TAC Attack February 1972

Birdstrike update ..pg 16

for efficint tactical air ,awer CURRENT INTEREST
THE GOOD OLD DAYS Pg 4

THC HTTHCK ANOTHER LOOK AT

HYDROPLANING Pg 12

BIRDSTRIKE UPDATE Pg 16

FEBRUARY 1972 KEEP TUNED IN Pg 22

VOL. 12, NO.2
NAVIGATOR EXPLAINS
TOTAL INVOLVEMENT Pg 23
Tactical Air Command
TIRE PRESSURE LOSS Pg 24

COMMANDER NEW PRODUCTS Pg 27

GENERAL WILLIAM W. MOMYER

VICE COMMANDER
LT GEN JAY T. ROBBINS DEPARTMENTS
Published by the Chief of Safety Angle of Attack Pg 3

COLONEL GERALD J. BEISNER Chock Talk Pg 8

SPO's Corner Pg 10
Weapons Words Pg 14
Unit Achievement Awards Pg 15
TAC Tips Pg20
Aircrewman of Distinction Pg 28
T AC Men of the Month Pg 29

Letters Pg30
TAC Tally Pg 31
editor
Maj Tim Brady

assistant editor TACRP 127·1

Capt Jim Young Articles, accident briefs, and associated material in this magazine are
non-directive in nature. All suggestions and recommendations are intended
art editor to remain within the scope of existing directives. Information used to
Stan Hardison brief accidents and incidents does not identify the persons, places, or units
involved and may not be construed as incriminating under Article 31 of
the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Names, dates, and places used in
ll'yaut and production conjunction with accident stories are fictitious. Air Force units are
SSgt Lindsey Cobb encouraged to republish the material contained herein; however, contents
are not for public release. Written permission must be obtained from HQ
TAC before material may be republished by other than Department of
managing editor
Defense organizations.
Mariella W Andrews Contributions of articles, photos, and items of interest from personnel
in the field are encouraged, as are comments and criticism. We reserve the
right to edit all manuscripts for clarity and readability. Direct
communication is authorized with: The Editor, TAC ATTACK, HQ TAC
(SEPP), Langley AFB, Va. 23365. Autovon 432·2g37
Distribution FX, Controlled by SEPP.
 Hngle of HTTHCK_>
MORE THAN JUST
NUMBERS
decrease the number of lives lost and to lower the number
of aircraft accidents-are all achievab le goa ls.
The goals are expressed in numbers, which in
themse lves are co ldly impersonal. But behind each
number is the face of someone in T AC ... someone we
need .. . or a va lu ab le item of equipment ... something
we can iII afford to lose.
Let's lower the numbers.

TAC ACCIDENT RATES

12
As we charge ahead, with one month in 1972 alre<Jdy 11
behind us, let's take a look at what happened in 1971.
10
It was a year that saw U.S. Air Force men walking on
9 8.8
the moon, while here on earth T AC's flying safety record
reached an all time low. Both were significant 8
achievements. 6.8
7
Our accident rate has marched steadi ly downward
since 1968. In that year we severely dinged 82 airplanes,
~6 -
"" 1-
lost 54 aircrew members in t he process , and had 10 5 4.6

failures in 66 eject ion attempts. By comparison, in 1971 4 1-

3.2
we had 25 aircraft accidents (a reduction of 57), lost 24 -
3
aircrew members (30 less), and recorded 23 successes in
24 ejection attempts. 2
In 1971 , versus 1970, we bashed 12 fewer airplanes, 1 7. -
lost nine fewer aircrew members, and improved the 0 '---:
successful ejection rate from 79 percent to 96 percent. 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972
T AC had a very good year, thanks to a lot of peop le
throughout the command doing a lot of hard work, but
let's not trip ove r ou r feet while we're moving forward
and still looking backward.
The trend for the past four ¥Bars has been toward a

~~L~D~~~~~~
fewer number of accidents. Has it bottomed out?
The answer must be a resounding NO.
But with the answer comes the need for an even USAF
greater effort in 1972. To reduce the rate further, to Chief of
 The good old days

by Major Tom LaPolt so complete and so detailed that we

didn't get an engine started until the
314 TAW, Little Rock AFB,
second day.
Arkansas The second day was really fun -if
the student didn't realize by now that
we were pretty sharp, he got the idea
Editor's note . ... This article is about C-130s. Please keep reading during engine starting malfunction
because more importantly the article is about something practice.
new . .. something which will probably affect all of you no matter A few laughs followed and another
what you fly or how you earn your Air Force dollar. It's about the instructor piped in, "Oh for the good
Systems Approach to Training (SAT) . . . what it is and how it works. old days! Remember the look they
SAT is the new light on the horizon which may be signaling the path of had during lesson three when we
training for the future. showed them how to start one
engine by using another engine's
starter button. We really set them up
for that and it would warp their
minds for a couple of days at least."
After another beer and a few jokes
Just after the first of the year I to brief and instruct students for an the discussion turned to the simulator
stopped by the "Stag Bar" and joined hour and a half to two hours each day check ride. Someone said,
a discussion about the Good Old Days on systems and such. One of them "Remember the pride we had when
- that is - the days before the arrival said, "Remember the look they had our students had a check ride and
of C-130 Systems Approach to on their faces ... totally amazed on then told us that the check pi lot
Training (SAT}. The Group having the how much we knew about the wasn 't able to pull anything on them
discussion was composed of several airplane. A copilot right out of ATC that they hadn't seen before. That
"School Squadron" instructors, who couldn't believe it when we traced the was truly an instructor's reward for
taught both under the o ld route of a drop of fuel from the nine days of hard work presenting
conventional system and the new SAT refueling truck through the entire fuel every conceivab le malfunction and
monster, plus several "old head" system and out through the engine emergency. We also remembered the
squadron pilots who have seen the tailpipe. He really paid attention!" terrible feeling when one of our
results of both systems. The talk then went on to the stm:!Bnts got caught on something we
When I entered the discussion, the simulator itself and how we used the didn't showthem .Youcan bet our next
instructors were talking about how entire first day describing, in extreme students had that malfunction drilled
the old simulator training was detail, each system, each switch, and into their heads. What a list of odd-ball
conducted and how great it used to be most of the circuit breakers. We were emergenc ies and problems we had.

4 FEBRUARY 1972
 "The flying phase under tHe old that organization. For examp le, a unit e Students are taught everything
program was better too. We had two that requires pilots to be familiar with they need to know to fulfill the needs
extra days to work on additional and operate the flight engineers of their specific aircrew positions
things. By the time a student overhead panel can expect "School" because all instructional time is
graduated he had been exposed to graduates to be totally ignorant in this devoted to relevant items and areas.
everything there was to know about area. However, if a graduate, in his e Student retention is normally
good old Herky. He was ready for crew position, appears to be only higher because all data presented is
a check ride anywhere; if he cou ld throwing switches and does not know limited to relevant information. The
only recall what his instructor had what happens, how it affects the student no longer has to differentiate
told him." system and does not know all the between important and nonessential
The problem was that the student Dash One notes, cautions, and material.
didn't know what was really warnings, without getting into In contrast, under the
important and what was nice to nonessential "Nuts and Bolts," the conventional system, the student is
know. SAT sure changed that. Not student is weak and did not retain his taught a lot of information and
without resistance though. training. statistics which are not usable while
All of us instructors were gathered Crewmembers should be expected performing his crew duties. For
for a three-hour session with the Wing to continue self-study after example, a lot of engineering data,
Weenies from training. They talked graduation and learn all they can specialist information, and
about SAT and how it was better than about the airplane. With experience, troubleshooting procedures are taught
our old program, then they compared they shou ld gain detailed knowledge that may never be used. Time is spent
the Conventional and SAT programs. of other crew positions and acquire on nonessential items and areas.
They started with a re atk about the detailed knowledge that may be Students are not able to determine
what an entry level crewmember required by their gaining unit. essent ial information, and since so
shou ld be taught to enable him to Everyone must understand that the much material is presented, the
perform his crew duties safely and "School" instructs a stude nt only on retention rate is greatly reduced.
professionally. They told us that the those tasks that have been proven It all sounded great, but almost to
crewmember should be able to essential for the safe and professional the man the "School Squadron"
perform in his crew position and performance of Phase I duties. In instructors were resisting. We needed
safely and professionally complete a short, the "School" teaches the more information , especial ly about
non-tactical flight from Point A to student what he needs to know to the remark, "that students are taught
Point B. perform his duties in a non-tactical only those tasks that have been
We had them there! What if Point environment. To judge the graduate p ven essential for safe and
B was an isolated remote strip and by any other standard is not fair. pro essional performance of their
they broke down? Could they analyze A very important point to duties."
the problem, make necessary repairs, remember is that the old conventional The Weenies hastily exp lained that
and get out . or request proper program, and most other military under SAT, the first and most
maintenance support/ Answer training, is based almost entirely upon important step is to comp lete a task
probably not! One point for us! opinions of instructors, supervisors analysis for each task in each crew
That didn't shut them up, and comma nders. More often than position. The task analysis itself is a
however; they went on to tell us that 'not, this kind of training is based on 19 step procedure. It is primarily a
the course is designed to transitionally the instructor's opinion of what method of describing human behavior
qualify crewmembers to operate in a should be gained from the course. The in a job situation in a manner which is
peacetime environment with adequate shotgun approach is used and, as a useful and meaningful for anticipating
maintenance support. The "School" result, the course usually contains training requirements. The training
trains crewmembers from all branches much more than it really needs. What requirements can then be used to
of the armed services as well as should be taught must be based on a prepare a training program. When the
students from numerous foreign detailed task analysis of each crew task analysis is completed on every
countries. With this in mind the duty and each task to be performed. task for each crewmember, the
"schoo l" must train and instruct only When this approach is used, the product will concern what the
those items that satisfy all users. following results: crewmember needs to know at the
Gaining units cannot expect the e Students receive spec ific end of the course to perform safe ly
student to be proficient in areas information essential to safe and and effectively.
which are deemed necessary only by professional operation of the aircraft. Once this is known, step two

