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17 Pages·2013·3.96 MB·English

FOCUS
Mission Success Safety Always - Mission Success Safety Always - Mission Success Safety Always - Mission Success Safety Always - Mission Success
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O 77
Issue
Republic of Singapore Air Force Safety Magazine
FUndamentalS
Inside:
>> Back to Fundamentals >> Ops-Log Integration - A Fundamental aspect of a
Fighter SQN >> Peace Vanguard Live Firing Exercise 2013 - A Test of Fundamentals
>> Fundamentals – Airmanship >> Back to Back Fundamentals
Mission Success Safety Always - Mission Success Safety Always - Mission Success Safety Always - Mission Success Safety Always - Mission Success
RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 2
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Fundamentals are the basic core components of how it has become a key aspect of the Squadron’s
Front Cover Image: Frontal view of the AH-
64D Attack Helicopter. knowledge, skills and values on which other aspects daily operations. Peace Vanguard then relates how
are built to form high performance teams. In the flight discipline and Crew Resource Management
RSAF, strong fundamentals in airmanship, type have been instrumental in the Squadron’s successful
edItORIal BOaRd competencies and standards, operations-logistics live firing exercises. Finally, a Qualified Flying
integration, professional and safety values form the Instructor from Standards Sqn reminds us on the
Chairman
bedrock of everything we do. need for all aircrew to uphold airmanship dearly, and
COL Aw Kwee Siong
the attributes of knowledge, skill and attitude as
The theme of this issue of FOCUS is “Fundamentals”. I cardinal requirements for good airmanship. I have
members
have selected the articles to highlight the importance also included an article from an aviation doctor on
ME6 Lee Lip Kee
of some of these fundamentals, how they have back care, and how an active lifestyle and regular
MAJ Tay Lai Huat
8 Operations and logs Integration – a Fundamental aspect of a directly contributed to the mission success of the exercise can help to strengthen our backs and reduce
MAJ Tay Kok Ann
Fighter Squadron RSAF over the years, and the criticality of demanding back pain.
MAJ Alvin Chan
and upholding them as we forge ahead with our
MAJ Marcus Woo Gim Chuan
transformation. Strong fundamentals are the building blocks to
CPT(DR) Magdalene Lee provide the sound footing for our people to thrive
Ms Audrey Siah Yushu In the first article, 807 SQN shares the importance on and to propel the RSAF on to our next bound of
of strong individual and team competencies in development. They are the bedrock foundation for
engineering and maintenance work to ensure quality high standards and safety to sustain our “mission
PROdUCtIOn CRew and safety in aviation maintenance. Next, Peace success, safety always!”.
Carvin II shares how the strong integration between
editor its operations and logistics was forged over time and COl aw Kwee Siong
MAJ Khoo Pak Syn Head air Force Inspectorate
13
Peace Vanguard live Firing exercise 2013 – a test of Fundamentals
Photographer
ME3 Philippe Ashley Lim
layout, design & Printed By
V&C Printers
FOCUS is published by Air Force Inspectorate,
HQ RSAF, for accident prevention purposes. Use
of information contained herein for purposes
other than accident prevention, requires prior
18 23
authorisation from AFI. The content of FOCUS Fundamentals - airmanship Back to Back Fundamentals
is of an informative nature and should not be
considered as directive or regulatory unless so
stated. The opinions and views in this magazine are
those expressed by the writers and do not reflect
the official views of the RSAF. The contents should
not be discussed with the press or anyone outside
armed services establishment. Contributuons by 02 Foreword
way of articles, cartoons, sketches and photographs
are welcome as are comments and criticisms. COL Aw Kwee Siong, Head Air Force Inspectorate
FOCUS magazine is available on these sites: 03 Back to Fundamentals
http://webhosting.intranet.defence.gov.sg/ ME6 Ryan Boon Wah Han, CO 807 SQN
web/AirForce/AFI/index.htm (intranet)
28 Safety activities
http://www.mindef.gov.sg/rsaf (internet)
31 Crossword Puzzle
FOCUS editorial board members. Back (L to R): MAJ Alvin Chan, MS Audrey Siah, ME3 Philippe Ashley Lim, MAJ Khoo Pak Syn, MAJ
ISO 9001:2008 BS OHSAS 18001:2007 Marcus Woo. Front: MAJ Tay Lai Huat, COL Aw Kwee Siong, ME6 Lee Lip Kee. Not in Picture: MAJ Tay Kok Ann, CPT (Dr) Magdalene Lee
1 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 2
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Back to Fundamentals
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m Did you know? In 2012, an F-15SG was reported with a persistent ECS defect o

a during the Korat detachment. The avionics compartment could not be cooled F
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n to the required level during flight. Due to the intermittent nature of the defect, n
u coupled with the inability to simulate the in-flight conditions on ground, the defect d
F a
persisted after replacement of possible defective line-replacement-units. After m
o
me6 Ryan Boon wah Han, CO 807 SQn
t extensive checks and study of the wiring diagrams, troubleshooting zoomed down e

