VAW-120 pilots receive Air Medals.On 31 August 2005 RAdm. H. Denby Starling starling, any of a group of originally Old World birds that have become distributed worldwide. Starlings were brought to New York in 1890; since then the common starling (Sturnus vulgaris) has spread throughout North America. II, CO Naval Air Forces, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, awarded Lt. Mike Newton and Lt. Mike Zaiko of VAW-120 the Air Medal for their successful gear-up landing of Greyhawk 634 on 15 August. Newton and Zaiko were cited for their "skillful skill·ful adj. 1. Possessing or exercising skill; expert. See Synonyms at proficient. 2. Characterized by, exhibiting, or requiring skill. airmanship Air´man`ship n. 1. Art, skill, or ability in the practice of aerial navigation; aircraft piloting. Noun 1. airmanship - the art of operating aircraft aviation , steadfast communication, and exemplary devotion to duty in the face of hazardous flying conditions, saving the lives of all 25 people on board." Shortly after takeoff, the pilots noticed the main landing gear doors would not fully close. When the pilots tried to return for landing, they experienced a dual main landing gear failure. After going through all the emergency procedures and analyzing the situation, the pilots were forced to make a gear-up landing. Once landed, crew chief AM1 (AW/NAC) Kenneth Barnhouse and loadmaster load·mas·ter n. An aircraft crew member in charge of loading and unloading cargo or heavy weapons. An Air Force technician qualified to plan loads, to operate auxiliary materials handling equipment, and to supervise loading and unloading AM2 (AW/NAC) Jason Ferraro safely evacuated all 21 passengers from the aircraft without injury. Story and Photo by Lt. Todd D'Antonio |
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