|
|
Article: Between a rock and a hard place.(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- Approach
- Article date:
- July 1, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 U.S. Naval Safety Center. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
I've reflected on the various, though infrequent, errors I have made as a naval aviator. A four-letter expletive followed when my kneeboard card blew out the window. I also declared minimum fuel with a 3,000-pound-external load, rather than put down at a nearby military facility and return to base clean. None of my mistakes killed me, but many could have.
As the oncoming UH-3H SAR-alert crew at our Caribbean island base, we were scheduled for the weekly, night-SAR-proficiency flight. Thrown into the mix was a VNAV-orientation flight to a small island in the Puerto Rican Op Area.
It was a great night to fly: a nearly-full moon, a few scattered clouds, an ...