k n
c to the control sub-system. It was later discovered that an additional jumper cable t
a ME6 Boon is a senior Air Force Engineer and currently holds the appointment of Commanding Officer, 807 Squadron in 7 Air Engineering a
B and Logistics Group, Air Power Generation Command. He attended the Singapore Command and Staff College (renamed to Goh Keng Swee had been incorrectly installed during aircraft production. This error caused the l
s
Command and Staff College in 2011) in 2009, and assumed the appointments of Senior Maintenance Officer and Head Contract Manage-
shut-off valve channelling additional air to the avionics compartment to be closed
ment Office in the Advanced Jet Trainer deployment in Cazaux Airbase, France. He has experience leading the engineering, maintenance
and logistics support of A-4SUs, F-5S/T, F-15SG and C-130B/H. (instead of being opened) when the temperature in the avionics compartment
was high. The defect only manifested during the Korat detachment due to the high
Introduction which an aviation engineer should possess, given
temperature climate experienced.
their important role on which I will elaborate in
Aviation in itself is not inherently dangerous. But the later segments. In addition, I will touch on the
to an even greater degree than the sea, it is terribly Reason’s (1990) Swiss Cheese Model which I find to
unforgiving of any carelessness, incapacity or neglect. be an extremely useful basic tool to look beyond
- Captain A. G. Lamplugh, British Aviation Insurance active failures into latent causes.
Group, London. Early 1930’s.
In this article, I hope to share some of my experiences
Aptly captured by Captain Lamplugh, to maintain in the aviation engineering and maintenance fields
aviation safety there can be no room for error, of the RSAF as an AFE. These should be useful to
inability and poor standards in aviation operations fellow AFEs and I believe some of these experiences
and aviation maintenance. High standards of will also be relevant in the non-engineering fields of
aviation maintenance are required to ensure that non-AFE compatriots.
aircraft and aviation equipment are maintained in
good airworthy condition, fit for safe use by trained Individual’s technical Competency –
professionals. With technological improvement in tools of the trade
aircraft design, production and systems reliability,
View of the connector cable
incidents/accidents due technical defects have
As professionals, people will have to be trained in the
decreased while maintenance errors still contribute
basics. For Air Force Engineers, this entails the basic
to a significant proportion of aviation accidents and
trading which new AFEs (recruits) acquire in the
incidents.
Air Force School on technical knowledge of aircraft
weapons systems and basic hand skills such as wire-
To minimise human induced errors, it is important for
locking, wire crimping, etc – these are aptly termed
aviation professionals to have strong fundamentals
as ab-initio training. After they graduate from Air
– or correct foundation –in their respective fields.
Force School, they will be posted to their respective
Although ‘fundamentals’ are usually associated
units to undergo specialised weapons systems type
with academic learning and foundation (such as
courses as well as diagnostic courses. After the type
engineering fundamentals of aircraft maintenance), courses, the AFEs will undergo On-Job-Training Close up view of the jumper cable
it is also important for airmen to have some basic
where they gain more technical knowledge and
understanding of other areas crucial in their line of
hands-on skills working on specific aircraft types
of knowledge can result in reported defects not Basic maintenance Practices
work. This includes understanding how to minimise
and under close supervision of their qualified and
rectified or lead to human-induced mistakes that can
common maintenance errors that could be caused
experienced seniors.
by poor teamwork or poor team communication. have catastrophic consequences. Engineers need to Engineers also need to be conversant with basic
This is crucial in the aviation maintenance work as have the necessary aircraft systems knowledge and maintenance practices and knowledge of the
technical Fundamentals and aircraft
most of the maintenance activities are accomplished string engineering fundamentals before they can parts and equipment that they work with. Poor
Systems Knowledge
by teams. Quality Management Systems (QMS) accurately trouble-shoot the reported defects. knowledge in the preparation of parts (e.g. sealants),
such as proper documentation and records of as well as the re-use of consumables which should
Engineers need to have the requisite knowledge
maintenance work are also part of the fundamentals be discarded (e.g. self-locking nuts) often result
which is crucial in aircraft maintenance. A lack
in system malfunctions which remain latent and
undetected till much later.
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n and standardised way of recording is essential to k
e Firstly, the compliance to Technical Orders and minimise miscommunication and wrong projection t
m Did you know? The bleed air of the Erroneously or poorly maintained o
authorised Standard Operating Procedures. In our of future maintenance work.
a F
F-5 engines is channelled to the line of work, the equipment need to be maintained equipment is likely to breakdown u
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n Environmental Cooling System via a in accordance with the highest standards of quality Fundamentals of working in teams or even threaten the safety of the n
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u and that means to the exact steps stipulated in the
F series of ductings along the dorsal of operators when they malfunction. a
technical orders and SOPs. When in doubt, the AFE
Maintenance tasks are often accomplished by teams m
o the aircraft fuselage. These ductings should always consult someone who has the relevant
t rather than individuals. Hence it is also important e
k were secured to one another by experience. If unavailable, the uncertainty should be to understand the fundamentals that one should n
c highlighted to senior management or the equipment t
a circular clamps. In early 2000, a bear in mind when working as part of a team to a
B Pilot reported a burnt odour during manufacturer for clarification. Erroneously or poorly accomplish the assigned task. assumptions about the procedure must be clarified. ls
maintained equipment is likely to breakdown or
The lack of communication between maintenance
flight. Investigations revealed that even threaten the safety of the operators when
One of the most important factors to achieve good crew could easily lead to a maintenance error,
some of the clamps securing these they malfunction. Working from memory or blindly team work is good communication. Be it interaction resulting in an aircraft incident/accident.
following the ‘hand-down’ procedures or shortcuts
ductings had loosened over time between members of the same team, or the handing
seriously undermines the quality of work and
and taking over of tasks between teams from different Reason’s Swiss Cheese model
causing the hot bleed air to leak
aviation safety.
shifts, accurate information has to be exchanged.
and partially char the rubber sleeves
This is critical to ensure that all work is completed
The Reason’s Swiss Cheese model of accident
Secondly, it is also crucial to document the work
which covered the clamps. The without any steps being omitted. Knowledge and
causation is a model used in risk analysis and risk
done correctly. Quality records capture the
cause of the clamps coming loose management of human systems such as aviation
maintenance work that had been done, who
and engineering safety . It likens human systems to
was the re-use of self-locking nuts performed the task and the date/time which the task
multiple slices of Swiss cheese, stacked together, side
on the clamps. Repeated removal was carried out. The records of work completion are
-by-side. In a simple illustration, the organisation’s
often used to forecast and plan the next scheduled
of the clamps for inspection caused defences against failures are modelled as a series of
servicing of the part. A properly documented record
the self-locking properties of the barriers, represented by the slices of Swiss cheese.
The holes in the cheese slices represent individual
nuts to be lost. Vibrations during
weaknesses in individual defences, and are
aircraft operations caused the self-
continually varying in size and position in all slices.
locking nuts to work loose, causing When all the holes in each of the slices are aligned,
the clamps to loosen resulting in the unsafe act/error could be seen to have passed
leakage of the hot bleed air.
An illustration of the V clamp connection. Rubberised insulation
sleeves over the ducts not shown.
Individual’s Quality management
System – tools of the trade
Other than having good technical fundamentals,
AFEs also need to have strong grounding in the
required Quality Management Systems (QMS). Two
of the most important QMSs will be discussed in this
segment.
5 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 6
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F me4 tam wai lun and lta leow Yee Shiang d
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ME4 Tam is currently serving his tour as an Officer-In-Charge (Electronic Warfare) in Peace Carvin II (PC II). He graduated from National
k g
c University of Singapore in 2010 with a Bachelor Degree in Electrical Engineering (First Class Honours). s
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B LTA Leow is an Operational Cat C pilot in PC II with 350 F-16 flying hours. He was previously from 140 SQN where he did his F-16 conversion. n
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the sum of parts.” i
The mission of PC II is to conduct high-end training o
- Aristotle for RSAF personnel while benchmarking against n

