BULLHORN #53  
4 October 2009

 

ANAers, 

Lots of news, lots happening – please pass the word – and….MEMBERSHIP!!

VR,
Dutch Rauch
Secretary/Treasurer
Association of Naval Aviation, Inc.
A 501(C)(3) not-for-profit organization
1446 Waggaman Circle
Mclean, VA 22101
svwindmills@erols.com

 “…to educate and encourage an interest among the general public as to the importance of Naval Aviation in the defense of the United States and its allies….”

  

What’s in Your Attic?

USS NIMITZ Underway

F/A-18 Afghanistan

Navy Carrier Strike Group Deployment Schedules

6th Fleet Commander Moving

VH-71 Presidential Helicopter

JSF Office Will Start Weapons Testing

Pratt Offers To Trim F135 Costs

Eagles Change of Command

New Navy Assistant Secretary

NAVAL AIRCREW (NAC) DESIGNATION

ANA Searching for Artifacts

One of the various missions of ANA is to, “…stimulate the collection, preservation and display of historical material concerning the history of naval aviation….”  Simply put,

we work to preserve our history by preserving historical artifacts.  And we work to get them back into the light of day – out where people can see them and use them for their historical value. 

One valuable type of artifact is aircraft operating manuals – called everything from “Pilot’s Notes” to NATOPS, depending on the vintage.  Please also include any Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) you might have … another great source of historical information.  Whatever, next time you go into the attic or other treasure trove hidey-hole, please take a look to see if there might be some treasure like that, something that needs to be preserved AND put somewhere that people can see it, use it and appreciate its history. 

But, please don’t limit your search and ‘seizure’ to just those items.  Whatever you find, if it could have any -  even seemingly insignificant - historical value, please save it and send it in.  We would far rather save too much than to miss something that could be a historical treasure. 

When you find that treasure, please sent to ANA and we will work to get it to a museum or such that can properly protect and display it.  Send your treasures to:
Association of Naval Aviation

Dutch Rauch, Secretary/Treasurer

1446 Waggaman Circle

McLean, VA 22101 

Please be sure to include your name and address and any information you might have regarding the treasure.  Displays of historical artifacts will usually include the donor’s information in as much as is possible. 

All treasures will be acknowledged with a receipt.  If you have a substantiated value for your donation, and would like that acknowledged, please include that information as well. 

Please pass this to ALL HANDS – get the word out – Do NOT let those treasures be lost or destroyed! 

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USS Nimitz (CVN 68) departs Fleet Activities Yokosuka

The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) departs from Fleet Activities Yokosuka on August 28th. Nimitz and embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 11 are deployed to the western Pacific Ocean. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Apprentice Michael R. Mulcare)

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A U.S. Navy F/A-18 strike fighter receives fuel

AFGHANISTAN (June 17, 2009) A U.S. Navy F/A-18 strike fighter receives fuel from the aerial refueling drone of an Air Force KC-10 Extender aircraft assigned to the 908th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron during combat operations over Afghanistan. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Robertson)

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Navy Carrier Strike Group Deployment Schedules to Shift

Release Date: 9/11/2009 5:06:00 PM

From U.S. Fleet Forces Command

NORFOLK, Va (NNS) -- The Navy announced Sept. 11 the decision to shift near-term carrier strike group (CSG) deployment schedules to address a delay in the completion of USS Enterprise's (CVN 65) maintenance availability at Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding-Newport News.

Navy leaders have been closely monitoring the progress of Enterprise's maintenance availability and evaluating the upcoming carrier schedules in order to meet combatant commander requirements and minimize impacts to pre-deployment training cycles.

By extending the current USS Nimitz (CVN 68) and the upcoming USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) carrier strike group deployments to just under eight months each, the Navy will meet the near-term operational requirements generated by the Enterprise maintenance availability extension. The Navy remains committed to its general policy of maintaining deployment lengths to manage personnel tempo as essential components of force readiness. No new deployments result from this schedule change; all the affected carrier strike groups were scheduled to be deployed in 2010, the only changes are to the timing and lengths of those deployments.

"Adjusting these carrier deployment schedules was the best solution of available options," said Adm. J. C. Harvey Jr., commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command. "We recognize this decision has operational and personnel impacts, such as training cycle changes and family uncertainty. Our Sailors and families also are ready to step up when necessary to meet the continued demands of a nation at war."

U.S. Fleet Forces and U.S. Pacific Fleet conducted a careful, in-depth analysis to ensure the Navy maintains continued support for the Maritime Strategy while minimizing the impact of schedule changes on crews and ships.

"We have been engaged in reducing the stress of lengthy deployments, and we remain committed to that goal for our Sailors and their families," said Adm. Robert F. Willard, commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet. "I know changes in deployment length affect everyone. Part of our Sailors' readiness and well-being is knowing their families are being cared for regardless of deployment length. We will continue to invest in family support and readiness programs to try to reduce the stress of lengthy deployments -- we owe it to them, and I am committed to it."

