Hello,
This isn't the first incarnation of an "enlisted pilot" or "flying CPO" program that the Navy has tried. The genesis was the Aviation Pilot rating of WWII vintage; which led to the NAVCAD program followed by the LDO Aviators of the 80's and in the 90's the Navy brought back the NAVCAD program. All of these programs were great if you were at the right age, at the right time with the requisite qualifications.
The military is very short-sighted when it comes to personnel managment. I don't think that this is by design as much as it is the Pentagon attempting to repond to political policy, fiscal realities and real-world manning dilemmas. The Navy in particular in the past has been the slowest to respond to mandates from political decisions than the Army for example. However, the blood flowed freely in the ASW (I think that they call it USW nowadays) community, and it will never fully recover from the loss of highly experienced pilots, NFOs and aircrewman. Mission "creep" has also taken it's toll on expertise in USW and "blue-water ops". The bell will toll someday in the undersea arena once again, but who will answer it?
It is my hope that the Navy will finally awaken to the fact that career paths are not as important as the mission. Perhaps this new program will recognize that a 27 year old ensign in the right seat of a P-3 or it's follow-on with up to 10 years experience as an AW for instance is more valuable than the newly-minted ROTC or "Boat School" graduate.
Anyway, too late for this old dog. So, I'll be content to read about it in the papers and fly "Mighty Beech"
Regards,
ex-Navy Rotorhead
former AW1 (SH-2F/HH-2D, SH-60F/HH-60H)