the best in the world. This applies to both Ops and –

through all the layers of defences, resulting in an leaves the aircraft parking site. The fourth layer of Logs personnel. To achieve this as a flying squadron, a
accident/incident. The simple illustration of tools defence or final check is done at the toolstore when Sports coaches often talk about teams needing the squadron’s work plan objectives as well as the F
control processes below seeks to exemplify the ideas the tools were accounted before being returned to time to “gel” in order to perform at their maximum RSAF key thrusts must be clearly communicated to u
n
of a Swiss Cheese Model. the toolstore. potential. It is believed that when a team’s interaction align everyone towards a common goal. This year,
d
and relationship is good, the real work can be done PC II conducted a café-style workplan workshop a
Tools control is an essential part of aviation safety maintaining and enhancing the and team objectives can be achieved. These concepts m
as tools inadvertently left on the aircraft or at the also apply to a Fighter Squadron. In fact, Operations e
fundamentals
maintenance sites during maintenance work are & Logistics integration is a key fundamental aspect “The goal is more important n
t
hazardous to aviation operations. When left on the of a performing flying squadron. There is a need to a
aircraft, the tool may interfere with the control rods Just like foundations of a building, the fundamentals establish a common goal for both the Ops and Logs than the role.” l
or actuators causing aircraft control problems while of the AFEs will need to be continuously revised and community to strive towards together as well as - John C Maxwell a
s
strengthened through various ways. Individuals are
tools left at aircraft parking sites pose as FOD hazards. build understanding, trust and cohesiveness within p
encouraged to improve their professional knowledge the squadron so that each individual will work and e
through the study of SAR papers and MASC, etc. Work- c
The following Swiss Cheese Model depicts some contribute to the mission with their colleagues in for the management to brief and provide clarity to t
centres also conduct Continuous Trade Learning to
of the ‘defence systems’ designed to prevent tools mind. PC II will be celebrating its successful 20th year the squadron’s focus and challenges ahead. With a o
from being misplaced in the course of maintenance refresh and enhance the technical knowledge of on the Continental United States (CONUS) in 2013. common purpose, PC II is then able to Raise, Train f
their personnel on the monthly Maintenance Days. a
work. The first layer of tools control often starts with We have enjoyed an excellent Ops-Logs relationship and Sustain its people in an effective manner, while
Significant lessons learnt from FAIR/GAIRs and other F
the toolstore man and the AFE who books out the because of our emphasis and because our Operations pushing the squadron towards higher standards in i
maintenance related issues are also archived and g
tools at the toolstore. Some of the holes in this ‘first and Logistics team are housed under one roof. Ops- its operations.
h
periodically briefed to the community to prevent the
layer of the Swiss Cheese’ could be seen to be lack of Logs integration will continue to remain one of the t
old lessons from being recurrent. e
thoroughness of the toolstore man and the personnel core strengths of PC II.
r

