Enlisted pilots

Nope, last name was Culbertson IIRC. After all, it's been more than 40
years. Helluva nice fellow and extremely well educated.

George

John Randolph wrote:
Wouldn't have been Ben Willingham would it?

"George Shirley" wrote in message
...

The NavCad program in the mid-fifties sent a bunch of failed aviators to
the fleet as Airmen Apprentices. Had one working for me in the
maintenance office at VR-1 in 1958. Good guy just couldn't handle flying
worth a hoot. Best educated AA I ever met, went to Berea College in
Kentucky. Ben pulled two years as an AA and got out no ambition to
strike for anything once he failed NavCad.

George

Jake Donovan wrote:
Bill,

They held the LDO until they finished their degree and augmented.

(pilots

were 1312) There is currently still a F14 driver who went thru this
program.
It was also up to each individual to augment so many stayed LDO. A

good

friend of mine "Doc" was an Aviator LDO LCDR and was project manager
for the
JPATS in Corpus for a few years.

By 83-84 it has been officially named NAVCAD again. A few changes in

the

wording here and there but it was basically the same program.

JD

"Bill Kambic" wrote in message
...

"Jake Donovan" wrote in message


This was the NAVCAD Program. Min requirements were 2 years of

college.


You

entered the program at the paygrade of an E4-5 and when you completed

flight

school, you were commissioned. 90% of the commissioned NAVCADs flew

in


the

E2/C2 community. Part of your contract was to complete your degree (4

year)

within the next 6 years after your commissioning.

This was not a new program but a resurrection of an old one, one that

has

been brought up again several times.

I was an instructor at VT-28 from '78-81. IIRC, the first of these

guys

were showing up about the time I left. This program was similar to
NAVCAD
but with a crucial difference: upon commission these guys were NOT
1310/1315 but had a uique LDO designator (I don't remember the number).
They bore all the limitations of an LDO commission. They were
intended to
be "grunt" pilots, doing the shore duty (and some sea duty) jobs that

"real"

aviators did not want to do.

I was unaware of the short life of the program, but this does not
surprise
me. The NAVAIR system is just not set up for "pilot only" officers.

Bill Kambic