Navy Crossflow

[Ragansundowner]

Ok, I'm still working away on putting this proposal together and trying to gather as much information as possible to make a somewhat reasonable argument.

I know the Navy has a crossflow program implemented that seems to work fairly well. I'm curious if anyone has any details as to the workings of the Navy crossflow program? Why it wouldn't work in the Airforce? What downfalls there are to the Navy program? Plus any thoughts and opinions people may have on the matter. Thanks for taking the time to think about it.

-R.S.

 

[46Driver]

I'll bite. What is the crossflow program?

 

[Chickenhawk]

Are you talking about a community crossflow (SWO to Pilot) or a service transfer?

 

[Ragansundowner]

Sorry I wasn't very clear. I meant the transition program in the Navy for pilot's to go from fixed wing to helos and visa versa. I thought the Navy had a program where that transition was possible because I read posts every now and then that reference it. Thanks again.

-R.S.

 

[firstthird]

There may be a program for transitioning between aircraft, but if so it isn't taken advantage of very much with a few exceptions.

For the most part, the aircraft you start your career in will be the one you finish it in as far as front line fleet aircraft go. Exceptions being if your plane goes away (A7, A6, S3 going soon it seems). When your platform goes away you have to go somewhere although I think most fixed wing guys stay fixed wing and vice versa.

Most of the guys I've known that were flying a new platform were guys that used to fly some carrier based fixed wing and for whatever reason (the plane went away or their boat landing grades got too low) they went to P3s, which is what I flew so how I knew them.

A caveat though, the Navy reserves fly a lot of fixed wing, including C-9s, C-130-s, C-12s (super king air), C-20s (gulfstreams), and C-40s (737-700s). Now, we have plenty of helo guys flying these. Almost 90% of the TAR (active duty serving in a reserve component ) guys in my squadron are prior helo guys. But TAR is a whole different career path than the regular navy, not bad or good necessarily but definitely different.

But, if you stay regular navy, not too many guys are jumping from F-18s to F-14s to SH-60s to H-46s. Helo guys go fly king airs on their shore tours, or T-34s as an instructor, but most go back to the helo platform they came from after their shore tour is over. Same with fixed wing guys, many fly the same platform on their shore tour in some projects or special test or the rag type squadron, then go back to the same plane in the fleet when they go to sea again.

 

[dragon]

We've had a number of folks come to the E6 from the helo community in the past. Unfortunately, with the demise of the S-3 community, the bureau told me that our community is closed to trasition for the next year or so.

I got the impression, that the only people being given transitions to any community at all were those whose platform was going away (S-3) and those that for reasons such as medical, FNAEB or CV DQ could no longer fly their current plane but who were still able to fly.

I know of no one who has gone from fixed wing to helo. Everyone I know went the other way.

 

[46Driver]

I agree with the above posts. I don't know of anybody in the Navy or Marines who transitioned from fixed wing to helo (with the exception of the tilt-rotor V-22 program). There are a few limited slots to transition from helo to fixed wing but then you never go back to helo. Whatever community you are selected to is for the vast, vast majority the one you finish in (with the exceptions noted already)

 

[HookSkip]

Concur with the above posts. There were a bunch of Helo bubbas who got EA-6B transitions a few years ago. This was because the Prowler community expanded (added 4-5 new squadrons) and needed pilots of a certain seniority, couldn't just add junior guys at the bottom. Even transitions between fixed-wing communities are rare, unless the Navy wants it. It's all about "Needs of the Navy".