OUR VIEW: Let ROTC land on Quad

Recruitment is the basis for any organization to succeed and continue operating. Without it, organizations lose members or support.

Recently, USU’s Army ROTC was told they would not be able to do recruitment activities this year. Every fall, the ROTC lands an Army Blackhawk helicopter on the Quad to draw in potential recruits.

These helicopters land on the Quad for three hours and only land every 15-20 minutes. During the time on the ground they are unloading and loading new passengers. This process takes only about five minutes to complete.

The College of HASS told the ROTC the noise produced by the Blackhawk’s landing on the Quad was disruptive and ruined the classroom environment in the surrounding buildings.

An Army Blackhawk helicopter produces around 140 decibels while landing. When a band plays on the Quad, the noise ranges from 130-160 decibels.

Activities that take place on the Quad produce much more noise for a longer period of time than the Army landing a helicopter. Day on the Quad, for example, takes place during midday when the bulk of classes are. Bands play the entire time. This produces more of a distraction to students and faculty trying to focus in classes.

The ROTC has now moved to the south HPER field to land its choppers for recruitment of cadets. This shouldn’t happen. They should be allowed to continue the long-standing tradition of recruitment. If the administration is going to move the ROTC, they should move everyone off the Quad who makes noise. Then, they need to put signs up that inform people on the Quad to keep their voices down because they might disturb classes.