Two UH-60 Black Hawks depart Double Eagle II Airport, west of Albuquerque, N.M., in preparation for environmental training. Division West trainers run deploying Army Reserve and National Guard aviators through high-altitude- and brownout-landing scen...
DOUBLE EAGLE II AIRPORT, N.M. -- Navigating safely over the rugged terrain of central Asia demands the best of man and machine, and the trainers of First Army Division West are bringing out just that in an Afghanistan-like environment west of Albuquerque.
Training deploying National Guard and Reserve aircrews to cope with the high altitude and blinding dust that play havoc with the ability to safely land a helicopter is the business of the "Nighthawks" of 1st Battalion, 351st Aviation Regiment, 166th Aviation Brigade.
These Division West trainers teach pilots to compensate for the negative affect that high altitude has on aircraft performance, key to keeping U.S. Army Apaches, Black Hawks and Chinooks out of harm's way among the region's 11,000-foot mountainous landscape. They also run aviators through a series of techniques for surviving dust -- or "brownout" -- landings which can be extremely dangerous when pilots lose sight of the ground.
Most of the training takes place near Albuquerque's Double Eagle II Airport, a high-altitude location with plenty of dust.
"Imagine that you are an aviator used to flying at a typical elevation 900 feet above sea level," said Chief Warrant Officer Kyle Clark, 1-351st Aviation Battalion safety officer. "Now imagine you deploy to Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan. Suddenly, you find yourself surrounded by mountains which easily exceed 11,000 thousand feet."
Higher altitude means thinner air, requiring the aircraft to work harder to maintain lift.
"You might be tasked to perform a mission that requires you to land to a 9,000-foot mountain peak," Clark said. When you are on short final, you may hear an alarm telling you that you have exceeded your aircraft's abilities and your rotor system is slowing down. If you don't act quickly enough, you and your aircraft are going to strike the mountain in a rapid fall. This can be avoided with proper training."
The 1-351st coaches the deploying units and demonstrates to them safe techniques at various landing sites on mountains throughout New Mexico, Clark said. "All deploying units typically receive between six and 10 days to train there. Units on their way to Afghanistan find the high altitude training to be extremely beneficial since they will most likely encounter all of these environments."
Dust landings are another challenge an aviator going to Iraq or Afghanistan will experience. As an aircraft approaches the ground when landing to a dusty environment, dust can envelop the aircraft causing the pilots to basically land blind.
"If this happens, the aircraft may start to slide to the left or the right, and could cause the aircraft to roll over," Clark said. "Dust landing is a skill that takes both time and a proper environment to master."
Collectively, these two types of aviator training are called "environmental training."
"Environmental training requires significant coordination and has many moving parts. But for the units, this training is invaluable," Clark said. "It significantly reduces the risk of a deploying unit, and helps to bring their Soldiers home safely."
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