Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center

USNI News Video: Naval Aviation Breaks Out the Tape Measure to Size Up a New Generation of Pilots

A sailor undergoes testing at the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division in 2021. US Navy Photo

NAVAL AIR STATION PATUXENT RIVER, Md. – What aircraft a Navy pilot could fly might come down to pure genetics – the range of motion of their thumb or how high their eye-line is when they sit. 

The service tests these and a myriad of other physical attributes to determine who qualifies to fly and with what platform they should be paired.

The current guidelines that the measurements are compared to...

https://news.usni.org/2023/05/17/usni-news-video-naval-aviation-breaks-out-the-tape-measure-to-size-up-a-new-generation-of-pilots

Navy Loses 17th Sailor to COVID-19

A sailor plays ‘Taps.’ US Navy Photo

A Naval reservist died from COVID-19-related complications, the Navy announced Tuesday.

Lt. Ivey Quintana-Martinez, 35, is the 17th sailor the Navy has lost to COVID-19, according to a USNI News tally of COVID-19 deaths. Quintana-Martinez, of Lake Elsinore, Calif., died at Cedar Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, Calif., on Dec. 18.

She was admitted on Nov. 10. Her vaccination status is unclear. While active-duty sailors needed to be fully vaccinated by Nov....

https://news.usni.org/2021/12/21/navy-loses-17th-sailor-to-covid-19

Navy Loses 15th Sailor to COVID-19, Second Death in October

Master-at-Arms Senior Chief Michael Haberstumpf died Oct. 10 from COVID-19-related complications. US NAVY PHOTO

A sailor stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., died from complications related to COVID-19 earlier this month, the Navy announced Wednesday.

Master-at-Arms Senior Chief Michael Haberstumpf, 42, died from complications of COVID-19 on Oct. 10 at University of North Carolina Medical Center in Chapel Hill, according to a Navy press release. Haberstumpf is the 15th sailor to die from the disease...

https://news.usni.org/2021/10/20/navy-loses-15th-sailor-to-covid-19-second-death-in-october

Navy loses 14th Sailor to COVID-19

Aviation Electrician’s Mates (AE) (Mechanical) 1st Class Cory Weber died of COVID-19 complications Oct. 3. US Navy Photo

A sailor assigned to Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Command died of complications from COVID-19 Sunday, the service announced on Wednesday.

Aviation Electrician’s Mates (Mechanical) 1st Class Cory Weber, 51, is the 14th sailor to die of COVID-19 since the pandemic began in December 2020, according to a USNI News tally of active-duty deaths. He died at Sunrise hospital...

https://news.usni.org/2021/10/06/navy-loses-14th-sailor-to-covid-19

GAO Report on Surface Warfare Officer Career Path

The following is the Government Accountability Officer June 17, 2021 report, Navy Readiness: Actions Needed to Evaluate and Improve Surface Warfare Officer Career Path

From the report

SWOs are U.S. Navy officers whose primary duties focus on the safe operation of surface ships at sea. In 2017, the Navy had two collisions at sea that resulted in the death of 17 sailors and hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to Navy ships. Following the collisions, the Navy identified deficiencies in the SWO...

https://news.usni.org/2021/06/18/gao-report-on-surface-warfare-officer-career-path

Navy Announces Slew of Promotions, Including New Head of Submarine Force Pacific

Gen. John Hyten, commander of U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), center, discusses submarine maintenance with Rear Adm. Jeffrey Jablon, commander of Submarine Group 10, left, and Capt. Paul Dinius, commanding officer of the Trident Refit Facility, at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Ga. US Navy photo.

The Navy this week announced a series of promotions and new assignments for flag officers, including a new head of submarine forces in the Pacific.
The service on Thursday issued a list of 25 rear...

https://news.usni.org/2021/02/26/navy-announces-slew-of-promotions-including-new-head-of-submarine-force-pacific

Mission Capable: How More Ready Jets Is Helping the Navy Create Deadlier Pilots

Sailors inspect an F/A-18E Super Hornet, assigned to the ‘Blue Diamonds’ of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 146, on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) on March 23, 2020. US Navy Photo

This post is the second in a two-part series on the naval aviation community’s effort to build better readiness and how that is changing the future of naval aviation.

“It was, quite frankly, a little scary.”

In 2015, Rear Adm. Rich Brophy was a captain who had just taken command of...

https://news.usni.org/2020/04/23/mission-capable-how-more-ready-jets-is-helping-the-navy-create-deadlier-pilots