in this initial accounting of tools. The second layer of S
defence - tools control - could be seen to be the good Conclusion q
u
tools control work practices of the AFE as they work
a
on the aircraft. This includes not bringing excessive Strong fundamentals are important for professionals d
number of tools onto the aircraft and to return the especially for those involved in aviation. Other than r
o
tools to the toolbox area during the course of the technical knowledge and competency of an individual, n
work. Conversely, the holes on the cheese slice may one will need to have a good understanding of the
represent poor knowledge of the personnel on tools potential pitfalls of working in a team. Furthermore,
house-keeping or his poor attitude work practices. the quality management systems are an important
The third layer of defence is the requirement for aspect of maintaining a high standard of quality in
the AFE who booked out the tools to periodically maintenance work. Last but not least, continuous
check his tools during the course of work when upgrade and reviewing of the fundamentals, as well
necessary (such as periodic breaks) and especially as the sharing of past lessons learnt are essential to
the final tools check performed on site prior to the ensure that fundamentals are not eroded over time.
conclusion of maintenance work before the team
7 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 8
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“After observing the number of aircraft within the with the aircrew. This was particularly meaningful r
a a
airspace, I quickly realised the challenges the aircrew to them when one of our pilots was performing the
u t
q would face if the aircraft had any defect during the fight Mission Commander role and was responsible for io
S and needed to return to base in the middle of the fight. orchestrating the LFE. While the maintenance crew n
r I would make it a point to bring this message across to may not understand the air picture fully, it is not a
e
t my guys during the morning briefs.” difficult for them to understand how critical each n
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ME3 Pang Kee Hwee serviceable aircraft that they generate leads to the
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PC II Pro-Supervisor overall mission success.
Fi o
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Besides the Ops brief, our AFEs and Weapons load s

