Looking for helo gouge

[gaijin6423]

Okay, maybe not gouge in the Bryan Weatherup sense of the word. More looking to get the skinny of what HT life will be like. I just selected helos earlier today, and I'm interested in getting a wider range of opinions on advanced. I've gotten some varying perspectives, and I'm looking for more. Thanks in advance (no pun intended)...

 

[devildogdad]

Helo devildogdad

Congrats on getting helos. My son is in HT 18 at Whiting and is in the process of finishing up his first week and a half. He tells me that so far that the studying is pretty much like primary. You will have an opprotunity to pair up with another student by request. My son has got his TBS buddy, that's been through API as well as Primary. That's all I know so far but I'll be glad to pass any questions you may have his way.
Semper fi,
Devildogdad :jump2refe :jump2refe :jump2refe

 

[bch]

First bit of gouge... weatherup is not good gouge for the HT's. I can not stress that enough.

www.brimble.com
click on the flightschool link at the bottom of the page.

As far as HT life, I found it better than primary life. More will be expected of you in the briefs though. Advanced was a good time, you get to hot fuel and hot seat now, so you are not spending 30 mins of every flight doing a start and the rest of the check lists.

While there is defently still the "flight school" mentality, you are treated a little better.

Good luck and feel free to PM me with any specific questions.

 

[gaijin6423]

See, now THAT'S the stuff I'm looking for! BCH, that link is pretty damn impressive, so thanks.

 

[bch]

NP, brimblecom is real good gouge! It is also recent, even though the diagram is from the old syllabus, the discuss items are all still the same.

Make sure and look at navygouge.com for the aero test too. It is a pretty good study tool to make sure that you are ready for the aero test. that is about all that the site is good for though

Another thing that may make life easier on you. When you learn the EP's for the Bravo, just learn the Charlie steps too. A) you are going to have to learn them eventually and B) some FAM instructors are going to ask you them anyway, even though you are not flying the Charlie yet.

 

[ChuckMK23]

Another thing that may make life easier on you. When you learn the EP's for the Bravo, just learn the Charlie steps too. A) you are going to have to learn them eventually and B) some FAM instructors are going to ask you them anyway, even though you are not flying the Charlie yet.

Asking "Charlie" systems and EP's during Fam's as an instructor is a little out of line. I was the FAM stage manager for TW-5 and in addition one of the most senior FAM Stan pilots before I left - taught a dozen or so IP's how to teach FAMs.

Never would ask an on-wing C system questions - there is plenty of helo theory and engine basics to get a mile deep in with my students that would better serve the goals of the program...

 

[ChuckMK23]

The hundreds of Fam-10 checks (is that still the safe for solo check ride?) that I gave I always looked for one thing - Judgement!. If the SNA could think through the flight, keep good SA, not act as a robot - I generally marked them "safe for solo" regardless of how crappy their normal approaches were.

SNA's would do the weirdest things on 10x's - like split the field wrong after doing it competently for 9 flights in a row...uggh. I mean dumb sh*t like that.

So be prepared in the brief - the brief sets the tone for the entire flight - show some thinking and judgement, be confident, press on. That's the key to passing the 10x (IMHO) - sorry if I got off topic on this..

 

[bch]

Asking "Charlie" systems and EP's during Fam's as an instructor is a little out of line. I was the FAM stage manager for TW-5 and in addition one of the most senior FAM Stan pilots before I left - taught a dozen or so IP's how to teach FAMs.

Never would ask an on-wing C system questions - there is plenty of helo theory and engine basics to get a mile deep in with my students that would better serve the goals of the program...

While I agree with your philosophy... I am just talking from recent experiences (within the last year). It was not uncommon for myself or others to be asked C EP steps during the brief. I even know people who were shot for not having looked at them during fams.

 

[Penguin]

Same for me. I'm in the early stage fams now, and I've been asked "So what steps are you forgetting?" (i.e. Charlie model steps) more than once. It's safer to know them even if the IP's aren't supposed to ask them...Unless you want to be the guy who says "Sir, I don't think you're supposed to ask us that yet." Ha Ha Ha.

 

[gregsivers]

Unless you want to be the guy who says "Sir, I don't think you're supposed to ask us that yet." Ha Ha Ha.

Somebody has to be that guy, right? There's a guy in my squadron who would definitely do that, and not think twice.

 

[ChuckMK23]

Somebody has to be that guy, right? There's a guy in my squadron who would definitely do that, and not think twice.

Unfortunetly there are that brand of IP's that think the brief is a "trivia fest". "How many teeth on the Jesus nut?" et al.

Like I said I would much rather teach and discuss the general principals that would set in stone the kind of knowledge that someone would keep for the rest of their career.

Fam's are about tieing together all the book knowledge into practical piloting skills - looking at the blade element diagram or the power required curve in the context of variouls manuevers (normal approach, steep approach, running landing, etc...) was hugely helpful.

It's funny - looking at the gouge mentioned earlier - I can still do thiose damn discussion items and EP's from memory - 10 years later,lol!

 

[Stearmann4]

A little off topic, but one of my favorite "minutia" questions that pop-up during every annual check-ride: "So, why don't you tell me how your NVGs work." "Well, after several hundred hours of using them, I'd say they work just fine." Chuck's right, if you can't fix it while you're flying, or effect a change of some sort, who cares how your NVGs intensify an image, or how many degrees of pitch the third stage compressor blades have? Totally off topic, but some IPs talk just hear the reverberations...

 

[gaijin6423]

Off topic from my original idea for the thread, but it's MY thread damnit!

So who's got the gouge as to where to live/not to live at Whiting? More specifically, who's got a line on places that are AVAILABLE?

I actually went to the housing office here in Corpus today, and the nice, friendly lady there called the Whiting housing office for me. It was on speakerphone, and let's just say they weren't exactly helpful.

 

[squorch2]

Talk to your buddies from API. Talk to people who are here now. Because that's about all you're going to find right now. Your best bet is to slide into a lease that someone is vacating soon, even if it means having to spend a few days in the Q or on someone's couch.

 

[usmcnole]

If you want to live someplace decent, and not in an apartment, go to a realtor to get help you find a place to live. I can't stress that enough. Realtors have access to the MLS system in which they can find all kinds of houses for rent. It'll take only a small portion of your time and you'll find a better house for less money than you'll spend on an apartment. Apartment living sucks, and I would highly recommend getting a real estate agent to help you out. Also, if you have a few buddies you want to live with, this works out really well.

If you can afford it, it is always a good idea to buy a house. There's plenty on the market right now and you won't be throwing your money away.