51 Lessons From The Sky: Lessons From The Sky

PROLOGUE

FLETCHER MCKENZIE

I have always been interested in military aircraft and the air forces of the world. They are complex organizations that live and breathe to support a select number of pilots. Their mission is to fly and to fly often - if not operational missions, then training missions to build best practice. On reflection, I enjoy that people can join an organization who pays you to learn, train and fly almost every day.

At the time of writing the United States Air Force (USAF) is the largest, most capable, and advanced air force in the world with 5,778 manned aircraft in service, 156 Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles, 2,130 Air-Launched Cruise Missiles, and 450 intercontinental ballistic missiles, including F-22 Raptors, F-35, F-15 and F-16 fighters. It operates B-2, B-1 and B-52 strategic bombers, and C-5, C-17 and C-130 airlift transporters. Operating from bases in the United States and around the world, the USAF manages everything from intercontinental ballistic missiles to X-37 space planes to A-10 Thunderbolt tank killers. It coordinates military space launches, airdrops of Army paratroopers and assists with mass relief efforts.

The USAF has one of the largest outdated fleets. With cost overruns and cutbacks, programs to replace the 1950s bomber and tanker fleets have commenced again after many aborted attempts. What the USAF can achieve with these outdated machines is a testament to the passionate men and women who serve in the USAF. The USAF comprises 328,439 personnel on active duty, 74,000 in Ready Reserves, and 106,000 in the Air National Guard, and employs 168,900 civilian personnel. That is 570,000 people engaged in an organization to achieve one mission, Fly, Fight and Win - In Air, Space and Cyberspace. With a tagline of We do the impossible every day.

The active duty personal number of the USAF comes in just behind the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (China). As of 2014, the PLAAF had a strength of 398,000 and operates 2,755 to 3,010 aircraft. The USAF operates 3,000 more aircraft than the PLAAF. The Russian Air Force (a branch of the Russian Aerospace Forces formed on 1 August 2015 with the merger of the Russian Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Defense Forces) has 148,000 personnel (2018) and operates 3,200 aircraft.

To understand the number of people, look at other US companies and the number of staff employed. If the USAF were a company, it would rank #2 to Walmart. Walmart employs 2.3 million people, Amazon is #2 with 566,000, Accenture has 459,000 people and so on.

The first air force to fly stealth combat aircraft, to fly fifth-generation fighters, and to commit to an all-stealth combat aircraft force. The USAF are preserving this leading edge by purchasing 1,763 F-35s and up to 100 optionally manned Long-Range Strike Bombers. Unmanned aerial vehicles, increasingly with stealthy profiles and attack capabilities, will gradually represent a larger proportion of the overall aircraft fleet. They expect the all-in price to break US$1.1 trillion over the coming decades, high enough that it could force the Air Force to slash its aircraft orders by a full third.

The United States Air Force was born on 18 September 1947. Before this, US military aviation was divided between the Army for land-based aircraft operations and the Navy and Marine Corps for sea-based operations from aircraft carriers and amphibious aircraft. The Army created the first version of many versions of the Air Force on 1 August 1907 with the Aeronautical Division, Signal Corps. In 1914 this became the Aviation Section, Signal Corps, then in 1918 for only four days it was the Division of Military Aeronautics before becoming the Air Service, US Army until 1926. In 1926 it became the US Army Air Corps until 1941 when it became the US Army Air Forces. It stood alone as one organization in 1947 when the United States Air Force was incorporated.

Combined, the US Navy and Marine Corps are the world’s second-largest air force, with over 3,700 aircraft. This includes 1,159 fighters, 133 attack aircraft, 172 patrol aircraft, 247 transports and 1,231 helicopters. The aircraft of the US Navy protect the US fleet and conducting air missions from and over the world’s oceans and seas. Most of the aircraft of the Navy and Marine Corps operate from ships at sea, a difficult and dangerous job requiring a high level of training and proficiency.

