduction of safe, quality syllabussorties falls to some 150 instructors: 54

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with HT-8 (32 Navy, 20 Marine, 2 CoastGuard); 98 with HT-18 (52 Navy, 41Marine, 5 Coast Guard). There are noselectively retained graduates or limitedduty officer pilots in HT-8 or HT-18. Mostinstructors arrive at the squadronsdirectly from a fleet seat, with theexperience of a fleet tour behind them.Total flight time for an arriving instructoris generally about 1,000 hours.

Newly arriving aviators quickly find astrong atmosphere of esprit de corps andcamaraderie in both squadrons. Thiscomes f rom shar ing the av ia t i onexperience with instructor pilots and theinevitable “sea stories” and “you shouldhave been theres.” But it is also due tomany other factors: the flight time is allanyone can want or imagine, the aviationmaintenance support is unbeatable, thesatisfaction of t ra in ing future f leethelicopter pilots is strong, and thePensacola/Milton, Fla., area is a greatplace to live, work, fly, get a master’sdegree and ge t invo lved in thecommunity on a shore duty tour. In anormal two to three-year tour in HT-8 orHT-18, the aviator’s greatest challengesand rewards will be found in the cockpit.

For the HT-8 student , the f i rs tchallenge is to control the machine — anA or B model TH-57 SeaRanger. For thefirst few hops, the “57” flies the student,not vice versa. The student hangs on forthe ride to Spencer OLF, an outlying fieldlocated about eight miles west of NASWhiting Field. After nine flights and aFAM-10 safe-for-solo check, the SNAsolos to Spencer OLF and back. A one-mile-square, uncontrolled field with twotraffic patterns oriented about onecardinal “course” and nine aircraft to apattern, Spencer will reinforce the SNA’salready well practiced lookout doctrine.

All student aviators put a great deal ofsweat into mastering that mysticalexercise in frustration, the maneuver inwhich “the helicopter is maintained innearly motionless flight over a referencepoint at a constant heading and altitude,”

that most elusive cosmic balance — ahover. Generally, he will not be peeved byinstructor requests to “keep it in thepanhandle — of Florida, I mean, Ensign,”if indeed possible. But with hover secureand basic air work coming along, heproceeds on to the most aeronauticallydemanding of the maneuvers taught inHT-8 (and one of the most unique inaviation) and the one HT-8 instructorspride themselves on most: autorotation.

In 1984, HT-8 instructors performedmore than 485,000 takeoffs and landingsat Spencer OLF, some 90,000 of whichwere autorotations, half of which werefull (power-off) autorotations to theground.

After 17 familiarization flights andground school completion, the SNAcompletes the 24- f l ight /38.1-hoursyllabus with day/night VFR navigationintroduction and low-level simulatedtactical missions. As the SNA checks outof HT-8, he or she is NATOPS-qualified inthe TH-57 A or B and has flown solo threetimes, one of which was on a VFR flightplan to one of three nearby Air Forcebases. The student is a basic helicopter

pilot ready for the challenges and lessonsof HT-18.

Within recent years, notable changeshave taken place in the helo trainingsyllabus. One was the phasing out of thevenerable TH-1 Huey as the HT-18trainer and the introduction of the newTH-57C SeaRanger in the summer of1983. For the fleet aviator accustomed tothe basic necessities, and for one whowas himself trained in the Huey, t he“Charlie” has to be seen to be believed.It’s a premier helicopter instrumenttrainer incorporating a ministab system,which will put your SCAS/AFCS toshame; two RNAVs that incorporateVOR/OME/TACAN/ ILS and a 10 -waypoint, point-to-point navigationcapability; VHF communications as wellas UHF; and, what else, ADF. It is flown byHT-18 on all of its flights and by HT-8 onall night and operational navigation hops.

In the TH-57C the SNA learns thatmodern instrument, stability and controlsystems are “to be believed in.” Initially,he battles, as do new instructors-under-training in HT-18, with the oldHuey motion base simulator. Now

utilized solely as a procedures trainer, ithangs on.

With five flights for basic instrumentprocedures a n d e i g h t f o r radioinstruments in the simulator, the studentis as ready as ever to dazzle the instructorwith procedural prowess. Armed withclassroom knowledge of IFR proceduresand a sound instrument scan, SNAstoday take to the air to battle theinfamous Gulf Coast weather, noted forits thermals and turbulence. With allNavy, M a r i n e a n d C o a s t G u a r dhelicopters dual-piloted, there is a newrelationship that must be fostered and aconcept the student must learn tomanage: crew coordination.