TACATTACK 5
the good page. In add it ion, mockup trainers are
used to make the student completely
entire training mission will entail. He
studies the material, has the

old days familiar with all checklists and proper

panel setup . This saves valuable time
opportunity to discuss it in the
pre-mission briefing, practices it in the
begins - End-of-Course Objectives during the simulator phase. simulator, and reviews it in
(ECO). The End-of-Course Objectives Based on the Task Analysis and post-mission debriefing. The big thing
are, quite simply, the objectives of the ECOs, the simulator phase has been is that the simulator is now student
course. They show both student and changed. Emphasis is placed on oriented; not instructor oriented . If
instructor what is required for simulation of a realistic training the student has prepared properly for
graduation. They are directly related mission. The simulator is not used as a the mission, it is possible that the
to duty assignment requirements. By systems trainer, but instead, is better instructor need only present different
studying the various ECOs the utilized as a procedural trainer. cues and make sure that the proper
student knows exactly what he is Emphasis is placed on normal and response is given.
expected to know and just as emergency procedures in a realistic The better uti I ization of the
important, the instructor knows mission profile. Pilots spend more simulator and classroom training aids
exactly what is required. Student time working on instrument, normal results in less time being required in
progress is then a strict manner of and emergency procedures . the flying phase . Some feel that the
pass or fail. Emergencies, where possible, are not students need ten hours of extra
Just as important, the new student compounded . The simulator is used to flying time. However, it is not
can study the ECO and have all the make the crew member more necessary. The graduate under SAT is
necessary information in one single proficient and better qualified to better qualified upon graduation and
reference. By using the Dash One transition to the flying phase. Prior to is trained for a lot less money. Extra
only, the student would have to cross each simulator flight the student flying time would not significantly
reference limitations in Section Five knows step by step exactly what the increase the graduate's proficiency,
to review engine limitations. The use
of ECOs results in saved training time .
The ECO does not replace the Dash
One, but supplements it in a training
environment. It is a training tool.
Task analysis complete, ECOs
complete,next comes step three-
determine how the course can best be
presented to enable the student to
achieve the End-of-Course Objectives.
To accomplish this, new training aids
are developed and old ones discarded.
During the academic phase, a pilot no
longer watches fuel bubbling through
the entire system or learns about
valves and things which he cannot and
does not control. Instead he learns
about the system in sufficient detail
so that he can analyze emergencies
when they occur. The engineer goes
more deeply into the system, since he
is the one who primarily operates it.
but he does not go into as much detail
as an aircraft fuel specialist would. To
insure that the student does not study
nonessential engineering data he is
told exactly what to study. He has an
outline of each b lock of instruction
listed by ECO number and Dash One

6 FEBRUARY 1972
 but the extra flying time would add remarks that copi lots were weak in written on returned 241 s concern the
to the expense of the course. taxiing and nose wheel steering area of system knowledge. We are the
Finally the meeting broke up and I operation. Since the pilots in question first to admit that graduates are not
broke for home. On the way, I kept had less than 600 total hours flying systems specialists. In the short period
thinking about that last remark - they received a right seat checkout at of time that students are available for
"The SAT graduate is better qualified Little Rock. However, action is now instruct ion it is impossible to make
and trained for a lot less money." underway to see how many gaining systems spec ialists out of them. This
Tomorrow at the office I'd do some units require pilots to receive all was true in the conventional program
checking and see for myself. check rides in the left seat. If enough too. In the past it appeared that this
Right off the bat, I found that units require left seat check rides it is was accomplished but, in reality, we
things really have been going good for possible that in the future some left were only a vast library for "pet
SAT. While reading, "A Systems seat t raining will be given to all pilots. questions." The student arrived for
Approach to C-130E Aircrew An examp le of course change that tra1n1ng, was exposed to "pet
Transitional Training," a report started with 241 remarks, was the questions," left after graduation and
published by the Air Force Human addition of four extra days of training retained enough "pet question"
Resources Laboratory, Air Force for flight engineers during the ground material to make his way for awhi le.
Systems Command, Brooks Air Force phase. Last summer an analysis of This system was often at the expense
Base, Texas, I read, that according to 241s on flight engineers revealed that of items in other proficiency areas -
USAFTALC (TAC), Cost Reduction additional preflights were desirable. the old "2" level proficiency grade
Program, Individual Savings Action To provide this, the daily flying that was prevalent before SAT.
(T203-4553), SAT had produced an schedu le was changed to give more The usual remarks in the systems
annual verified savings of nearly five time for turnarounds, so that flight area read I ike this. "Student has
million dollars. Now that's a heap of engineers could pull a comp lete insufficient systems knowledge." -
money! But how about the SAT preflight. As Dean Martin says, "Keep "has acquired an outstanding
graduates? those cards and letters coming, folks." knowledge of procedures; however , he
Since SAT was in corporated in I noted that participation in the lacks the basic knowledge which
January 1970, more than 2500 pilots Graduate Evaluation Program is not as would provide necessary background
and flight engineers have graduated good as it could be, but it's not worse information to prepare him for those
from the course. All these students than under the old program. How situation s not covered by a
have one thing in common: As about the grades returned on the SAT procedure ... " "Recommend
required by TAC Supplement 1 to graduate, compared to the increased training in the overhead
AFR 50-10 an AF Form 241, conventional program? SAT is doing panel, particularly the pressurization
Graduate Evaluation, was submitted the job here too. and anti-icing subpane ls," this same
to the gaining unit by the "School." The grades on a 241 range from 241 continued by say ing, "Knowledge
Of the over 2500 graduates, less than "0" (training level not acceptable) of systems, I imitations, and
50 percent have had a completed 241 through "4" (further training would emergency procedures above average
retu rned to the "School." This is not be of significant value) . Since the for experience in the aircraft." These
about the same percentage of 241 s introduction of SAT, there has been a remarks were extracted from pilot
that were returned under the old slight increase in the proficiency levels 241s.
convent ional system. I guess from of students. The increase has been In my review of student 241 s, I
that alone, SAT is at least holding its more pronounced for pilots than for came to the conclusion that just
own. flight engineers. Prior to SAT the about everyone is pretty well sat isf ied
The AF Form 241 is a tool used majority of grades for pilots were with the SAT graduate, but there are
by the quality control section of the grouped in the "2" and "3" st i II a few Stan Board types, pi us
"School Training Shop ." Each 241 proficiency levels. Since SAT there some instructors and supervisors, who
that is re tu rned is reviewed and area has been a marked increase in the "4" want ten years of experience
grades are placed on a graph to look level grades and a sign if icant decrease compressed into a one month training
for trends. In addition, each remark in the "2" level proficiency grade. course.
on every 241 is extracted for staff The proficiency level for flight I guess the good old days were
review. These remarks are of value to engineers has increased only slightly, really not that good. The SAT
the "School" and can result in but most important, it has not graduate is better trained than the old
changes to the course. Recently decreased. conventiona l student and trained for a
another command made several The majority of remarks that are lot less money too! ~

TAC ATTACK 7
 chock talk ..incidents and incidentals

TOO MANY PINS DOUBlE TROUBlE

During takeoff in the A-37, a moderate nosewheel After a half-hour of cruising in the F-4, number two
shimmy was felt; however, the pilot decided to continue throttle cou ld not be retarded below 80 percent RPM.
the takeoff. After airborne, when the pilot could not raise The throttle worked OK from that position to full
the gear handle, he decided to recover at the home patch throttle. Three minutes later number one engine
some thirty-five miles away. He contacted ops and advised compressor sta ll ed . . . RPM came back to 70 percent and
them of his difficulties, then made a low approach over all manner of throttle movement would not change things.
mobile. They informed him that the nose gear was cocked Since both engines were not the purest, the jock decided
90 degrees. The pilot declared an emergency and orbited to keep both of them running and wisely headed for
at 5000 feet to burn off his external fuel while the home. He declared an emergency and flew a straight-in
centerline of the runway was being foamed. approach to a successful landing.
Approach was normal and upon touchdown the pilot Investigators ripped into the machine and found that
shut down both engines and lowered the nose into the FOD had caused the damage to number one engine. A
foam . The nosewheel straighted out and the airplane was bolt or screw had been ingested into the engine and
brought to a stop on centerline with no damage. caused extensive damage throughout. But here's the
To cite the cause, we have to back up to the point just wipeout - a wire bundle clamp was found jammed in the
after comp letion of pre-flight when the pilot told the throttle quadrant of the rear cockp it in a position that
transient alert crewman to pu ll the gear pins. prevented rearward movement of the right engine
One end of the pin streamer was attached to the nose throttle.
gear pin and the other end, which has a metal lanyard and
clip on it, was attached to the nose gear torque link safety CONTROl THE DIET
pin. It so happens that in the A-37 the clip end of the
streamer is supposed to be attached to the torque link Jet engines do not have a discriminating diet. Like the
safety pin but only when the pin is removed for towing "eggplant that ate Chicago" they'll gu lp down anything
and stowed in a receptacle just above. that makes its way to the chasms of their gaping mouths.
The previous day someone had noticed the clip Case in point: An armament crewman was dearming
dangling free (as it should be except for towing) and had the F-4 after completion of an air-ground mission . The
connected it to the torque link safety pin. The transient crewman walked from the left inboard wing station
alert crewman didn't know any better and pulled both toward the nose gun with the gun safety pin in his hand.
pins. The pilot didn't notice that the streamer had one too As he passed the left engine intake, the pin and streamer
many pins attached. sudden ly disappeared from his grasp and into the innards
Now we know why Item 3 on the exterior inspection of the hungry engine ... the hungry ex-eng ine.
checklist states, "Nose gear torque link safety Do we blame the voracious appet ite of the jet engine
pin- installed." or do we get smart?

