Army Aviation Digest - Dec 1957

8/12/2019 Army Aviation Digest - Dec 1957

1/36


2/36

EDITORIAL STAFFCapt Theodore E. WaskoLt John E. ArmstrongWilliam E. VanceJohn S Maltrotti

U S. ARMY AVIATION SCHOOLBrig Cen Bogardus S. CairnsCommandantCol John J. TolsonAssistant Commandant

SCHOOL STAFFCol William H. ByrneFlight SurgeonCol William R. TuckDirector of InstructionCol Jay D. VanderpoolCombat Development OfficeCol Lester F. SchocknerSecretaryLt Col James L. TownsendCO USAA VNS Regiment

DEPARTMENTSLt Col Howard I Lukens

Fixed WingLt Col David C CogswellMaintenanceLt Col Raymond E. JohnsonRotary WingLt Col Thomas W. AndersonTacticsLt Col Thomas J. SabistonPublications andNon Resident Instruction

The U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGEST is an official publication of the Department of theArmy puhlished monthly under the supervision of the Commandant, U. S. Army AviationSchool.The mission of the U. S. ARMY AVIATIOND J ~ E S T is to provide information of an operational or functional nature concerning safety andaircraft accident prevention, training, maintenance, operations, research and development, aviation medicine, and other related data.Manuscripts, photographs. and other illustrationspertaining to the above subjects of interest to personnel concerned with Army Aviation are invited .Direct communication is authorized to: Editor-inChief, U . S . ARMY AVIATION DIGEST, U. S.Army Aviation School, Fort Rucker, Alabama.Unless otherwise indicated, material in the U . S.ARMY AVIATION DIGEST may be reprinted provided credit is given to the U S. ARMY AVIATION DIGEST and to the author.The printing of this publication has been ap proved by the Director of the Bureau of theBudltet 16 March 1966.Unless specified all photographs used are U. S.Army.

DISTRIBUTION:Artive Army:SA, OSD JCS, CofSA, DCSPER,ACSI, DCSOPS, DCSLOG, CMH,CINFO Technical Stf DA, USCONARC,USA Arty Bd USA Armor Bd, USAInf Bd USA Air Def Bd USA AbnElct Bd, USA Avn Bd, US ARADCOM,OS Maj Comd. MDW, Armies, Corps.Dh, Brig, t Camps (CONUS). SvcColleges Br Svc Sch, Specl Sch(CONUS), AFSC, NWC, USA ArtyMsl Cen, Mil Dist.

NG : State AG.USAR : None.For explanation of abbreviations used,see AR 320-50.


3/36

UNITED ST TESARMY AVIATION

IGESTVolume 3 December, 1957

Call and HaulSandy A. F. MacDonaldAccident Fact FindingCareful Tip Tornado AheadMarion J. Fortner

RTICLES

Famous Last Words . .Lieutenant Ronald C Wilson, rtyDEP RTMENTS

Number 12

111520

Notes from the Pentagon 2Major General Hamilton H. Howze, USPuzzler 14Memo from Flight Surgeon 22Master Army Aviator. 24The Gray Hair Department 25U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGEST Index, Volume III , 1957 30

COVERThe 13th Helicopter Company and the 51st Signal Battalion are shown

working together to set up an electrical powerline in Korea. The line extendsfrom Camp Red Cloud, I Corps (GP) Headquarters to a relay site situatedon a hill overlooking the position. The Shawnee first airlifted the men to thesite, then returned later with telephone poles, which they placed into pre-pared holes. The entire operation was accomplished within one hour.


4/36

NOTES FROM THE PENT GON

viation Company FieldTraining ExerciseMaior General Hamilton H Howze USDirector of Army Aviation ODCSOPS

HE PROOF OF THE PUDDING isin the eating; the proof oftraining is success in combat. Wecannot prove our pudding innormal times by drumming up awar just to see how we d do.We must therefore spend aproper portion of our time intests, maneuvers, and exercisesto train for the eventuality ofcombat. This means to develop

and prove new concepts of organization, doctrine, techniquesand procedures.The Field Training Exerciseoccupies a unique position in thissystem, for it constitutes an invaluable aid in determining thecombat effectiveness of commanders, staffs, and operating

personnel. Moreover, the FTXproperly and imaginatively conducted is goo fun assuming ofcourse that it doesn't rain.t is a common error to assume the FTX is the climax ofboth individual and small unitor section training; in otherwords, to assume that a highstate of individual and small unittraining must be achieved as aprerequisite to an exercise involving the whole outfit. This isnot so. Individual and specialisttraining will get its greatest impetus through the field exercisewhich demonstrates plainly therequirement for the more basicstuff, and exposes the ever-pres-

ent weaknesses. The FTX is agood vehicle to permit a commander to appraise the combateffectiveness of the unit, andthis can be done profitably at almost any stage of training.The newly reorganized infantry, armored and airborne divisions reflect that Army Aviationhas come into the limelight as aprincipal means of affording division commanders the necessary mobility and control to copewith situations arising on theatomic battlefield. We in ArmyAviation must be constantlyaware of our new and greaterresponsibilities, be quick to graspnew ideas, and be objective inour evaluation of new doctrine.This is equally applicable to theproposed corps and fixed- androtary-wing companies. Required, then, is intensive training ofevery individual to fit the requirement, as well as repeatedtests of the composite organization.Division aviation will no longer be satellited on some otherunit for administrative or logistical support. As commander ofa division, corps, army or separate aviation company, you areon your own, and you stand orfall on its performance as awhole, whether it be communications, unit administration. motormaintenance, or those tasks withwhich we are accustomed i.e.,


5/36

NOTES FROM THE PENTAGON 3aircraft maintenance, supply,and tactical flying. The FTX presents a perfect training vehiclefor use in developing those operational techniques essential tothe successful support of division, corps, or field army in combat.An aviation company FTX requires planning if it is to be ofany real value. The initial stagesof planning require careful coordination with the general andspecial staff of the division, corpsand army. G3 should assist indrawing up a tactical situation;G will probably jump at thechance to exploit his intelligencetraining and check securitywhile in the field. G4 will assistin portraying realistic logisticsproblems. In most cases, aircraftmaintenance and supply problems will need no exercise embellishment. The assistance ofthe Signal Officer will be invaluable.Be sure to develop a scenariothat applies sound tactical principles, realistic time and spacefactors, and missions and tasksthat normally will be expected ofthe company. Occasionally youmay join forces with a combatcommand, battle group, or artillery battalion for part or allof the exercise. This will assistin nroviding realism in additionto furnishing live missions foryour pilots.

From time to time feed newinformation into the situation.Otherwise, things will go stale.On the other hand, don't overplay the mock situation tosuch an extent that missionscannot be accomplished ndeverybody bogs down in a welter

of messages.Provide time to correct obvious errors during the course ofthe problem. Particularly in thefirst FTX conducted, it is important that procedures andtechniques be meticulously corrected or errors will be compounded and may never bestraightened out. Take time forcritiques at various stages of theexercise to make on-the-spot corrections and evaluation of theaction to that point.The success or failure of ArmyAviation depends upon flight operations. Utilize the FTX to provide various types of tactical flying' training of observers, selection of strips, camouflage andconcealment of aircraft, andnight field strip operations. Require good briefing and de-briefing of pilots and observers. Inthe absence of aggressor troops,use maximum ingenuity (Division G2, G3 and G4 can helpgreatly) in assignment of missions, so that aircraft are not.ilJst boring holes in the air.When possible coordinate withother units in the field to provide reconnaissance and observation targets.

The final phase of every training exercise is the critique. Thisis the opportunity to analyzeeach segment of the company'sperformance. Review proceduresand techniques, and profit frommistakes; review unit SOPs andimprove them where applicable.Throughout the critique twoquestions are of paramount andcontinuing importance: first,Did we accomplish our mission? and second, Could wehave done it better-if so, how?


