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GW Hosts Training Air Wings 1 and 2

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS060719-07
Release Date: 7/19/2006 5:06:00 PM

By Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Laura L. Rabe, USS George Washington Public Affairs

USS GEORGE WASHINGTON, At Sea (NNS) -- USS George Washington (CVN 73) hosted 23 naval aviation students from Carrier Training Wings 1 and 2 for training command carrier qualifications (TCQ), July 16-19.

TCQs are the last step in the process before the students become designated naval aviators.

“The training is important because we can’t duplicate it at the field,” said Lt. Aaron Rybar, an instructor with Training Air Wing 2. “We can teach the students everything they need to know about working off of the field, but there’s no place where we can duplicate the situational awareness and the sensory overload from landing on a carrier.”

“These pilots are out here to land on an aircraft carrier for the first time,” said Rybar. “They’ve had lots of practice in the field, and they’re coming out here to get 10 arrested landing and four touch-and-goes.”

The students have been preparing anywhere from a year and a half to two years, depending on their previous training and where they come from.

“Recently, we’ve been practicing bouncing field carrier exercises,” said Lt. j.g. Ian Phillips Sprenger, from Training Air Wing 1. “We’ve been doing that for about two weeks.”

Typically, when the students get their wings, they’ll have between 250 to 300 total hours in the air, in up to three different aircrafts.

“The jets they’re flying now are simpler than the jets they’ll be flying later on,” added Rybar. “We need them to master these skills first before we have them land on the boat at night, which is their next phase of training.”

“The first time I landed, it was a surprise,” said Sprenger. “It was definitely an experience. The biggest thing to overcome is the different environment. We’re flying over water out here; you just can’t become overwhelmed with everything.”

“The training’s going real well,” said Rybar. “There was a little bad weather the first day or two, but it’s progressing well and GW has been very helpful in maximizing our training out here.”

For related news, visit the USS George Washington (CVN 73) Navy NewsStand page at www.news.navy.mil/local/cvn73/.