8 FEBRUARY 1972 ·
 with a maintenance slant

STUCK STICK A-7 OIL (AGAIN)

The F-4 was cruising at fifteen grand when the stick The lack of a good oi l quantity indicating system is
began a rearward march which the pilot could not one of the current bugaboos in the A-7. Anything that is
counter. The nose reached forty-five degrees nose high done to further aggravate the situation gives rise to teeth
and the airspeed bled off to 150 knots. The machine then grinding and approaches the pucker factor limits.
rolled left to an almost inverted attitude and suddenly the For instance: The A-7 pil ot noticed an oi l pressure
pilot had full control again. He recovered then zigged for fluctuation after a litt le over an hour of flight. He
home and put her on the ground without delay. declared an emergency and entered an immediate
Investigators are not sure what caused it. The autopilot stra ight-in precautionary landing pattern {PLP). The
was not engaged and trim had not been used immediately fluctuation increased on final but the engine kept running
prior to the uncontrolled stick movements. They think and the jock was ab le to get the bird on the ground w ith
that maybe a blockage of the calibrated bleed air port in no damage.
the stabilator feel trim bellows occurred and then was An estimated five quarts of oil had been lost in flight
nullified by a combination of decreased ram air pressure due to a partially opened o il samp ling va lve. The va lve was
{as the airspeed decreased) and the forces encountered found to have rotated past the normally closed position
during the recovery. due to a bent li mit stop. Marks on the va lve indi cated the
possible use of pi iers or some other tool. Not too unusual
except that it's a hand operated va lve.
WANDERING WIRE It's just a sma ll thing . .. li ke a hole in the jugular.

The pilot crawled into the F-1 05, strapped in, and COLOR IT FOD
started the cockpit check. Wh en he placed the battery During start for an engine runup on the C-130 the
switch on, an unfamiliar thunk resulted .. . the centerline turbine inlet temperature began to climb rapidly and
baggage pod had jettisoned. smoke was seen coming from the engine. The engine was
Maintenance grabbed the airp lane and gave it a immediately shut down.
thorough go ing over but cou ld find nothing wrong. A look The cause was FOD in the guise of a rag. The inlet had
at the baggage pod provid ed the answer. been inspected before engine start by the line chief using a
A short ci rcuit occurred when a loose wire in t he pod brilliant aid is lamp ... he saw nothing unusual.
made contact w ith the jettison terminal. It seems that The rag was silvery in color and closely matched the
during manufacture the fuel quantity wiring was color of the inlet. Investigators determined that the rag
disconnected but not removed from the pod ... it finally was probably blown by gusty winds to a position on the
caught up with them. top inlet guide vane or on top of the torque shaft and
All fuel quantity w iring has now been removed from went undetected 'till the damage was done.
the pods. This unit is now using orange or red rags.

TACATTACK 9
 '

SPO's Corner

A-7D - IMS BA"ERIES The standby attitude indicator operates off the generator
and is supposed to have approximately 8 minutes of
In December the IMS battery problem came to a head useful attitude reference after the generator
and action was taken to correct a potentially weak system fails ... maybe. Granted, the odds are greatly against
within the A-70. How serious is the problem? Let 's look being in Blue 2's situation; however, Murphy 's Law has a
at the source. The early models of the Navy A-7 did not frequent way of sneaking in. The corrective action, of
have a main battery, consequently the I MS battery was course, is first to recognize when the generator fails and
necessary to supply power to the IMS platform for the then extend the RAT . . . simple enough.
critical time following generator failure while the pilot So it comes down to this:
was extending the RAT. It's a good system; however, the Problem: Provide the critical 30 seconds for emergency
IMS battery seems to be the Achilles heel. We bought a power to the IMS platform following generator failure.
Navy bird, installed a main battery and retained the IMS Solution : A modification is under consideration to use the
battery. But what happens when the I MS battery is pu lied main battery as the power source and eliminate the
or is inoperative? Here's what immediately comes to emergency I MS battery entirely.
mind. Why didn't I think of that?
Situation: No I MS battery, in the soup as Blue 2 with
light on the star, lose the generator, then lose Blue lead . MAJ BOB LAWLER

10 FEBRUARY 1972
 hand, trying to make sure you jocks get the best, safest
THE SPO available. If there is a Dash One change under
SPO -What is it? Well, the letters stand for Systems consideration, chances are your SPO w ill see it and make
Project Officer. He is an officer assigned to Hq TAC his comments on it before it goes to press. If a particular
Safety with responsibility for a specific weapons system, maintenance or materiel prob lem arises, your SPO is on
in this SPO's case the F /R F -4 and R F-1 01. the horn with the experts, making sure we get a fix on the
Responsibility for doing what? That's a little harder to way as soon as possible.
pin down. He works to a degree with attitudes and In short, the SPO for your weapons system is a safety
intangibles. He crosses the spectrum - from an H R monitor, both for the line jock and the Commander. He
submitted by a jock down on the line who never heard of acts as a safety catalyst for his weapons system. Since, of
a SPO to monitoring incident reports for proper actions. necessity, he is isolated from the field physically, he relies
He monitors recommended correct ive actions suggested 100 percent on receiving the necessary information from
by accident investigations to make sure they aren't the field. He gets this to a large degree from incident
pigeonholed without due consideration. A SPO is the guy reports, EUMRs, and the li ke. So, your SPO isn't going to
who insures you have a "Friend in Court," the guy who be any better than you let him be. If you want a good one
looks out for Biue Four at the command level when give him his tools- message traffic. Without it, you don't
almost anything concerning his weapons systems comes have your "Friend in Court."
up. Take the F-4, for examp le. Proposals for new
hardware come up constantly. Your friendly SPO is on CAPT JIM YOUNG

two feet in the air. The C-47 pilot to ld the tower he was
THE WIND BLEW....
out of contro l (a first), then declared an emergency and
C-130 prop blast has done in two lighter aircraft in shut down the battered Gooney bird. About this time a
recent months. The first mishap occurred in November C-130 also waiting for takeoff finished his 30 second
when a Cessna 150 pilot rather unwisely decided to taxi runup. Control abruptly returned to the C-47. In this last
behind a Herky bird holding in number one position for mishap the tail of the C-130 wasn't pointing directly at
takeoff. The wash blew the 150 on its nose and · right the C-47 but it was close enough for the surface w ind to
wing, then turned it complete ly upside down. The 130 move the prop wash on the Gooney's tail.
was in ground idle at the time. One week before Christmas Moral - look out for the other guy even when you are
a Douglas Racer pilot waiting to takeoff received an in the right. You may have to taxi behind a C-5 someday.
unexpected present when his control column and yoke Remember it 's not always what's up front that counts.
began violent oscill at ion s. The RSO contro ll er, an
interested bystander, saw the tail of the C-47 bouncing MAJ LOU KENISON

---
TAC ATTACK 11
 ANOTHER LOOK
AT HYDROPLANING

In 1968 TAC ATTACK went all out with a series of almost entirely upon three factors : (1) ground speed, (2)
articles designed to expose the evils of hydroplaning. All tire pressure, (3) water depth vs tire tread depth.
manner of charts, graphs, photographs, and illustrations Surprisingly, aircraft weight doesn't have any bearing
were used in hopes of implanting some of the knowledge on the ability of an aircraft tire to hydroplane except in
gained through testing and unfortunate experiences. indirect association of aircraft weight to touchdown /

However, four years have streaked by, people have airspeed.