6/36

As Others See s

CALL AND HAULSandy A F MacDonald

Streamlined to meet the threat of Atomic War, the newPentomic Infantry Divisions have taken to the air STOL aircraftand helicopters, working as a team, lend flying speed to infantryassault forces in the new U S. Army concept of rapid mobile strikingpower. The airborne truck is fast becoming the logical successorto the lumbering motor lorry on the ground.UT OF THE sullen -silence im-media ely preceding dawn,the lights of jeeps and lorries

flash as they move up and downbetween the lines of Otter U1Asparked row upon orderly row inthe darkened parking area of the2nd Aviation Company at Marshall Field. The wind-chill associated with a stiff northwestbreeze sends the mercury plunging down to the -10 level. Thevoices of men out on the field aremuffled by parka hoods drawntightly over their heads for protection against the bitter cold.As the first grey light of dawnappears in the eastern sky, coldsoaked engines commence to fire,

cough and sputter as one by onethey churn into life along the2nd Company's. Otter lines.Soon the rich baritone voicesoftheP&W 1340 Wasps are united in a chorus of rising crescendo sound as they warm up tooperational rpm for the fastmoving sequence of events whichlies immediately ahead.On the Move: The light of dayis just beginning to diffuseacross a cold cloudless winter

sky as the Company Commander's Otter taxies out from theend of one of the lines, followedin rapid succession by the 16others who are taking part inoperation Call and Haul.Otters of Operation Trade Wind


7/36

CALL AND HAUL 5

Off Loading Troops to the hawneeThe scene is Fort Riley, Kansas, whose spacious 6000 acresof rolling range land surroundsthe military headquarters andentire peacetime establishmentof the First U. S. Infantry Division - the fighting Big RedOne. Marshall Army Air Field,the airport located within theboundaries of the Fort Riley Res

ervation, is a training center forU S. Army Aviation. Here the2nd and 3rd Otter Companiesand 33rd Helicopter Companyhave been assembled-in actualfact, for tactical training beforeproceeding overseas - at themoment, theoretically, to airliftcombat assault troops into a battle area occupied by an enemyreinforced rifle battalion whichmust at all costs be dislodged.

The situation America is atwar with an enemy aggressorwho has hit the key cities of theU. S. with an atomic bomb attack and succeeded in air landingan army in the heart of the con-

tinent. The enemy is in possession of the Fort Riley, Kansasarea. The First Division hasbeen pushed back north intoMontana. E'xercise Red Arrow, staged in January, 1957(in which 85,000 troops tookpart) was to test the ability ofAir Force transport planes toairlift a counter-attacking taskforce a distance of almost 1,000miles - and the capabilities ofSTOL and VTOL aircraft inmoving this force from the airfields which C-119s and C-123scould use into front line battlepositions.Battalion Airlift During thisexercise, U-1A Otters, carryingfully equipped assault troops forthe first time, airlifted a complete battalion combat team deepinto enemy territory. The troopsliterally hit the ground fighting. Operation Gall and Haul,which we are about to witness,has been organized to furthertest the ability of Army aircraft

Reprinted by permission of the Editor, AIRCRAFT, Canada's Aero TradeMagazine, and the author, Sandy A. F. MacDonald. Mr. MacDonald is a veteranpilot with over 5,000 'hours flying experience in fifty-three different types ofaircraft. He has published over half a million words on aviation subjects inmore than a score of magazines in Canada, the U. S. A. and England. A memberof the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences, Mr. MacDonald is now Public Relations Manager for de Havilland Aircraft of Canada, Limited. Views expressedin this article are the au.thor's and are not necessarily those of the UnitedStates Army Aviation School or of the Department of the Army.-The Editor


8/36

Mortars and ecoilless irborneto provide immediate airbornesupport in a situation requiringinstant action on short notice.The object is to vertically envelop an enemy force by air landing assault troops around theperimeter of the area which theenemy is holding.Taking off from MarshallField the Otters of the 2ndAviation Company assemble 15minutes later at Herrington Airport, which has been chosen tosimulate a hastily occupied wartime airfield. Within the nexthour convoys of trucks bearinghalf frozen combat troops of the16th Infantry Regiment commence to arrive. The men aretransferred immediately to thewarm comfortable cabins of thewaiting planes. Otter tacticaltransport loads add up to a crewof two nine fully equipped comba troops and a thousandpounds more or less of equipment or supplies.The scene now shifts to Custer Hill a site approximately 35miles from Herrington. Here anadvance party has landed andselected a temporary landingstrip. The pathfinder Otter-anAPU supplying the ground battery energy to the aircraft radioset-has been converted into atemporary air traffic control center. Vertol H-21 helicopters ofthe 33rd Helicopter Company at

Marshall Field commence to appear on the scene for their rendezvous with the Otters. Likegiant hovering hawks they settle down in the long dead grassof the frozen hilltop alongsidethe selected landing strip.In the Army, a flight of aircraft is called a Platoon. Thefirst platoon of five Otters, flying in V formation, approachesvia the corridor which hasbeen selected for traffic inboundto the strip. Approaching thefield they change formation intoline astern. A flagman similarto the familiar batman on navycarrier craft, marshals the Otters, one after another in quicksuccession down onto the landing strip. Continuing their landing roll to the marker at the endof the strip, the Otters executea 180 and single file like a column of motor transports on theground taxi back to the off-loading area. Here they come to afull stop. Troops scramble outand hurry across to the waitinghelicopters which will ferrythem into their battle action stations. The Otters move off rapidly o a 180 at the top end of thestrip, and are heading back toHerrington for another load allin less time than it takes towrite this down.

Shuttle Service Custer Hillbecomes a throbbing center ofintense air activity as Otters andhelicopters working with clocklike regularity, set up a twostage shuttle service betweenbase and battle areas. In an 80minute period five platoons ofOtters succeed in transporting305 fully equipped combat troopsa distance of 35 miles-plus asubstantial quantity of recoillessrifles and mortars.


9/36

CALL AND HAUL 7At one three zero zero hours aMayday signal requesting ammunition and supplies is receivedat AHQ. The urgency of the situa ion dictates the selection of atiny field in a forward battlearea as the Otter-over-to-helicopter load transfer point. TenOtters in two platoons shuttle20 tons of ammunition and supplies into this improvised airstrip in a 45 minute period. Here

it is picked up by the H-21s fordelivery direct to the battlefieldforwarding address of the attacking U. S. Infantry.What you have been witnessing is a whole new concept ofmilitary strategy in war. A complete change in both the organization and tactical training ofthe American Army has beendictated by the threat of atomicbomb attack. Because of therisk of thermonuclear annihilation, it is no longer consideredprudent to concentrate largebodies of ground forces withina small area. The new doctrinewhich governs the use of military land forces in war is basedupon the development of small,widely dispersed units, capableof tremendous high-speed mobility, and lightning action. Tothis end, the Army has beenstreamlined. The new Pentomic Divisions have been brokendown into smaller, but more numerous, units capable of greatlyenergized action - not entirelyunlike the idea of splitting theatom.Mobility The increase in mobility that was written into thenew Army manuals was farmore revolutionary in characterthan the slim, tailor-made newlook that decreed such drasticnumerical reductions in Divi-

sional unit strength. Mobilityas it was spelled out in the newmodus operandi meant takingthe G 1 off the roads-where40 mph transports are lucky ifthey can average 25 miles a daythrough quagmire mud and gaping enemy shell holes-and getting him airborne at speeds of100 miles an hour and up.To make possible the Armyplan of moving infantry intobattle by air, it was necessary tofind a revolutionary type of airplane that could operate from abattlefield. The helicopter w -and still i s - the only type of aircraft capable of meeting this requirement. In the light of practical experience, however, it wasfound necessary to supplementthe helicopter with some othertype of aircraft that could carrybjgger loads a greater distanceRt less cost-one having simplerflying characteristics for allweather operation-and requiring less maintenance manhoursin the field. Since it was necessary for this co-operational machine to be able to land in short,unprepared fields, the STOL aircraft was the logical choice. h u ~it came about that the de Havilland U-1A Otter and the VertolH-21 helicopter were making

Filler aps Right Side Up


10/36

8 U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGEST Decembertheir appearance as a team inOperation Call and Haul - atwo-stage tactical transport opera ion in which the Ottersmoved the men and supplies tothe farthest forward patch ofground it was possible for themto land in, from which point theH-21s hauled the loads the balance of the way to the actualbattle locations.Because of the devastating

presaged by the fact that tomove the U. S. Army in WorldWar II required one and a halfmillion motor vehicles.To further this new conceptof tactical transportation by air,the United States Army is spending vast sums of money in aeronautical research. Some of thismoney is going into developmentprograms designed to encouragefurther improvements in the ex-

One Beaver vacuated 2 Wounded in Three Weeks

possibilities of nuclear warfare,the battlefields of the atomicage will be vast areas, hundredsof miles in depth. There will beno front line as we haveknown it in the past. Both friendand foe will be widely dispersedthroughout this far-flung battlezone. The scenes we just observed will be re-enacted day inand day out on a colossal scale.How colossal may perhaps be

isting helicopter. Some of it isbeing channelled into aero-dynamic research intended to stimulate further development ofSTOL airplane design. Still further grants are finding their wayinto design projects shooting atthe development of the tiltwing airplane, an attempt tocombine the most useful features of both the fixed and rotary wing types.


