In May 1968, the Naval Aviation Safety Center and the Submarine Safety Center, located in New London, Connecticut, merged to become the Naval Safety Center (NSC).[7] Programs involving surface ships and shore activities were added to form the nucleus for all safety programs within the Navy. In 1986, system safety was added as a program, and the position of a Marine Corps deputy commander was established to administer and represent Marine Corps safety issues.
Today, the Naval Safety Command is organized into four directorates: aviation, afloat, shore, and operational risk management/expeditionary warfare. Six departments and five special staff divisions provide support to the core operations of the command. The Naval School of Aviation Safety in Pensacola, Florida, is also a NAVSAFECEN detachment consisting of civilian and military staff, which includes Marine Corps personnel. As an Echelon II command, NAVSAFECEN provides oversight of its two Echelon III commands, the Naval Safety and Environmental Training Center in Norfolk, Virginia and the Naval Safety Center School of Aviation Safety in Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida.[8]
One of the NSC's subsections is Navy Occupational Safety & Health (NAVOSH). NAVOSH is responsible for safety practices within the Navy. NAVOSH provides safety assistance and advice to the CNO, CMC, and the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Safety with the aim of enhancing the war-fighting capability of the Navy and Marine Corps, preserve resources, and improve combat readiness by preventing mishaps.
Aviation
Naval aviation safety improved through the Cold War. The number of accidents causing aircraft destruction, human fatality, or total disability dropped from 38.18 per 100,000 flight hours in 1955 to 3.44 in 1985. Pilot error was a contributing factor to half of such accidents, while material failure was involved in 30 percent. Errors in maintenance and supervision accounted for the remainder, with some accidents involving multiple causes. The highest accident risk occurred among pilots with less than 300 hours flying the model of aircraft involved, and that risk dropped significantly among pilots with more than 750 hours of experience flying that model. Younger pilots were more likely to lose control through improper use of controls or failure to maintain flying speed, while older pilots were more likely to violate regulations regarding pre-flight procedures and use of flight instruments.[9]
The highest accident risk is during carrier landings. While other military pilots typically avoid landing aboard ships, they share other high-risk activities including offensive maneuvers, formation flying, low-level navigation, and cross-country flying. Major accidents are about half as likely for United States Air Force flight operations. Aside from avoiding shipboard landings, Air Force pilots operating with Navy squadron exchange programs found pilot proficiency declined during deployments because of reduced training opportunities during the structured flight operation readiness schedules of deployed warships.[9]
Bryan Daniel O'Connor is a retired United States Marine Corps Colonel and former NASA astronaut. He was inducted into the United States Astronaut Hall of Fame in 2008.
A naval flight officer (NFO) is a commissioned officer in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps who specializes in airborne weapons and sensor systems. NFOs are not pilots (naval aviators), but they may perform many "co-pilot" or "mission specialist" functions, depending on the type of aircraft. Until 1966, their duties were performed by both commissioned officer and senior enlisted naval aviation observers (NAO).
Naval Air Station Jacksonville is a large naval air station located approximately eight miles (13 km) south of the central business district of Jacksonville, Florida, United States.
Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola, "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United States Navy base located next to Warrington, Florida, a community southwest of the Pensacola city limits. It is best known as the initial primary training base for all U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard officers pursuing designation as naval aviators and naval flight officers, the advanced training base for most naval flight officers, and as the home base for the United States Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the precision-flying team known as the Blue Angels.
The Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) provides materiel support for aircraft and airborne weapon systems for the United States Navy. It is one of the Echelon II Navy systems commands (SYSCOM), and was established in 1966 as the successor to the Navy's Bureau of Naval Weapons.
Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana or NAS Oceana is a United States Navy Naval Air Station located in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
The Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) is an enterprise-level shore command of the United States Navy with more than 19,000 military and staff personnel at more than 1,640 subordinate activities, sites, districts, stations, and detachments throughout the world, and was established in 1971. NETC recruits, trains and delivers those who serve the nation, taking them from "street to fleet" by transforming civilians into highly skilled, operational, and combat ready warfighters.