come and gone, and the emphasis on hydroplaning seems
to have decreased somewhat. SPEED
There have been no scientific breakthroughs that have There's a simple formula for determining the speed at
eliminated the hazards of hydroplaning . Runway grooving which a tire will hydroplane. Determine the square root of
would help but this was known in 1968, and as of today the tire pressure and multiply it by nine (10.3 for mph).
very few runways are grooved. Uh. oh -sorry -the point was just made about pilots not
It still rains, water still collects on runways, and thinking in terms of formulae so to be consistent, a
airplanes still land on these wet surfaces .. . sometimes quickie chart has been provided to pick off the total
without the greatest success. dynamic hydroplaning speed.
So let's make another trip around the pattern and A couple of things to remember about the speed. First,
review some of the factors that make up the phenomenon you must apply the wind factor in order to come up with
of hydroplaning. a touchdown ground speed. Second, the chart speed is for
Full dynamic hydroplaning means simply that the total hydroplaning. Below that speed it is still possible to
aircraft tires are not in contact with the runway surface, partially hydroplane; however, some area of the tire
rather that they are being supported from beneath by a footprint will be in contact with the runway surface,
wedge of water. There are other factors, such as force making some braking action possible.
vectors, inertia, and other goodies that go into the
technical explanation of how a tire hydroplanes but the TIRE PRESSURE
guy in the hot seat doesn't think in terms of formulae, so
the statement that a tire is being supported by a wedge of Since the whole bit is based upon tire pressure, it goes
water, while not completely and technically accurate, is without saying (almost) that if you don't know your tire
adequately descriptive. pressure, you can't compute the hydroplaning speed (a
Whether or not an airplane will hydroplane depends true nugget of wisdom). A point to remember here is that

12 FEBRUARY 1972
because of the difference in tire pressures, the nose gear assuming the airplane and the runway are so configured
tire will hydroplane at a different speed than the mains (and is recommended by the flight manual). Barring those
(nice to know if you're trying to use nosewheel steering). two choices, use minimum run landing airspeeds and
touch down firmly with as much runway ahead as
WATER DEPTH VS TIRE TREAD DEPTH possible.
If a crosswind is present along with hydroplaning
Hydroplaning occurs when the fluid depth exceeds the conditions, things get sporting. Upon landing, the nose of
depth of the tire tread. Other factors such as runway the airplane will weathervane into the wind but the
surface texture and tire design also enter the picture. A airplane will drift downwind. The airplane will be pointing
smooth tread tire will hydroplane in less fluid depth than toward one side of the runway and drifting toward the
a ribbed-tread tire . But looking at it realistically, the pilot other. Aerodynamic controls can stop the crab but not
rarely flies around with the tire tread depth figures in his the drift. Asymmetrical power (if available) may keep
pocket and rarely does he have complete information on you on the runway long enough to make a mid-field
the runway fluid depth. The runway information the pilot barrier engagement (if available), or a departure end
receives will be limited and may only be a radio barrier engagement. If your machine has reversible fans,
transmission, such as "RCR -wet runway." That should asymmetrical power will not only keep you on the
be the cue for super-caution . . . for decision and action . runway but will slow you down below hydroplaning
speed. So in a crosswind give yourself more runway by
THINGS TO DO landing on the upwind side.
What action? There are several options, one of which is The evils of hydroplaning are still lurking around, still
available to the jock. The best, but sometimes the least as treacherous, and still as vengeful on the unwary. A lot
likely, is to go somewhere else (another jewel wrought of thought and planning are just as "in" today as they
from many hours of introspection) . If that option is not were four years ago ... still some of the best preventive
possible, plan on an approach-end barrier engagement, medicine around.

160

150

140

""lJ 130
Q)
() Q)
a.
z Vl

z<( ""lJ
c 120
:>
--'
a... 2
0 ()
""
0 (./)
110
>- f-
I 0
u z
~ 100
~
<( z
z 0
>- w
0 w 90
a...
(./)

80

70

50 70 90 110 130 150 170 190 210 230 250 270 290
TIRE PRESSURE (PSI)

TACATTACK 13
 II II
weapons words
OROS
a round in the firing pos1t1on was not removed. In
THE GOOD AND BAD OF IT I addition, the gun firing lead was not disconnected or
worse - inadvertently connected. These two conditions
existed when the normal switch settings were made in the
By Lt Col William R. Barrett functional check and the chambered round fired when the
Hq TAC/SEW trigger was depressed.
Second, an accident occurred when a pilot
We plugged in our computer to check the back grooves inadvertently released his external stores. He was trying to
of its memory bank for 1970-71 mishap statistics. A set-up switches to monitor right hand missile tone, but
whole gaggle of information poured forth, including some accidentally placed the external stores rotary selector
prophetic utterances from its logic circuit. All this switch to tip stores. This armed the system for jettison!
reminded us of the story about the airline navigator who Subsequently, he fumbled in reaching for the radar reject
reported to the pilot that he had some bad news and some button, hit the bomb release button and immed iatel y
good news. The bad news, altitude 30,000 feet, speed 750 ejected the launcher rails and missiles from the aircraft.
mph, position unknown - we're lost. The good news - Third, an NCO was injured during explosives ordnance
we're making good time! disposal training. A part of the training was detonation of
We made good time in reducing our 1971 blasting caps. Two blasting caps were placed in a small
accident/incident rates compared with 1970 : There were hole about eight inches deep. Each cap was in contact
no AIM/AGM missile reports but we did have two drone with the other to insure sympathetic detonation . After
accidents; reports on nuclear systems remained zero, and personnel observed both fu zes burning properly they
the number of explosives mishaps dropped a whopping 20 retreated to a safe distance. A loud blast was heard and
percent! two minutes later an NCO, disregarding the 30 minute
This would have made our day but we know explosives waiting period prescribed by TO procedures, started
mishaps caused by personnel error actually increased in toward the detonation point. Nearing the blast point, he
1971. We continue to be plagued with people-caused observed bubbling water in the hole followed almost
mishaps, the largest number involving accidental gun immediately by detonation of the second blasting cap.
firings and inadvertent releases. The former has resulted in Fortunately, medical personnel did not find any
holes being punched in people and equipment, while the fragments of the blasting cap embedded in the individual's
latter accounted for a wide variety of hardware scattered many lacerations.
about the earth in unlikely places ... usually off-range. The reason why people commit errors remains elusive;
Both ground and aircrew personnel contributed their however, we are not ready to accept the old cliche, "to err
share of errors to rna ke inadvertent gun firings and release is human." We feel it is just as human to use the tools
of external stores our number one "personnel error" available correctly, thereby eliminating personal error. We
problem. are convinced you have been provided, through better
The contrivance, made with errors, is always unusual safety engineering, improved checklist procedures and a
and often near disbelief, but the results are inevitably the safer working environment - the tools necessary to
same- AN ACCIDENT! We have selected three mishaps, reduce the number of personal errors resulting in mishaps.
one each caused by ground crew, aircrew, and non-crew In 1972 the overall experience level of T AC personnel
error, as typical examples. First, the talents of two TAC is expected to be lower than it was in past years. This will
munitions loading crews combined to accomplish the include Safety people. In addition, a review of our Safety
firing of a "safe" gun. After each crew separately verified manning shows little prospect of immediately filling all
the gun was "cleared," and firing circuits disconnected, a positions. Much of our effort in 1972 will be toward a
20 mm projectile from this weapon punched a big hole in more streamlined and centralized safety program, update
the aircraft nose gear strut. The accident investigating of our training to accomplish more in less time, and a
board, in reconstructing the events which must transpire closer monitor of manning requirements.
before a 20 mm cannon can fire during a functional In conclusion, we know what we're going to work on,
check, reported two safeguards had been violated. The but only you can speak for the number of personal errors
gun clearing operation was incorrectly performed because that will cause mishaps during 1972. ~

14 FEBRUARY 1972
 unit achievement award

Tactical Air Command

of accident free flying:

114 Tactical Fighter Group, Joe Foss Field, South Dakota

18 November 1970 through 17 November 1971

61 Tactical Airlift Squadron, Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas

31 October 1970 through 30 October 1971

Detachment 1, New Mexico ANG, Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico
1 November 1970 through 31 October 1971

