Flying in Birds and Bonding With Army Friends

I had meant to post a couple photos and videos of me getting to fly around in Army helicopters, but got busy. Some of you may have wondered what the heck I was doing down in Alabama for almost a month during November. So...below are photos from my time at Ft. Rucker's Aeromedical Psychology Training Course, which qualifies me to have special expertise as an "Aviation Psychologist" or "Aeroemedical Psychologist." If you want to read nerdy stuff about what that means (lots of technical jargon), see paragraph below. Otherwise skip to the photos and videos.

What my training and qualification as an Aeromedical Psychologist means is that I can do psychological assessments/evaluations on military personnel who are interested in gaining flight status (becoming a member of an aircraft flight crew). In order to do that, a soldier (because this is Army aviation, not Navy or Air Force, in which case they would be sailors and airmen) needs to be evaluated by a Flight Surgeon, which is usually a physician or physician's assistant. As part of that evaluation, there are sometimes psychological diagnoses or medications that the individual is taking that require a waiver for their clearance. 

That's where I could potentially come into the picture, by performing a psychological evaluation as part of the medical team and on behalf of the Flight Surgeon, consisting of at least a clinical interview and often psychological testing (specifically, personality testing) in order to perform an assessment and make a recommendation to the flight surgeon regarding their capability of performing the complex duties as part of an air crew. As an Aeromedical Psychologist, I assess their suitability (in large part) based on the acronym JAIMMI. JAIMMI stands for 1) judgement, 2) adaptability, 3) intelligence, 4) motivation, 5) maturity, and 6) integrity. By conducting the evaluation through this lens, we are ideally able to get people flying that should, and keep people from flying that should not.

Anyway, enough of that. Here are the photos and videos. Enjoy!

 

 

Me posing on the AH-64 (Apache) attack helicopter.

 

 

Me and the other interns on the back of a CH-47 (Chinook) cargo helicopter. 

 

 

Me and the other interns after the flight. 

 

 

View of the ground from the CH-47 (Chinook) cargo helicopter. I got to ride in the jump-seat at the front of the aircraft. 

 

 

The view from the back of the CH-47 (Chinook) helicopter, flying the nap of the earth. This is a river we flew over.

 

 

Flying in the CH-47 (Chinook) helicopter. It was a beautiful fall landscape in southern Alabama, where we flew.

 

 

Inside the CH-47 (Chinook) during the flight.

 

 

The CH-47 Chinook helicopter.

 

 

We visited an accident research center, where they recreated previous accidents that had happened. This is a Chinook cargo helicopter that landed on uneven ground and accidentally tipped over. No fatalities. 

 

 

View of the Chinook helicopter from the back. 

 

 

A surveillance drone that crashed. 

 

 

A Black Hawk (UH-60) helicopter that crashed (can't remember how). No fatalities. 

 

 

Fellow interns Jake and Van on the flight in the UH-60 (Black Hawk) during the flight.

 

 

View of the UH-60 (Black Hawk) from the air. I got to sit in the other Crew Chief seat, which was the best seat in the house!

 

 

Me, in the UH-60 (Black Hawk).

 

 

Posing in the AH-64 (Apache) attack helicopter. 

 

 

Me on the AH-64. 

 

 

M230 chain gun on the AH-64 (Apache) attack helicopter. 

 

 

View of the UH-60 (Black Hawk) simulators we got to fly from inside. 

 

 

The UH-60 simulators in a warehouse.

 

 

Me in the UH-60.

 

 

Same as above. It really cool being inside it and looking around.

 

 

Posing in front of the UH-60 (Blackhawk) helicopter.

 

 

Me, mid-flight on the CH-47 (Chinook) cargo helicopter sitting in the "jump seat" - one of the best seats in the house!

 

 

Posing on the AH-64 (Apache) with the other interns.

 

 

Our entire Aeromedical Psychology Training Course class!

 

Coming in for a landing. 

 

 

Another UH-60 (Black Hawk) landing. 

 

UH-60 in-flight footage. Cool to see what it looks like from the cockpit over the pilot's shoulder. 

 

Slow-motion video from the UH-60 (Black Hawk) helicopter. 

Getting ready to take-off and fly in the UH-60 Blackhawk!

 

Actual take-off!

UH-60 Black Hawk flight. Beautiful. I had one of the best seats in the house - the other Crew Chief seat. Sometimes they will put a gun here to convert it into a gunship or assault helicopter, depending on mission needs.

UH-60 Black Hawk taking off!

A CH-47 (Chinook) idling in the air. To me, it felt like they defied physics - nothing that big should be able to simply float in the air.

Our CH-47 (Chinook) flight taking off!

 

The CH-47 (Chinook) mid-flight. Very noisy!

 

In-flight footage from the CH-47 (Chinook) cargo helicopter. 

Slow motion footage from the dual rotors of the CH-47 (Chinook) cargo helicopter.

 

 

More slow motion footage of the shadow of the CH-47 (Chinook) cargo helicopter. 

 

 

 Me flying the UH-60 Black Hawk simulator. It was hard to do! I crashed many times.