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6th Fleet Commander Tapped For New Job

(NAVY TIMES 15 SEP 09)

Vice Adm. Bruce Clingan has been nominated to be the new deputy chief of naval operations for operations, plans and strategy, known in Navy shorthand as the N3/N5, according to a Defense Department announcement Tuesday.

Clingan, an aviator, is currently serving as commander of U.S. 6th Fleet in Europe. In addition, Clingan was also head of Allied Joint Command Lisbon; commander, Striking and Support Forces NATO; deputy commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe; deputy commander, U.S. Naval Forces Africa; and Joint Forces Maritime Component Commander, Europe.

His relief in Europe has not yet been named, according to a Navy spokesman at the Pentagon, and it has not been announced when Clingan is expected in Washington.

 

Vice Admiral Bruce W. Clingan
Commander, U.S. 6th Fleet
Commander, Striking and Support Forces NATO
Deputy Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe
Deputy Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Africa
Joint Forces Maritime Component Commander, Europe

Vice Admiral Bruce W. Clingan is a native of Lafayette, Ind., but was raised in Bellevue, Wash. He graduated from the University of Washington and holds a Masters of Science from the University of Southern California. He received his commission through the NROTC program in June 1977.

Designated a naval aviator in May 1979, Clingan flew F-14 Tomcats with Fighter Squadron 124, Fighter Squadron 114, and Fighter Squadron 211, making deployments aboard USS America (CV 66), USS Enterprise (CVN 65), USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63), and USS Nimitz (CVN 68). He commanded Fighter Squadron 11, and after completing the nuclear power program, served as executive officer of USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72). Subsequently, he commanded the 6th Fleet flagship USS LaSalle (AFG 3) and USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70).

Ashore, Clingan served as an F-14 flight instructor at Fighter Squadron 124, where he helped Naval Air Systems Command and Grumman Aerospace Corporation develop the F-14D Super Tomcat as a member of the Aircrew Systems Advisory Panel.

Clingan’s first Joint assignment was in Europe, as a member of the Operations and Readiness Branch, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, where he helped negotiate various North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)/Spanish Coordination Agreements.

After selection to flag rank, Clingan joined United States Central Command, serving as deputy director of Operations from April 2002 to May 2004 during Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Clingan assumed command of Carrier Strike Group 3 / Carl Vinson Strike Group in June 2004 and served as CTF-50/152 during an extended deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2005. Subsequently, he joined the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations in September 2005 as deputy director, Air Warfare Division (N78B), followed by assignments as director, Air Warfare Division (N88) and director, Warfare Integration/Senior National Representative (N8F).

Clingan began his tour of duty in August 2008 as Commander, U.S. 6th Fleet; Commander, Allied Joint Command Lisbon; Commander, Striking and Support Forces NATO; Deputy Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe; Deputy Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Africa; and Joint Forces Maritime Component Commander, Europe.

He relinquished command of Joint Command Lisbon in July 2009.

Clingan’s personal decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal (two awards), the Legion of Merit (four awards), the Bronze Star, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy Achievement Medal (two awards) and various service and campaign awards.

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        VH-71 Presidential Helicopter Needs Favorable Winds To Survive

(AVIATION INTERNATIONAL NEWS 15 SEP 09) ... R. Randall Padfield

A proposal that would revive the U.S. presidential helicopter program sufficiently to convert five of the nine “Increment 1” VH-71s built to operational status still has a chance of landing on the President’s desk as part of the 2010 defense appropriations bill. In its version of bill passed on July 30, the U.S. House of Representatives added $400 million to do exactly that.

Last week, the Senate decided to not include similar funding in its version of the bill, which will likely be supported by the full Senate. That will leave it to a joint House/Senate conference committee to iron out the differences before the final bill goes to the White House.

If funding to continue the new Marine One helicopter program is included, Congress would challenge President Barack Obama, who has said publicly he would veto the bill. But according to an official White House statement, “If the final bill were to include funds that continue the existing VH-71 program…the President’s senior advisors would recommend that he veto the bill.

This wording is apparently considered “less ironclad” than what the same statement says about F-22 funding being in the bill, namely, that “the President will veto. In 2005, the U.S. Navy awarded the contract to provide a fleet of 23 presidential helicopters in two increments to the team led by Lockheed Martin System Integration.

The VH-71 is based on the three-engine AgustaWestland AW101, formerly the EH101. The Department of Defense terminated work on the VH-71 program on May 15. 

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JSF Office Will Start Weapons Testing Next Year; First Drop In 2011

(INSIDE THE NAVY 14 SEP 09) ... Jason Simpson

The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program office expects to start weapons testing next year with a goal of certifying the first block of munitions by the Marine Corps JSF variant’s initial operational capability of 2012, according to a program official.

