Military

VP-4 pilots take CARAT training to skies above Brunei
By Lt. Chuck Bell
Commander, Task Force 712 public affairs
Released: June 25, 2003

Brunei Darussalam - Pilots from Patrol Squadron (VP) 4 climbed out of the classroom and behind the controls of a Royal Brunei Air Force (RBAF) aircraft June 25, in a rare opportunity to gain firsthand knowledge of their training partner's capabilities.

The familiarization flight, part of the Brunei phase of exercise Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT), was one of a series of events in preparation for the first-ever combined search and rescue (SAR) training operation for U.S. Navy and RBAF maritime surveillance aircraft.

"We find you learn only so much from a symposium," said RBAF Capt. Mohammad Sharif, explaining the purpose of the flight he piloted and coordinated in the fixed-wing CN-235 multi-role transport aircraft used primarily for maritime surveillance by the RBAF. "You learn so much more when you get out of the classroom and in the air."

VP-4 pilots who co-piloted the CN-235 agreed, and to a person said they found multiple benefits to the flight.

Lt. Cmdr. Scott Van Fleet, mission commander for the P-3C that will take part in the SAR training event, said that what he learned in the cockpit of the aircraft he'll operate in tandem with will make for a more effective mission. "When I see this plane out there I know it will be him (Capt. Sharif) or someone he trained," he said after about 45 minutes in the co-pilot seat. "I'm really impressed with their professionalism. Having flown together we've developed a measure of trust." Van Fleet said that trust is critical to combined operations. So to, he said, is understanding the aircraft's characteristics.

"He can fly lower and slower," Van Fleet pointed out. "If I hadn't flown it, I might have made the assumption that they had radar and other systems similar to ours." The RBAF's only CN-235 is without the installed robust detection systems of the P-3C, instead relying on visual techniques of the crew. "It's good to have experienced the differences," Van Fleet added.

During the SAR training, the two aircraft will work with U.S. Navy and Royal Brunei Navy ships to locate a contact in the CARAT operating area.

The RBAF has SAR experience Sharif said, but he is always looking for "ideas of how we can improve." The same goes for the VP-4 pilots. "They might have lessons learned that we can apply to our SAR techniques," Lt.j.g. Andrew Neboshynsky said before his turn in the co-pilot seat.

"We tend to get scope-locked on our way of doing things," said Cmdr. Robert Raccosin, VP-4's commanding officer, in Brunei from his squadron's home base in Kaneohe, Hawaii for the exercise phase. "It's always good to see how other people get their job done. It's good perspective for us."

The P-3C crew will include RBAF pilots in their aircraft during the SAR training, giving them firsthand exposure to Navy techniques that Sharif said he experienced last year during CARAT. The learning process is continual, he said, and this year he'll step aside, giving more junior pilots the opportunity. 

VP-4 personnel are no strangers to SAR, Neboshynsky said, explaining that particularly when on deployment, his squadron always has a "ready" aircraft standing by. "The most common thing we're called upon for is search and rescue."

Continuing to build upon mission capabilities is always a goal of CARAT. But an added bonus of the familiarization flight, particularly for junior pilots, is confidence building that comes from "being able to jump into anything and fly it," Van Fleet said. "It's not often that you get to do this."

That benefit wasn't lost on young Neboshynsky as he waited in the crew's lounge at Rimba Air Base before the mission and safety briefing. "I'll fly in anyone's aircraft," he said with a smile.

Lt. Jim Sears also spent time in the co-pilot seat. All three pilots took the aircraft through a series of maneuvers, including touch-and-go landings.

VP-4 is only a few weeks into a six-month, regularly-scheduled deployment to Misawa and Okinawa, Japan.

CARAT, a regularly scheduled series of bilateral military training exercises with several Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, is designed to enhance interoperability of the U.S. sea services and those of friends and allies throughout the region in a variety of mission areas of mutual benefit. The Thailand phase took place June 6-13. Exercises with Singapore and Malaysia will round out the 2003 series over the coming month.

-USN-