11/36

1957 CALL AND HAUL 9The rapid expansion of itsformidable fleet of airplanes bythe U S. Army has brought accusations of an attempt to setup a competitive Air Force of itsown. This is emphatically contradicted by Army leaders, notably Major General Howze, Chiefof Army Aviation. The Army'sproprietary interest in aircraft,it is pointed out, is entirely organic. By organic is meant as

signed to, and forming an essential part of a military organization. The organic airplane is nothing more nor lessthan a vehicle. Like any othervehicle, the jeep, the truck, orfor that matter, a ferry boat, itspurpose in the Army scheme ofthings is to facilitate the movement of ground forces and theirsupplies - and for observation.It has been pointed out by Brigadier General Bunker, ChiefTransportation Supply and Maintenance Command, that theArmy's airplanes do not represent a new Air Force any morethan Army tugs and harborboats represent a new Navy.

In its role of a flying boxcar, the airplane has introduceda revolutionary new factor ofspeed in the deployment of military forces on land. During thelatter stages of the Korean War,an operation called TeenieW eenie Air Transport wascarried out by 50 Beaver L-20sof the U. S Army. This operation provided one of the first examples of rapid mobility in modern war by the use of STOL airplanes as flying trucks. Usingblocked off sections of gravelroad for landing strips, theBeavers transported an entireregiment of troops a distance of50 miles in a matter of four

hours. The airlift was across arange of mountains from onevalley to another that wouldhave taken ~ trucks threewhole days to traverse.Another Korean War casemay be cited as a typical example of the organic use of aircraft by other branches of theservice. An Army Beaver, operating single-handed out ofrough makeshift patches ofground in a bitterly contestedsector of the 1952 battlefront,succeeded in a three week periodin evacuating 200 casualties outof the forward battle area.Airplanes are as much an -'tegral part of the U. S Armyorganization as any other itemof equipment. Their utilizationby the various branches of theArmy may be broadly summarized as follows:By Headquarters: For therapid movement of commanderswithin battle areas and betweenvarious units under their command.By the Infantry: To facilitatethe transportation of troops andcritical supplies. For reconnaissance.By Signal: For wire layingand courier services.By Ordnance: For the trans-portation of logistical supplies. (By the Medical Corps: Forthe evacuation of casualties andfor the limited transportation ofmedical supplies.In the Korean conflict theBeaver earned an enviable reputation as a command plane. Popularly referred to as the Generals' Jeep it was used by Generals Ridgway, Van Fleet andMark Chirk.A typical example of the useof organic aircraft by a techni-


12/36

10 U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGESTcal branch of the Army was thesurvey operation undertaken bythe 30th Engineer Group inAlaska in 1955. This covered anarea of roughly 86,000 squaremiles. In this operation helicopters were used to drop surveyorsat control points whose locationsranged from tiny patches of tun-dra to dizzy crags and ledges at8000-foot elevations in themountains. Other than at themain bases at Umiat and Kotzebue, no landing strips existedanywhere in the area. Beaversand Otters, operating on floatsand skis, were used to fly supplies into the base camps whichwere established, and also outto temporary rendezvous withthe helicopters in the field. Timewas an important factor in thisundertaking. Typical of the ter-rific tempo which characterizedthe entire operation was thetransfer of 80,000 lbs. of equipment from one base to anotherby six Otters in one night.The unique advantage ofSTOL and VTOL aircraft to theArmy were proven day in andday out throughout this entireoperation. When open water be-

gan to appear around the shorelines of some of the frozen lakeson which supplies were beinglanded, Beaver and Otter skiplanes made landings on the icepans which were left floating inthe center. The supplies werethen transferred ashore by canoes flown in aboard the aircraft.

Operation Trade Wind wasanother outstanding topographi-cal survey operation that wasundertaken by U. S. Army Engi-neers. Somewhat similar in concept to the mission completed inAlaska, the completion of theproject will benefit some 15 republics in Central and SouthAmerica.

Army people have a deep rooted love of tradition and a tendency to liken new things to theold familiar objects which theysupersede. A G I will tell youthat the helicopter is just theold proverbial Army mule witha windmill fastened on betweenhis ears. And, he will add witha deep sigh of satisfaction,with a lot less 'ornery' disposition - and a cleaner pair ofheels.

Mobility in imulated attle


13/36

ccidentf ct finding0 SINGLE EFFORT in any di-rection can contribute more

effectively to the Army Aviation safety program than theproper investigation and advertisement of an aircraft accident.t may prevent the waste offuture millions in property; itmay safeguard the lives of hun-dreds of young men.Investigating the cause of anaircraft accident may seem a

simple task. We determine thereason for things every day -rectly and almost without think-ing. Let one of us wake up witha hangover for instance and wedon t split hairs over a cause.We groan, clutch our foreheadand swear never again.ACCIDENT FACT FINDING was

prepared by the staff of the V. S.ARMY AVIATION DIGEST with in-formation furnished by Departmentof Fixed Wing Training the U S.Army Aviation School and U S.Army Board for Aviation AccidentResearch. Views expressed in thisarticle are not necessarily those ofthe U S. Army Aviation School orof the Department of the Army.

C USE OBSCUREThis is simple cause and effectnothing difficult to e t e r m i n ~and no need for a complicated investiga ion. Determining thecause of an aircraft accidentisn t so simple.The crash of an airplane maybe the end result of a series ofsimple acts. No single act maybe harmful in itself or lead in

evitably to the next one buteach may create a climate orset the stage, for the next actleading to final tragedy.Take the pilot of a Seminoleflying IFR westbound at 10 000feet. He forgets to call over acompulsory reporting point andat the next point Air RouteTraffic Control gives him a

growl. He is incensed. Too muchpositive control he may l -after all he is the Captain of hisplane. In his state of preoccupation he may fail to check his altimeter and inadvertently descend to clip the wing of an east-bound DC3 cleared at 9 000. Far


14/36

12 U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGEST December

fetched? Yes. But it illustratesthe point.RELEV NT F CTS

Because of complications andmany variables, any investiga-tor must first go after the objective facts preceding an accident. He must make certain thatthese facts are relevant, i.e.,that they bear directly or indirectly on the accident. A younglieutenant flying a Bird Dog mayground loop while landing. Hismother-in-Iaw s visit is in itsfifth week but this is irrelevant,at least, at this stage of the investigation.Furthermore, the evidence-the facts - must be competent.The witness must be reasonablycapable of giving accurate testimony. For it is clearly evidentthat an aviator qualified only inrotary wing, and just along forthe ride in a T-37, is not the bestwitness to interview for a jetflame-out.

WITNESSES DIFFERWorse yet, a competent witness may get involved in his ownemotions and biases and fail togive accurate testimony. Fewwould deny that a senior aviator

is competent to judge the distance between himself and another aircraft within a few hun-dred feet. But, if that aircraftflies past him while he is in theclouds on an IFR flight plan hemay insist that it brushed hiswing tips though actually several hundred feet away.Sometimes when two peoplewitness the same event, neithercan agree on the details. Thepilot may swear the near misswas a De3, the copilot, a Martin 202. Don t dismiss all thetestimony for one fact is definite: an aircraft flew closeenough to cause concern. The investigator must determine itstype from another source.When men are momentarilyterrified or feeling any otherstrong emotion, they rarely record accurately. On the otherhand, if all had agreed, we dhave to accept the testimony inthe absence of anything to thecontrary.

BO RD JUDGESThe first task of the investigating board is to collect the ob

jective facts. A witness shouldnot be allowed to inject his ownopinion or conclusion into testi-mony. To judge is a task for theboard.When an opinion of a witnessis accepted as equal to factualtestimony, it will color the finaljudgment, and the board may beaccused of shirking its duty. Aman may observe the collisionof a Beaver and an Otter. Heshould be asked to describe thecircumstances in detail. Heshould not be allowed to expressopinion about the fault of eitherone. Just the facts are calledfor; the op n on must come from


15/36

1957 ACCIDENT FACT FINDING 3the investigating board.

EV LU TING EVIDENCEWhen all evidence is in, itshould be reviewed to see whichparts ring false. When two itemsof evidence seem to contradictone another or one piece of evi-dence casts doubt on anotherpiece, someone must make a de-cision-or call for more evidence.Having weighed the testimonyand analyzed it, the board mustline up the series of pertinentevents prior to the accident. Thebig job is to determine the causefactors. One key to their discov-ery lies in the definition: Causefactors are those conditionswhich, if they had been correctedor changed, would have pre-vented the accident or minimized

the extent of damage or degreeof injury.C USE F CTORS

Once we've found the causefactors, we can begin to look forother events that helped to shape

them, or which may bear onthem in some manner. Now isthe time to find the inner reasonsand to weigh the psychologicaland physiological aspects of theaccident.What happened inside themind or to the physical condi-tion of the pilot or copilot? Justwhy was this done or thatignored? These inner reasonswill make up the interpretationand will be publicized to help prevent future accidents. ArmyAviators will read them and resolve to avoid the same error.To sum it all up, the investi-gator must piece together anumber of objective facts aboutan accident, analyze them, iso-late the cause factors, make ajudgment, and write a report. Initself, the report may appear tobe of little significance, but whenit is placed beside a thousandsimilar reports, it may swell intoa major contribution toward theprevention of future aircraft ac-cidents.

