5 minute read
NAS Kingsville Morale, Welfare and Recreation
from NASCC2021
NAVAL AIR STATION KINGSVILLE
strike pipeline, flying the EA-6B Prowler, EA-18G Growler, F/A-18 C/D Hornet, or the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet. Upon selection, they move on to Fleet Replacement Squadrons where they will learn their fleet aircraft.
Advertisement
Boeing T-45 "Goshawk"
The Boeing, T-45 "Goshawk", flown at NAS Kingsville, is a tandem-seat, carrier capable, jet trainer used to train Navy and Marine Corps pilots. A Navy version of the British Aerospace 'Hawk' aircraft, it is used for intermediate and advanced portions of the Navy/ Marine Corps pilot training program for jet carrier aviation and tactical strike missions. The T-45 replaced the T-2 ‘Buckeye’ trainer and the TA-4 ‘Skyhawk’ trainer with an integrated training system that includes the aircraft, operations and instrument fighter simulators, academics, and training integration system. Training Squadron Twenty One (VT-21) "The Fighting Redhawks"
Phone: (361) 516-6440 / DSN: 876-6440 www.cnatra.navy.mil/tw2/vt2l/
Originally commissioned as ATU202 in April 1951, VT-21 began training students in the F-6F "Hellcats." May 1954 was the first time students were trained in a combat aircraft, the F9F 'Panther.' The 'Panthers' were replaced in January 1958 by another Grumman cat, the swept-wing F-9F8 'Cougar.'
The squadron was re-designated VT-21 on May 21, 1960. Within the next year, the squadron flew 15,216 consecutive accident-free hours, and was the first advanced jet training squadron to accomplish this feat. In 1970, after 12 years of service, the 'Cougar' was replaced by the Douglas TA-4J 'Skyhawk.' VT-21 set a record for advanced jet training squadrons in 1972. The instructors and students ofVT-21 logged a total of 60,850 accident-free hours. That same year, the squadron was presented with a Meritorious Unit Commendation. A long list of awards attests to the squad¬ron's outstanding safety record over the years. The Admiral John H. Towers Flight Safety Award was presented to VT-21 in 1968. All 19 jet and propeller squadrons that were part of the Naval Training Command competed for this award. In 1972, the squadron was presented with its 17th ACES (Alertness, Competence, Effectiveness and Safety) Award. This award was presented by the Chief of Naval Air Training for distinguished performance in aviation safety. The Chief of Naval Operations Aviation Safety Award has been presented
BOEING T-45 "GOSHAWK"
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
CONTRACTOR: Boeing Company PROPULSION: Rolls Royce F405-RR-401 turbofan engine with 5,527 pounds thrust WINGSPAN: 30 feet 10 inches (9.39 meters) LENGTH: 39 feet 4 inches (11.98 meters) HEIGHT: 13 feet 6 inches (4.11 meters) WEIGHT: Take-off maximum gross, 13,500 pounds (6,075 kg) empty 9,394pounds (4,261 kg) SPEED: 645 miles per hour CEILING: 42,500 feet RANGE: 700 nautical miles (805 statute miles) ARMAMENT: None CREW: Two (instructor pilot, student pilot)
NEWCOMER INFORMATION
to VT-21 on numerous occasions. This prestigious award is given annually to the squadron with the best safety record in its class. VT-21 won it in 1962, 1965, 1971, 1974, 1976, 1979 1988, 1990, 1996, 1998, and l999. For l982 and 1984, VT-21 was awarded the CNATRA. Training Effectiveness Award for the Best Advanced Training Squadron. In 1976, 1985, and 1996, the squadron was awarded the Vice Admiral Robert Goldwaite Award, singling out VT-21 as number one of the 20 training squadrons in CNATRA.
VT-21 was the first squadron to transition to the T-45 Total System (TS) Strike Flight Training Curriculum. This transition from the Douglas TA-4J "Skyhawk" to the T-45 "Goshawk" began February 1992, with the first students training in January 1993. Training Squadron Twenty Two (VT-22) "The Golden Eagles"
Phone: (361) 516-4084 / DSN: 876-4084 www.cnatra.navy.mil/tw2/vt22/
VT-22 was first formed on June 13, 1949, at Naval Auxiliary Air Station, Corpus Christi, to furnish jet transitional training for newly-designated naval aviators. Designated Advanced Training Unit SIX (ATU6), it received its first aircraft, a T V-I, in July of that year. ATU-6 was the first unit in the training command to instruct in jet aircraft.
After only two months, the unit transferred to NAS Whiting Field, Milton, Fla., and was re-designated Jet Transitional Training Unit ONE (J'ITU-1). The squadron's m1ss10n was extended to include training of fleet pilots. During this period, the unit transitioned the U.S. Navy's Flight Demonstration Squadron, the "Blue Angels", to jet aircraft.
NAVAL AIR STATION KINGSVILLE
On Aug. 20, 1951, J'ITU-l moved to NAS Kingsville and was re-designated Advanced Training Unit THREE (ATU-3). Late in 1952, ATU-3 becameATU-200. The squadron's mission consisted of training newly designated aviators in familiarization, formation tactics, instruments and navigation. ATU-200 was re-designated ATU-212, and with the new name came the mission of all-weather flight training.
In February 1958, ATU-212 began replacing its TV aircraft with the F9F-8 and F9F-8T "Cougar." The syllabus was also expanded to include ordnance delivery and carrier qualification. In May 1960, ATU-212 was redesignated VT-22. In September 1970, VT-22 transitioned to the TA-4J "Skyhawk," a two¬ seat version of the attack bomber employed by the Navy and Marine Corps in Vietnam. The squadron transitioned to the T-45 "Goshawk" in 1994.
Phone: (361) 516-6301 www.cnatra.navy.mil
The Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA) Detachment for Maintenance/ Contracts is responsible for performing surveillance of Naval Air Training Command aviation maintenance contracts. It monitors contracts for the T-45 "Goshawk" aircraft. The 'Goshawk' and related ground training devices are the means by which Training Wing TWO, with Training Squadrons VT-21 and VT22, provide jet/strike training to student naval aviators at NAS Kingsville.
Currently, L-3 Vertex has the contract to provide aircraft maintenance on the T-45 and Rolls-Royce has the F405 power-by¬-the-hour engine contract. Although the contractors have their own quality control inspectors, the CNATRA Maintenance Detachment's mission is to ensure strict compliance. This is accomplished through a series of process audits, which are conducted by CNATRA personnel who have the appropriate training.