12 Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas

1 November 1970 through 31 October 1971

71 Tactical Fighter Squadron, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida

23 October 1970 through 22 October 1971

561 Tactical Fighter Squadron, McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas

24 October 1970 through 23 October 1971

908 Special Operations Group, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama

24 October 1970 through 23 October 1971

422 Fighter Weapons Squadron, Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada

25 October 1970 through 24 October 1971

129 Special Operations Group, Hayward MAP, California

25 October 1970 through 24 October 1971

~ 162 Tactical Fighter Training Group, Tucson MAP, Arizona

1} 28 October 1970 through 27 October 1971

~ 110 Tactical Reconnaissance Group, Battle Creek ANGB, Michigan

29 October 1970 through 28 October 1971

113 Tactical Fighter Group, Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland

6 November 1970 through 5 November 1971

TAC ATTACK 15
 birdstrike update

16 FEBRUARY 1972
 UPDATE
Jhe sun had begun its trip the pilot that the airplane was to sage advice telling of avoidance
westward from the cloudless zenith as definitely out of control. He reached countermeasures. But certa inl y there
the second ship broke ground 15 for the handle and initiated the must be something, other than words,
seconds behind the leader. It was to ejection sequence. with which we can do battle with the
be a two ship low level nav and bomb The ejection of the module was feathered fiends. Shaking the bushes
mission capped off with a high successful and both men walked has produced a few things that are
altitude return then some practice away. The pilot was in fine shape; the being researched, investigated, and
instrument work on the tail end of WSO received painful eye injuries tal ked about in the birdstri ke arena.
the mission . A routine mission with despite the fact that his helmet visor
no forebodings of disaster. was down. MICROWAVES
The flight of F-111 s climbed What happened? Hostile ground
southward in loose formation to fire? A SAM? Explosion? Dr. J. A. Tanner, who is the head
10,000 feet heading for the low level NO . .. none of these. It was just a of the Control Systems Laboratory of
entry point. An automatic let down harmless turkey vulture. Harmless?? the National Research Council of
on TFR (Terrain Following Radar) Birds, like the aforementioned, Canada, may have part of the answer.
was accomplished with the wing and his countless feathered cousins, Since 1966 he and his associates have
sweep set at 46 degrees. After leveling cost the taxpayers a whopping ten been doing some interesting research
at 1000 feet AGL the pilot million pieces of bread with each year in the effects of microwaves on birds.
maneuvered the lead ship to a radio that drops off the calendar. Other It seems that when birds enter a
facility to get an exact update for the costs, not as easil y ca lcu lated, include field of microwave radiation they
computer. The low level mission consternation, teeth gnashing, and express a profound desire to escape .
would be flown on automatic TFR great adrenalin rushes resulting from The contention is that an airborne
over terrain varying from rugged the harrowing encounters shared by system could clear birds from a path
mountains to desolate salt flats. jocks who've experienced windscreen ahead of the airplane without
The first turning point was far and canopy shattering rendezvous permanently damaging the birds. By
behind as the two 111 s pressed on with our feathered counterparts. the same measure, a ground based
toward the target area . The lead ship Tales of misery and woe have led system could keep an airport clear .
WSO (navigator) was busily checking
the computer to insure the proper
coord inates were set in as the pilot
glanced down to check on the "m iles
to go" to the next turning point. As
he I ooked up again something
streaked into his line of vision and the
whole world seemed to come apart.
The noise was overwhelming.
Debris, crud, and corruption were
flying around the cockpit propelled
by a tremendous rush of air. Cockpit
visibility was severe ly impaired and
the G forces being experienced told

TACATTACK 17
 pollution ... So, it seems that
BIRDSTRIKE UPDATE bio-sonic transmitters, in the present
form, are not suitable for aircraft.
The total effects of microwaves on BIO-SONIC TRANSMITTERS
the fowl population are not STROBE LI GHTS
understood at th is time; however, It has been demonstrated in the
ex peri mentation is continu ing. past that birds become frightened and Reports indi cate that commercial
In a letter to TAC ATTACK Dr. fly away when they hear their aircraft equ ipped w ith strobe lights
Tanner said , "We are getting close to "a larm" ca ll . This system of scaring have fewer birdstrikes than equ ivalent
the stage of being able to specify the birds away from airports by playing non-equipped airplanes flying the
microwave field parameters to achieve recorded tapes of their alarm ca ll s has, same routes. Apparently the birds see
a particu lar end result such as clearing generally, met w ith satisfactory the light and maneuver away from the
an airport of birds or clearing a flight results. Transposing the idea to an source. However, the effectiveness of
lane in the air. The results of some of airborne system carries with it some the strobe light has not been fully
our experiments en route have opened obvious disadvantages. First it would eva luated. It is not known, for
our eyes to potential personnel be necessary to design equ ipment instance, if birdstrikes can be reduced
hazards involved in the operation of capable of projecting sound far ahead on high speed (500 knots) aircraft
such microwave equipment and have of the airp lane . Next, what sound equipped with strobe lights .
prompted us to expand our should be projected? Each species has This area appears to offer some
experimenta l program to take a closer its own distinctive alarm ca ll and hope and shou ld be investigated
look at this aspect ." there are hundreds of different species further. Strobe lights are schedu led
So it appears that quite a few of birds. Assuming all the ca lls are on for insta ll at ion on some T-38 aircraft.
problems must be so lved before any tape imagine what would happen if A comparison of birdstrike rates on
form of anti-bird microwave they were all played in a very brief strobe equ ipped aircraft with the
equipment , airborne or ground based, time frame at the power necessary to remainder of the T-38 fleet should
can be put to operational use. get the sound out ahead of a 500 knot provide a stat ist ical conclusion as to its
Meanwhile, other approaches to the a i r p I a n e . T a I k about noi se effect iveness in reducing the hazard.
birdstrike problem have been
investigated.
In a recent ASD sponsored study
investigating birdstrike damage
=
8
prevention, se vera l interesting J:
approaches were explored. Among
these were: La se rs, Bio-Sonic
Transmitters, Strobe Light s, =
Airstream Deflectors, Shredders,
Windshield Cover with Periscope, and
-
Windshield Materials.
:=
LASERS :-=,==
7
l
:-=,::-"!

The Bureau of Sport Fisheries and

Wildlife has investigated the effects of
Lasers on birds. Th ey found that birds
~

1_ F
demonstrate a startled jump when ~H.' 7lft1l -
·-
h
exposed to a Laser pulse
(understandably), but do not react by
flying. Increasing the power can cause
physical darmge to the bird (again
understandably); however, a power
y-
output great enough to kill birds
cou ld cause grievous damage to other
animal life (such as people).

18 FEBRUARY 1972
 AIRSTREAM DEFLECTORS

An airstream deflector capable of

altering the direction of airflow about
the aircraft resulting in changing the
flight path of the on-rushing bird is
not considered practical. The forces
required to divert a four-pound bird
with a closing velocity of 500 knots
are much larger than the forces
available to achieve the diversion.
Even if the concept were practical
from an energy viewpoint,
aerodynamic considerations would
make the idea impractical.

BIRD SHREDDER

A series of blades designed to

shred the bird prior to windshield that a 0.7 to 0.75 inch thick investigated. Ten million dollars a
impact has been investigated. polycarbonate windshield would year is quite a hunk of cash to spend
Unfortunately the mass and defeat a four-pound bird at 500 because of birdstrikes. Perhaps we
momentum of the bird would not be knots. ought to spend a little more money
significantly reduced by such a A degree of experience with and find out what the birds don't like
gadget. A screen or grate could polycarbonate windshields has been and then see if there is an airborne
produce the same shredding results, gained from T-37 aircraft. Some T-37s way of giving it to them.
however, in order to be effective the were retro-fitted with windshields That, however, remains in the
grate would have to be made of wide made of a polycarbonate material, future. Let's look at a few things, in
bars with very I ittle space between the however, early experience indicated review, that can be done now to help
bars. Consequently, pilot visibility some problems with optical prevent birdstrikes.
would be very limited. To make the distortion. Optical quality has since
The migratory season will be upon
device retractable would add to the been improved by special polishing
us again in March and will last
complexity of the system and degrade processes and it appears now that
through mid-April . Make plans now to
its usefu I ness. Shredders are, acceptable optics can be achieved .
do something about it. Most
therefore, impractical. Of all the passive approaches to
birdstrikes occur below 1000 feet
birdstrike protection (bird shredders.
AGL so keep your operations in their
IMPACT RESISTANT CANOPIES airstream deflectors), the use of
air to a minimum. Pian now to
AND WINDSHIELDS polycarbonate materials for impact
decrease your local night flying during
resistant windshields and canopies
the migratory season; it might save an
There are materials available which appear to offer the best means of
airplane. Know the general migratory
can increase the strength of aircraft achieving a measure of crew
routes and avoid them as much as
canopies and windshields. For protection from our feathered friends.
possible (especially 1000 feet or
example, the F-15 design goal is to Some testing remains but at least it's
below). Check with your safety type
provide protection from a four-pound something within "the state of the
and see if his spring plans include
bird when traveling at 0.7 mach. The art ."
stirring the pot for some means of
material being considered for the Except for the strobe light analysis
bird control around the patch .
windshield is polycarbonate clad with and the work being done in Canada
Meanwhile, a practical approach to
as-cast aery I ic faces (a polycarbonate on microwaves, there seems to be
the problem can reduce the hazard.
sandwich). little activity in the active approach to There's a lot we can't do to prevent
Polycarbonate has been on the the problem. One must wonder if all birdstrikes, but let's make sure that
market for several years but only means of air capable and we've done all that we can do.
recently has been used for aircraft transmittable energy patterns used as To all sportsmen . . . good hunting.
windshield glazings. Estimates cite bird shields or deflectors have been To all pilots ... poor hunting. _>..