CORRECTIONPortions of the sequence report in the November PUZZLER were unintentionally left out causing many readers to answer incorrectly the questionsposed. The corrected sequence report should read:

TL B588'1 4ZLF 9 9 9 3 0 2 9 f ~ 4 9 8 7Using the above sequence report, only two of the answers given lastmonth could possibly be correct:

A temperature inversion exists at this stationD A cold front is approaching TallahasseeAll other answers used in the solution to the PUZZLER were revised toshow the correct terminology. Answer number two (above) is considered apossibility; however, the previous answer of "Indications are that a warmfront is SW of Tallahassee," is more probable. There is also the possibilityof an occlusion which further complicates our answer. What answer did youcome up with? Drop a line to the Editor, U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGESTand tell us why


16/36

PUZZL Ry u ARE a 3-3 pilot and scheduled to fly from Turner AFB locatedin a control zone) VFR direct to the Laurel, Mississippi, Municipal Airport. Laurel is in an open area. The distance is 299 statutemiles; true course is 272 0 ; average variation is 4 0 east and thedeviation is plus 4 0 The wind at flight altitude is from 100 0 at 13knots. You are flying a Beaver with three hours of fuel remainingat an estimated TAS of 100 mph. You elect to fly at an altitude ofat least 3,000 feet above the surface. A senior explorer scout anda civilian employee of the Department of the Army have requestedto accompany you on this flight.Indicate by a V the desirable or true statements. Consider eachstatement in its entirety.D After having been cleared to D The minimum appropriate al-the runup area, you note from titude for this flight is 3,500the amount of traffic that feet.there may be a considerable D Prior to taking off, you stud-delay before you can take off. ied the bulletin board in baseYou decide to smoke a cig- operations and noted thatarette since you are positive the organizational command-

that no gas fumes are pres- er had set up additionalent. clearance requirements forD To comply with fuel reserve his operations. You shouldrequirements, it is not neces- know that you are not neces-sary to make a fuel stop on sarily bound by these re-this flight. quirements.D Since you are only a 3-3 pilot D While en route you encounterand the flight is in excess of unexpected conditions which100 nautical miles, the clear- indicate that your ETA willing authority for this flight be exceeded by 35 minutes.will have to be Flight Serv- It is mandatory for you toice. request that Flight ServiceD The civilian may be carried be advised.if he has proper identification D In the immediate vicinity ofshowing he is an employee of Laurel you encounter unfore-the Department of the Army. cast weather with a ceiling ofD The senior explorer scout 900 feet and visibility of twomay be carried if he is in miles. You would know thatuniform and has properly an ATC clearance is neces-signed papers and authoriza- sary for landing.tions as outlined in pertinent 0 Laurel Municipal Airport isregulations. a PC field. Because of this,D At least two position reports you may properly elect toshould be made to Flight close your flight plan by call-Service en route. ing Flight Service, collect.References R 95-8, R 96-20, and TM 11-2557, Vol. 1The correct solution to the PUZZLER may be found on page 29.


17/36

CAREFULTop arther and Faster Fig. 1

Tip Tornado headMarion J ortner

WIT AIRPORT TRAFFIC con-stantly increasing, an ArmyAviator may possibly find himself flying next to a C-130 oneday or a Mooney Mite the next.So it might be a good idea todiscuss wingtip vortices - itcould mean your life.Today, an Army Aviator mayfind himself alone on a cow pasture on Monday or turning ontofinal behind a DC-7 at ChicagoMidway later in the week. Takea medium-sized air terminal likeFresno, California, for instance.The Army aircraft that passthrough this one airport mayhave to share final approachwith a Tri-Pacer shooting touchand-go landings, a trio of SabreJets simulating flame-outs or,perhaps, a B-52 practicing ILS

Marion J F ortner is the UnitedStates Army Aviation Board Aero-nautical Engineer. He is a graduateof the initial test group that led tothe approval of organic Army Avia-tion for the field artillery in 1 9 4 ~Views expressed in this article are theauthor s and are not necessarily thoseof the Department of the Army or ofthe U S. Army Aviatiorn SchoolThe Editor

approaches. Traffic can be heavyand the chances of stumblinginto someone s vortex is not remote. Pilots should, therefore,become acquainted with thisphenomenon.Each month, the volume ofairport traffic expands and thetemptation to crowd that man infront grows more pressing. Withthis in mind, the U. S. ArmyAviation Board, working withAir Force personnel at EglinAFB, recently completed a testproject on wingtip vortices.Some of the answers they foundare included in this informal report. Douglas and Beech AircraftCorporations supply much of therest.First, we ll define a wingtipvortex. This is necessary becausethe terms jet blast, propblast, and vortex are sometimes used interchangeably butincorrectly. A wingtip vortex isa distinct phenomenon havingnothing to do with the powerplant of an aircraft. Simply put,a wingtip vortex is a spinningcorkscrew of air that extendsrearward from the tips of the


18/36

6 U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGEST Decemberwings of any moving airplane.A wing is designed so (Seefig. 1) the air travels fartherand faster across the top thanthe bottom. This stretches outthe air on top causing a pressuredifference between the top andbottom, thus creating lift.In the process of creating lift,the area of high pressure on thebottom of the wing attempts toforce its way into the area oflow pressure on top of the wing.Since it cannot go through thewing, it curls around the tipswhere it meets air moving acrossthe top of the wing. As thewing flies, the air curls uparound each wingtip and downover the trailing edge to formtwin corkscrews, or you mightcall them whirlpools of air-onefrom each tip. Each corkscrewof air fans out behind the wingitself, but the apex of its funnel remains constantly at the tip.Actually, almost every flier whohas flown in formation has experienced wingtip vortices andcompensated for it almost unconsciously.

If you were to fly into one ofthese spinning corkscrews of airbehind a small, light aircraftnothing much would happen except for a slight twitch of yourairplane. But if you fly into onebehind a large, heavy airplanewith its huge vortex of air youcould get into real t roubletrouble enough to lose control ofthe airplane and, at the minimum, scare the daylights out ofyou.What will happen depends onhow you approach the vortex.(See fig. 2.) Note how the air iscurling back from the wingtipsof the airplane. If you fly intoone of thse vortices, you can expect some surprises. For example, in one test at Eglin, anArmy QL-17 drone was flown at1,000 feet altitude on a straightcourse. t was overtaken by anAir Force F-I00 whose pilotflew his jet under the drone,streaked past climbed to a position directly in front and continued on. On one occasion, thedrone rolled 74 and yawed asmuch as 30-this with an auto-

Figure 2

UP GUST FOLL OWfDIMMEDI TELY BYVIOLENT DOWN GUSTEXPERIENCED

VIOLENT ROLL TOLEFT EXPERIENCED


19/36

1957 CAREFUL T P TORNADO AHEAD

ROUGH RULES-OF-THUMB FOR "SAFE" SEPARATION TIMES FORTHE LANDING OR TAKE-OFF OF A LIGHT PLANEFOLLOWING THE LANDING OR TAKE-OFF OF A LARGE AIRPLANE(REFERENCE: DOUGLAS REPORT S M - 1 8 6 4 7 . D E C . . 1 9 ~ 4

LARGEAIRPLANE

LANDING

TAIONCI OFF

WINO CONDITIONANY

DI RECT CROSSWIND

GUERAL CROSSWINDtfXCLUDINQ THE DIRECTCROIIWIND)

REM ARKS A B O U T S A F E SEPARATION TIMENORMAL SE PARATION TI ME (ROUGHLY. 30 SECONDS 1 IF LI GHT PLANEOPERATES AS SHOWN I N THE FOLLOWING SKETCHES (SHADINGI NDICATES POSS I BLE DANGERI :

LIGHT PLAN : LAND I NG : L IGHT PLANE SHOULD STAY WELLABOVE THE FLIGHT PATH OF THE LARGE A I RPLANE ANDSHOULD CONTACT THE RUNWAY WELL FORWARD OF THECONTACT POSITION OF THE LARGE AIRPLANE.

~ ' ' ' ~ ~ U [7 / / l l/ / 7JJi5; ; ; ; ; ;LIGHT PLANE TAK I NG OFF : LIGH T PLANE SHOULD DELAY LIFT OFF UNTIL WELL FORWARD OF THE CONTACT POS I TION OFTHE LARGE AIRPLANE.

NORMAL IF LIGHT PLANE OPERATES AS SHOWN I N THE FOLLOW I NGSKETCHES :LIGHT PLANE LANDINO : L I GHT PLANE SHOULD CONTACT THERUNWAY WELL TO THE REAR OF THE LI FT-OFF POS I TION OFTHE LARGE AIRPLANE .

