Morto ao brincar de Super-Homem no MH-53!!!
Enviado: Seg Dez 26, 2005 10:14 pm
Tripulante de helicóptero morre ao brincar de Super-Homem no Golfo Pérsico
Brian K. Joplin
By JACK DORSEY, The Virginian-Pilot
© December 23, 2005
NORFOLK - The Navy said Thursday a Texas-based helicopter crewman who fell
to his death in October was performing a stunt called "Supermanning."
The stunt involved hanging from an open cargo door and letting the rushing
wind "fly" his body, attached only by a safety belt.
Supermanning may have been in practice for as long as 10 years, according
to the Norfolk-based admiral who oversaw an investigation into the
crewman's death. Senior officers, however, said they'd never heard of the
stunt.
Rear Adm. Denby H. Starling II, commander of the Atlantic Fleet Naval Air
Force, said he has disciplined eight other crew members from the Corpus
Christi squadron for performing a similar stunt or failing to report the
activity to superiors.
The stunt involved an MH-53 Sea Dragon helicopter such as this one. U.S. NAVY
"My initial reaction was that I was absolutely flabbergasted," Starling
said in a recent interview. "I figured this had to be a one-time deal, but
when we asked questions, we found out it was not. Other guys in this
squadron had engaged in this kind of activity as well."
Starling, who's been in naval aviation for 30 years, said he'd never heard
of Supermanning and said he believes this was the first time someone died
during the stunt.
"I am not sure we will ever be able to determine every single instance,"
the admiral said, but "we certainly will be willing to hold anybody
accountable" who knew about the activity.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Aviation Brian K. Joplin, 32, an aviation
machinist's mate from Hugo, Okla., died Oct. 4 after falling about 125
feet to the Persian Gulf. He was assigned to Helicopter Mine
Countermeasures Squadron 15 and was flying from Bahrain in an MH-53 Sea
Dragon helicopter, the largest in the Navy's inventory.
The two pilots were unaware of the stunt until just before Joplin fell,
according to the investigation.
The general indications are the air crews who engaged in Supermanning "had
been around long enough to know this was done when flights involved
carrying cargo," Starling said. "The pilots can't see all the way back
when cargo is stacked up . and my general impression is the sailors went
to significant extremes to hide it from the pilots."
Two other enlisted crew members in the back of the helicopter knew what
Joplin was doing and were among those disciplined last week, according to
the admiral. The Navy declined to detail their punishments.
Joplin was wearing a 10-foot-long safety belt and attached it to an eyelet
on the helicopter's stern ramp, according to the investigation report,
obtained Thursday by The Virginian-Pilot through a Freedom of Information
Act request.
In reconstructing the events, investigators said Joplin moved to the back
of the helicopter and lowered himself by his gunner's belt over the edge
of the ramp, grabbing a tie-down ring with his left hand and a rib of the
airframe with his right hand.
"His legs were flying out behind him horizontally" in "the Superman
maneuver," the report said.
One enlisted crew member took photos of Joplin using her cell phone
camera. She and another crew member apparently saw Joplin lose his grip
and tried to pull him back into the aircraft but couldn't because the
rushing air was pulling on him.
Meanwhile, the pilots were just discovering what was going on.
"The co-pilot in the left seat noticed in his . mirror, a pair of boots
dangling below the back of the aircraft," the report said. The co-pilot
then nudged the pilot in the right seat to get his attention and point out
what he saw, according to the report.
The pilot looked in the mirror and thought he saw Joplin sitting on the
ramp not floating outside and below it and did not think much of it
since he presumed Joplin was attached to the aircraft with his gunner's belt.
The co-pilot asked the other crew members by radio if everything was OK
and was told it was, according to the report.
But then crew members saw Joplin's belt start to slip and still could not
get him inside the helicopter.
They told the pilot to slow down immediately and lower altitude.
"The co-pilot aggressively decelerated and descended," the report said.
But it was too late. Almost immediately, one of the crew members said,
Joplin had fallen. It was 11:23 a.m., and the aircraft was flying at 125
feet and 35 knots.
Joplin's gunner's belt, which was tight around his waist, apparently rose
up his body, compressing his chest. Investigators believe that caused him
to lose consciousness. With his hands stretched above his head, the belt
slipped past his shoulders, knocked off his helmet and came free, causing
Joplin to fall.
