A P-3C from VP-45 returns to Sigonella after a long flight over the Mediterranean Sea.

By Lieutenant Dan McDonald Thursday morning arrives and atTraining Air Wing (TraWing) 4, it is timeto start the next group of maritimepipeline flight students on the last stepto their Wings of Gold. That’s the daythat indoctrination into the advancedpipeline always begins for each newgroup of students.

Located at NAS Corpus Chr is t i ,Texas, TraWing-4 is the home ofadvanced maritime flight and E-2/C-2/C-1 multiengine training. The air wingalso trains one-quarter of all primarystudents in the Naval Air TrainingCommand, using the T-34C Turbo-Mentor.

Students arr iv ing for advancedmaritime flight training come fromTraWing-5 at NAS Whiting Field, Fla., orare “homegrown” at TraWing-4. Theyhave completed both the primary andintermediate stages of flight training andhave approximately 90 hours of flighttime under their belts. Those who havebeen selected for the E-2/C-2/C-1pipeline have already completed closeto 180 hours of flight training in the T-34C and T-2C Buckeye and come fromTraining Air Wing 1 at NAS Meridian,Miss. These students will only need tocomplete the familiarization stage ofmaritime training.

Advanced maritime and E-2/C-2/C-1multiengine training takes place in theT-44A, the twin-engine turboprop

m i l i t a r y v e r s i o n o f t h e p o p u l a rBeechcraft C-90 King Air. The T-44 isfully instrumented with a complement ofdual VORs, Tacan, RNAV, ADF andweather radar. Its seven-place cabin isair-conditioned and pressurized. Sinceits introduction in 1977, the T-44 hasenjoyed a very successful careertraining advanced maritime students.

During their training, student NavalAviators will complete 187 hours ofacademics cover ing meteorology,a e r o d y n a m i c s , f l i g h t r u l e s a n dregulat ions, aircraft systems andnavigation. Maritime students will alsoreceive 20 hours in the 2F129 full-motionT-44 flight simulator, and can expect tograduate with approximately 88 flighthours in the T-44. The entire maritimecurr iculum lasts about 130 days.Comparing the other phases of flighttraining with advanced maritime, manyflight students agree that the transitionfrom a single-pilot cockpit into the worldof dual-pi loted aircraf t requires arealignment of flying skills to include theskills of your copilot. The learningenvironment in the advanced squadronsis more relaxed, making this transitioneasier for the student.

Upon completion of the course, themaritime graduates receive their Wingsof Gold and are sent to fleet readinesssquadrons to transition to fleet aircraft,such as P-3s, EP-3s and EC-130s. The E-

30

2/C-2/C-1 graduates will be designatedNaval Aviators after completing the first11 T-44 familiarization flights and will goon to take their places in the world ofcarrier aviation.

Students consistently finish theircourse of training on time. Once in thesquadron, they can expect to bescheduled just about every day.

One of the best aspects of the trainingthat students receive at one of TraWing-4’s T-44 squadrons is the comraderythey find in the wardroom. Both TrainingSquadrons 28 and 31 have long-standing reputations of excellent juniorofficer development. The student Naval

Aviators are not s imply temporaryadditions to the unit, but are quicklyaccepted as t rue members of thewardroom.

Training Squadrons 28 and 31 flewover 18,000 hours each in fiscal year1984 and have averaged a total of 2,300hours a month in 1985. Composed ofapproximately 40 off icers and 22e n l i s t e d p e r s o n n e l e a c h , t h e s esquadrons annually train about 400aviators for the Navy, Marine Corps,Coast Guard and foreign governments.

The pace in the training squadrons isdecidely different than in the fleet.Instructors in the T-44 average 50-80

hours a month, and the opportunity forcross-country training flights in a trulyoutstanding cross-country aircraft isvery great.

W i t h r e l i a b i l i t y o f t h e a i r c r a f tave rag ing we l l ove r 80 percen t ,scheduling is no problem. Workinghours are consistent and long-rangeplanning works. The ability to planahead with confidence is probably thebiggest benefit the T-44A has brought tothe Training Command.

Ins t ruc to r du ty i n the T ra in ingCommand offers many challenges andopportunities, including more flighthours and more flight experience. n

A T-44 flies over Corpus Christi.