L I OHT PLANE TAKING 01'1' : LIGHT PLANE SHOULD LIFT OFFWELL TO THE REAR OF THE LIFT-OFF POSITION OF THE LARGEAIRPLANE AND SHOULD STAY WELL ABOVE THE TAKE-OFF'LIGHT PATH OF THE LARGE A I RPLANE .

S A F f SEPARATION TIMES NOW DEPEND MAINLY UPON THE WINOCOMPONENT ACROSS THE RUNWAY (SEE DEFINITION 8ELOW TA8LE IAND THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE LARGE Al f lPLANE.

I11.t .2J...l..Q. .l1 ..ll..l.ll LARGE AIRPLANES OF I J : . { ~ Q : : f. :.. . U (I . IGHT PLANE LANDING OR TAKING OFF) :

. ,ND COMPONENT ACROSS NORMALflUNWA' ' GREATER THAN

17

_ _ _WINO COMPONENT ACROSS 8fTWEEN I AND 10 MINUTES '--RUNWAY 8ETWEEN 2 .I .~ ~ _ _ _ _ZERO WINO COMPONENT 2 M N ~ACROSS RUNWAY ( WI NOOIRECHY ALONG RUNWAY)

DEFINITION OF WINO COMPONENTS; A WINO COMPONENT CORRESPONDB TO AACROSS THE RUNWAY 10 - DEGREE 20-DEGR[ 'O -D fGR[OF ROSS WINO OF C R O S S W I O ~ CIIOISWIND OF2 .I M . P. H . 14 .S M . P. H 7.S " .P.H . 5 M . P. H.

1 . . " . 40 M . PH . 10 .S . P. " . 14 M.P. " .1 0 M . P. H. S 7. I . P . H. 2 II . P. " . 2 0 M . ,.. H.

* Q.. .1: IT SHOULD BE EMPHASIZED THAT THESE ARE APPROXIMATE SEPARATION TIMES WHICH ARENECESSARY IN ORDER THAT THERE BE VERY h. l.I.ll CHANCE OF ENCOUNTER I NG DIFFICULT I ES.FOR SHORTER SEPARATION TIMES DIFFiCuLTiES WILL NOT NECESSARILY BE ENCOUNTEREDBUT THE CHANCE OF RUNNING INTO TROUBLE IS MUCH ..REATER.

Figure


20/36

8 U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGEST Decemberpilot-no human could have begun recovery so quickly.Some time ago, the Beech Aircraft Corporation sent out aform letter asking for commentson this problem of vortices. Thefollowing are two of the replies.Both are typical. The first isfrom an aviator flying a Model35 Bonanza, who wrote:I spaced myself accordinglybehind a C 46 and turned onfinal approach about 1,000 feetfrom the end of the runway atabout 400 feet altitude. At thispoint, the wheels were down, fullflaps on, and prop in low pitchwith airspeed of 80 mph, and airplane trimmed in hands-off attitude. The air was very smoothand stable. Note: Nearly everypilot s report on vortex turbu-lence contains a similar remarkabout the calm condition of theair.)

At approximately 150 feetfrom the end of the runway, andabout 200 feet altitude, the planewas thrown violently on its side,left wing down about 70 to 80degrees, and headed for theground at terrific speed. Duringthis very brief period, I had noevident control over the airplane.I did have my hand on the throttle and remember applying aconsiderable amount of power.Recovery was effected aboutthree or four feet off the groundf a r too close for comfort. Witnesses afterward confirmed this,saying that they started to run

as they saw the Bonanza apparently falling out of control. Istill don't know who was mostsurprised at a recovery that apparently wasn't in the cards.Here is another examplealso in a Beechcraft:On a very still, clear day, I

came in on a low, slow approach(about 72 mph) on the end of therunway. A DC-6 was just turning off the other end of the runway. At about 40 feet altitude,the turbulence struck; my wingwent down and we almost cartwheeled into the ground. Theairplane was a complete loss, butwe were not hurt at all becauseour seat belts were tight.Whether you run into a heavyvortex or a light one, or none atall, will depend on a number offactors which should be kept inmind. These factors are windvelocity, wing loading of theleading aircraft, and speed ofthe leading aircraft.The first of these, wind velocity, is fairly obvious.Whether the wind is blowingor not makes a difference. Thevortex is a whirling column ofair itself, and the greater thewind velocity, the quicker thevortex will dissipate. This isclear, but here is one hint thatmay help. Since wind has direction, make your approach andland on the upwind side of therunway when behind a large aircraft.The second factor is wingloading-the greater it is, thestronger the vortex. Simplystated, wing loading is merelythe ratio of the weight of theairplane to its wing area.

In further detail, two airplanes may each have the sameweight. One has a wing span of50 feet, the other 100 feet. Theaverage chord (distance fromleading to trailing edge) of eachwing is the same. By definition,wing loading will be twice asgreat for the airplane with awing span of 50 feet.In effect, the shorter wing


21/36

1957 CAREFUL TIP TORNADO AHEAD 9must carry the same load withhalf as much wing area. There-fore, the air pressure differential between the upper and lowersurface of the wing will be twiceas large for the shorter wing.Assuming equal speeds, theshort wing span airplane willproduce a stronger vortex fromthis greater pressure difference.Remember that the greater thewing loading, the stronger thegenerated vortices.The final factor is speed. Atfirst you might decide that thehigher the speed, the bigger thevortex. This sounds like commonsense, but t is not true Of twoidentical airliners, the slowerwill produce the stronger vortex.Here is why: Let each airlinerhave the same span and wingloading. This results in each producing the same size or diameterof vortex. The faster aircraftwill disperse the energy of thevortices over a greater distancethan the slower one. Rememberthat these slow speeds alwaysoccur in traffic patterns.There you have it, the whyand what of vortices. But howcan you avoid them or stay rightside up?In the recent test one conclusion was that the duration ofthe vortices is governed primar-ily by existing atmospheric conditions and the strength of thevortex. Any wind has an immediate dispersing effect. So for

maximum safety you should always land on the upwind side ofthe runway.Be careful when following an-other airCI aft while landing ortaking off. The Board concludedthat the greatest disturbancesproduced by any aircraft occurwhen that aircraft is travelingat low airspeeds, as in traffic pat-terns. Douglas Aircraft Corporation has devised a set of roughrules-of-thumb for separating alight plane from a large onewhen landing or taking off. (Seefig. 3.)

The rules may be difficult tofollow considering the pressureof traffic at a busy airport. Nevertheless, keep in mind that theysimply repeat methods you mayuse to evade the wake of a largeaircraft.Beech, Douglas, and the ArmyAviation Board all emphasize allowing plenty of space betweenyou and large aircraft in frontof you. The wind will have morechance to disperse the vortex.

Beyond remaining clear of thewake itself, perhaps the mostimportant thing to remember isto always remain aware of whatmight happen; and stay alertready to take counteraction. Thisshould include keeping y u rsafety belt snugged tight. If aproblem cannot be entirely eradicated, our best defense is to understand it.


22/36

Famous Last WordsLieutenant onald C Wilson rty

T HEY ASKED US if we could flya night illumination problem,and our operations officer answered, Of course-no sweat.Easy? It was not that simpleand the exercise taught us a lotabout the importance of onemissing ingredient-experience.What we learned may be appliedto other problems that come upin Army Aviation.We took on the assignment ofilluminating an impact area thatwas to be used in a big firepowerdemonstration. We had no doubtwe could light up that targetarea like Broadway on NewYear's Eve. Only one pilot in theoutfit had ever used aircraftflares and he assured the rest ofus there would be no problem.We found out differently.Our typically Korean airstripwas in a narrow valley surrounded by mountains. We d done alot of night flying out of it usingflare pots to light the boundariesof the runway. Flying out of thestrip was only one of our worries.Our mission was to provide illumination for the target areafor ten minutes, allowing theartillery to fire an area mission,then to drop flares to illuminatethe atomic simulator for the endof the demonstration.For the first flight we decidedto use three Bird Dogs, eachloaded with two 1,000,000 candlepower flares. We were to takeoff 30 minutes before drop timeand orbit above the home fielduntil given instructions by radioto proceed to the drop zone.

Our field was located approximately two minutes from thetarget area. Since we had novisual references, we had to timeour flight from a known point tothe target area, make our drop,and get out of the impact area.A radio tower near the northend of the strip had red blinkinglights, so it was decided thistower would be the initialpoint from which we could timeour flight to the drop zone. Bymaking dry runs during the day,we found it took forty secondsfrom the tower to the drop areawith the wind out of the NW.With this determined, we knewthat two Bird Dogs would haveto fly a five-minute patternabove the field. The patternwould be flown so that an aircraft would at no time be morethan one minute and thirty seconds from the initial point (IP).

