"Gordon" wrote in message
...
Commander Steele was up there with CDR John Gana at about an 8.5. Steele
wasn't lucky -
just very well equipped mentally for just about any emergency. My kind of
pilot!

v/r
Gordon

Must heartily concur with the assesment of CDR John Gana. One of those
pilots where strapping on an H-2 was the equivalent of putting on a glove.
If he could think it, the H-2 did it. A very laid back guy, unless, of
course, one displayed constant incompetence at the controls. Gordon can
probably relate better than I one particular instance. It was supposed to be
one of those "good deal" cross-countries that degraded so fast into a
two-day sentence to purgatory we ran screaming the next time we were offered
one (but that's another story). Anyway, CDR Gana and a LT (whose name
escapes me) were our HAC and H2P respectively. Once airborne and in the lane
CDR Gana turns the aircraft over to the "youngster" and proceeds to start a
leak check on his eyelids. After approximately 5 minutes, the air moving
through the slipstream starts creeping into the cockpit and pushes over the
delicately balanced head of the HAC. This interrupts the aforesaid leak
check and prompts a one word ICS call: "Ball". Placing trust and confidence
in the youngsters ability to follow his instruction, the leak check
re-commenced. Another 5 minutes and the little drama is repeated exactly,
word for word. Except the ICS call was just a little louder. Like the H2P
didn't hear him the first time. Another 5 minutes, another rude awakening.
This time, CDR Gana, my favorite pilot of all time, swore. "Ball dammit!"
Gordon and I are in the back, with eyes like saucers. Both thinking the
exact same thing: "Did you hear that?" The reader must understand that CDR
Gana was UNFLAPPABLE. This guy flew H-2's in Vietnam and nothing ever got
his blood up and we NEVER heard him raise his voice. Apparently, this LT
discovered that not keeping the turn-and-bank centered, ie: displaying
piloting incompetence, was the proper way to get under CDR Gana's skin. So,
now realizing he will not get his little nap, CDR Gana takes the controls.
Not another word was uttered in the cockpit until we made ready to land.
Don't know if the youngster was chastised or not, the CDR would never do
that in front of others. He was a real class act.

Michael E. Fenyes
AW HSL-33 '83 - '86