AAAA Presents the 2014 Functional Awards
AAAA, together with the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence (USAACE), paid tribute to the 2014 National Functional Awards winners Feb. 5 during the annual Aviation Senior Leaders Conference at Fort Rucker, AL. AAAA’s President, BG (Ret.) Howard Yellen, 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. The Raytheon Company...
Learn MoreInfluenza Vaccine
Ask the Flight Surgeon / Dr. (LTC) Joseph Puskar: Q: I got the flu vaccine yesterday. Do I have to get a down slip for the immunization? FS: You don’t need to get a down-slip and subsequent up-slip unless you develop a local or systemic reaction; then you would need clearance by the flight surgeon. Remember from the safety briefings on exogenous factors that the grounding period after a vaccine is twelve hours, or until any adverse effects have resolved. The most common influenza vaccine in use this year is a quadrivalent formulation that protects against two type A (generally a...
Learn MoreKeeping Up Standards
AMRDEC Tech Talk / Mr. David Cripps: Most of you will be familiar with the concept of “building code” when it comes to putting up a house, an office building, a bridge or some other structure. Years ago smart engineers and planners figured out, mostly through trial and error, that there are a minimum set of standards necessary to make a structure do what it is supposed to do for the intended life. Then they tacked a healthy safety margin onto the minimums in order to account for variations in the exposure of the structure to its environment. AMRDEC AED GRAPHICInsurance...
Learn More2-4th GSAB Black Hawk Crew Rescues Stranded Hikers
CW2 Benjamin Ingraham was flying a training mission in a Black Hawk helicopter the afternoon of February 18th when he and his crew from 2nd Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment, 4th Combat Aviation Brigade, Fort Carson, CO, saw a group of hikers stranded behind Cheyenne Mountain. Soldiers from 2-4th General Support Aviation Battalion rescue stranded hikers and their dogs on Feb. 18, 2015.“They were waving at us … it looked kind of strange and it looked like they were stuck,” Ingraham said. The two men, one woman and two dogs had been stranded since the night before when their vehicle got...
Learn MoreThe Initial Journey of Aviation Safety Starts in AIT
128th Aviation Brigade Update / CW3 Rosa M. Alvarez: In this issue, I’ve asked CW3 Rosa Alvarez to provide some insight as to the challenges your school house faces in ensuring the safe training of our future Army Aviation maintainers. “Above the Best!” —COL Rigole, Commander A student, PVT Mitchell Spychalski, performs a main rotor damper torque check at the 128th Aviation Brigade. 128th AVN BDE COURTESY PHOTOThe 128th Aviation Brigade at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia is the proponent for the Advanced Individual Training (AIT) of Army Aviation maintenance Military Occupational Specialties (MOS). The 2nd Battalion, 210th Aviation Regiment directs the...
Learn MoreARNG Aviation Cover Page
Reserve Component Aviation Update / COL Mark W. Weiss: Welcome back to the ARNG. In this edition I’d like to report on an example of flexibility and teamwork that falls under the mantra of MIH… Making It Happen. We’ve seen it before, in all components… our bureaucracy fails to cope with the friction generated by a complex system, and an intrepid individual or two steps up, cuts the red tape, and Makes It Happen. UH-60M NET familiarization at the Western ARNG Aviation Training Site (WAATS)Such an example is currently underway down in Arizona. About a year ago, a dilemma arose: the...
Learn MoreTraining to be Adaptive and Innovative
Branch Command Sergeant Major / CSM Eric C.Thom: “The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low and achieving our mark.” – Michelangelo A UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter assigned to the 1st Battalion, 228th Aviation Regiment hovers over U.S. Army Special Operations members during overwater hoist training at Lake Yojoa, Honduras, Jan. 22, 2015. The 1-228th Aviation Regiment partnered with U.S. Army Special Operations personnel to practice recovering live personnel. The overwater hoist training was held to ensure members of Joint Task Force-Bravo are...
Learn MoreArmy Aviation: An Asymmetric Advantage for our Nation
From the Aviation Branch Chief / MG Michael D. Lundy: Since Vietnam and the advent of Air Mobility, Army Aviation has proven to be an essential component of combined arms maneuver and the American way of war. U.S. ARMY PHOTO BY SGT JOSE RAMIREZ, CBT. AVN. BDE., 1ST ARMORED DIV.Army Aviation’s inherent speed, mobility, lethality and agility uniquely enable combined arms maneuver, wide area security and special operations, our Army’s core competencies, across the conflict continuum. Since its inception, Army Aviation has been a high-demand, ground-centric and globally-committed asymmetric capability for our Nation. Today, Army Aviation is fully committed in 36...
Learn MoreFrom the AAAA First Lady
By Susan Yellen: Last year’s Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit was an overwhelming success and I am looking forward to see how AAAA can top it this year. Once again we’re back in Nashville, TN at the Gaylord Opryland, one of my favorite places to stay. No matter whether you are on the exhibit floor, in the professional sessions, or just trying to navigate the meandering layout that is Opryland, you’re bound to run into friends from the past; this is a great forum in which to Network.2014 Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit spouses’ tour around Nashville, TN.I would like...
Learn MoreArmy Aviation Photography Contest Winners
ARMY AVIATION Magazine is proud to present the winners of our ninth annual photography contest. 56 qualified AAAA members, submitting 112 Army aviation related photographs taken during 2014, competed for the top 12 places. We congratulate the winners and thank all of the contestants for their efforts and service. We invite all AAAA members to participate in our 2015 contest. Visit the AAAA website, quad-a.org for details and submission requirements. Bill Harris, Publisher First Place – “Wingman” by CPT Wesley J. PritchettD Troop, 2nd Squadron, 6th Cavalry Regiment, Camp Humphreys, Republic of KoreaDecember 4, 2014; Nā Pali Coast, Kauai, Hawaii...
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