Texas Welcomes New Texan II Aircraft

By Lt. John Supple, Chief of Naval Air Training Public Affairs

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (NNS) -- Naval Aviators and local leaders joined together aboard Naval Air Station Corpus Christi to welcome the newest training aircraft to Training Air Wing 4, July 26.

The first two T-6B Texan II aircraft arrived in front of a hangar full of naval officers and guests, signaling the official start of the turnover from the T-34C Turbo Mentor to the T-6B for primary flight training at Training Air Wing 4.

The event featured a fly-by of the new aircraft, arrival of the T-6Bs to the hangar, brief speeches, a cake cutting at the reception, and a demonstration of the T-6 simulators. Rear Adm. William Sizemore, the chief of Naval Air Training Command, served as the featured speaker.

At the ceremony, Sizemore said that more than 30 years ago, the T-34C ushered the Navy air training from piston age into the jet age, and that the T-6B is another great advancement.

"The all-digital T-6B is a quantum leap over the T-34C and is the perfect aircraft to train and introduce our future naval aviators to the digital age and all-glass cockpit aircraft already in our advance pipelines and in the fleet," Sizemore said.

The T-6B, along with its state-of-the-art visual simulators and computer aided academics will enable the Navy to train naval aviators more efficiently, more effectively, and safer than ever before. And, while the simulators will not replace training in the air, it will complement and better prepare student naval aviators to make their airborne training more effective and more productive, explained Sizemore.

Initially, the new aircraft will be used for training instructor pilots. Student pilots from Training Squadron 27 are expected to begin flying the new aircraft early next year.

HM-15 Launches Final Flight from NAS Corpus Christi

By Rod Hafemeister, Naval Air Station Corpus Christi

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (NNS) -- The remaining members of Helicopter Mine Countermeasures Squadron 15 (HM-15) held up cell phone, digital and video cameras to record the departure of the last squadron MH-53 Sea Dragon to depart Naval Air Station Corpus Christi Dec. 7 for HM-15's new home in Norfolk, Va.

The lift-off of "Hurricane 17" from the sea wall airstrip ended 13 years of mine countermeasure helicopter operations in south Texas.

"HM-15 moved to NASCC in 1996 from Alameda, Calif.," said Senior Chief Jeremy Sturgeon, lead chief for the NASCC detachment. "Now, it's moved to Norfolk. Our mission has not changed at all. The only thing that has changed is our homeport."

HM-15's mission is to maintain a worldwide, 72-hour airborne mine countermeasures (AMCM) rapid deployment posture. It also maintains four MH-53s and 100 Sailors forward deployed in the Arabian Gulf region on a rotational schedule.

The squadron has 14 MH-53 Sea Dragons, the largest helicopter in Western military use.

Hurricane 17's four-man crew – Lt. Cmdr. Ian Wolfe, Lt. Steve Mason, Aviation Warfare Systems Operator 2nd Class Nicholas Reit and Aviation Warfare Systems Operator 3rd Class Mark Covington – were scheduled to follow the Gulf Coast to Destin, Fla., where they would rest overnight before continuing to Norfolk the next day.

That leaves 60 Sailors assigned to HM-15's Corpus Christi detachment, but only a dozen are slated to move to Norfolk.

"The other 48, including me, will be moving to new assignments," Sturgeon said.

HM-15's move to Norfolk is part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission's decisions to consolidate anti-mine warfare on the East and West Coast.

Minesweepers assigned to Naval Station Ingleside, which will close in 2010, moved to California this summer.
Most of HM-15 moved to their new home on the East Coast in September, but a detachment remained at NAS Corpus Christi to close down the operation and prepare Hurricane 17 for flight.

"When it lifted off the ground for the first time in November, there were a lot of cheers," Sturgeon said.

Search Continues for T-34 Instructor Pilots

WASHINGTON (NNS) -- The search for two instructor pilots of Training Squadron 28 continues Oct. 30 after losing contact with them approximately 3:20 p.m. Oct. 28.

Lt. John Joseph Houston and Lt. Bret Travis Miller left Naval Air Station Corpus Christi on a routine training mission in the area of Rockport-Aransas County Airport, Texas.

Local Navy, Coast Guard, Customs and Border Protection Agency and other government agencies are using surface and airborne assets to conduct the search. The search is from Port Aransas to Port O'Connor, from 30 miles offshore to 25 miles inland and surrounding bays.

Navy Loses Communication with T-34 Training Aircraft

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (NNS) -- Naval Air Station Corpus Christi air traffic control tower lost contact with a T-34C Turbomentor aircraft at approximately 3:20 p.m. Oct. 28.

The aircraft and two pilots aboard are assigned to Training Air Wing 4 based out of NAS Corpus Christi, Texas.

Local Coast Guard surface and airborne assets are currently conducting a search near Port Lavaca, Texas. The aircraft was conducting routine training missions.