5. Semirigids. Instruction will be given in semirigids, if available. 6. Rigid airship course. Before qualification a student must have a minimum of 15 flights and 200 hours in the air in rigid airships, not more than 50 hours of which may be time at high mooring masts, and must have satisfactorily performed the following duties the minimum number of times or number of hours indicated and show by demonstration that he can satisfactorily perform such duties, and have at least 6 months' association with a rigid airship in active operative commission. Time off watch in excess of 40 hours does not count toward accumulation of hours required herein. (a) Ground handling. 1. Weighing off. The student shall supervise the weigh off of a 2. Gassing ship__ 6 times 2 times 7. Preparation for flight.. The student shall prepare a rigid airship for flight, 8. Fueling. The student shall be in charge of fueling a rigid air- (b) Flight. 2 times The student shall let the ship go from the mast 2 times 2 times During flight the student shall perform duties at various Engine tender.. Power watch. The commanding officer of the rigid airship assigned to training duties is responsible for the proper assignment of students to insure that these requirements are fulfilled. A written examination will be given to all students covering the subjects outlined above, which will include problems in rigid airship operation and practical flying. During the IVth period of the time employment schedule students will be assigned to special billets on board a rigid airship as the exigencies of the service permit. (C) Mooring and handling.-Organization of ground crew. Handling airships and balloons on the ground. Landing airships under various conditions of trim, load, and weather. Will consist of actual experience as a unit of the mooring division during the handling of rigid and nonrigid airships. (D) Gunnery. The course in gunnery consists of ground-school instruction and machine gun and pistol firing on the range. Machine guns are taken up in detail in the instruction, as it is the object of the training to acquaint the student with the fundamental principles of machine guns in order that he may be fitted more easily to expand his knowledge of this subject when the necessity arises and that he may have a general knowledge of the conditions which must be met in the air. On the range all students shall assist in cleaning, oiling, and assembling the guns used in the practices. A statement that all local safety precautions are thoroughly understood shall be signed by each student before beginning range gunnery. The regular Navy pistol course will be fired for record. Machine-gun practices will be fired as designated by the commanding officer using all facilities available. (E) Bombing.-The scope of this subject is wide and its details many, but the following course aims only to familiarize the student with bomb sights, their adjustment, and the fundamental principles upon which they are based, and to create in him the ability to drop single bombs with accuracy. Too much emphasis cannot be placed on the necessity of carrying out the following practice and instructions with the utmost care, thoroughness, and accuracy in order to obtain maximum results in such a limited scope. Very close supervision is necessary in order to discourage at their inception tendencies to slur or expedite practices with the idea of maintaining the schedule by making up for previously lost time. 1. Ground instruction. Theory of bombing. (a) Line of range. (b) Trajectory (vacuum). (c) Dropping angles. (d) Air resistance effects. The principle of bomb sights. (a) Effects of change in dropping angle. (b) Principles of the drift bar. Errors and the calculation of errors. Bombing a moving target. Design and construction of bomb rakes. Operation of bomb sight. Releasing gears-attaching bombs. Bombs and bomb fixtures-types, precautions, aiming, firing, etc. 2. Bombing practice. Before taking up actual bombing the class shall be divided into teams, and it must be firmly impressed on the students' minds that success in bombing depends not on individual skill but on the combined accuracy of both pilot and bomber and on close cooperation between the two. A statement to the effect that the rules and safety precautions governing operations in aerial bombing are thoroughly understood must be signed by students before beginning the syllabus. Bombing practice will be held as prescribed by the commanding officer. (F) Practical aerial navigation. This course will be conducted under the supervision of the officer in charge of ground school. For the carrying out of this Three navigational course the class shall be divided into teams of three men. problems, compiled by the officer in charge of ground school, shall be solved by each student, his team mates acting as pilot and radio operator respectively. In this way a total of 9 flights must be executed, of which 3 are devoted to the duties of piloting, 3 to navigation, and 3 to operation of the radio apparatus. The general subject of these problems shall be: 1. Coast piloting. 2. Interception. 3. Astronomical observations. (G) Outside reading course.-Student naval aviators (airship) are required to make full use of the ground-school library. The outside reading course consists of books on the following subjects: Aerology, aerostatics, airship design, aerial photography, aircraft instruments, and balloons. GENERAL OUTLINE OF TRAINING OF NAVAL AVIATION OBSERVERS (AIRSHIP) The primary duty of a naval aviation observer (airship) is to relieve the operating airship crew from certain observation duty and work connected therewith. The effect of close concentration by the observer on the scouting or bombing work at hand will serve the mission of the airship to an advantageous end. In event of a national emergency, when the rapid production of personnel trained for specific duties would be necessary, the present time of producing a competent officer flying crew for an airship could be reduced by training some for operating duties alone and some for observers' duties alone. Naval aviation observers for airships shall have the following qualifications: (a) Be officers of the Navy. (b) Shall be physically qualified to take flights in aircraft. (c) Shall Be free and kite balloon pilots. Be qualified to handle elevators of nonrigid ship in straight flight and rudder