TACATTACK 19
 TAC tips

• • • interest items,

Much lat er t he airplane was sa lvaged and invest igat ion

AERO ClUB NOTE
turned up the reason behind t he eng ine fail ure
In the modern day world of aviation Goliaths and ... name ly, fu el starvation. T hey also turned up the
Davids, the Goliaths come out on top. reason behi nd the fue l starvat ion . T he f uel selector hand le
Take the case of the Cessna 150 that cha ll enged a was posit ioned to OF F.
C-130. The Herky was holding number one with throttles The student pil ot, in attempting to get more air,
in ground idle when ground control cleared the 150 to reached fo r the cockp it heater hand le, confusing it with
taxi to the parking area. The route took the Cessna behind the cockp it air hand le, and wound up with the fue l
the C-130. As the 150 came into the prop wash, the selector hand le in his ha nd. He shut off the gas.
operator felt a mild buffet and turned to get out of the It's up to each of us, as pi lots and crewmembers, to
way of the blast of air . .. too late . The nose and right know what we're doing . Somet imes it's a game of "you
wing hit the ground, then the airplane flipped over. bet your life."
Four thousand bugs cheered, having been given a
longer expected life span due to the demise of one of the ir
persecutors. SNARlED THRO"lE
The F-1 05 was number two in a flight of four on a Sl D
en route to t he range for an air to ground gunnery
GRAB THE RIGHT HANDlE mission. As the pilot adjusted the t hrottl e to maintain
The perp lexing prob lem of wh ich hand le, switch, formation position, he fe lt a sli ght restriction to aft
knob, or lever to pu l l, push , f lip, or rotate has been w ith movement. He moved out to a loose position to check the
us from day one. No matter how haphazard ly t hey're prob lem and found out that t he binding became more
strewn about the cockp it, it sti ll remains the responsibi li ty severe with each t hrottle movement . When he tried to pu ll
of the pilot to grab the right one fo r t he fu nction needed. the throttle aft he determined that 92 percent was as low
It's obvious that in each airp lane the switchology can be as she would go. Movement above that was no prob lem .
improved. Equa ll y as obvious is the fact that whi le The pilot then found out that the aft side of the rear
pressing fo r changes we must do our best to live with what throttle quadrant dust cover spr ing assemb ly (whew) was
we have. torn and that when the throttle was advanced, the torn
An i ll ustration of grabb ing t he wrong handle and port ion was freed from the take up reel and became
conseq uent ly not doing the best with what's ava il ab le raveled, causing the restriction. The pil ot then advanced
comes to us f rom another command. the thrott le slight ly and was able to guide the torn portion
The IP and student pil ot were shooti ng a GCA in a onto the take-up reel with a finger w hil e he reduced the
T-28. On downw ind t he student was getti ng a little warm throttle to about 87 percent.
and reached fo r the cockpit air hand le. A few seconds Using this power sett in g, he took the lead and was able
after he turned the hand le the eng ine quit . The IP tried to make a straight in approach. Forward throttle
one restart which was unsuccessfu l , then ordered a movement was unrestricted shou ld he have needed it. The
bai lout . Despite the low altitude they both made it over jock landed without any further prob lems and was ab le to
the side and had good chutes. Rescue picked them up retard the t hrottl e to idle after touchdown (wouldn't you
within a few minutes. know it) .

20 FEBRUARY 1972
 .
mishaps with morals, for the TAC a1rcrewman

THROUGH RAIN, SlEET, SNOW, ICE ... A"ENTION THUNDERBIRD ASPIRANTS

Down in a major southern city, a U. S. Post Office Applications are being accepted through 1 May 72 by
Branch found a way to increase its efficiency. the USAF Thunderbirds for an exec officer who will
Seems like a box of emergency radios passed through eventually move into the Commander/Leader position .
their bailiwick en route to Somewhere AFB. The box Experience requirements: Grade, Lt Col or Major;
broke open and the radios spil led out. Being quick to Flying Experience, min of 2500 hours with 2000 hours in
capitalize on the situation, the emp loyees began using the jet fighters, and a completed SEA tour.
emergency radios to dispatch and control the mail Additionally, the Thunderbirds are accepting
carriers. applications through 31 May 72 for a narrator and
Worked great 'till some wise-guy pilot turned in a demonstration pilot. Narrator will perform that function
hazard report and the FCC tracked 'em down . for one year then fly as a demonstration pilot for two
If TAC ATTACK had a"Fickle Finger of Fate Award" years. Applicants for both positions must have less than
it would most certainly have to go to this infamous Post ten years active commissioned service (as of 31 Dec in
Office Branch. selection year). have a SEA tour out of the way, and have
Thanks a lot,fellers. 1000 hours jet fighter or jet trainer experience.
All applicants check AFM 36-11, Chapter 8, for
application routing and zap an info copy to the
F-111 SPliT FlAP Commander, USAF Demonstration Squadron, Nellis AFB,
The flight in the F-111 A was a student training mission
Nevada 89110.
which had proceeded normally to the range and back Good luck!
home for some practice instrument work . During a
go-around from a GCA, at about 200 KIAS, the flaps were
retracted to 15 degrees. The aircraft attempted to roll
hard right. The pilot immediately placed the flap handle
full down and the roll tendency stopped. The pilot then
entered a closed pattern for an uneventful full stop
landing.
The cause was pinpointed as a failure of the left
inboard flap actuator torque shaft and of some wiring in
the right asymmetry sensing switch .
The aircrew passed on some good poop. They stated
that nearly full stick was required to hold wings leve l with
the left flap full down and the right flap at 15 degrees
down . They also feel that the rolling tendency could not
be controlled with a full split flap condition. It points out
the importance of stopping at the 15 degree position
during both extension and retraction to provide for
adequate reaction should a split flap cond ition exist.

TACATTACK 21
KffP
TUnfU
by Rex M. Stewart
m
FAA/TAC Liaison Officer

You've probably heard this before, but it bears approx imate ly 45 NM out. Obviously, the existing traffic
repeating. Close pilot/controller harmony is a must in the situation will be the determining factor.) You will
application of air traffic control. The lack of mutual normally be aware of the type of approach to expect prior
understanding between pilots and controllers with respect to entry into the approach control area. Don't surprise the
to the other's intentions leads to "surprises" and there is control ler with a last minute request for a different type
no place for surprises in either the cockpit or the control approach. If a high altitude penetration/approach is
room. The FLIP and AIM publications explain many of available for your use, and you would prefer this instead
the air traffic control functions and procedures which are of normal arrival handling, be sure to let the controller
based on ANTICIPATED PILOT ACTIONS during certain know your intentions as ear ly as possible prior to
air traffic control situations. Your awareness of these descending below the initial penetration altitude.
procedures might keep you from "surprising" the TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION FAILURES. There are
controller the next time up. Here are some examples of those who wil l argue that any time you are proceed ing on
the more common misconceptions: an I FR clearance , and lose commun ication with the
ADHERENCE TO ATC CLEARANCE . As spelled out control ler, you are in an emergency situation and
in F Ll P and the A I M, an A TC clearance is not a blank anything goes. Not really! The cheese may get a bit
check. You are still required to abide by the app li cab le binding, but a radio failure does not necessarily constitute
rules and regulations regardless of your clearance. Insofar an emergency. It is up to the pilot as to whether or not he
as the controller is concerned, your acknowledgement of finds it necessary to exercise his emergency authority.
the clearance means that you understand it and will Otherwise the contro ll er will be expecting you to comply
comply. If you have any doubt whatsoever, ask for with the prescribed radio failure procedures and rules.
clarification - or a repeat - or an amended clearance. One final word on the subject, as indicated in recent
Sure, the controller doesn't like to repeat a long-winded messages/notices, the radio failure beacon code (7600)
clearance, or come up with a new one, but he would will not appear on the radio display unless interrogated by
rather do that than be "surprised" further down the road. the controller. On the other hand, the emergency code
INSTRUMENT APPROACHES. ATC procedures now (7700) will normally be displayed automatica ll y provided
permit contro ll ers to use the same arrival procedures for the transponder is PROPERLY ACTIVATED by the pilot.
military turbojets as for civil turbojets, such as, radar Efforts are currently under way to provide an automat ic
vectors to final approach course in li eu of high altitude 7600 display to enhance the contro ll ers' recognition of
penetration/approaches. (As a rul e of thumb, the point at radio failures. Meanwhile, don't count on your 7600
which the en route descent shou ld begin is normally squawk being observed unless the controller has reason to
determined by adding 10 to the first two digits of the suspect a radio failure. Should the situation so dictate,
flight level. For in stance, if you are at flight level 350 you don't be reluctant to exercise your emergency authority
should be cleared for en route descent when including use of code 7700. .-->-

22 FEBRUARY 1972
 Navigators are members of a specialized team

NAVIGATOR dedicated to the safe and successful accomplishment of

the mission at hand. A navigator owes it to himself and to
every member of the team to be an active and effective
link in every phase of every mission.
Student navigators are taught the basic skills required
to carry out future tasks. Safe and accurate navigation is

EXPLAINS the primary objective, and it must be achieved regardless

of the situation. It will not always be easy to achieve;
weather conditions, equipment unserviceability could be
such that these skills may really be put to the test.
Students of navigation should keep this in mind.

