A Final Message
Aviation Branch Chief / By MG Michael D. Lundy: This is my last note to the field as the 14th Aviation Branch Chief. It was truly my honor and privilege to be given the opportunity to serve with, for and beside you; the phenomenal Soldiers, DACs and leaders of this branch. MG Michael D. Lundy, U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence and Fort Rucker commanding general, congratulates graduates of the new Air Cavalry Leaders Course at the Seneff building, Ft. Rucker, AL, Nov. 20, 2015. / U.S. ARMY PHOTO BY KELLY P. MORRIS, USAACE PAO Without fail, you demonstrate daily...
Learn MoreNetworking on the Wings of Change
President’s Cockpit / By BG E.J. Sinclair, Ret.: Have to say, change is the name of the game as we open the Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit inAtlanta April 28-30, 2016. There have been several changes in the senior leadership of Army Aviation. Attendees at the 2015 Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit in Nashville, TN networking on the exhibit hall floor. / AAPI PHOTO BY RENÉ BIDEZ MG Mike Lundy just changed command at Fort Rucker three weeks ago with MG Bill Gayler, and MG Jim Richardson passed the baton at AMCOM to BG Doug Gabram in February! In addition,...
Learn More2016 Army Aviation National Award Winners
Mr. Lars Ericsson leads the Army’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Technical Management Division where he continues to provide superb leadership, responsible for managing all of the technical and systems engineering functions for a six billion dollar global aviation enterprise. He has provided flawless oversight of the research, development, system integration, test, production and life cycle engineering support for the Army’s entire UAS fleet (i.e., Gray Eagle, Sky Warrior A, Hunter, Shadow, Raven, and Puma). Additionally, he successfully led the teams conducting engineering efforts for several related UAS technology programs, such as the Army’s Ground Based Sense and Avoid (GBSAA) system,...
Learn More2015 Functional Awards
AAAA, together with the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence (USAACE), recognized the 2016 National Functional Awards winners Feb. 3 during the annual Aviation Senior Leaders Forum at Fort Rucker, AL. AAAA’s President, BG (Ret.) E.J. Sinclair, and MG Michael D. Lundy, Aviation Branch chief and USAACE commanding general, were joined by CW5 A. Randy Godfrey, chief warrant officer of the branch; CSM Eric Thom, branch command sergeant major; and industry partners, association members and many of the branch’s senior commanders, chief warrant officers and non-commissioned officers to honor this year’s individual and unit winners. Thanks to the Aviation Center...
Learn More2016 Army Aviation Hall of Fame Inductees
CW5 Ned Hubard’s 31-year career in Army Aviation combined a unique mix of operational, research and development, and command and staff assignments with over 20 years in special mission units (SMUs), flying an amazingly diverse range of aircraft from UH-1s in Vietnam to piloting the first mission into Afghanistan in a Russian Mi-17. In fact, Hubard has over 13,000 flying hours in over 150 types of aircraft and helicopters, is basic airborne qualified and trained as a high-altitude-low-opening / high-altitude-highopening (HALO/HAHO) jumper. In the early 1980s, following the failed DESERT ONE Iranian hostage rescue mission, Hubard was recruited into Operation...
Learn MorePriorities
Branch Command Sergeant Major / By CSM Gregory M. Chambers: Service in today’s Army should not be taken as a job but as a profession. As the Army changes its structure, fields new equipment and establishes new programs to develop leaders in order to meet a sustainable readiness posture, professional Soldiers are essential for the Army to win in the complex environments of the future. A flight of six Black Hawks departs Lowe Army Heliport, Fort Rucker, AL, Feb. 12, 2015 to support the Ranger School at Fort Benning, GA./ U.S. ARMY PHOTO BY CPT KEN DOUGHER, 1-212TH AVN. It...
Learn MoreContemplating a New Career in Civilian Aviation?
Learning to Speak FAA is a Whole New Language / By CW5 James Chandler: Serving our nation is rewarding and tough; the aviation experience you gain can be translated to FAA certifications but learning to speak civilian aviation and knowing what your military aviation experience equates to can be a little over whelming. Being an active member of Army Aviation for over 38 years, OSAA ARMS Team Chief and an FAA Aviation Safety Inspector, I can honestly say “I’m here to help,” so let’s get started. Aviator to Commercial PilotOn the pilot side, helicopter and airplane ratings can easily be...
Learn MoreA Rotational Attack Reconnaissance Squadron In Korea
By MAJ Mark O. Fulmer: Fighting the global war on terrorism for over a decade produced Army Aviation attack reconnaissance squadrons extremely proficient at centralized planning and execution of operations at the scout-weapons-team level to provide flexible, 24-hour aviation support to the Soldier on the ground. Although well suited for counter-insurgency operations, the squadron’s near monopoly on planning down to the team level came at the cost of the platoon’s and troop’s ability to organically conduct the operations process of planning, preparing, and executing while continuously assessing. Upon receipt of a mission to deploy to the Republic of Korea (ROK)...
Learn MoreEvaluating the State of Army Safety
By BG Jeffrey Farnsworth and COL Matthew Lewis: There’s a lot of good news for the Army with respect to preventing loss through proactive risk management. Accidental fatalities continued their decade-long decline and reached record lows during fiscal 2015. Most notable for last fiscal year – the safest on record to date – we saw substantial decreases in fatalities due to weapons and explosives mishaps (down 67 percent), motorcycle accidents (down 24 percent), and crashes in private motor vehicles (down 38 percent). We attribute this steady decline to steadfast efforts by Army leaders at all levels. Senior commanders are holding...
Learn MoreSharing Special Times from the Aviation Senior Leaders Forum
Family Forum / By Judy Konitzer: Editor’s Note: Meeting at the Warrior Hall Simulation Complex, spouses enjoyed the chance to “fly” a variety of helicopters. While the ladies were not encouraged to participate in live missions anytime soon, it was acknowledged that their “flying” skills were still pretty impressive. Afterwards we enjoyed lunch at Ingrid’s Castle Café where Mrs. Michael Lundy (Paula) presented Ingrid Strange a bouquet of flowers to celebrate her upcoming birthday and to thank her for her love and support to our Soldiers and their families over the years. AAAA Awardee Family Members Share Their Thoughts Always...
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