One HT-18 flight instructor said, “Asthe student sees the demands of a fullyinstrumented cockpit, he begins to seethe necessity for coordination andleadership in the cockpit. Although thestudent/instructor relationship remains,the pilot/copilot idea blossoms.”

The chance to prove his or her grasp ofthe “fly, think and crew coordinate”concept is brought to fruition in the nextstage of training: helicopter tactics. This

TH-57As at Ellyson Field

phase of training stresses maneuverscurrently employed in fleet helicopters ofthe Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.Service diversity is reflected in the factthat 22.2 hours of the 32.5-hour tacticsphase is “service specific.” Included inthis stage are external load operations,night landing zone operations, low-levelnavigation, and formation parade,climbs, descents, crossovers, breakupsand rendezvous.

With the Standard Instrument Ratinghard-earned, the SNA anticipates carrierqualifications. With more than 200 hoursof flight time under his belt in a syllabusdesigned to be “rather demanding” in thewords of Rear Admiral Jerry Hatcher,formerly Commander, Training Air Wing5, five touch and goes to Lexington (AVT-16) to cap it off, and a growing fleetawaiting his arrival, the new designatedNaval Aviator can feel pride in aremarkable accomplishment.

In November 1968, HT-8 became thefirst single-engine training squadron topass 200,000 accident-free hours. HT-8and HT-18 continue to place safety firstas they work together to prepare SNAsfor duty with the fleet.

What does the future hold for thedynamic duo? According to Hatcher, arotary-wing aviator himself, “Growthplanning for it, accommodating it whileall the time maintaining safety as thewatchword, that’s the challenge. And Idon’t see that changing. With theintroduction of the CH-53E for heavy lifti n t h e M a r i n e C o r p s a n d m i n ecountermeasures in the Navy, and thebeginnings of LAMPS MK III, the pilottraining requirement will continue toclimb to a projected 670 designatedrotary-wing aviators in 1988.

“Farther down the road is the JointServices Advanced Vertical Lift Aircraft(JVX),” said RAdm. Hatcher. “Flightinstructors are, to a great extent, the keyto accommodating that growth. We havehad success getting high performers forthe Training Command and that willcontinue in [large measure] because thearea is great, the flight time is super andthese aviators enjoy instructing peoplewho will one day share fleet cockpits withthem.” n

The Public Affairs Office, NAS WhitingField, Fla., and the Public Affairs Officers ofHT-8 and HT-18 contributed to this article.

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By Commander Al Jones

s tudent Naval Flight Officers (NFOs)get a mixed bag of training. When theycomplete the aviation indoctrinationprogram, student NFOs move on toTraining Squadron (VT) 10, home of theCosmic Cats, at Sherman Field, NASPensacola, Fla. There, they spend up to29 weeks, 15 in basic and 14 inintermediate NFO training.

T h e b a s i c N F O c u r r i c u l u memphasizes academics — 297.5 hours ofclassroom work, to be exact. In addition,students can expect some 22 hours inthe 1D23 navigation trainer and 2.6hours in the 2B37 T-34C simulator toprepare them for the flight portion of thecurriculum. This phase consists of fivesorties in the T-34C turboprop trainerand one sortie in the T-2 twin-engine jet.Flights include basic familiarization andintroduction to visual and instrumentnavigation, and formation flying.

Fo l l ow ing bas i c NFO t ra in ing ,students who have been selected formari t ime patrol (VP) or electronicsurveillance (VAQ) leave Pensacola forthe 22-week interservice undergraduatenavigator training (IUNT) program atMather AFB, Sacramento, Calif.

The IUNT curriculum includes 345classroom, 60 flight and 76 simulatorhours of training. At Mather, all flighttraining is given in the Air Force’s T-43Aaircraft, a version of the Boeing 737airliner. The T-43A’s modern navigationa n d c o m m u n i c a t i o n s e q u i p m e n tprepares navigators for strategic andtactical aircraft. Inside each T-43A are19 stations: 12 for navigation students,four for proficiency training and threefor instructors.