TOTAL Weather avoidance is also a vital aspect of mission

accomplishment. It involves interpretation of the radar
returns and the subsequent correct evasive action, while
still keeping track of your position.
Since the majority of flying accidents occur around

INVOLVEMENT airports, particularly during the approach to the runway,

here aga in the navigator has a contribution . This is no
time for the navigator to consider his work finished. It is a
time to mon itor approach clearances, check clearance
limits, monitor the approach itself with all the
instrumentations at your command, and assist the pilot
with pertinent and useful information.
Reporting and discussing unserviceabilities, dangerous
by CAPT Gl LLES BUSSIERES procedures or problem areas with other members of the
team, on the ground or in the air, is another involvement.
UFSO CFANS The navigator should not be tempted to say that it is none
of his business or that it is outside his area of
responsibility. Remember instead that involvement may
save costly material resources or even human lives. This is
ATTENTION NAVIGATORS!! I know you're out there reason enough to make it your business too.
somewhere; I just can't hear you. As a matter of fact, I To be prepared for a given mission then, means much
had to go all the way to Canada to get an article written more than just planning it. It also means anticipating
by a navigator. Let us hear from you. Ed. problem areas and resolving them in advance. After all,
emergency procedures have evolved from just such
anticipations. Above all, make sure that you never let
rout ine tasks turn you into a complacent navigator, and
you will always be prepared. Remember also to involve
Is the navigator's involvement in Flight Safety yourself actively in every phase of every mission ... as if
superfluous? For some the involvement of navigators is your life depended on it.
compared to a non-paying passenger at best, and a back Fellow nav igators, ask no more whether you are
seat driver (pejorative sense on ly) at worst. After all, involved in Flight Safety. Ask instead, "What more can I
would a defensive driving course be directed to passengers do for Flight Safety?" and by the way, do you know why
of a car? Of course not! Even the Directorate of Flight the Directorate of Flight Safety ranks the navigator
Safety recognizes that attitude when it classifies behind the weather forecasters in the other personnel
navigators after the weather forecasters in the other column? It is because we make fewer errors than they do.
personnel co lumn . There is nothing particu larly upsetting
with this attitude, unless it is advocated by navigators
themselves, for it leads to a dangerous indifference toward
not only flight safety, but also the ultimate goa l itself- Reprinted from HOT LINE
accomplishment of the mission.

TAG ATTACK 23
 tire pressure loss

B ack in 1909, the automob il e tire manufacturers

TALON SERVICE NEWS recognized that airp lane t ires had to be different from
OCTOBERQUARTER1971 those built for automobi les. Not only was the automobile
tire unable to withstand the severe landing shock, but the
flexing of an airplane tire during ground operation was
abo ut 2-1/2 times greater. The opt imum design was a tire

24 FEBRUARY 1972
 of much greater strength that required spec ifi c air properly seated because of careless hand I ing during
inflation pressures to minimize heat generation and mounting, lack of lubrication, insufficient air pressure, or
limited the tires to intermittent use to provide coo ling kinked and distorted prior to mounting .
periods. Air pressure loss can be attributed to various areas of
Heat is generated within the body of the tire primarily the wheel. When preparing to mount a tire and whee l, it is
by the flexing of the carcass. Wheel brakes, hot weather, recommended that the whee l assemb ly be thoroughly
and bearing friction also contribute to the heat inspected for discrepancies such as cracks, checking
accumulation. The flexing action of a heavily loaded abrasions, an exceptional ly smooth painted surface on
rolling tire creates friction which progressively builds up bead seat ledges, corrosion or wear of bead ledge in the
heat within the tire at a rate faster than it can be toe area of the tire bead; these discrepancies must be
dissipated. Excessive heat buildup can cause deterioration corrected . Scratches, gouges, or tool mark.S in the bead
of the plies or tread and lead to premature tire failure. ledge area may often cause air pressure loss. Dirt and
Lower than recommended inflation pressure contributes other foreign material accumu lation in the bead seat area
to excessive tire deflection and causes greater fatigue and may prevent proper bead seating.
more heat buildup . The life of the tire depends on correct Air pressure may escape thru the pores of the
air inflation pressure at all times. magnesium whee l cast ings. An application of a suitable
The nylon cord in the tire will stretch during the first paint or impregnation process can correct this deficiency.
24 hours following mounting and inflation. This will Check tubewell area for cracks, and see that all mounting
result in a 5% to 10% drop in air pressure. No new tire screws and bo lts are properly sealed. Care must be taken
shou ld be placed in service until at least 12 hours after to see that the wheel halves or demountable flange
being mounted and inflated to regular operating pressure. junction point has not been damaged during handling, and
The air pressure shou ld be then adjusted to compensate any da.mage must be repaired before mounting tire and
for the decrease in pressure caused by the stretch ing of wheel. This surface must be free of dirt and other foreign
the nylon cord body. Tires inflated in a heated room and material. The wrong type, size, twisting, or lack of
then stored outside or in an unheated area will experience lubrication for a preformed packing may cause air
an air pressure loss of about 1 lb/in 2 for every 4°F drop pressure leakage. Used packings should be thoroughly
in ambient temperature. While air pressure loss is more inspected. Do not use packings that have become
common during cold weather, there are no regional or deformed, shrunk in size, chipped, or damaged or that
seasona l limitations. show signs of deterioration. Proper wheel tie bolt torquing
Air loss is normal as all aircraft tires leak a certain procedures wi II assure proper compression of sealing
amount thru their sidewa ll vent holes. Th e vent holes preformed packings.
permit air which has seeped thru the inner liner to escape It is important that the proper packing be used when
before it results in separation of the carcass or tread. installin g the tubeless valve and that the surface be free of
However, if a tire has a pressure loss of 5% or more during scratches, gouges, tool marks, corrosion, and foreign
a 24-hour period, the reason should be determined. You material. Valve caps should always be used and tightened
shou ld keep in mind that the wheel can also be fingertight. A complete in spection of the wheel assemb ly
responsible for the air pressure loss. before it is assemb led is your best guarantee against air
There are numerous causes of air pressure loss, and a pressure loss in this area. The installation of air filler valve
trial-and-error system is uneconomical; it is important to caps on all tires wi ll prevent the entry of contamination .
establish and follow a systematic check list. If air pressure loss occurs after the tire and wheel are
Your check list shou ld begin with a carefu l exam ination mounted, the use of a soap and water so lution may
of the external surface for cuts or punctures that cou ld quickly pinpoint the leakage point. Use caution when
possibly penetrate the cord body and inn er liner. Foreign app lying the soap and water so luti on in the vicinity of the
object damage is second only to heat in the destruction of wheel bearing. Failure to properly dry the wheel bearing
a tire. Any visible rigid object com ing in contact with the may ruin it.
tire during taxi or towing is capab le of infli ct ing damage. You shou ld keep in mind that underinflation permits
Although the tire bead is hidden from view, any greater carcass flexing, increases heat buildup, and breaks
exposure of the nylon cord body in the bead toe area or down the tire sidewa lls. It also induces tremendous strain
under the face of the bead and the heel should be in the tread area and increases the tendencies toward ply
careful ly inspected. Hidden bead dama,ge is also evident and tread separation. Underinflated tires have a lower
by signs of extreme tire heat. Any rough edges along the hydroplaning speed and are subject to more damage than
outer edge of the bead or chafer str ip shou ld never be overinflated tires. Overinflation adds stress to the tire,
ignored. There is also the possibility that the bead was not lowers resistance to bruising, increases sk idding, subjects

TACATTACK 25
 tire pressure loss

TREAD
TIRE WEAR DIMPLE

TREAD
SIDCWALL REINFORCERS

VENT HOLE

BEAD

CHAFING STRIPS INNER LINER

the center of the tread to accelerated and uneven wear, be mnstartly alert for signs of air pressure leakage.
and increases groove cracking. It reduces the effect of A pilot skidding a tire at 100 KIAS on a dry paved
hydroplaning, but it also reduces the braking coefficient. runway can destroy a tire in about a third of a second.
Use extreme caution when inflating a tire from a high The heat generated by an underinflated tire during taxi,
pressure air source. Tire maintenance technicians have takeoff, and landing will destroy a tire nearly as quickly.
been seriously injured or killed from tire overinflation. Most aircraft tire blowouts are attributed to
Most aircraft wrmels will burst before the tire from high underinflation. Proper inflation is the key to aircraft tire
pressure air. maintenance.
It is not too uncommon to discover an inaccurate tire The following message from the USAF tire manager at
air pressure gage in use, and that the difference in air Hq 00AMA points out some interesting facts relative to
pressure is due to different gages being used and riot the aircraft tire failures.
air loss. Tire pressure gages are also affected by "Subject: Aircraft 1 ire Inflation. In the past few
temperature variations and lubricants that may cause weeks there have been one major aircraft accident and
incorrect readings. All gages should be reczlibrated several incidents involving new and rebuilt tires.
periodically. The same gage should always be used when Undorinflation was evident in all cases and the major
checking a tire before and after the stretch period. cause in most failures. It is imperative: that aircraft tires be
For optimum tire performance, inflation pressures inflated properly for gross weight of aircraft prior to each
should be checked and adjusted daily, preferably during flight. li tires are operated on one mission underinflatcd,
preflight inspection when the tires are cool. Maximum tire damage will result and tire can fail on a later mission when
life can be obtained only if the correct design deflection is properly inflated... We solicit your aid to improve
maintained. Crew chiefs and tire shop technicians should aircraft tire maintenance."

