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Old 09-21-2007, 11:40 PM
  #6  
Sid Vicious
On Reserve
 
Joined APC: Jul 2007
Posts: 16
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To say that the Army does not understand the needs of aviation and does not provide the tools to get the job done safely is not true at all. Every unit SOP that I have seen has very clear guidance on crew endurance policy. AR 95-1 (para 3-17) requires commanders to establish a crew endurance program and DA Pam 385-90 (para 2-12) requires fatigue/rest management procedures to be included in the unit SOP. AR 385-95 (para 2-16) lists what the commander’s responsibilities are toward fighter management. The Combat Resource Center also has a number of publications that give guidance on developing a crew endurance program. For example, check out https://crc.army.mil/tools/handbooks...on/crewend.pdf. The previous edition of AR 95-1 (1 Sep 97) had a crew endurance guide (Table 3-1) that provided some recommended numbers to serve as a base when establishing crew endurance limitations. It was removed from the Feb 06 edition, but most units still use that as a basic guideline. I don’t mean to be a nerd and toss out a bunch of regulation references, but it sounds like your commander may not be aware of what his requirements are in regards to crew endurance and showing him in black and white may be helpful.
Regardless of what actual numbers your unit uses and the method they choose to implement it, the fighter management program is a command function/responsibility. The commander is not only required to establish a program, but he’s also the person whose butt will be on the line in the event of a mishap if no such program exists or it is not enforced. If that is not enough reason for him to place emphasis on the program, along with keeping his pilots safe, then I don’t know what is.
As far as tracking tools, I have some decent excel spreadsheets from my last couple of units. Send me your email and I will shoot them to you. I can probably dig up the crew endurance portion of our SOP as well if you want it.
Good luck and fly safe!
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