His body was found about four hours later.
Starling said he is not certain how long Supermanning has been practiced.
"It becomes difficult to separate fact from urban legend," he said. "I
know for a fact, in this command, the cases I was able to document went
back to 2004. We have heard other testimony, much of it anecdotal, that
indicates this has gone on to some degree since probably the mid-'90 s."
Four air crew members in the squadron admitted to performing the Superman
maneuver in the past, according to the report.
"Between 1994 and 1995, the practice of stunts in flight was prevalent,"
the investigators said. "Other maneuvers were the 'slide for life,' where
they would swing out on a safety line and 'slingshot' back into the aircraft."
While it would be incorrect to call the stunts widespread, it was "not
uncommon," Starling said.
When he learned Supermanning was taking place in HM-15's squadron,
Starling immediately went to the Texas base to convene an Admiral's Mast,
an administrative hearing to discipline offenders without the more formal
courts martial.
Those who admitted participating in the stunts, or who knew of the
activities but failed to report them, were disciplined Dec. 16 .
Those involved were seven men and one woman, Starling said, ranging in
rates from petty officer third class to petty officer first class.
Starling said he is allowed under mast to demote, fine, forfeit pay and
restrict sailors, and he indicated, without details, that is what he did.
He also stripped them of their air crew designations, meaning they will
never fly as aircraft crew members again. T hey were, however, allowed to
remain in the Navy and in the squadron.
The disciplined sailors all had considerable experience, and some had been
chosen as "sailors of the quarter" in the squadron.
"For the most part, they were not the folks you would expect to see doing
this," Starling said.
Joplin lived in Corpus Christi, Texas , with his wife and two young
daughters. His mother and one of his sisters were killed just before his
death in a car crash in Ada, Okla. He also is survived by two brothers, a
sister and his father.
Navy officials notified the family of the investigation's findings
Thursday after Starling officially completed the investigation. T he
commanding officer of HM-15 flew to their home to present the conclusions
to them.
Joplin's death was ruled as occurring in the line of duty.
The report recommended, among other things, an official prohibition
against performing unsafe maneuvers in the back of naval aircraft.
There currently is nothing expressly banning Supermanning.
http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/st ... 75&tref=po
Brian K. Joplin
By JACK DORSEY, The Virginian-Pilot
© December 23, 2005
NORFOLK - The Navy said Thursday a Texas-based helicopter crewman who fell
to his death in October was performing a stunt called "Supermanning."
The stunt involved hanging from an open cargo door and letting the rushing
wind "fly" his body, attached only by a safety belt.
Supermanning may have been in practice for as long as 10 years, according
to the Norfolk-based admiral who oversaw an investigation into the
crewman's death. Senior officers, however, said they'd never heard of the
stunt.
Rear Adm. Denby H. Starling II, commander of the Atlantic Fleet Naval Air
Force, said he has disciplined eight other crew members from the Corpus
Christi squadron for performing a similar stunt or failing to report the
activity to superiors.
The stunt involved an MH-53 Sea Dragon helicopter such as this one. U.S. NAVY
"My initial reaction was that I was absolutely flabbergasted," Starling
said in a recent interview. "I figured this had to be a one-time deal, but
when we asked questions, we found out it was not. Other guys in this
squadron had engaged in this kind of activity as well."
Starling, who's been in naval aviation for 30 years, said he'd never heard
of Supermanning and said he believes this was the first time someone died
during the stunt.
"I am not sure we will ever be able to determine every single instance,"
the admiral said, but "we certainly will be willing to hold anybody
accountable" who knew about the activity.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Aviation Brian K. Joplin, 32, an aviation
machinist's mate from Hugo, Okla., died Oct. 4 after falling about 125
feet to the Persian Gulf. He was assigned to Helicopter Mine
Countermeasures Squadron 15 and was flying from Bahrain in an MH-53 Sea
Dragon helicopter, the largest in the Navy's inventory.
The two pilots were unaware of the stunt until just before Joplin fell,
according to the investigation.
The general indications are the air crews who engaged in Supermanning "had
been around long enough to know this was done when flights involved
carrying cargo," Starling said. "The pilots can't see all the way back
when cargo is stacked up . and my general impression is the sailors went
to significant extremes to hide it from the pilots."
