Army ROTC flyin’ high over USU
Students enrolled in Utah State University’s Army ROTC program participated in their equivalent of the Greek system’s rush week, Thursday afternoon.
The throbbing sound of helicopters flying over campus was from two Blackhawk choppers flying members of the ROTC on 10-minute air tours of Cache Valley.
The Blackhawks, based out of West Jordan, travel to college campuses once a year to give ROTC students a chance to fly, said Sgt. Darren Phillips, crew chief of one of the aircraft.
“It’s kind of a recruiting tool for the Army, the ROTC program,” Phillips said. “The whole point is to get them some experience, just to see what it’s like to be in the helicopter.”
The choppers flew about 40 ROTC cadets and about 10 civilians on flights, some flights going toward Richmond on the northern end of Cache Valley, with others flying through the mountains, entering Providence Canyon and exiting through Logan Canyon.
The flights through the canyon involved some low-level flying.
“[The pilot] was showing us the contours of the mountains,” said Cadet Josh Willis, who was on his first helicopter flight.
“That’s our main mission in the Army, to fly as low as you can get,” Phillips said. “We fly 120 knots at 20 feet above the ground.
“I love it, it’s a rush, it leaves little room for error, that’s for sure,” he said.
Overall, the flight was surprisingly smooth, with the best part being the takeoff, Willis said.
“You’re just down on the ground, then the next second, you’re at full speed,” he said.
Cadet Amy Bronson said it wasn’t her first time flying on a helicopter, but her first time on a Blackhawk.
“It’s a different breed, that’s for sure,” Bronson said. “They just have a lot more power than anything I’ve ever flown in. They can elevate and descend a lot faster.”
Bronson said the Cache Valley terrain appears very steep from in the air, but is very beautiful to look at.
While it wasn’t his first time in a chopper, Justin Card – captain of USU’s 2003 Ranger Challenge team that will compete in California in November – said flying is a great feeling.
“It’s fun-intense. It’s awesome. I love it so much it almost makes me cry,” he said. “It’s just a good feeling unless you’re air-sick.”
Card said that when in the air, the world is seen from an entirely different view.
“They opened the side doors, then would turn and bank and the helicopter gets on its side and you’re looking straight down on the ground,” he said. “Last year, we were flying through the canyon and there were these rock climbers, they were standing on some ledge of rock clear up on the side of the hill and we were just even with them. We looked out the window and they were just even with us. It was a cool feeling.”
Phillips said the short trips in helicopters have been a valuable tool to bring cadets over to the aviation side of the Army. He said there is always a good response from the cadets at the schools they travel to.
As a crew chief, Phillips said he is responsible for the safety of the passengers flying in the chopper, as well as maintenance of the aircraft and manning the M-60 machine guns.
“There’s not many jobs you get paid to do this every day,” he said. “I love it.”
-str@cc.usu.edu
Chopper-eye view of 700 North and the USU campus.
An army blackhawk helicopter returns from a flight carrying USU Army ROTC students. (Photos by John Zsiray)