The first plane had to be overthe impact area and drop its firstflare at a precise moment, so ourtiming had to be almost perfect. The third Bird Dog was toorbit above the other two aircraft flying the pattern and beon standby in case one of theflares malfunctioned. Finally, aBeaver was to fly at a still

L ieutenant Ronald C Wilson Arty,is an instructor in the Department ofF ixed Wing Tratining U. S. ArmyA viation School. Views expressed inthis article are the author s and arenot necessarily those of the Department of the A ,my or of the U. S.A rmy A viation School.-The Editor


23/36

FAMOUS LAST WORDS 2higher altitude to drop flares forthe finale-the detonation of theatomic simulator.Upon signal from the OP tobug out, the plane nearest theIP was to go in and drop oneflare, make a right turn and flya pattern that would put it overthe drop area two minutes afterthe second plane had dropped itsfirst flare. This second patternwould be flown maintaining atwo-minute interval betweenplanes until all flares had beendropped and the fire missioncompleted. Since we were usingthree-minute flares, we couldachieve constant illumination forover fifteen minutes with a totalof six flares.After considerable planning,we made our first live run. Wefound that only about forty percent of our flares worked andthose were dropped from theBeaver. This problem we solvedby using a different hook-up forthe flares on the bomb shackles.The big problem was to determine the right time to drop aflare, allowing for drift. We constantly dropped them too soonor too late, and the wind wouldcause them to drift so that anyadvantageous effect of the flareswas lost within a few seconds.Determined to maintain ourreputation, we flew five straightnights perfecting our flight pattern to and from the drop zone.But, we didn't have one perfectdrop.

On the night of the actualshow, some clouds moved in overthe impact area and gave usabout 500 feet between the topsof the mountains and the bottomof the cloud layer. This wasn't

conducive to calm nerves, but wedidn't allow it to hinder thedrop.One of our pilots did get lostin the clouds after his final drop,and had to be calmed a bit andtalked back to the field by theBeaver pilot who saw himthrough a break in the clouds.Another aviator, new to the outfit, yelled into his mike that theneedle on his manifold pressuregauge had gone clear out ofsight. Someone reminded himthat he didn't have a manifoldpressure gauge in a Bird Dog.We heard no more from him.We did illuminate the impactarea but nothing like Broadwayon New Year's Eve. As in thepractice sessions, we didn't hitthe right spots with many of theflares. In fact, the first two flaresdidn't help at all. They driftedclear away from the targetarea. Though we had practiced,planned, and gritted our teeth,we could not achieve the desiredeffect.Well, there it is. Can you flya night illumination problem?Or any other problem? Theyaren't simple. A lot of planninggoes into any mission, and eventhat may not be enough. Practice has to be dovetailed withplanning and experience. Ourlittle operation had planning andpractice but it lacked something-maybe experience.Of one thing I am certain:You don't solve problems by remarking No sweat.When you add energy and zealyou may still miss. But add planning, practice, and experienceand perhaps you ve got the solution.


24/36

A YOUNG FOREIGN OFFICER train-ing at an American basewas designated the CommandingGeneral of his country's AirForce. While flying his first soloat 10,000, he decided that his airplane was gradually turning onits back against his will. Heshouted his anxiety into themike and cried that his fingerswere tingling and slowly goingnumb.Quickly, the tower orderedhim to 100 percent oxygen. Heobeyed and continued to breathedeeply and anxiously. n a mo-ment he passed out. His airplanenow went into a screaming divewhile his instructor shoutedhoarsely, "Throttle back Throttle back "Only partly understandingalmost paralyzed - he tried toobey. Clutching the stick withnear lifeless fingers, he strainedto pull on it. Slowly, agonizinglyit came back and at the finalmoment, his nose came up. Heclipped the top branches of sometrees and landed sizzling hot onan outlying field.Gently they took him from thecockpit and laid him out on theground. In a moment he woke uphealthy and bright-a little puzzled but none the worse.

When the Board investigatedthey found "he had not receivedhis military pay for over twoand a half months, and that hewas extremely anxious. * He

was grounded until his government sent his pay."Later, (the same officer) ona night flight without heat withinadequate clothing and withno evening meal before takeoff,became anxious to complete theflight. In the landing pattern hesuddenly felt that the runwaylights and airdrome lights weregoing in circles. He left his placein the pattern, dived across thesignal officer, disregarded flaresand radio wave off, and landedbadly to one side of the runway,almost overrunning the planeahead and the one astern whichhe cut out of the pattern.Again, medical examinationswere negative. This time he complained of great concern over hisfamily, all of whom he had learned were ill. *

The investigators diagnosedhis ailment as hyperventilationarising from deep anxiety. Thiswas serious but should theyeliminate the Chief of anothernation's Air Force? Or shouldthey - diplomatically let himcontinue-to almost certain suicide?They deliberated a long time,

were forced reluctantly to denyhim entrance into jet training.However, to prevent the attendant loss of face, they retainedhim for multiengine training,ournal of Aviation Medicine,

August, 1957


25/36

MEMO FROM FLIGHT SURGEON 3adding only this simple requirement, that he carry a copilot atall times.Solomon, himself, must havesmiled his benediction.

NOISEThe problem of noise has finally come to Army Aviation. Forexample, we ll bet you didn tknow that our latest observationaircraft makes more noise at

certain times than the Air ForceF-IOO.Noise used to be an exclusiveproblem of the Air Force andthe Navy, and of those civilianswho unwisely settled themselvesin tract homes just off the sideof a main runway. But with ourhuge transport helicopters andthe new higher performance aircraft, we ve moved right into atrouble area that can do youharm when you take no precautions.Either a high noise intensityor a lower intensity over a longperiod of time can give youtrouble. Like other parts of thebody, the ear may be rupturedor grow weary from overwork.Worse still, too much stimulation over too long a period mayinjure the ear muscle semipermanently in the same way thatanother muscle might becomemuscle bound.Like Louis Armstrong s trumpet poised an inch from yourear, the sudden blast of a jet engine could burst your eardrum,or dislocate one of the three tiny

Views expressed in this article arenot necessarily those of the Depart-ment of the Army or of the U S.Army Aviation School. The Editor

bones that help carry soundwaves across your middle ear.Loud noise can destroy part ofyour hearing permanently or fora short time, depending on howlong and how often you are exposed.With temporary deafness youmay get an annoying ringing inyour ears. Some aviators evenget a double tone: a buzzing ora ringing in one ear at one frequency, the same at an entirelynew frequency in the other.

F TIGUE N NOISEYou get tired more quickly innoise. You may work eight hoursin silence at a tough job, go homewhistling, kiss your wife andtake her out cheerfully for filetmignon and a show. Add noise

and you may botch the job, argue with the boss, and divorceyour wife.There is hardly any end tothe miscellaneous ills noise maycause. At the very least, you llconcentrate less. With enoughnoise you may even get sickenough to vomit. A blast of noisemay make you shaky in theknees; you may even lose partof your sight momentarily.Noone has yet found a wayto adequately lower noise intensity at its source without compromising the desired power.The best way to prevent injuryis to cap the ears and block offpart of the sound wave thatroars in against your eardrum.If you work in noise, your flightsurgeon will provide you withearplugs, earmuffs or both, andhe will instruct you in their use.Wear them-you ll stay calm,sleep soundly, and hear well.


26/36

M STER rmy viator

The second Master ArmyAviator rating to an officer onactive duty has been awarded toCaptain James H. Lefler of theU. S. Army Aviation Board. Captain Lefler is a Project Officer inthe Test Division.He has accumulated over8 000 hours of first pilot time in19 years of flying and is qualified in all fixed- and rotary-wingaircraft.

His flying career began in

1938 as a civilian pilot instructing and flying for hire. In 1942he joined the RCAF. After completing transition training inSpitfires he was sent to theRCAF Instructor s School.Late in 1942 he returned tothe United States and became aliaison pilot graduating in classnumber 9 of the Department ofAir Training, The ArtillerySchool. He remained at Fort Sillas a flight instructor until beingassigned in 1946 to Headquarters, U. S. Constabulary in Germany.He has played an importantrole in Army Aviation. He helped establish the instrumentflight training program at FortSill and instructed in that program until being transferred tothe Army Aviation Detachmentat Fort Belvoir. In 1952 he wasordered to Korea and assignedto the 8th Army Flight Detachment. He assisted in formingthe TOlE for the first Provisional Aviation Company duringthis period and later establishedthe AFFE. Twin Engine Transition School in Japan.As VIP pilot in Washington,he has flown such well-knownpassengers as Vice PresidentNixon the Secretary of DefenseSecretary of State, three secretaries of the Army, and ArmyChiefs of Staff.