The simulator for the T-43A is the T-45, a state-of-the-art, ground-basednavigation training device with onemission control center and 52 studentstations. The simulator places the

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s tuden t nav iga to r i n mos t o f t hesituations he might encounter during hisflying career.

On completing the IUNT program,student NFOs receive their NFO wingsand orders to their first fleet squadron,with an intermediate assignment to anappropriate fleet readiness squadron(FRS) en route. Those who do not selectthe IUNT program remain at VT-10 andcontinue instruction in the intermediatephase. Successful completion of thistraining qualifies them for advancedtraining, specializing in airborne tacticaldata systems (ATDS), radar intercept(RI), tactical navigation (TN), andoverwater jet navigation (OJN) training.

During the intermediate phase at VT-10, students accumulate 40 flight hours,10 in the T-34C, 11.7 in the T-2 and 18.3in the T-47. Academics during thisp o r t i o n o f t h e t r a i n i n g a r e s t i l lemphasized with 103 hours, devotedprimarily to flight preparation. After 14weeks the students, except for ATDStrainees, go on to advanced NFOt r a i n i n g a t V T - 8 8 , a l s o a t N A SPensacola.

ATDS students leave the TrainingCommand after they finish intermediatetraining at VT-10 and report directly toan East or West Coast FRS for advancedNFO training in the sophisticated, fleet-operational E-PB/C Hawkeye — 42hours in the Hawkeye, 137 hours in the15F5/15F8 simulator and 283 classroomhours, spread over a 15-week period.

When the student has completed

advanced training, he receives his NFOwings and designation papers. But thelearning does not stop there. Thecomplex on-board computers and theradar and sensor systems of the E-2require another 15 weeks of intensivetraining and practice in preparation foroperational duties.

S t u d e n t s w h o r e m a i n a t N A SPensacola after the VT-10 intermediatephase are assigned to advanced NFOtraining at VT-86 for RI, TN and OJNtraining.

S tuden t rada r i n te rcep t o f f i ce rs(RlOs) have 19 weeks of t rainingincluding 131 academic, 70.5 T-47 and12 TA-4 Skyhawk flight hours, and 62hours in the air intercept radar trainer.During this phase, the student appliesthe pr inc ip les necessary to conductaggressive air- to-air intercepts byrequiring the pilot instructor to fly theaircraft throughout a mission profile,t hus engag ing a s imu la ted enemyaircraft from the correct missile-fixingposition. The student radar interceptofficer is presented tactical trainingsituations in simulation where he learnsto interpret reflected radar energydisplayed on airborne radarscopes andto deploy weapons while counteringenemy threats. High G adaptation isachieved by operational maneuvers intac t i ca l a i r c ra f t wh i le the s tuden tsexecu te the i r p re f l i gh t p lann ing .Successful completion of the advancedNFO RIO training will be followed byass ignmen t t o an app rop r ia te F -4

Phantom or F-14 Tomcat fleet readinesssquadron.

The 12 -week advanced tac t i ca lnavigation training curriculum includes88 academic, 12 ground mapping radartrainer, 12 TA-4 and 59 T-47 flight hours.Emphasis is on the enhancement ofnavigation, c o m m u n i c a t i o n s a n daircraft systems management skillsdeveloped in intermediate NFO training.Major emphasis is placed upon teachingbasic skills to navigate safely, utilizingvisual and airborne ground mappingr a d a r . T h i s t e a c h - t o - o b j e c t i v e scurriculum stresses crew coordinationa n d m i s s i o n p r i o r i t i e s . N e x t i sassignment to an appropriate A-6EI n t r u d e r o r E A - 6 B P r o w l e r f l e e treadiness squadron.

Advanced overwater jet navigationtraining is essentially the same as that ofthe tac t i ca l nav iga to r course inacademics, flight and trainer time. Totalcurriculum length is 15 weeks. Majoremphasis is on teaching basic skills tonavigate safely, u s i n g v i s u a l a n dairborne radar search with a view towarda p p l i c a t i o n in a n o v e r w a t e renvironment. Following overwater jetn a v i g a t i o n t r a i n i n g , s t u d e n t s a r eassigned to the S-3A Viking FRS in SanDiego, Calif., or an appropriate VAQFRS.

On successfully completing any of theadvanced NFO training courses, thestudent is designated a Naval FlightOfficer and is awarded the covetedWings of Gold. n

E-2C Hawkeye from VAW-126 in flight.

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