at landing and take-off. Be competent navigators. Know the rules of the road of air and sea. Know aerial gunnery, bombing, and fire control as applied to lighterthan-air craft. Understand maps and map reading. Know aerial communications as applied to lighter-than-air craft. Be familiar with naval strategy and tactics. Be familiar with and able to recognize the various types of naval vessels and aircraft. Know the details of meteorology. Know the contents of the Bureau of Aeronautics Manual. In order that the officers detailed as student naval aviation observers (airship) may have the stipulated knowledge necessary for their qualification, the ground training course for naval aviator (airship) will be given them. the following subjects will be added: Aerial communications (advanced). Aerial navigation and map reading (advanced). Naval and aerial strategy and tactics. Advanced meteorology. Photography. Review of naval gunnery and fire control as applied to airships. Bombing as applied to airships. To this course The above instruction will include theoretical and practical work on the ground and the application in aerial flights of the knowledge gained. The entire course will cover a period of approximately 4 months. The course of instruction for naval aviation observers (airship) can best be held at a station regularly including in its organization a flight school, but in time of war it would be possible to conduct the syllabus which follows at any operating rigid airship station. An officer, when detailed to training in the duties of an observer, shall, subject to the approval of the Bureaus of Navigation and Aeronautics, be designated a student naval aviation observer (airship), and at the completion of that course, if found qualified by a competent board composed of naval aviators (airship), he shall, subject to the same approval as above, be designated a naval aviation observer (airship). Upon reporting of a class for training, its members shall immediately appear before a medical examining board to determine their fitness for aviation duty. Having been accepted by this board, they shall be given a free balloon flight of at least one hour's duration. During this flight the nomenclature and general principles of ballooning shall be explained by the instructor. The regular course of instruction shall be carried out as described in section A of the syllabus for the training of naval aviators (airship). In addition to section A, a regular free-ballooning course, kite balloon course, a minimum of 5 flights and 15 hours (8 on rudders and 7 on elevators) in nonrigid airships, a minimum of 10 flights and 100 hours in flight in rigid airships, will be required and the subjects in the following outline will be given. Throughout the course particular attention should be paid to the economical use of the allotted time for each subject, using good weather for flying and inclement weather for ground instruction. AERIAL COMMUNICATIONS (ADVANCED), 20 HOURS In addition to the requirements outlined in section A of the syllabus for naval aviators (airship), the student shall be capable of taking charge of the communication department of a rigid airship and be familiar with it in every detail. AERIAL NAVIGATION AND MAP READING, 60 HOURS The course in aerial navigation and map reading is compiled with a view to making the observer capable of directing an aircraft from any point to another, over land or sea, through darkness or fog, To this end three subdivisions are given-theoretical, practical, and air work. In the application of the outline for the course every consideration should be taken of the state of weather for execution of those items coming under practical and air work, using inclement days for theoretical work and clear days for practical or air work. (A) Theoretical_. (a) Piloting. Compasses, compensation, adjustment, and magnetism. Drift meters. 20 hours The strategy and tactics of surface craft and aircraft is of paramount importance to a naval observer in that the sum and substance of the efficiency while on reconnaissance duty depends on his knowledge of the characteristics of the various types of ships and airplanes and the maneuvers and formation which they employ. (A) Theoretical..... 18 hours Recognition of the various types of air and surface craft of the different nations. Cruising formations and the relative position of each force within the fleet. Form of reporting the statistics of an enemy fleet or force and the items of information to secure. Scouting: Various methods of obtaining information regarding foreign countries. Organization of scouting units. Search: (1) Estimating the situation. (2) Factors to be considered in determining type of search. (4) Search from the flank (a) Retiring search curve. (b) Independent method. (d) Patrol method. (5) Search from the rear or trailing. (6) Use of aircraft in different methods of searching. (7) Advantages and disadvantages of the various methods. Contact scouting. Strategical scouting. Screening: (1) Offensive. (2) Protective. (3) Defensive. Protective scouting. Antisubmarine operations by aircraft. Singly. In cooperation with surface craft. Emergency. Routine. Comparative value of lighter-than-air craft and heavier-than-air craft under various conditions. Convoy patrols. Estimate of the situation. Formulation of orders. Aerial tactics: Formation flying. Bombardment flights. Offensive tactics. Protective tactics. Defensive tactics. Examination. (B) Practical work____ Game-board problems. 4 hours. (C) Air work. None. METEOROLOGY (ADVANCED), 20 HOURS Additional drawing of weather maps from code and forecasting. AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY, 10 HOURS The aim of this course is to give the student that knowledge which will enable him to use the photographic equipment in the field sufficiently well to obtain results that will be of value to the persons by whom the photographs are to be ultimately used. The method of taking pictures, the effecting of minor repairs to cameras, the reproduction of prints and the duties of a photographic officer only are touched upon, the advanced theory of photography being left for the student, by his own initiative, to absorb after the completion of his observers' course and when on duty in the field. (A) Theoretical.. A brief history of photography. The uses of photography for naval aviation. 5 hours. |