f
o crew (WLC) also have the opportunity to observe I
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t their contribution towards the aircrew’s tactical t
c e
proficiency in both the air-to-ground and air-to-air
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p battle realm. For example, PC II conducted Range r
s day whereby our AFEs and WLC were brought to a
a t
the Barry Goldwater Range to witness the fruits of io
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a their labour from working under the scorching heat n
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n of Arizona. At the range, they observed how the –
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F
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to ensure that the aircrews’ equipment are in tip-top
u a
F condition. This includes items like helmet, mask and m
a work. To enhance relationships, communication and even the small ear-piece. e
– relationship building during professional and social n
n interaction is also emphasized and engineered. PC With the logistics crew having a better understanding ta
o II deliberately puts in effort to plan for our Ops and of flying operations, they will be more dedicated to l
ti Logs people to learn the different aspects of flying delivering their best in all aspects of their job scope a
a s
r operations and create a suitable environment for to ensure that the aircrew are able to train effectively p
g Integration and Interaction – an such professional and social relationships to thrive. and safely. e
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t amalgamated Balance t
n
“Everybody has to play his part in safety and it has to exposing the aircrew to logistics o
s I be done consciously everyday and at every moment. It f
The Oxford dictionary defines Integration as “the Operations a
g
is this culture of looking out for one another that forms
o act or process of combining two or more things F
l so that they work together”. In PC II, the personnel the fabric of our safety net. Just like how our logs team ig
tirelessly conducts FOD walk every day.
d performing the two very distinct Operations and h
n - LTA Jonathan Lau t
e
a PC II Safety Officer
r
n To enhance relationships, S
o q
exposing the air Force engineer (aFe)
ti communication and relationship u
a to Flying Operations a
r building during professional and social d
e
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p interaction is also emphasized and One of the initiatives by PC II Senior Maintenance o
O n
engineered. Officer is to schedule his AFEs to participate in the
squadron’s daily morning Ops Brief. This provides
aircrew were able to hone their air-to-ground strike
the AFEs first-hand observation of the squadron’s
competencies with the training and live munitions
Logistics functions of the squadron are made aware training emphasis for the day, listen to the in
that they had painstaking prepared. During the multi
of the roles and challenges of each other so that flight emergency discussion and appreciate the The logcell team (above) briefing PC II SRO on the aircraft
lateral Flag exercises like Ex Red Flag and Ex Maple
they work together efficiently and effectively as importance of a serviceable aircraft towards the state. Through the Ops-Logs integration program,
Flag that the squadron participates in, PC II also
one unified team. This allows our people to exercise aircrew’s training opportunities. they were able to understand more thoroughly the
schedules our maintenance crew to sit in the Large
better judgement and make informed decisions at considerations the aircrew had when matching aircraft
Force Employment (LFE) mission briefs and observe
configuration to the mission type.
the live screening of the LFE air picture together
9 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 10
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d The aircrew also have a part to play in understanding was also in-depth discussion on aircraft emergency Coming together Socially e
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a the job scope of the men and women who make our procedures and cross-sharing. The aircrew also saw a
qu training possible. For a start, new aircrew who join the vast extent of work the DTA crew had to undergo The effort spent in bridging the relationships in the squadron exists both professionally and socially. The tio
S the squadron will ‘shadow’ a Dedicated Crew Chief to replace the expiring DTA lines. The entire cockpit, squadron conducts sports activities to not only build bonds and relationships, but also to ensure that our n
r (DCC) when the latter launches an aircraft. Through including the ejection seats and instrument display servicemen are combat fit to take-on the demanding tasks of air power generation and flying operations. a
e this, the aircrew have a first-hand experience of the panels, had to be stripped off the aircraft completely. These sports activities vary from the annual Brandon Cup soccer competition, to Individual Physical Proficiency n
t
h noise, heat and other environmental elements that This involved the expertise of many different Test (IPPT) training. d
g our DCC have to endure in flight line operations. functional groups of the logistics, including Weapons, l
Fi Attack Avionics, Aerosystems, Communications & The social activities were never limited to but always included the families of our servicemen. These activities o
g
a Navigation, Electrical & Instrumentation and Engine. include Chinese New Year, National Day, PC II Open House and Christmas celebrations. The intent is to allow
The aircrew also have a part to play s
of families to gain a better understanding of the nature of our work and how their loved-ones are contributing I
n
in understanding the job scope of These experiences allowed the aircrew to appreciate to this important task of national defense. This will also help them to re-affirm their continued support and
t t
c the men and women who make our the extensive detail and effort that the maintenance understanding towards their husbands, wives or parents who have dedicated their time and effort to their e
e g
p training possible. crew had to put into the aircraft to ensure that it is work. The social gatherings also allow the family members to build friendships and support networks that will r
s air worthy for them to train in. It gave the aircrew continue to blossom far beyond their tours at PC II. a
a greater confidence in the aircraft and also allowed ti
o
al Besides the front line, the visits to maintenance them to appreciate how critical an accurate debrief of Conclusion n
nt back shops were also organized whenever the any aircraft defects to the AFEs is to the expeditious –
e opportunity arises. This is to expose aircrew to the recovery of the aircraft. a
The Operations and Logistics
m technical competencies and professionalism that
relationship in PC II is something F
a maintenance put into servicing the aircraft. During u
that we will continue to treasure
d the last 56FW training day, our aircrew were given n
n dearly. It has allowed PC II to d
a tour of the Jet Engine Intermediate Maintenance
u achieve excellence throughout the a
F (JEIM) facility and witnessed the Detonating Transfer m
years of operations. This is evident
a Assembly (DTA) line replacement. At the JEIM facility,
from the many successful Flag e
– the aircrew learnt about the process and effort n
exercises that the squadron had
n required to remove an engine and its associated participated in and the numerous ta
o components for scheduled servicing. This not only l
ti allowed the aircrew to see the different components accolades that the squadron a
a had received from Luke AFB. The s
r of the engine up-close, but also provided them an trust and bonds forged between p
g understanding of the extended amount time needed e
e the Ops and Logs has built a c
by the JEIM crew to completely service an engine
t strong fighting spirit, pride and t
n before it could be returned to flying status. There o
I confidence in the men and women
f
s of PC II. With a strong Operations & a
g
o Logistics integration, PC II will be F
l able to work together efficiently ig