26 FEBRUARY 1972
 new products

PRODUCTS

A new kit for washing aircraft is available ordinary mops. In addition the applicator is
under GSA stock number 7920-490-6046. curved to conform to convex aircraft exteriors.
The kit contains an applicator head and six 5 x The cleaning and polishing materiel can be
11 inch sheets of the cleaning and polishing quickly installed since the applicator head is
material. equipped with a hook and loop fastening device.
A swivel joint on the back of the applicator Look for the kit to be included in an
can go up, down, or sideways enabling the upcoming revision of TO 1-1-1, "Cleaning of
operator to clean areas difficult to get at with Aerospace Equipment." .~

TAC ATTACK 27
 TACTICAL AIR COMMAND

AIRCREWMAN
of
DISTINCTION

Lt Col Bryde

Lieutenant Colonel Joseph C. Bryde of the 184th pressure. Lieutenant Colonel Bryde still could not move
Tactical Fighter Training Group, McConnell Air Force the control stick to the right, but could establish a 10-15
Base, Kansas, has been selected as a Tactical Air degree right bank with rudder. He experimented with flap
Command Aircrewman of Distinction. positions and minimum control speeds with the gear down
Lieutenant Colonel Bryde was flying as number three to determine best landing configuration. With the left flap
on a low level navigation mission in an F-105D. While 48 percent down, and the right flap full up, a
flying at 1000 feet AG L and 400 knots, the airplane controllability check was made and the airplane was
suddenly began a rapid roll to the left. Lieutenant Colonel landed from a straight in approach at 235 knots. Touch
Bryde disconnected the autopilot and the stability down was 2000 feet down on a 12,000 foot dry runway
augmentor, applied right aileron pressure and right rudder and he used aerodynamic braking, deployed the drag
with no effect. The control stick would not move to the chute, then slowed to taxi speed with normal braking.
right and the airplane continued the roll to a 100 degree Inspection in the parking area found the right aileron to
left bank . He reduced power and applied heavy positive G be full down, left aileron neutral and both spoilers closed .
load which caused the airplane to roll slowly back to the Further inspection revealed a small wire bundle clamp
right. The airplane rolled to a 60 degree left bank but support bracket in the right wing had broken from its
upon reapplication of power the airplane again began the mounting screw and lodged in the right aileron power
roll to the left. Lieutenant Colonel Bryde again reduced control unit, locking the control valve in the extended
power and established a climb to reduce airspeed below position and routing hydraulic pressure to the down side
rudder lock-out speed where he was able to maintain of the right aileron actuator.
wings level flight with nearly full right rudder . He climbed Lieutenant Colonel Bryde's rapid response in
the stricken F -105 to an altitude above 18,000 feet and countering the sudden uncontrolled roll at low altitude
declared an emergency. Lieutenant Colonel Bryde and his superb airmanship displayed in the landing
discussed the situation with the flight leader and the without full use of the flight controls prevented the loss
mobile control officer and was advised by the flight leader of a valuable airplane and certainly qualify him as a
that the right aileron appeared to be full down. He then Tactical Air Command Aircrewman of Distinction.
lowered the left flap to relieve the heavy right rudder ___:::..

28 FEBRUARY 1972
TACTICAL AIR COMMAND

Maintenance Man Safe1J Award

Technical Sergeant Rayford D. Sherrill, 4452nd
Combat Crew Training Squadron, George Air Force Base,
California, has been selected to receive the T AC
Maintenance Man Safety Award. Sergeant Sherrill will
receive a letter of appreciation from the Commander of
Tactical Air Command and a Certificate.
SSgt Sherrill

TACTICAL AIR COMMAND

Crew Chief Safe1J Award

Sergeant Richard B. Stalnaker, 547th Special
Operation3 Training Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Florida,
has been selected to receive the T AC Crew Chief Safety
Award. Sergeant Stalnaker will receive a letter of
appreciation from the Commander of Tactical Air
Command and a Certificate.
Sgt Stalnaker

TACTICAL AIR COMMAND

Ground Safe1J Man of the Month

Technical Sergeant Robert P. Boeckelmann, 474th
Tactical Fighter Wing, Nellis AFB, Nevada, has been
selected to receive the TAC Ground Safety Man of the
Month Award. Sergeant Boeckelmann will receive a letter
of appreciation from the Commander of Tactical Air
Command and a Certificate.

TACATTACK TSgt Boeckelmann 29

 Letters to the Editor

FLEAGLE GETS ANOTHER PAT ON THE

BACK

Colonel Beisner
I have been a constant reader of the TAC
ATTACK for a long time and find that as the
months (and years) go by it gets better and
better. I like the method of presentation, the
thought content, and above all Fleagle.
FLEAGLE SCORES AGAIN In my opinion, you and your magazine are
doing an outstanding job of promoting safety.
One of the high points here in Iceland is the Have you ever considered putting out a Fleagle
monthly arrival of your magazine. Of particular Handbook? You know, "Fleagle's Handbook for
fame is the cartoon series entitled FLEAGLE by Hapless Aviators" or some such thing.
Stan Hardison. 1 hate to tear up your magazine to save Fleagle
One particular cartoon sequence came rather
but at the present there is no other recourse.
forcefully to mind a few days ago as we were
preparing to shoot a minimum fuel penetration in Fleagle's picture truly does save a thousand words
weather announced as 200 and 1h with no and I feel sure has kept some of our troops from
alternative within seven hundred miles. We refer, aluminum plating hillsides and runways.
of course, to the one which depicted Fleagle Thanks for putting out an outstanding flying
caught in the throes of an actual GCA to safety magazine. Keep them flying and CHEERS .
minimums and his subsequent crash. Considering
the flying conditions in Iceland, we feel that this Lt Col Henry K. Good
cartoon is especially appropriate to our situation, Hq AWS, Director of Safety
which brings us to the point of this letter. Scott AFB, Illinois
Having dug through the squadron copies of
just about every magazine published by the Air
Force, we were unable to locate the one which Anyone else like the Fleagle Handbook
contained the aforementioned cartoon. We idea? Ed.
would, therefore, greatly appreciate either a copy
of same or information on how such a copy may •••
be obtained. It is requested that Fighter Squadron TWO
Thank you in advance for your trouble. HUNDRED THIRTEEN be included on the
mailing list for your fine publication.
John J. Halle and Bob Hervatine
Your magazine is read by all air crews in the
57th FIS , Keflavik, Iceland
squadron, and I would like to insure that we
The issue is on its way plus we've taken the liberty to receive T AC ATTACK monthly for inclusion in
include you on our distribution list for our quarterly our technical library.
Fleagle posters. Ed. Fighter Squadron TWO HUNDRED
THIRTEEN IS an F4J squadron currently
REUNION undergoing trammg for its sixth combat
The 8th Tac Ftr Wg will hold its annual deployment to SEA.
reunion 25-26 February 1972, Sheraton Park
Hotel, Washington, D. C. For further information Commanding Officer
contact Lt Col F . N . Markey, Hq Fighter Squadron TWO HUNDRED THIRTEEN
USAF/XOXFTJ, Washington, D. C. 20330, FPO San Francisco 96601
telephone OX-76838/57545 or Lt Col R. L.
Markey, 1111 19th Street, (AF/SAGF),
Arlington, Virginia 22209, telephone OX-48571. Your copies should be arriving soon. Ed.

30 FEBRUARY 1972

1:? U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1972-483-313 12

 TAC TALLY AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT RATES
* Estimat e d

UNITS
MAJOR ACCIDENT RATE COMPARISON THRU DEC THRU DEC
1971 1970 1971 1970

TAC ANG AFRes 9 A F 3.7 2.3 12 A F

23 TF W
2.1
0
7 .0
3. 9
1 TFW 5. 3 5.2
11971 1970 1971 1970 1971 11970 4T F W 0 4.1
2 7 TFW 4 .3 7.0
49 TF W 0 9.4
JAN 1. 6 4.8 16.7 5.9 0 0 3 1 TFW 12 .8 4.1 34 7 TF W 0 N/A
33 T F W 0 0 355 TF VV 0 N/A
FEB 1.6 3.9 11 .6 2.6 0 0 35 4 TF W 7.6 0
4 7 4 TF W 0 0
44 0 3 TF W 13 .1 35 T FW 2.5 9.4
0
.. MAR 3.1 4.6 7.0 1.7 0 0
363 TRW 3 .3 5.7 6 7 TR W 0 3 .3
APR
2.7 4.9 4.9 2.4 0 0
MAY
2.5 6.2 5.7 3.6 0 0 3 13 TAW 0
3 16 TA W 0 0 0

JUN 2.6 5.5 6.9 3.6 0 0 3 14 TA W 3.0 0

3 17 T P.W 0 0
5 16 TA W 0 0
JUL 2.9 5.1 7.1 6.1 0 0
58 TFT W 8.3 14.2
AUG
2.7 5.0 7.8 6.9 2.7 0 68 TASG 0 0 4453 C CTW 0 9 .6
71 T ASG 0 0
SEP
3.2 4.7 7.4 6.6 2.4 0
TAC SPECIAL UNITS
OCT
3.2 4.5 6.7 6.8 2.1 0
1SOW 6.3 6.3 441 0 S OT G 3.7 0
NOV
3.3 4.6 6.9 6.7 2.0 0 2 AD G 0 0 4500 ABW G 0 0

5 7 FV'/W 5.1 0 448 5 T S 0 0

DEC
3.2 4.6 67 6.6 1.8 0

TAC SUMMARY DEC 1971 1971

THRU DEC
I 197o
TOTAl ACCIDENTS 3 33 43
MAJOR 1 25 37
MINOR 2 8 6
AIRCREW FATAliTIES 0 24 33
AIRCRAFT DESTROYED 1 21 34
TOTAl EJECTIONS 1 24 28
SUCCESSFUL EJECTIONS 1 23 22
PERCENT SUCCESSFUL 100 96 79

TAC ATTACK 31
l