As a boy I grew up with a large element of my fathers influence on me and I blame him for my passion for aviation after listening to his stories and facts on aircraft, the air forces, the airlines, World War Two fighters, the famous Spitfire, the legendary Hurricane and the infamous P-51 Mustang. Dad loved building things, including the house I grew up in. As a child, my father’s family was not wealthy, my grandfather didn’t own a car until he retired and as a family they often caught the bus. As a child, Dad used balsa-wood blocks to carve aircraft, by hand, and with no decals he hand painted his creations. I am lucky to still own Dad’s models, with his British Hawker Hurricane on display in my office. He loved the Hurricane, and this year our television production company, Leading Edge Media, filmed a 1942 Hurricane, visiting the Temora Aviation Museum in New South Wales, Australia. I was rigging cameras in the Hurricanes’ cockpit when the ground crew asked if I didn’t mind the Hurricane being moved. No problem! They wheeled around the aircraft and I thought to myself there are very few people who can say they have been for a ride in a single seat WWII Hurricane.

For hours Dad and I watched the epic WWII movies: Battle of Britain, The Dam Busters, Where Eagles Dare, The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Great Escape, etc. The first American aircraft to attract my attention were the B-17 and the P-51. Two great examples of what and how an air force can dominate the skies.

One movie of great influence was The Great Waldo Pepper released in 1975. Set during 1926–1931, the film stars Robert Redford as a WWI veteran pilot. For me to see the frustration of the Great Waldo as an ex-WW1 pilot, who missed out on the glory of aerial combat, made me understand the yearning for the sky, to be free from gravity, to fly or dive or turn on any axis. Total freedom.

One movie changed everything for me - The Right Stuff, released in 1983. An inspiring story about test pilot pioneers, the astronauts and men who broke the sound barrier and walked on the moon. The Navy, Marine and Air Force test pilots who flew for the aeronautical research programme at Edwards Air Force Base, California, including the Mercury Seven - the seven military pilots selected to be the astronauts for Project Mercury, the first manned spaceflight by the United States. As a 13-year-old, I was spellbound - what a movie! The stories, the adventure, and from that moment, I wanted to join the air force.

In 1986, the movie Top Gun hit our screens. Although it showcased the US Navy and not the US Air Force, it contained the right balance of aviation - good vs evil. At the time, the Royal New Zealand Air Force ran recruiting ads in the cinemas, and their thunderous Skyhawks flew across the screen at my local theater before we even saw Tom Cruise, and I was hooked. Top Gun remains an awesome movie - with action and flying, a boyhood dream. Released during the height of the Cold War, Top Gun’s plot revolved around the best of the best naval pilots training to be even better, with the climax seeing the US Navy taking on Russian Migs (F-5’s painted black with red stars). I wanted to become an aviator, even saved up my money to buy a pair of Ray Ban aviators with mirrored lenses and a white Hanes T-shirt. I felt I was halfway there, I never took up volleyball, however…

Only forming as an Air Force in 1947, the USAF is the youngest branch of all the five services, but their roots are well over a hundred years old. Detailed below are a few air force legends who influenced my understanding of the global impact the USAF.

A self-taught pilot, Eddie Rickenbacker joined the military as soon as the United States entered WWI. Within twelve months he earned a promotion to an officer’s rank and shot down his fifth enemy aircraft, gaining the title of Ace. By wars end Rickenbacker recorded 26 aerial victories - a record held until WWII. His well-known tactic was to charge at enemy flying squadrons, no matter the odds, winning every time. He received the Distinguished Service Cross with six oak leaf clusters, the Croix de Guerre with two palms, the French Légion d’honneur, and later the Medal of Honor.

First Lieutenant Bob Hoover, is another. A United States Army Air Forces fighter pilot, USAF and civilian test pilot, flight instructor, air show pilot, aviation record-setter, he is a true aviation legend. I heard him speak at the media briefing at Oshkosh in 2011, wow, a treasure trove of information. He set transcontinental, time-to-climb, and speed records, and knew such great aviators as Orville Wright, Eddie Rickenbacker, Charles Lindbergh, Jimmy Doolittle, Chuck Yeager, Jacqueline Cochran, Neil Armstrong and Yuri Gagarin. Hoover is best known for his civil air show career, and for creating the stunt of pouring a cup of tea while performing a 1G barrel roll. You Tube has great footage of this famous stunt.

