Pacific Fleet’s Aviators Score Safest Year Yet

In 1989, a year marked by the decade’s highest death toll of Navy personnel, Pacific Fleet aviators had their safest 12-month period, officials said.

“The momentum is in the right direction and we will continue to work hard . . . to further reduce aviation mishaps,” Vice Adm. Jack Fetterman wrote in a safety report earlier this month. “However, the primary cause factor remains pilot error.”

Among the Pacific Fleet’s 120 squadrons, there were 2.9 accidents for every 100,000 hours of flight in 1989. Fourteen pilots or crew were killed and 17 aircraft were lost, officials said.

That translates into 16 aircraft mishaps in which either someone was killed or an accident was so severe that it required more than $1 million in repairs. During the previous year, there were four accidents per 100,000 flight hours, or 21 serious accidents graded as Class A mishaps.

“The trend in aviation safety has been extremely encouraging and positive throughout the years. Aviation is leading the Navy in safety,” said Eugene Carroll, a retired rear admiral who is deputy director of the Center for Defense Information, a nonprofit group monitoring military affairs. “The record is one of superb achievement due to much-improved equipment and greatly improved attention to details of aviation safety.” The Pacific Fleet’s Naval Air Forces patrol a 100-million-square-mile area, ranging from the east coast of Africa to Reno, Nev. For the task, the fleet has almost 2,000 aircraft, 17 air stations and 65,000 active-duty personnel. Aviators flew about 550,000 hours in 1989.

Last year, the command also suffered two accidents deemed less serious, warranting $200,000 to $1 million in repairs. In 1988, there were three such mishaps; the previous year, there were 12.

But, over the years, the fleet’s safety record has improved dramatically. During the 1950s, there were about 65 serious accidents in a year, said Capt. Charlie Robinson, safety officer for the Pacific Fleet Naval Air Forces. In 1970, there were 20 accidents Navy-wide per 100,000 flight hours, and 10 in 1980.

“The only valid goal is zero accidents,” Robinson said. “One is too many.”

Last fall, the Navy was plagued by a string of accidents, including men swept overboard, killed in ship collisions and in plane crashes. The toll surpassed 100 Navy personnel killed during training and operational procedures, and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Carlisle A.H. Trost ordered an unprecedented service-wide safety review.

It was a review that local officials welcomed, “though we felt all along that we were doing what we needed to do,” said Lt. Cmdr. Bob Pritchard, spokesman for the Pacific Fleet Naval Air Forces.

For the last three years, according to Fetterman’s memo, pilot error was cited as a cause in about 60% of the accidents. Material failure accounted for about 40% of the incidents, Robinson said. Other factors include supervisors’ error and maintenance error.

“Most of these were caused by lack of actions or procedures when pilots were confronted with out-of-the-ordinary or extreme situations,” said Fetterman in a memo to his boss, Adm. David E. Jeremiah, commander of the Pacific Fleet. “The bottom line is the pilots and air crew must know their procedures in extreme situations and be able to act immediately and properly.”

Fetterman was unavailable for comment Monday. But officials point out that “pilot error” constitutes a broad category that doesn’t necessarily exclude other causes such as aircraft or material failure. Yet each squadron practices for emergencies, or “bold face emergency tests.” In one mishap, an F14 Tomcat fighter jet’s compressor stalled, causing an explosive flash. The plane began flying sideways and the pilot was half blinded by the flash. Because the pilot omitted one step in the safety procedures, the subsequent crash was attributed to pilot error, as well as material failure, Robinson said.

“It’s a cruel business in the way of blaming the pilot--sometimes the error isn’t strictly the guy flying into a mountain,” he said.

Only one incident, according to Fetterman’s report, was caused by “a lack of discipline” and procedural violation. This occurred when the pilots in an F-14 Tomcat removed their oxygen masks during a flight to New Orleans. Lacking sufficient oxygen at the high altitude, the crew became giddy, lost control of the jet and crashed, Robinson said.

As a result of this breach of discipline, Fetterman cracked down hard when another pilot violated rules, though no one was hurt. Fetterman stripped a 28-year-old aviator of his wings after learning that the pilot had been caught “flat hatting,” or buzzing the beach, in an A-7 Corsair II attack jet.

“Readiness and safety are inseparable and support each other,” Fetterman said in his report. And this month, Fetterman hopes to get the safety campaign off to a strong start.

In previous years, accidents have struck the Pacific Fleet Naval Air Forces before Jan. 20. But, after stepping up safety reviews, Fetterman said, he hopes to avoid the customary post-holiday accident.

“If we can delay that first mishap, it could mean the difference between a good year and a great year,” Fetterman said in his report.