Two other enlisted crew members in the back of the helicopter knew what
Joplin was doing and were among those disciplined last week, according to
the admiral. The Navy declined to detail their punishments.
Joplin was wearing a 10-foot-long safety belt and attached it to an eyelet
on the helicopter's stern ramp, according to the investigation report,
obtained Thursday by The Virginian-Pilot through a Freedom of Information
Act request.
In reconstructing the events, investigators said Joplin moved to the back
of the helicopter and lowered himself by his gunner's belt over the edge
of the ramp, grabbing a tie-down ring with his left hand and a rib of the
airframe with his right hand.
"His legs were flying out behind him horizontally" in "the Superman
maneuver," the report said.
One enlisted crew member took photos of Joplin using her cell phone
camera. She and another crew member apparently saw Joplin lose his grip
and tried to pull him back into the aircraft but couldn't because the
rushing air was pulling on him.
Meanwhile, the pilots were just discovering what was going on.
"The co-pilot in the left seat noticed in his . mirror, a pair of boots
dangling below the back of the aircraft," the report said. The co-pilot
then nudged the pilot in the right seat to get his attention and point out
what he saw, according to the report.
The pilot looked in the mirror and thought he saw Joplin sitting on the
ramp not floating outside and below it and did not think much of it
since he presumed Joplin was attached to the aircraft with his gunner's belt.
The co-pilot asked the other crew members by radio if everything was OK
and was told it was, according to the report.
But then crew members saw Joplin's belt start to slip and still could not
get him inside the helicopter.
They told the pilot to slow down immediately and lower altitude.
"The co-pilot aggressively decelerated and descended," the report said.
But it was too late. Almost immediately, one of the crew members said,
Joplin had fallen. It was 11:23 a.m., and the aircraft was flying at 125
feet and 35 knots.
Joplin's gunner's belt, which was tight around his waist, apparently rose
up his body, compressing his chest. Investigators believe that caused him
to lose consciousness. With his hands stretched above his head, the belt
slipped past his shoulders, knocked off his helmet and came free, causing
Joplin to fall.
His body was found about four hours later.
Starling said he is not certain how long Supermanning has been practiced.
"It becomes difficult to separate fact from urban legend," he said. "I
know for a fact, in this command, the cases I was able to document went
back to 2004. We have heard other testimony, much of it anecdotal, that
indicates this has gone on to some degree since probably the mid-'90 s."
Four air crew members in the squadron admitted to performing the Superman
maneuver in the past, according to the report.
"Between 1994 and 1995, the practice of stunts in flight was prevalent,"
the investigators said. "Other maneuvers were the 'slide for life,' where
they would swing out on a safety line and 'slingshot' back into the aircraft."
While it would be incorrect to call the stunts widespread, it was "not
uncommon," Starling said.
When he learned Supermanning was taking place in HM-15's squadron,
Starling immediately went to the Texas base to convene an Admiral's Mast,
an administrative hearing to discipline offenders without the more formal
courts martial.
Those who admitted participating in the stunts, or who knew of the
activities but failed to report them, were disciplined Dec. 16 .
Those involved were seven men and one woman, Starling said, ranging in
rates from petty officer third class to petty officer first class.
Starling said he is allowed under mast to demote, fine, forfeit pay and
restrict sailors, and he indicated, without details, that is what he did.
He also stripped them of their air crew designations, meaning they will
never fly as aircraft crew members again. T hey were, however, allowed to
remain in the Navy and in the squadron.
The disciplined sailors all had considerable experience, and some had been
chosen as "sailors of the quarter" in the squadron.
"For the most part, they were not the folks you would expect to see doing
this," Starling said.
Joplin lived in Corpus Christi, Texas , with his wife and two young
daughters. His mother and one of his sisters were killed just before his
death in a car crash in Ada, Okla. He also is survived by two brothers, a
sister and his father.
Navy officials notified the family of the investigation's findings
Thursday after Starling officially completed the investigation. T he
commanding officer of HM-15 flew to their home to present the conclusions
to them.
Joplin's death was ruled as occurring in the line of duty.
The report recommended, among other things, an official prohibition
against performing unsafe maneuvers in the back of naval aircraft.
There currently is nothing expressly banning Supermanning.
http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/st ... 75&tref=po
