shipboard life for AH-1 pilot

[PhatFarmer35]

I was interested in knowing about what shipboard life is like for Marine AH-1 pilots onboard amphibious assault ships. I was just currious about things like the routine on the ship, how often do you fly, how much free time do you and get and what can you do, what are the living quarters are like and anything else like that.

Also, how is this different from the day to day life at an air station? Is there more or less flight time and things like that?

Thank you.

 

[Wunrunner]

to add onto that...how much of a difference is there between Naval Aviatiors and Marine Aviators when it comes to the squadron? What types of missions will the 46s fly when not supporting the infantry?

 

[phrogdriver]

I won't claim to be able to speak for the Cobra guys, but the shipboard gig is pretty much the same for everyone. You generally get significantly more hours while deployed than stateside. The amount of flying ebbs and flows, from a few hops every week when in the open ocean, doing shipboard landings, to every day when doing an exercise or op. If not in the middle of something big, you generally get A LOT of free time--so you can study, read, lift, play HALO, whatever.

To assist with the threadjack, when not actually doing assault support, 46s may be doing training. For example, practicing shipboard landings or doing low-level nav. Also, you get tasked with "PMC" on ship--that's "Passengers, Mail, Cargo," taking stuff from ship to ship or ship to shore.

 

[skidkid]

The life of teh Cobra pilot on ship is as described above though we dont do "PMC" thank god. If it is your fist float expect to study a lot, that whole we eat our young thing. Blue water ops are tough for much more than proficiency. Every now and then we borrow a smoke pot thing from the SAR guys and go shoot at it or wrok on DACM (air to air stuff) either against each other or the Harriers.
Other than that eat sleep work out "me time" sleep eat work out repeat for six months is the normal peacetime cycle