The initial drop of a weapon out of an F-35 is planned for the spring of 2011, Charlie Wagner, JSF program office weapons integrated program team lead, told sister publication Inside the Air Force in a Sept. 8 telephone interview. A 500- pound laser-guided bomb, the GBU-32 1,000- and GBU-31 2,000-pound Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) and the AIM-120C Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) will be among the first weapons certified.

Program officials will conduct the testing at Edwards Air Force Base, CA, and Patuxent River Naval Station, MD, he said.

“We are looking at follow-on development and looking at future weapons capabilities,” Wagner said. “Our operations analysis people and our requirements working group go through a rather detailed assessment of what weapons need to go on the airplane based on the capabilities that need to be provided to the warfighters. We’ll work with [the services] to establish a time line of when [it] makes the most sense to go do those tests so we can get the capability fielded to the services as efficiently as possible.”

The F-35 Joint Program Office’s first priority, however, is getting the initial weapons configuration – weapons solely stored in the internal bays -- fielded as soon as possible, Wagner added. Configurations with weapons mounted externally -- sometimes known as the “Day 2” configuration -- will be certified “as the services need them.” The first external store loading is expected as part of the jets’ Block-2 capabilities, and the JPO plans to certify external GBU- 12 Paveway II 500-pound laser-guided bombs by the Air Force JSF variant’s IOC in 2013.

Officials anticipate that the certification for the initial weapons package for all variants will be reached by the Marine Corps variant’s IOC, he said.

According to briefing slides presented by the JSF program office in March, the Air Force conventional takeoff and landing and Navy carrier variants can internally store approximately 5,200 pounds and 18,000 pounds in their Day 2 configurations. The Marine Corps short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL) variant can carry 3,500 pounds internally and 15,000 pounds in its Day 2 configuration.

The CTOLs and carrier variants’ weapons requirements include: internal storage of 500-, 1,000- and 2,000-pound JDAMs, Paveway IIs, AMRAAMs, the AGM-154A/C Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) glide bomb, the AIM-32 Advanced Short-Range Air-to-Air Missile, the CBU-103/105 Wind Correction Munitions Dispenser and the Joint

Common Missile; and external storage of a 426-gallon wing tank, the “Storm Shadow” cruise missile, the AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile, the AIM-9X Sidewinder and an assortment of various-sized JDAMs, JSOWs, Paveway IIs and dumb bombs, according to the briefing slides.

The STOVL external weapons requirements are identical to those of the CTOLs and carrier variants, but its internal weapons do not include the larger JDAMs or the JSOW, according to the slides.

The aircraft needs to establish a flight envelope in which testers can safely operate before they can evaluate the plane’s weapons, according to Wagner. Once this is accomplished, the testing will begin with captive-carry flight to make sure the weapons do not “adversely affect the way the plane is flying,” and measurements of the jet’s flutter and flight dynamics will be taken.

“Once we’re comfortable that . . . we can safely carry the weapon, we’ll do a variety of ground tests and eject the weapons off of the airplane from the ground, measuring the loads and the reaction of the airframe to that, and then, if everything is matching our models, then we’ll go to flight testing of store separation and actually dropping the bombs off the plane,” he said. “Generally you start at a very benign part of the flight envelope and confirm you’re matching your wind tunnel predictions and then start going into the more sensitive corners of the envelope and the transonic flight regime, where the aerodynamics are a little harder to do the modeling on.”

Initial certification of the first weapons could take “a couple of years” because the program office has limited data on how the F-35 responds to the weapons, Wagner said. As the JPO obtains more information through the tests, though, “we’ll be able to significantly shorten the time line for getting those weapons cleared off the plane” to the point of months, as with legacy jets.

As a way of testing the weapons as efficiently as possible, the program office is looking at what commonalities the three JSF variants have in order to extrapolate data to each, rather than conducting the same tests on the individual platforms.

“Software is predominantly common across all three variants, so we’ll only do that on one platform, but when we start doing flight sciences evaluations, loads, flutter, storage separation, the airplanes are all just a little bit different, so we’ll have to work off of each different platform,” Wagner said. “The [carrier variant] and the STOVL airplanes both have a large weapons bay; if we see commonality amongst those two bays, we’ll have the option of reverting over to testing off of just one of the two airframes and translating that information onto the other plane.”

Officials also will put different weapons on the same airplane if they are going through the same kind of flight test, he added. Because “a lot” of the time between weapons tests is spent reconfiguring the airplane and adjusting instrumentation, the JPO will save time by switching one bomb with another and conducting the same test for each, rather than running a full series of tests -- with the associated instrument adjustments -- with a single ordnance.

“Initially, we’re focusing on getting some of the early capabilities out and predominantly focusing on single types of weapons on the airplane at one time,” Wagner added. “You’ll put a JDAM on the airplane and you may put air-to-air missiles adjacent to the JDAM, but you won’t mix a JDAM and a JSOW or a JDAM and a laser-guided bomb until further on down the program into follow-on development work.”

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