Cluster Operations in the 128th
128th Aviation Brigade / By CPT Trenton Conyers: As 2020 ended, the 128th Aviation Brigade postured itself to conduct Holiday Block Leave for all the trainees and cadre as it does every year. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, however, this mission posed new challenges to leaders within the Brigade. The commander’s goal from the beginning was to maximize Soldier participation in this leave period and to do so as safely as possible, utilizing a series of COVID-19 mitigation strategies at every juncture. The most critical strategy in this was the creation of student “clusters” upon return from Holiday Block Leave which would help...
Learn MoreAlways Ready, Always There To Answer The Call To Action
Army National Guard / By LTG Jon A. Jensen: The Army National Guard’s vast array of missions throughout this past year – and the number of Soldiers that each one of those missions draw from is extraordinary. To say our operational tempo has been high is an understatement. A CH-47 Chinook helicopter, assigned to the New York Army National Guard’s Company B, 3rd Battalion, 126th Aviation, approaches a helipad in New York City, April 16, 2020. New York National Guard members are supporting the multi-agency response to COVID-19. Our ability to accomplish our overseas mission during a time of Guard-wide...
Learn MoreReady Now: Amid the Global Pandemic
This is your Army Reserve / By COL Roger Deon and LTC Amy Buck: COVID-19 Response – ECAB mobilizations are enabled by experienced air crews with a proven ability to adapt to rapidly emerging requirements in complex environments. Their specialized skillsets and readiness posture allowed for seamless support to the Nation’s COVID-19 defense response and the Army’s refocused mission to protect the force, posture the force to maintain global operational readiness and support the national effort to fight against and mitigate the impact of COVID-19. Company C, 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment, 11th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade, arrives at a simulated...
Learn MoreOur Total Force
Branch Chief’s Corner / By MG David J. Francis: As Army Aviation continues to perform missions at home and worldwide, the depth, resilience, and flexibility across our force is consistently impressive. A California Army National Guard CH-47 helicopter on final approach for one of multiple rescue pick-ups during the Creek Fire near Shaver Lake, CA in early September 2020. / CALIFORNIA ARMY NATIONAL GUARD PHOTO A significant aspect of our enduring successes involves leveraging the integration of all three components (Active, Guard, and Reserve). Crucial to our success is our ability to fuse the necessary resourcing, training, and modernization across...
Learn MoreSupporting Our Total Force
President’s Cockpit / By MG Jeff Schloesser, U.S. Army Retired: As you read this you may already know we have cancelled the 2021 Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit scheduled for 21-22 April in Nashville following the Army’s decision that it would not be able to support the Summit based on an Army Health Risk Assessment as well as the current environment. COL (Ret.) Harry Townsend at the 2017 Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit. Rest in peace, old Warrior (See page 55)./ AAPI FILE PHOTO Since we depend on the Army for our key speakers and leader attendance, aircraft displays, and...
Learn MoreMaximizing FARP Efficiency in Large Scale Combat Operations
By CPT Edmund Lee and CPT Ryan Riemer: ATP 3-04.1 Aviation Tactical Employment notes that forward arming and refueling points (FARPs) often become a limiting factor when conducting sustained attack aviation operations. In attack battalions (AB) and air cavalry squadrons (ACS), aviation planners often lack a thorough understanding of sustainment operations and their organic Forward Support Company/Troop (FSC/T) capabilities. The reverse holds true for logisticians in the FSC/T and S-4 shop, who may not understand some of the unique requirements of aviation FARPs compared to the Refuel On the Move techniques utilized by brigade combat teams. This article provides some...
Learn MoreProsecco N Prose – Book Club with Perlage
AAAA Family Forum / By Wendy Knowlton and Amy Horner: Bubbly, buddies, and books … a trio of trouble or a triple treat? We like to think it’s a little bit of both and a whole lot of fun. Wendy Knowlton (left) and Amy Horner recording in their home studio./ PHOTO BY AMY HORNER Book clubs have long been a way for military spouses to connect, but what happens when, inevitably, your family must move? We met when our husbands were stationed together at Fort Campbell, Ky, at the most traditional of military spouse meeting places, a dirty taco restaurant...
Learn MoreTraining Aviation FSCs for Distributed Operations in the Indo-Pacific
By CPT John Walsh: Since its inception in 2014, the Pacific Pathways program has provided U.S. Army Pacific units the opportunity to deploy and train with partner and allied forces in the Indo-Pacific region. Though no two Pacific Pathways deployments are the same, every rotational unit must address the challenge of operating in a distributed environment. Pacific Pathways is a unique stressor of the sustainment warfighting function. For an Aviation task force, a Pacific Pathways deployment requires the Aviation forward support company to provide fuel, ammunition, and maintenance capabilities to multiple locations separated by hundreds of miles of jungle and...
Learn MoreIntervertebral Disk Disease
Ask the Flight Surgeon / MAJ Theresa M. Long: Q: I am a senior UH-60 pilot who was recently permanently grounded for chronic lower back pain after having lumbar disc fusion. I still have some recurrent numbness, tingling and pain in my legs that requires treatment with a drug called Gabapentin. I currently have a P2 for no sit-ups and an alternate aerobic event. I have a friend in the Infantry who was sent to the medical evaluation board (MEB) and medically retired for almost the exact same thing. Why doesn’t my flight surgeon submit me for an MEB too?...
Learn MoreNot An Ordinary Fire Season
Reserve Component / By MAJ Sean Summerall: The California Army National Guard’s 40th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade (ECAB) (TF Phoenix) is no stranger to wildland firefighting. After a light season in 2019, all appeared well going into the 2020 season until COVID struck and hampered some of the normal preparation. CH-47F aircrews from the California Army National Guard conducting water bucket operations during recent wildfire support./ LOS ANGELES TIMES PHOTO BY MARCUS YAM – BY PERMISSION The California Military Department along with California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), United States Forest Service (USFS) Region 5, and the...
Learn More
