CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - A 2009 Durham Academy High School graduate and Durham, North Carolina, native is participating in a rigorous training process that transforms officers into U.S. naval aviators.
 |
| Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class David Finley |
Lt. j.g. Will Parham is a student pilot with the “Stingrays” of Training Squadron (VT) 35, based in Naval Air Station Corpus, Christi, Texas. The squadron flies the T-44C Pegasus aircraft.
A Navy student pilot is responsible for learning how to safely operate training aircraft and build a working knowledge of professional aviation.
“I enjoy learning how to fly the plane confidently and professionally alongside other students and experienced aviators,” Parham said.
Parham credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned growing up in Durham.
“I learned hard work, dedication and a commitment to service for a cause and mission greater than myself,” Parham said.
The T-44C Pegasus is a twin-engine, pressurized, fixed-wing monoplane used for advanced turboprop radar aircraft training using two 550 shaft horsepowered engines, with a cruising airspeed of 287 mph.
VT-35’s primary mission is to train future naval aviators to fly as well as instill leadership and officer values, Navy officials explained. Students must complete four phases of flight training in order to graduate, including aviation pre-flight indoctrination, primary flight training, and advanced flight training. After successfully completing the rigorous program, naval aviators earn their coveted “Wings of Gold.”
After graduation, pilots continue their training to learn how to fly a specific aircraft, such as the Navy’s P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft or Marine Corps’ MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft. They are later assigned to a ship or land-based squadron.
A key element of the Navy the nation needs is tied to the fact that America is a maritime nation, and that the nation’s prosperity is tied to the ability to operate freely on the world’s oceans. More than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by water; 80 percent of the world’s population lives close to a coast; and 90 percent of all global trade by volume travels by sea.
Parham plays an important role in America’s focus on rebuilding military readiness, strengthening alliances and reforming business practices in support of National Defense Strategy.
“Our priorities center on people, capabilities and processes, and will be achieved by our focus on speed, value, results and partnerships,” said Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer. “Readiness, lethality and modernization are the requirements driving these priorities.”
Though there are many ways for sailors to earn distinction in their command, community and career, Parham is most proud of earning the respect of his peers and the satisfaction of a job well done after each and every flight.
“Naval aviation is a team effort and knowing that other professional aviators can trust me to fly alongside them is worth more than any award,” Parham said.
Serving in the Navy is a continuing tradition of military service for Parham, who has military ties with family members who have previously served. Parham is honored to carry on the family tradition.
“My great uncle served in the Army during the Vietnam War and was wounded in action.” Parham said. “Army aviators evacuated him and saved his life, so continuing this tradition of service is important to all of my family, military or not.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Parham and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“Serving in the Navy means volunteering to participate in preserving our democracy and liberty,” Parham said. “Everyone in the military plays a different, but important, role in this task. It’s a way of giving back to a country that has been good to me and my family and this is something I take great pride in.”
A Navy student pilot is responsible for learning how to safely operate training aircraft and build a working knowledge of professional aviation.
“I enjoy learning how to fly the plane confidently and professionally alongside other students and experienced aviators,” Parham said.
Parham credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned growing up in Durham.
“I learned hard work, dedication and a commitment to service for a cause and mission greater than myself,” Parham said.
The T-44C Pegasus is a twin-engine, pressurized, fixed-wing monoplane used for advanced turboprop radar aircraft training using two 550 shaft horsepowered engines, with a cruising airspeed of 287 mph.
VT-35’s primary mission is to train future naval aviators to fly as well as instill leadership and officer values, Navy officials explained. Students must complete four phases of flight training in order to graduate, including aviation pre-flight indoctrination, primary flight training, and advanced flight training. After successfully completing the rigorous program, naval aviators earn their coveted “Wings of Gold.”
After graduation, pilots continue their training to learn how to fly a specific aircraft, such as the Navy’s P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft or Marine Corps’ MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft. They are later assigned to a ship or land-based squadron.
A key element of the Navy the nation needs is tied to the fact that America is a maritime nation, and that the nation’s prosperity is tied to the ability to operate freely on the world’s oceans. More than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by water; 80 percent of the world’s population lives close to a coast; and 90 percent of all global trade by volume travels by sea.
Parham plays an important role in America’s focus on rebuilding military readiness, strengthening alliances and reforming business practices in support of National Defense Strategy.
“Our priorities center on people, capabilities and processes, and will be achieved by our focus on speed, value, results and partnerships,” said Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer. “Readiness, lethality and modernization are the requirements driving these priorities.”
Though there are many ways for sailors to earn distinction in their command, community and career, Parham is most proud of earning the respect of his peers and the satisfaction of a job well done after each and every flight.
“Naval aviation is a team effort and knowing that other professional aviators can trust me to fly alongside them is worth more than any award,” Parham said.
Serving in the Navy is a continuing tradition of military service for Parham, who has military ties with family members who have previously served. Parham is honored to carry on the family tradition.
“My great uncle served in the Army during the Vietnam War and was wounded in action.” Parham said. “Army aviators evacuated him and saved his life, so continuing this tradition of service is important to all of my family, military or not.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Parham and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“Serving in the Navy means volunteering to participate in preserving our democracy and liberty,” Parham said. “Everyone in the military plays a different, but important, role in this task. It’s a way of giving back to a country that has been good to me and my family and this is something I take great pride in.”