With an author for a wife, our home is filled with books, two of which I can recommend - Lords of the Sky, and The Hunter Killers, both written by Lieutenant Colonel Dan Hampton - outstanding books, well researched, containing great insight to military aviation advancement and the Wild Weasels and the role they played. Hampton is also the author of the New York Times bestseller Viper Pilot: A Memoir of Air Combat. He served with the US Air Force from 1986 to 2006, and flew 151 combat missions in the F-16, he was a Wild Weasel, or Surface-to-Air (SAM) site killer, recording 21 kills on SAM sites. He fought in the Gulf War, Kosovo War and Iraq War.

In 2008, I attended a party in Washington DC, where I met Tom Henricks, the then President of Aviation Week - the leading information and media business serving the aerospace industry. A former NASA astronaut, Henricks flew four Space Shuttle missions as commander and pilot. The only astronaut assigned to Space Shuttle Program management during return to flight following the Challenger accident. Tom retired from the US Air Force as a colonel having served as a commander, F-16 test pilot, and F-4 fighter pilot. He is a graduate of the USAF Academy. We met again in the Aviation Week office in New York to discuss how Aviation Week could use more video content. While that meeting did not eventuate to any future work, I hoped to interview Tom and capture his stories for the world to see. While writing 51 Lessons From The Sky, I reached out to Tom to write the introduction.

I met David Sheller at the 2018 C-130 TCG International Technical Program Review in Orlando. A chance encounter with the retired USAF major, turned into a discussion on the C-130, the military, and the realization that we were both passionate about all things aviation. I’d first flown in the RNZAF C-130 Hercules as a teenager, David gets to work with them all the time. I am honored that David agreed to write a piece for this book, to share his experiences.

With our High Definition TV show, FlightPathTV, we worked with the USAF Pacific Forces based in Hawaii and met several amazing USAF pilots. The Pacific Forces were most supportive of us filming positive stories, instead of disaster stories. 

We started filming at the Australian International Airshow at Avalon, Australia in 2007, and it was this event where we first met with the USAF Public Relations team. I remember those early discussions with the USAF and the subsequent interview with experienced F-16 demo pilot Paul Miller. We filmed his interview in front of the F-16, with our PR escort alongside, and captured interesting facts and stories from him - being shot at and evading surface-to-air missiles’s during his time in Bosnia (which reminded me of Scott O’Grady). I sat in the cockpit as Paul showed me the controls and I even experienced non-flying stick time - a different feeling with the side stick with only small inputs required.

WWII pilot Colonel Charlie Cook was 21-years-old when he flew the Boeing B-17 bomber - which became the birthplace for the first ever ‘checklist’ which is now just as important as the wings and control surfaces we need for flying. We met Charlie at Reno Air Races, he tells us how great the B-17 was and how stable despite losing most of their tail once… One of his stories included how all air crews had to drink one third a glass of scotch whisky upon landing, before the debrief. He kept saying how lucky he was surviving 35 bombing missions and had the honor of getting into the Lucky Bastards Club. His first B-17 was aptly named Lady Luck, named after a cafe he and his crew went to. He kept several napkins from the cafe and gave me one to keep. Despite being shot down twice, he never lost the desire to fly and flew often after the war.

We have been fortunate to film a number of stories with the USAF including climbing all over the infamous B-52. I remember stopping to ask what a box I noticed was for, with the chilling reply that it was the box for the nuclear launches. We filmed the heavy lifter C-5 Galaxy and heard how they carried one of the famous Shamu (Orca - killer whale) from Sea World.

Another highlight was accessing the cockpit of the Boeing B-1B Bone, meant to serve as the replacement for the B-52 Bomber. We interviewed 28-year-old Captain David Grasso from the 37th Bomb Squadron. David gave us a great understanding of the B-1B role and then told us about how out of his 68 missions, the scariest one was when he got hit by lightning and lost electronics for a period. He finishes his story with how he loves to fly the B-1B but, more importantly, he gets to serve his country.

