CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - A 2011 Pensacola High School graduate and Pensacola, Florida, native is participating in a rigorous training process that transforms officers into U.S. naval aviators.
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| Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class David Finley |
Ensign Dylan Heye is a student pilot with the “Wise Owls” of Training Squadron (VT) 31, based in Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas. The squadron flies the T-44C Pegasus aircraft.
A Navy student pilot is responsible for how to fly a multi-engine aircraft.
“Training to learn how to fly Navy aircraft is fun, yet challenging and rewarding,” Heye said.
Heye credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned growing up in Pensacola.
“My dad was a pilot, and I saw the Blue Angels fly over head on my way to school,” Heye said. “It instilled in me the desire to become a Naval aviator.”
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-31’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.
Heye 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, Heye is most proud of finishing the primary training where they learned to fly the T-6B.
“It proved I could fly a high-performance aircraft and the challenges that came with it,” Heye said.
Serving in the Navy is a continuing tradition of military service for Heye, who has military ties with family members who have previously served. Heye is honored to carry on the family tradition.
“My wife is a Navy doctor and my dad is a retired Navy pilot,” Heye said. “They both inspired me to challenge myself and pursue my goals.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Heye and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“I enjoy what I do on a daily basis and the opportunity to protect my country,” Heye added.
A Navy student pilot is responsible for how to fly a multi-engine aircraft.
“Training to learn how to fly Navy aircraft is fun, yet challenging and rewarding,” Heye said.
Heye credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned growing up in Pensacola.
“My dad was a pilot, and I saw the Blue Angels fly over head on my way to school,” Heye said. “It instilled in me the desire to become a Naval aviator.”
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-31’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.
Heye 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, Heye is most proud of finishing the primary training where they learned to fly the T-6B.
“It proved I could fly a high-performance aircraft and the challenges that came with it,” Heye said.
Serving in the Navy is a continuing tradition of military service for Heye, who has military ties with family members who have previously served. Heye is honored to carry on the family tradition.
“My wife is a Navy doctor and my dad is a retired Navy pilot,” Heye said. “They both inspired me to challenge myself and pursue my goals.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Heye and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“I enjoy what I do on a daily basis and the opportunity to protect my country,” Heye added.