27/36

HE ARMY AVIATOR entereddownwind in a Bird Dog ap-plied carburetor heat, switchedtanks, and checked the mixturefor full rich. As he turned finalhe observed another aircraft onthe runway and executed a go-around. He removed carburetorheat at this time.As he again flew downwindthe engine failed. The aviatorswitched tanks again appliedcarburetor heat and turned onthe auxiliary fuel pump. The en-gine caught for a few secondsthen died for the second time.The aviator then called thetower declared an emergencyand requested that the obstruct-ing aircraft clear the strip. Toallow the plane on the groundenough time to move he extend-ed his downwind a few secondsbefore turning on base. He low-ered 30 flaps after turning onbase and applied 45 flaps justprior to touchdown. The BirdDog landed short of the runway,struck an embankment, bouncedand hit a tree with the rightwing before coming to a stop.All graduates of the Armyflight program have at one time

or another received instructionpertaining to priority of air-craft. In an emergency the air-craft in distress has the right ofway over all others. A dead engine is considered an emergency.The aviator used his flaps in amechanical manner. They shouldonly be used when the aircraftis too high or on a power ap-proach. Even then only the nec-essary amount should be applied.If this aviator had conserved hisaltitude with discriminate use offlaps he would have made therunway with room to spare.t is not cheerful to note thatabout 85 percent of the acci-dents reviewed in this depart-ment can be directly attributedto Army A viators with less than500 hours first pilot time. Thisaviator had less than 100 hourssince graduation from flightschool.

The Gray Hair Department is pre-pared b l/ the U. S ARMY A VIA-TION DIGEST staff with informa-tion obtained from the files of theU. S Army Board for Aviation Acci-dent Research. The views expressedin this department are not necessarilythose of the Department of the Armyor of the U. S. Army Aviation School.The Editor


28/36

26 U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGEST December

Landed Short

OT L NDINGThe Army Aviator arrived atthe Bell Helicopter plant for thepurpose of ferrying an Hmodel Sioux to his unit. He wasintroduced to two company pilotsand later was asked if he wouldlike to have a flight demonstration. He requested only a cockpit checkout and a briefing of thelocal traffic pattern and the plantpractice area.Under the supervision of onecompany pilot the aviator started the helicopter and ranthrough the normal run-upcheck. After a minor discrepancy had been corrected he

made a normal takeoff and proceeded to the practice areaabout one mile southeast of t ~plant.Upon arrival at this milesquare area, the aviator made anormal approach and landing.With the servo system engagedhe made 360 turns testing thecontrols. He landed disengagedthe servos and repeated the hovering turns. He then landed forthe third time engaged the servos again and made a normaltakeoff to the west.

Using a left-hand pattern, heset up an approach to the westfor a normal touchdown autoro-

tation to the center of the field.He retarded the throttle to 2200rpm and established a descent at45 mph. He then closed thethrottle, added pitch and contacted the ground in a slight taillow attitude.After skimming the groundfor about 60 feet the skids hita ridge of earth about nine incheshigh. The helicopter left theground turned 180 0 from theline of flight and touched down8 feet from the ridge. From thispoint the Sioux bounced forwarda few feet and came to rest facing east. Major damage was incurred to the airframe and mainrotor system with the antitorque system completely separated from the remainder ofthe aircraft.

Touchdown au torot t ionsshould never be made on acceptance checks-a point unfamiliarto the aviator. The procedure fora normal autorotation is to reduce airspeed prior to touchdown by leveling the aircraft at50 to 75 feet. This aviator demonstrated poor technique by failing to do this. He further showedpoor judgment when he did notwalk over the area, after landing the first time and prior toperforming the autorotation, tocheck for obstructions.Most units are now emphasiz-

Hot Landing


29/36

1957 GRAY HAIR DEPARTMENT 27ing that an instructor pilot ustbe in the aircraft before touchdown autorotations can be practiced.

T IL IRSTTwo Army Aviators took offin a Beaver on an orientationflight to another airfield. Thefirst leg of their journey wasIFR and, after accomplishing aGCA letdown over an Air ForceBase, continued under thehood toward their destination.As they passed over an OMNIstation near the end of the flight,the IP told the pilot to removethe goggles. He then proceededto locate the airfield for the pilot,who was unfamiliar with thearea.After turning downwind forrunway 33, the IP pointed outmarkings designating the usableportion of the runway. Bothaviators noted the wind Teepointing toward 220 Becauseof its location, the Tee at thisparticular field was consideredunreliable and the nearby municipal airport tower was usually

contacted for surface conditionsprior to landing. This was notdone or the aviators would haveknown the surface winds werefrom 170 at four knots.The pilot decided to use additional airspeed throughout thepattern and climb flaps only forlanding. Maintaining 100 mphon base leg and final, the aviators saw a fence on the near endof the runway and cleared it by15 feet.

After rounding out, the air-craft floated 750 feet down therunway before actually touchingdown and then skipped for about1450 feet before brakes could be

applied with results.A t this point the aircraft was400 feet from another fencemarking the forward end of thestrip. The fence as yet had notbeen seen by the aviator. TheIP was aware of it and thoughtthe pilot had also seen it.Two hundred feet away, thepilot saw the fence and continued hard braking, thinking hecould stop in time.Seventy-five feet away herealized that he could not stopand immediately started a

P aw t - tudentDidn t

ground loop to the left.Twenty-five feet from thefence the aircraft reversed direction, striking the fence poststail first.To maintain an airspeed of100 mph in an aircraft designedto stall between 55 and 6 mph isoverdoing it. Even at lower air-speed with takeoff or landingflaps and the throttle completelyclosed, the Beaver will float afterroundout. Also, when an aviatordoes not see a fence in front ofthe aircraft while landing, hiseyes and/ or thoughts are somewhere else. A timely go-aroundwould have forestalled this accident. Also, it couldn't have happened had the Instructor Pilotbeen as alert as he might havebeen. .


30/36

8 U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGEST DecemberEXPERT INSTRUCTION

After an uneventful flight tothe practice area in their Choctaw, the instructor pilot (lP)proceeded with one hour and 15minutes dual practice in all basicmaneuvers. Then a straight-inautorotation was started to thesouth, from an altitude of about1,000 feet actual.The helicopter carried a 1,500-pound load and an estimated1,000 pounds of fuel, making the

eavy Load RPM Dropoffgross weight about 10,500pounds. The wind was light andvariable from the west (crosswind). Indicated airspeed uponentry was 80 knots, later reducedto 60 knots during the descent.Rotor rpm stabilized at 230.During the initial portion ofthe descent the student told theIP he was going to overshootthe panel. At this time the IPtook over the controls and established a moderate flare to reduceforward speed and shorten theground track. Rotor rpm increased during this maneuverand he lowered the nose to regain lost airspeed. A second flarewas accomplished about 40 feetabove the ground to reduce therate of descent.Collective pitch was applied at

this time in anticipation oftouchdown. The helicopter continued its rapid descent and thecollective was pulled to its maximum upward position. With aforward airspeed of five to tenknots, the C hoc t w fellthrough, contacting the groundin a tail-low attitude. After thetailw heel had rolled about fivefeet, the main gear contacted theground causing the lower fittings of the main shock struts toshear.The helicopter slid another 25feet with the nose digging atrench about 20 feet long andthree to five inches deep. Theengine was still running and themain rotor was turning at lowrpm. Fuel lines were rupturedand gasoline spilled around thenose section. The IP immedia ely shut down the engine andbraked the main rotor to a stop.The two aviators then evacuatedthe aircraft. Miraculously no fireresulted from the spilled fuel.The application of collectivepitch to reduce descent was premature. Carrying a load withpower off, the rotor rpm willrapidly drop off, causing thehelicopter to fall through.Pitch should be applied at thelast possible moment to conserverpm but only when necessary tocushion the landing.

WELL EXPERIEN EDThe new Army Aviator tookoff in a Bird Dog on a routineflour sack mission. After locating the troops in the trainingarea (which was in mountainousterrain with an average elevation of about 7,000 feet), hemade a low nass over the menand climbed to the east at asteep angle.


31/36

1957 GRAY HAIR DEPARTMENT 29At approximately 300 feet altitude, he entered a maneuversimilar to a wing-over. The air

craft was dangerously near astall. The young aviator startedhis run on the target area andduring the dive tried to recoverflying speed by forward pressureon the stick. Unable to regainenough airspeed for a recovery,he realized the Bird Dog wasgoing to hit the ground and attempted to level the aircraft.t struck the side of a ravinein a three-point attitude damaging the engine cowl, landinggear, and lower fuselage. t thenglanced into the air, rolling fromside to side dragging wingtipsacross the ground. The rightwing was torn loose from thefuselage, which finally came torest 105 feet from the point ofimpact. Besides the pilot andpassenger, one trainee was injured from flying debris .This Army Aviator had beenout of flight school slightly overthree months when this accidenthappened. Upon arrival at the

ust ut of Sh lunit he was placed in the standardization program and receivedapproximately 20 hours flyingtime. One 30-day period was devoted entirely to ground duty.His total flying time since gradua ion was 29 hours.The aviator showed poor judgment in performing the maneuver at low altitude. However, hewas not briefed prior to the mission; nor did his supervisorstake into consideration his lackof experience.The U. S Army AviationSchool can teach only so much;the unit must continue whereschool training stops.

g o u i ~ PUZZL ROn the basis of the factual information contained in the PUZZLER on page 14, the recommended solution is as follows:At least two position reportsshould be made to FlightService en route.Prior to taking off, you studied the bulletin board in baseoperations and noted that theorganizational commanderhad set up additional clearance requirements for hisairfield. You should knowthat you are not necessarilybound by these requirements.\ / While en route you encounter

unexpected conditions whichindicate that your ETA willbe exceeded by 35 minutes.t is mandatory for you torequest that Flight Service

be advised.Laurel Municipal Airport is aPC field. Because of this,you may properly elect toclose your flight plan by calling Flight Service collect.All other selections are considered either false or undesirable.


