TACAMO training

Training aircrews to carry out the mission of Communication, Command and Control of nuclear forces has always been a challenge for the TACAMO (Take Charge And Move Out) Community. A sizeable portion of the training has normally been accomplished in flight during TACAMO missions for the Navigator and Guys in Back (GIBs), i.e. Airborne Communications Officer (NFOs), Radiomen, In-flight Technicians and Dual Trailing Wire Antenna Operators (Reel Operators); On the other hand, training for the Pilots and Flight Engineers includes numerous hours in the Operational Flight Trainer (OFT), and a flight syllabus utilizing both the 707 (TG-18E - sometimes referred to as "Seven Oh") pilot training aircraft and actual E-6 assets (see Wings of Gold, Spring 97). While inflight training is still a necessity, total training for these aircrewman is one giant step closer to coming of age due to the expected acquisition of a Navigation System Trainer (NST), FMCS Part Task Trainer (FMCS PTT), and a Maintenance Avionics System Trainer (MAST).

Tinker AFB, located near Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, is the permanent residence for the TACAMO Community, directed by Commander, Strategic Communications Wing One, and includes Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron's Three and Four (VQ-3 and VQ-4), and two important training and support units, a Naval Training Support Unit (NTSU), and a Naval Aviation Maintenance Training Group Detachment (NAMTRAGRU) .

NST

For a newly reporting student Navigator, training at NTSU - effectively, the TACAMO Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS) - has been severely limited to classroom instruction, computer-based training, and several brief periods of instruction in the OFT. TACAMO NFOs have never had the luxury of instruction onboard either of the two "Seven Oh" training aircraft due to the lack of a Navigator Station. However, this is about to change, and change dramatically! For the first time in TACAMO's 30plus year history, NFOs will be able to train on the Navigation System Trainer, scheduled for delivery this year. The NST is an exact replica of the Navigator Station on E-GA and E6B aircraft. It can duplicate the operation of the aircraft from preflight to post-flight, and allow introduction of specified parameters and situations into each flight scenario, anywhere in the world. These include air refueling with KC-10 or KC-135 tanker aircraft, OpAreas, precision and non-precision approaches, and dead-reckoning navigation, to name a few, and allows the manipulation of equipment and instrumentation to induce malfunctions to test the student's skill level.

One of the more critical procedures performed by a TACAMO Navigator (Nav) involves running an air refueling rendezvous utilizing the APS-133 radar. In a typical rendezvous, the tanking and receiving aircraft speed toward each other with an 800-knot closure rate, and over a distance of 100 miles. As the aircraft converge, the E-6 Nav must call out distances, make necessary radio calls and determine if the receiving aircraft needs to adjust power to successfully rendezvous. He or she does this mainly through the use of the radar. What begins as a radar beacon return rapidly becomes a more challenging target when the Nav attempts to skinpaint the tanker with the radar. This is done to give the crew a more accurate depiction of the tanker's position, especially critical at night or in bad weather. The excessive closure rate allows only a few minutes to accurately skin-paint the target. Up until the delivery of the NST, the Navs first experience with a rendezvous was actually performed in the air.

Utilizing the NST, Navs will be able to progress slowly and meticulously through air refueling scenarios, honing and developing techniques. Procedural errors can be reviewed or replayed, as well as good performances. The radar simulation provided by the NST is exceptionally realistic, and allows the Nav to gain experience identifying and avoiding weather of varying intensities, as well as identifying air refueling tankers. A new NFO averaged obtaining EZ Navigator qualification four to six months into the first tour. The NST is expected to reduce qual time to one to two months.

FMCS PTT

A TACAMO Nav's functions revolve around the Flight Management Computer System, which is the central nervous system of the aircraft navigation systems. The FMCS receives inputs from the Laser Ring Gyro Inertial Reference System, Global Positioning System, and a Digital Air Data Computer. To "learn the box" and gain proficiency, a Nav must expend hours of repetitive training, scrolling through the seemingly endless pages of the FMCS, inserting and extracting information. Adding to the difficulty is the fact a number of these pages are not accessible unless the aircraft is in flight.

For new Navs, their first encounter with the box included several short sessions in the OFT, usually followed by a preflight for an actual mission. The FMCS Part Task Trainer was designed specifically to alleviate this training shortfall, and will be delivered this year.

The FMCS PTT is a software driven actual FMCS that a Nav or pilot can "fly" to gain proficiency. In addition, students will have the ability to take an FMCS CD ROM program to any compatible personal computer for home study. this allows both Navs and pilots to gain thorough proficiency before entering syllabus events requiring the use of the NST or OFT. The benefits of this device alone are profound. In general terms, the FMCS requires about 25 hours of training to operate proficiently. The FMCS PTT enables Navs and pilots to step into their respective simulators already up to speed with the FMCS. It effectively will eliminate the dependence on the OFT or actual aircraft for FMCS training, and enables the most effective use of the and OFT for purely flight training scenarios.

MAST

The Maintenance Avionics Systems Trainer was recently delivered to NAMTRAGRUDET. This equipment is the next best training tool to a Weapons System Trainer (WST) . Replicating the Communication Central and Battle Staff work stations in the E-6B tube allows aircrews to become proficient with the complex array of integrated communications equipment, including MILSTAR, a Mission Computer System, VLF transmit and receive equipment, and other HF and UHF command and control radio systems. Although designated as a maintenance trainer, its limitations will be more than offset by the benefits to the aircrew flying the TACAMO and Airborne Command Post missions.

Airborne Communication Officers are NFOs onboard the EX who have fleeted up from the Navigator position, and are responsible for training their comm crews. Prior to the acquisition of this trainer, an Airborne Communications Officer Trainee (ACO-T) attended a two-week equipment familiarization course at the NAMTRAGRUDET. Upon completion, he or she attended a two-week TACAMO Tactics course at NTSU. Unfortunately, the bulk of an ACO-Ts training had to occur during actual mission flights, which is roughly a nine to 12 month process. With proper management, the qualification time for ACOs should be cut by at least one half. This trainer is expected to fill many of the training deficiencies in ACO training, as well as for radiomen, in-flight technician, and reel operator instruction. The addition of the MAST enables ACOs to exercise and evaluate comm crews, learn new procedures, and ultimately ensure the crew can efficiently perform the mission objectives. In conjunction with the High Power Transmit System (HPTS), which includes the VLF Power Amplifier, Long, Short, and utility Trailing Wire Antenna assemblies, the MAST will provide the capability to exercise the entire communications crew. In effect, aircrews may soon be able to perform workups prior to scheduled deployments.

Meeting the New Mission

The training benefits soon to be realized by the acquisition of these trainers is immeasurable. With TACAMO scheduled to take over the Strategic Command's Looking Glass Airborne Command Post mission late this year, these devices are critical and necessary elements in fleeting uI TACAMO aircrews to perform their new tasking_.

Training and readiness for the TACAMO Community is coming full circle with the addition of these instructional devices. As TACAMO takes over the Strategic Command's Airborne Command Post (ABNCP) duties, improving aircrew training has become a high priority. The acquisition of this equipment ensures a smooth transfer of the Looking Glass mission between the EC-135 ABNCP and E-6B TACAMO ABNCP will occur. It also fills a training void for TACAMO NFOs which has existed since the inception of TACAMO. This year, E-6B training will live up to the community's expectations and TAKE CHARGE AND MOVE OUT!

Copyright Association of Naval Aviation Fall 1998
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