d and effectively as one unified team, h
n heading towards many more years t
n a JIEM facility exposure for aircrew of excellence. er S
o q
ti u
a a
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p o
O n
11 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 12
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e and Iraq. His callsign was “Beefcake” and he also for a good score. Taking away 19sec for missile time e
m Peace Vanguard live Firing exercise happened to be our US detachment commander. of flight and 1sec lag from trigger pull to missile V
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a Although the cockpit gradient was steep in both launch, I only had 8sec to find and track the target!
2013 – a test of Fundamentals n
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experience and rank, we performed surprisingly well. Furthermore the target position given was never g
n
He was my backseat pilot, in other words, he would precise. Often it required pilots to positively identify u
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F fly the aircraft during most of the engagements while the correct target amongst half a dozen other a
r
f I did the targeting. A great amount of coordination hotspots in our sight. Once we found the target and d
o CPt Ho Jin Peng, Pilot, Peace Vanguard detachment
between us was required. How he positioned the simulated firing off, the whole cockpit would come l
st CPT Ho Jin Peng is an Operational Cat C Pilot with over 240 hours on the AH-64D. He is currently undergoing upgrade training at Peace aircraft would affect how much time I needed to to a standstill. Beefcake would focus on keeping iv
e Vanguard Detachment. acquire the target; and similarly, the information I the aircraft stable while I focused on keeping the e
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provided him on range and time would determine F
a
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Introduction to participate in US live-firing exercises. In order to the profile he flew. r
– i
attain this qualification, pilots had to meet standards n
3 Fundamentals g
1 A true test of a man’s mettle is to put him under stipulated in our gunnery manual. When grading us, Here’s a glimpse of a typical simulated AGM-114

0 pressure. That statement stands true in flight. When the US Master Gunner ensured a strict adherence Hellfire missile engagement. Firstly, we would check are skills that form the basic e
x
2
put under pressure, a pilot has to struggle between to standards by scrutinising every single detail of in with the range tower indicating we were ready for foundation from which e
se keeping focus and losing it. In that split-second, his our engagements. As all crew pairs were vying for the target handover. On the other end of the comms, rc
ci mind will search its database to solve the problems the “Top Gun” prize, each pilot paid close attention we would hear “Redhawk 31, report firing position more complex tasks can develop. is
r with the best solutions it knows how; this is where to every engagement in order to achieve the best Alpha, target is a moving T-72, heading 330, 5km”. e
e
x good fundamentals come in handy. Fundamentals overall score for the competition. After I acknowledged the handover, Beefcake would 2
0
e are skills that form the basic foundation from fly us to the firing position while I prepared for the
crosshair steady. Once the target was “hit”, we would 1
g which more complex tasks can develop. Having The exercise was conducted in the Multi-Purpose shot. As the target was always referenced from the 3
n strong fundamentals are like having good reflexes. Range Complex (MPRC) situated in Boise, Idaho. The firing position, it was crucial that he positioned us break away and set up for the next engagement. The –
i fight would continue for another 11 engagements
r When a situation arises, whether the right actions range provided a realistic environment for attack exactly at Alpha. Any deviation from Alpha and I a
i
F before we returned to base.
immediately come to mind will prove how well the helicopter live-firing training. The 4km by 6km range t
e pilot has been drilled with the right fundamentals to had both “pop-up” stationary and moving targets e
v There was no time for mistakes, no time for doubts, s
i complete the mission and keep him alive. which were controlled by a range tower. This allowed t
l no time for an “oops” moment. The two most
the pilots to hone their acquisition skills under timed o
ard Ipna rMticaipy at2e0d1 3in, aPne aacnen uVaaln lgivuea-rfidr inDge teaxcehrcmiseen tw h(PeVre) cooffnedr. itAiosn tsh, ea AraHr-e6 a4sDp eecntt ethreadt mthoes tr arnagneg,e tsh ed irda nngoet cswomitcmho nse rleecatsioonns, faonr dt imfaeioluurtes wtoe raec dquueir et ot awrgroentsg. f Fu
u With such a tight sequence of events within each
g our pilots were tested on the engagement of targets tower acting as the Ground Forward Air Controller n
n under strict timing and accuracy standards. It was (GFAC) provided the target brief to the pilots. Once engagement, there was hardly enough time to pause d
and rationalise. Once a mistake was made, it would a
a during these intense engagements that lessons the target brief was complete, the pilots would m
V be hard to salvage the situation. That said, it became
e were drawn for all airmen on the importance of ready the appropriate weapon, fly the profile to the would have to waste time searching a wider area with apparent that pilots with strong fundamentals were e
c fundamentals. In this article, I will share with you designated release point and engage the target. The my Target Acquisition and Designation Sight (TADS). n
ea the stress that attack helicopter pilots faced during target would go down either with a hit, or when Once we reported “in position”, tower would then say ta
P the exercise and how having good fundamentals it timed-out. Fly the aircraft, find the target, and “target’s up”. This was the critical moment. Time had ls
ensured mission success and safety. shoot it. Sounds easy enough? Not quite. Since each started for acquiring, trigger
engagement was graded based on the achieved
pull, and lastly for impact.
target effect and time taken, pilots had to be on their
a test of weapon engagement Skills This particular engagement
toes. There was little margin for error.
required a total time of 28sec
In the exercise, PV pilots were paired up into teams
I was an Operational Category D Co-pilot Gunner
(Pilot and Co-pilot Gunner) and had to undergo
during the exercise and was paired up with an
48 engagements with all the AH-64D weapon
experienced US pilot who had more than 2500 hours
systems. These engagements were crucial as they
and operational deployments in both Afghanistan
were pre-requisites for all attack helicopter pilots
13 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 14
FOCUS