32/36

U S Army Aviation Digest Index: Vol. III1957Month Page

AIRCRAFT FUTURENew Concept in Aircraft. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sep 41VTOL-Tomorrow s Aircraft Today, Lt John E Armstrong . Jul 5AIRCRAFT TYPESCaribou Delivery Set for 1959. . . . . . Aug 40Indian Names For Army Aircraft. . . . . Jul 34Pictorial Review of Army Aircraft . . . . Jun 26XH-40 Test Program, Hans Weichsel, Jr. . . May 5ARMY AVIATION, HISTORYHistory of Army Aviation, William E Vance . Jun 7Prelude to Fifty Years of Flight, John S. Maltrotti . Jun 21COMMANDANT S COLUMN, THEClear for Take-Off, Brig Gen Carl I Hutton, USA. . Apr 3Organizational Maintenance . . . . . . . . Mar 3Parasite Weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jan 3STOL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Feb 3Above the Best, Brig Gen Bogardus S. Cairns . . Aug 22EQUIPMENTU S. Army Aviation Board. . . . . . . . . Oct 15FIXED-WING FLIGHTArmy Aviation With the National Guard of Alaska,Lt Col Raymond E Johnson. . . . Nov 4Ground Effect . . . . . . . . . . Feb 5High Flying Bird Dog, Lt John R Dome Oct 10Icing . Jul 12L-23Ds Complete Transatlantic Trip . . Aug 16Puzzler. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dec 15The Way It Used To Be, Brig Gen Carl I Hutton, USA. . May 11HELICOPTER OPERATIONSH-19 to the Rescue, Capt Foy R Ketchersid. . . . . . . Aug 24Helicopter Operation in Congested Areas, Lt John E Morel. . Jan 18Helicopter Transports Flying Control Tower. . . . . Feb 37Meditations on Helicopter Vulnerability,Maj Gen Hamilton H Howze . . . . . . . . . . Oct 2Mountain Operations with the H-34, Lt Col Donald F Cassidy. . Mar 5Puzzler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sep 30Use of the Helicopter as a Reconnaissance Vehicle,Maj Gen Hamilton H Howze . . . Jul 2INSTRUMENT FLIGHTArmy GCA, It Donald J. Weigman. . . . . . . . Oct 5Puzzler. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Aug 28Puzzler. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oct 25U S. Army Participation in Aircraft Instrumentation Development,Col John D Edmunds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jan 5MAINTENANCEArmy Aircraft Mobile Technical Assistance Program,

Charles G. Hall . . . . . . . . . . .Army Aviation Field Maintenance at Ft Eustis,Maj Gen Rush B Lincoln, Jr. . . . . . . . .. Sep 22. May 15


33/36

DIGEST INDEX, VOL III 1957 31Month Page

M INTEN NCE Continued)Army Aviation Maintenance Hints . . . . . . . . . . . . . Apr 27Maintenance Course Streamlined Capt Richard J. Schaefnocker . Feb 21Muscle for the Army's Long Right Arm, Col Melvin D Losey . . Nov 19Organizational Maintenance Brig Gen Carl I Hutton . . Mar 3Spark Plug Fouling, M/ Sgt A. M. Rutledge . . Sep 19Torque Sense Capt Donald S. Muttoni . Aug 13

M STER RMY VI TORSWilliams, Col Robert R . Oct 14Lefler, Capt James H . . . . Dec 24MEDIC L

Memo from Flight Surgeon . . Mar 19Apr 18May 31Aug 30Sep 27Nov 1Dec 22Presenting the Case Against Antihistamines . . . . . Feb 25Static Fatigue Col William H Byrne . . . . . . . . Jul 17Tranquilizers vs. Flying Safety Capt Robert B Muffiy . Mar 16

MISCELL NEOUSHuman Research Enters Army Aviation, Dr. George D Greer Jr . Aug 17Supply Management Problems in Aircraft Logistics,Brig Gen William B Bunker. . . . . . . Apr 5Verdun-Rozelier Army Air Field Dedicated. . Feb 18Your Army Aviation Library . . . Jul 20

NOTES FROM THE PENT GONMaj Gen Hamilton H Howze . . . May 3

PUZZLERS

S FETYAccident Fact Finding . . . . . . . . . . .Accident Prevention- A Command Responsibility,Col Frank G. Forrest . . . .Analysis of an Aircraft Accident .Big Scare Calhoun Norton . .Careful Tip Tornado Ahead .Flying Safety on the Airways .

Jul 2Aug 2Sep 2Oct 2Nov 2Dec 2Aug 28Sep 30Oct 25Nov 18Dec 15

Dec 11 Nov 13 Oct 19 Jul 22 Dec 16 Sep 5


34/36

32 U. S. ARMY AVIATION DIGESTMonth PageSAfETY (Continued)The Gray Hair Department .

Growing Problem of Midair Collision . . . . . .Investigation Error, Col Warren R. Williams, J r .Method for Analysis of Pilot Error Aircraft Accident,Dr. Arthur C Poe, Jr. . . . . . . . . . .New Road to Safety . . . . . . . . . . . .Qualification Means Safety, Capt F. E. W. Smith

SENIOR RMY VI TORSBowen, t Col William c. Jr.Bristol, t Col Delbert LCondon, t Col David E. . .Ernest, It Col Charles . . .Goodhand, It Col Glenn o.Johnson, t Col Raymond E .Marinelli, Col Jack LMathews, Maj William RMorrow, It Col Thomas O.Nesbitt, It Col Miller T. .

T CTIC L EMPLOYMENTCall and Haul, Sandy A. F. MacDonald .Cubs in Combat, Brig Gen Carl I HuttonEffect of Clarification of Roles and Missions on Army Aviation,Col Frank G. Forrest . . . . . . . . . . . . .Famous last Words, It Ronald C. Wilson . . . . . .Future of Army Aviation, Maj Gen Hamilton H. Howze .let s Modernize Artillery Aerial Observation,Col Charles W. Matheny, Jr. . . . . .Project long Arm, It Col Jack W. Ruby . .See All-Know What to Do, t R. J. Shields .

TR ININGAviation Unit Field Training, Maj Gen Hamilton H. Howze.Fort Ruckers Combat Command . . . . . . . . . . .Report from Camp Wolters . . . . . . . . . . . . .Solution to the Provisional Aviation Company Training Program,Maj George B. Brockway and Capt James L Jennings

WE THERMountain Wave, Maj John H. Hall . . . . . . . . .

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec Aug Feb

May Jul Mar Jun Jul JanMarFebNov

MaySepAprAugDecJunApr

Dec. Jun May

JunFebDecAugAprJanMar

363028353541353435282725511192822413536283026353435344

312220426391422020

2210


35/36

The first YB-41, of an evaluation quantity to be delivered to theArmy, was scheduled for delivery in late August to Edwards AirForce Base in Muroe, California, where an engineering study wiDbe conducted. A second unit will also go to Edwards at a later date,while the remaining helicopters on the contract will be sent to FortRut'ker, Ala.The YB-41, named the Seneca, is a four-place helicopter whlehcan be used for utility, reconnaissance, command-liaison, instrumenttraining, basic ight training, medical evaeuation, rescue operations, and other diversified missions, says Cessna.The helicopter, according to Cessna, has a maximum grossweight of 3,000 pounds and a useful load of 950 pounds. It is powered by a 270 hp Continental engine and has a maximum speed of124 mph at 8,000 feet. With a cruising speed of 100 to 124 mph,the Seneca has a sea level rate of climb of 1,350 fpm and a hovering ceiling in ground effect under standard conditions of 14,500 feetat 2,600 pounds gross weight. Its anticipated range s 290 milesand an endurance of 3.8 hours.Cessna officials said the Senecas scheduled for Fort Rucker wiDgo to the U S Army Aviation Board for user's tests, the Transportation Supply and Maintenance Command for tests to determinenecessary logistical support, and the U. S. Army Aviation Sehoolfor tests to determine its adaptability as a trainer.


36/36

Army Aviation Digest - Dec 1957

Documents