A naval aviator is a commissioned officer or warrant officer qualified as a crewed aircraft pilot in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps. United States Coast Guard crewed aircraft pilots are officially designated as "Coast Guard aviators", although they complete the same undergraduate flight training as Navy and Marine Corps crewed aircraft pilots, and are awarded the same aviation breast insignia.
Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 101 (VMFAT-101) was a United States Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet training squadron. The squadron was last based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California and fell under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 11 (MAG-11) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.
Marine Fighting Squadron 422 (VMF-422) was a Vought F4U Corsair squadron in the United States Marine Corps. The squadron, also known as the "Flying Buccaneers", fought in World War II but is perhaps best known for its role in the worst accident in naval aviation history when 22 of the squadron's 23 aircraft were lost flying through a typhoon on 25 January 1944. After being reconstituted, the squadron participated in the Battle of Okinawa. VMF-422 was decommissioned on 7 April 1947. Since that date, no other Marine Corps squadron has carried the lineage and honors of VMF-422.
Training Squadron TEN (VT-10) is a training squadron of the United States Navy. The squadron is homebased at NAS Pensacola, Florida.
Training Squadron EIGHT SIX (VT-86), also known as the "Sabrehawks," is a United States Navy advanced jet training squadron based at the Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. Training Squadron 86 is a tenant command of Training Air Wing 6. They are a training squadron flying the T-45C Goshawk. Their tailcode is F and their radio callsign is ROKT.
Donnie L. Cochran is a former United States Navy naval aviator and was the first African-American aviator to be selected to the Flight Demonstration Squadron Blue Angels in 1986. Cochran later assumed command of the Blue Angels in 1994. He is a 2022 inductee to the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame.
Strike Fighter Squadron 125 (VFA-125), also known as the "Rough Raiders", is a United States Navy strike fighter squadron based at Naval Air Station Lemoore, California. The "Rough Raiders" are a Fleet Replacement Squadron flying the F-35C Lightning II.
Rear Admiral George E. "Rico" Mayer is a retired United States Naval officer and Naval Aviator. At the time of his retirement, he was the first Puerto Rican Commander of the Naval Safety Center.
The United States Marine Corps Aviation (USMCA) is the aircraft arm of the United States Marine Corps. Aviation units within the Marine Corps are assigned to support the Marine Air-Ground Task Force, as the aviation combat element, by providing six functions: assault support, antiair warfare, close air support, electronic warfare, control of aircraft and missiles, and aerial reconnaissance. The Corps operates rotary-wing, tiltrotor, and fixed-wing aircraft mainly to provide transport and close air support to its ground forces. Other aircraft types are also used in a variety of support and special-purpose roles. All Marine Corps aviation falls under the influence of the Deputy Commandant for Aviation, whose job is to advise the Commandant of the Marine Corps in all matters relating to aviation, especially acquisition of new assets, conversions of current aircraft, maintenance, operation, and command.
The Naval Air Training and Operating Procedures Standardization (NATOPS) program prescribes general flight and operating instructions and procedures applicable to the operation of all United States naval aircraft and related activities. The program issues policy and procedural guidance of the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) and the Commandant of the Marine Corps (CMC) that is applicable to all United States Navy (USN) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) aviation personnel.
Thomas McClelland is a decorated U.S. Navy veteran who served in the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm.
Naval Support Activity Mid-South, in Millington, Tennessee, is a base of the United States Navy. A part of the Navy Region Southeast and the Navy Installations Command, NSA Mid-South serves as the Navy’s Human Resources Center of Excellence. The base is host to several commands and other military tenants: Navy Personnel Command, Navy Recruiting Command, the Navy Manpower Analysis Center, a Marine Corps Reserve Company - Bridge Company C and the US Army Corps of Engineers Finance Center. More than 7,500 military, civilian, and contract personnel are assigned/work on base.
The US Navy had four programs for the training of naval aviators.
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