Being able interview the F-22 demo team was a highlight. Australian aviation photographer, Michael Jorgensen, took photographs of us interviewing the crew, one of which appeared on the front page of the Pacific Wings magazine. The photo didn’t show the USAF security behind us and the two Australian Military Police with their German Shepherd’s… At one stage, when positioning for the photo’s, we got too near to the aircraft, and they firmly told us to step away from the F-22.

The biggest highlight for me as a pilot was flying the F-35 simulator, a mind-bending experience with the 5th generation helmet. Imagine flying and looking through your own body, through the aircraft, to the outside world? The systems were easy to use, like a big iPhone.

One ex USAF pilot I met was Colonel Raynor Roberts from Montana. The then 88-year-old surprised us while we were filming Air Force One (tail number 27000) - a Boeing 707, at The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. He happened to be visiting to see Air Force One as he had piloted the aircraft. He was also a WWII fighter pilot, flying over 70 combat missions and shot down numerous enemy aircraft. He flew on D-Day and in the Korean War and recounted stories from his WWII encounters and his Air Force One days flying the Kennedy’s and President Johnson. An amazing look through the historic window of his life, and for that I am truly grateful.

I read many stories from the US Air Force Safety Center, and picked out 51 that I believe most pilots, either military, aerobatic, commercial or even private, will learn from. 

The majority of the stories in these pages are longer than those in my Air Transport book - 101 Lessons From The Sky, although I also included a few interesting short stories taken from the Aviation Well Done Awards, inspiring stories that make you sit and think, what would I do?

The next few hundred pages contain stories of the men and women of the US Air Force. Read, learn and make notes because as Buzz Aldrin said, Keep in mind that progress is not always linear. It takes constant course correcting and often a lot of zigzagging. Unfortunate things happen, accidents occur, and setbacks are usually painful, but that does not mean we quit.

Enjoy learning from the stories as I did.

Fletcher McKenzie

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

A glossary of terms is included at the end of this book for your reference. Please note that this book may contain a mixture of both American English and British English, depending on who is telling the story.

If you find a term or an acronym in this book which isn’t in the glossary, please email Fletcher:

fletch@avgasgroup.com

Each lesson includes space for you to make your own notes if you want to. I recommend doing this to cement the learning.

Writing a short review of this book on your preferred online platform, or on your personal blog or social media site, will help spread the word about aviation safety. Saving lives is the primary goal of this book.

US AIR FORCE AVIATION SAFETY

The Air Force Safety Center resides on Kirtland Air Force Base, located in the high desert of north-central New Mexico and it occupies a majority of southeast Albuquerque.

The Aviation Safety Division (SEF) consists of safety-trained professionals spanning the domain of flight. The division preserves warfighting capability by establishing Air Force aviation safety policy, promoting mishap prevention programs for all aviation assets and through the establishment of proactive safety programs.

It oversees the aviation mishap investigative process, the collection and accuracy of flight safety data and the disposition of risk-mitigating actions. It provides proactive and reactive engineering and operational analyses of flight safety issues.

Additionally, the division directs the Aircraft Information Program, the Hazardous Air Traffic Report Program, the Bird Aircraft Strike Hazard Program and the Mishap Analysis and Animation Facility.

How Aviation Safety became to what it is today.

In the 1950s when the Air Force became a separate department, the Air Force Chief of Staff designated the Office of the Inspector General to oversee all inspection and safety functions. These functions were consolidated in an inspector general group at Norton Air Force Base, California.

On Dec. 31, 1971, the Air Force Inspection and Safety Center was activated, replacing the 1002nd Inspector General Group. The center was then divided into the Air Force Inspection Agency and the Air Force Safety Agency in August 1991. Reorganization of the air staff in 1992 created the Air Force Chief of Safety position, reporting directly to the Air Force Chief of Staff. The Chief of Safety became dual-hatted as the commander