s P
al e
t a
n c
e to Beefcake. He would then adjust his aimpoint Flight discipline e
m V
accordingly to achieve target effect. Instead of using
a
a the standardised term of “long” to describe rockets The other fundamental observed amongst the top n
d
landing behind the target, I said “far”. He assumed teams was flight discipline. Nearly all RSAF Apache g
n
u that the aircraft was too far for rocket release and pilots have gone through the Aircraft Qualification u
a
F decided to dive in closer for the engagement. The Course (AQC) in Fort Rucker, Alabama, where the r
f prolonged dive resulted in us flying close to our deck basics of flying the AH-64D were taught. Good habits d
o

height and we had to abort that pass. This incident and practices were also imparted from these highly l
t i
s reminded me of the importance of using standard experienced US pilots. However, as we progressed v
e e
t terminology in attack helicopter operations. In our to more complex missions in the operational

a gunnery manual, it stated specifically the terms to squadrons, it was assumed that everyone had strong F
i
– use in weapon engagements in order to prevent such grounding in those fundamentals. While some pilots ri
n
3 confusions. Terms like “Gunner, Target” or “Match remain strict in maintaining strong fundamentals, g
1 and Shoot” may confer different meanings to pilots others got sloppy over time. Hence, when some of us
20 Members of Peace Vanguard Detachment flying other platforms. But for Apache pilots, we met with challenges previously, we had to reflect on ex
these basics and start maintaining flight discipline e
e r
s to follow them. c
i i
c By cross-checking and having s
r generally less error-prone and performed better play and how we could complement each other. e
e effective communications, such One personal experience I had was optimising
x under pressure. In contrast, pilots with comparatively One such trait we had was the habit of cross- my TADS Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) picture. 2
0
e weaker fundamentals were more likely to commit checking. Whenever one of us was focused on a confusion and mistakes in flight
I attended AH-64D AQC in 2012 with my buddy. 1
g errors, such as Rush Factor, Missionitis, and Cockpit task, the other would double check to ensure that will be minimised. Both of us were fresh-winged pilots with no prior 3
in Confusion. In the following sections, I will share two no mistake was made. For example, during missile experience on the new platform. During the course, –
ir categories of fundamentals that affected the pilots’ engagements, me being the Co-pilot Gunner, I had our US instructors would emphasise again and again a
F
performance during the exercise. most of the fight. While I was ‘sucked-in’ with making on FLIR optimisation. In other words, we had to take t
e sure that I find and ‘kill’ the target, Beefcake would were trained since the very first day to understand e
v these terms as defined in the manual. I had been specific steps to make the TADS FLIR display look s
i Crew Resource management always double check to ensure that I was doing it perfect. This was a tedious process that required t
l sloppy in my communications and that cost us the
d right. Whether it was pressing the right switches, patience and concentration. Many factors such as o
engagement. Even worse, we were close to busting f
finding the right target, or even counting down to
r Perhaps the most apparent quality of the top teams moon illumination and IR crossover rate affected F
a was the excellent intra-cockpit CRM. The amount of impact, I could always count on him to watch my our deck height. picture quality, and we were made to remember u
u
back. Likewise, when he was required to manoeuvre n
g understanding and coordination between Beefcake and regurgitate this 11-step process. However, after
n and I was tremendous. We knew each other’s for his running attacks, I would always double check In essence, aircrew that practice good CRM the course, we never paid much attention to it. As d
a that he kept within the range safety boundaries, complement each other to form an effective fighting a
strengths and weaknesses and therefore with each long as the picture seemed good enough, we would m
V team. By cross-checking and having effective
and ensured that he did not violate deck heights
e engagement, we understood the roles we had to communications, such confusion and mistakes in accommodate. Both of us were so wrong during the e
c and break away points. Such intra- exercise. Imagine searching for a target which was a n
flight will be minimised.
a cockpit cross checking did not t
3x5m wooden board with minimal IR signature in a
e a
P only ensure mission success but ls
ensured safety as well.
Another important trait of good
CRM was effective communication.
I vividly remembered an incident
during our work-up training
in the simulator where the use
of an improper term caused
cockpit confusion. It was a diving
rocket engagement, where the
engagement range made it
challenging for us to estimate the
impact point with our naked eyes.
I was therefore responsible for
using the TADS sensor to sense
the impact of the rockets and
provide appropriate feedback
15 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 16
FOCUS

