4 minute read
Seahunter: Train to Win
Seahunter: Train to Win
By CAPT Daniel "DMart" Martins, USN
Rotary-wing aviation has always balanced specialization in warfighting and the utility of being the most flexible aircraft in the Navy. A renewed focus on our respective core missions and tactical integration into maritime fights is the surest way the HSM Community can contribute to victory in combat. As Seawolf celebrates the 25th year anniversary of the Seahawk Weapons and Tactics Instructor Program, another NAWDC Weapons School stands up, building on the rich tactical legacy of Seawolf.
On February 1, 2023, NAWDC divided the Instructor Cadre of the Rotary Wing Weapons School to form a new department. The MH-60R Weapons School, Seahunter, exists to produce Seahawk Weapons and Tactics Instructors, develop tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs), provide subject matter expertise in ASW, SUW, and EW, and train MH-60R pilots and sensor operators, ensuring victory in combat. The exigencies of great power competition have sharpened the Navy’s focus on training and deploying the most lethal maritime force. Throughout the Navy, we must continue to train and fight as a team since no single type, model, series aircraft, surface combatant, or submarine will win the next war alone. Yet, the establishment of Seahunter enables a focused cadre of instructors, a syllabus devoted to the MH-60R's primary mission areas, and TTP development under the leadership of an HSM Skipper.
Seahunter conducts two Seahawk Weapons and Tactics Courses per year while providing subject matter experts and instructors to assist NAWDC’s N5 Strike Department’s Air Wing Fallon (AWF) Training. The SWTI Course and AWF Training give the Seahunter Instructors a unique perspective and opportunity to iterate and test MH-60R TTPs. Every MH-60R Crew must be prepared to operate as a single aircraft, a section, or fully integrated into an Air Wing Strike or Coordinated ASW Mission. Through AWF, feedback from HARPs, and the SWTI Course, instructors then codify these TTPs in the Seahunter Manual through chapter rewrites and Tactical Recommendations (TACRECS).
But how can Seahunter do ASW in the high desert of Nevada? The simple answer is we travel a lot. The SWTI Course events take us to San Diego and Jacksonville, and we make full use of simulators and fly Fleet aircraft in the SWTI Course. Seahunter Instructors also get a chance to fly with Fleet crews and aircraft during proficiency detachments and Air Wing Fallon detachments including unit level training events.
In the time between the courses, Seahunter Instructors qualify as Mountain Flying Instructors to support NAWDC SAR Duty. This weeklong course is the only CNOapproved Mountain Flying Curriculum and is taught and administered by the SEAWOLF Mountain Flying Program Manager. This qualification ensures basic flight proficiency
while training to expertly fly and land in the high-density altitude and mountainous environment of Nevada and Northern California. Seahunter Instructors will complete four Instructor-Under-Training (IUT) Mountain Flying Events following the mountain flying course to gain further proficiency operating the H-60 at high-density altitudes and under power-limited conditions for landing in mountainous terrain. Once instructors are IUT complete, they instruct Mountain Flying events during the SWTI Course and can provide orientation flights to visiting HSM Squadrons during Air Wing Fallon.
On June 29th, Seahunter held the Inaugural Graduation under this new construct. Graduates completed the 10-week course after conducting flights at NAS Fallon, Andros Island, Bahamas, simulators in Jacksonville, Florida, and simulators and flights at NAS North Island, including flights in support of exercise RESOLUTE HUNTER. Held at the World Famous I-Bar, the graduation’s guest speaker was Commodore David “Frosty” Frost, Commander Fleet Air Arm, Royal Australian Navy (RAN). This graduating class had the distinction of graduating the first RAN Aviation Warfare Officer (AvWO), LCDR Jeffrey “Toppo” Topping. Training with the RAN will go a long way to ensuring our closest allies are trained to the latest and relevant TTPs. The graduating class was patched by the graduate’s SWTI Mentor, either active duty or retired, and was welcomed by the community of warfighters at a reception immediately following at the I-BAR.
A tour at NAWDC is hard. The SWTI Course is challenging. A NAWDC Tour and the SWTI Patch are not for everyone. Yet the pilots and aircrewmen who embark upon either professional journey are rewarded with the opportunity to solve the hard problems the Navy faces in future conflict. They get to instruct at the highest tactical level and are expected to maintain complete ownership over their respective tactical expertise. The SWTI is only bound by their imagination, determination, and desire to innovate.
The MH-60R Weapons School, Seahunter, is absolutely looking for those who are up to the challenge!