s F
l u
a
t n
n 4x6km firing range; the target pops out for less than hand, pilots with good flight discipline made it a point d
e 2mins and tends to blend in with the background. to do those steps expeditiously yet meticulously a
m m
With that, many odds were against us, every little within the compressed situation. Hence, they made Fundamentals - airmanship
a e
detail the TADS could offer was critical. few or no mistakes throughout the exercise.
d n
n t
u Initially we had trouble searching for the target on Conclusion a
l
F our first few engagements. It was impossible to s

f -
o shoot without positive identification. That was when My very first experience in PV’s annual live firing maJ George lee, StdS SQn a
t we realised that teams performing well had been exercise provided some examples on the importance i
s r
e paying attention to those tedious checks to optimise of fundamentals. As operational squadrons have to MAJ Lee is currently the Fixed-Wing Standards Flight Commander of Standards Squadron, operating on the Pilatus PC-21, based in Pearce, m
t the TADS. Subsequently, we paid more attention to Australia. He was an A4SU fighter pilot from 2000 to 2005. He graduated from Flying Instructor Course in 2005 and had since been a
deal with more complex and demanding missions, a
a the checks and became more effective in acquiring Qualified Flying Instructor from 2005 to 2008 and Flight Commander from 2009 to 2012 of 150 SQN, Advance Jet Training in France, also n
it is the onus of every pilot to remain grounded in on the A4SU.
– the targets. That incident made us realise the s
these basic fundamentals. When under pressure, h

13 importance of having flight discipline, to pay more these fundamentals will be the reflexes pilots have Introduction possessing the right attitude is important in flying. ip
attention to our checks and to be more critical with
0 towards ensuring safety, and more importantly, It is only with the correct attitude coupled with good
the standards we set for ourselves.
2 mission success. Safety is of paramount importance in the aviation knowledge and skills that we can ensure a strong

e industry, where repercussions from accidents foundation in airmanship.
s Additionally, what I observed during tape debriefs
i are immense and can result in the loss of public
c was that pilots who had strict flight discipline
r confidence, valuable assets, or in the worst case, During the initial pilot selection, a large portion of
e generally completed their engagements
x lives. As such, it is necessary to address the most the screening process involves the assessment of
smoothly. They did not cut corners and
e important link in the safety chain - human. As human the individual’s aptitude and attitude. These two
always paid attention to basics. One of
g errors cannot be entirely eliminated, we tirelessly elements form the foundation which airmanship
the common errors pilots made was to
n introduce various preventive measures and practices is built upon. Airmanship is the fundamental
i fall victim to the rush factor and hence
r in order to minimise such errors. understanding one must possess in order to operate
i missed out on certain steps. On the other
F efficiently in the rapidly changing and dynamic

e The purpose of this article is not to teach you how to environment of flight.
v
i fly the aircraft. Rather, it is to explain the need to learn
l
the numerous elements of Professional Airmanship Knowledge + Skills + attitude = airmanship
d
and the correlation between these elements.
r
a
Knowledge
u
g the three pillars of airmanship
n “Superior pilots use their superior knowledge to avoid
a
“Airmanship is the consistent use of good judgement situations requiring the use of their superior skills” –
V
and well developed skills to accomplish flight Daryl Smith, Controlling Pilot Error: Controlled Flight
e
c objectives. The consistency is founded on a cornerstone into Terrain
a
of uncompromising flight discipline and developed
e
P through systematic skill acquisition and proficiency. Superior knowledge is attained not only from books
A high state of situational awareness completes the but through experience gained from everything we
airmanship picture and is obtained through knowledge listen to, observe or practice. These experiences are
of one’s self, aircraft, team, environment, and risk.” – bits of information that are eventually transformed
Tony Kern, Foundations of Professional Airmanship into knowledge. As we continually expand our
and Flight discipline knowledge base, our capacity to make better
decisions and judgements increase as well.
The ability to gain knowledge and learn flying skills
is crucial, especially in military flying. Military pilots This article discusses the various sources from which
are required to operate various aircraft platforms in we can gain knowledge with regards to flying.
a diverse range of environments, using a multitude
of different systems or weapons as required by the Flight Fundamentals Theories – Subjects like
varying objectives of different missions. Thus, pilots Aerodynamics, Flight instrumentation and
are required to go through their upgrades, to acquire Meteorology are the most important theories for all
new knowledge and skills in order to be effective in professional aviators. Knowledge of the mechanics
today’s combat environment. Beyond knowledge, of flight and the aircraft flight boundaries prevent us
Maintenance crew at PV detachment.
17 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 RSAF Safety Magazine Issue 77 | October 2013 18