The White Falcon - 16.01.1976, Page 1
(White
Volume XXXII. Number 2
Falcon
Ke/tevrt, Iceland January 16. 1976
FY7T designated
NtW ARRIVAL--A C-117D arrived Wednesday to join
plane, a replacement for "ol' to-be-scrapped 096
tne ilaval Station air fleet. The
was flown in from Quantico, Va.
The crew for the flight included LCdr. Gary Woy,
Lifgren, ADR1 Clyde Swasey and AT2 Keith Wilson.
LCdr. Doug Sherrod, Lt. Jim
(Photo uy PH2 Ron Li taker)
Special billets for AF E-9s
New Fiscal Year
system set
The new Fiscal Year will no longer
begin July 1, effective this year. FY77
will begin Oct. 1, 1976 and each succes-
sive Fiscal Year will begin Oct. 1 in-
stead of July 1.
The three-month period from the end
of FY76, June 30, and the beginning of
kpY77, Oct. 1, has been designated FY7T.
W According to the Congressional Budget
and Impoundment Control Act of 1974
(Public Law 93-344) , the change is de-
signed to aid Congress by allowing three
additional months for a thorough inves-
tigation prior to approval of the annual
appropriation bills.
The designation FY7T may appear on
articles and references concerned with
budget and finance but, according to
Commander Thomas Weissinger, Naval Sta-
tion Comptroller, the change will have
little impact on the majority of mili-
tary personnel.
Congress is authorized, under Public
Law 93-344, to establish an office for
budgetary considerations. This office
effectively increases the Congressional
staff to permit a more efficient review
of annual appropriation bills.
Even though the Fiscal Year will be-
gin in October instead of July, budget
submissions and field traffic will still
adhere to the same deadlines as in pre-
vious years.
D.C. votes Feb. 3
If you are from the District of Col-
umbia, February 3 is an important date
to remember. The District has announced
that it will hold elections on that date
to fill seats on the Neighborhood Advis-
sory Commission. District residents will
have an opportunity to choose one member
to represent their neighborhood on the
commission. The commission was estab-
lished by voter referendum in 1974 to
advise the city council of neighborhood
concerns.
Service members on active duty and
their dependents can request absentee
ballots by mailing a completed federal
post card application to the District of
Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics,
District Building, Washington, D.C.
20004.
Specially selected, highly qualified
and motivated Chief Master Sergeants
will begin filling specially designated
E-9 positions when the "chiefs’ group"
opens operations in February or March.
A new unit within the senior NCO as-
signment section at the Air Force Mili-
tary Personnel Center, the "chiefs’
group" will assign hand-picked E-9s
against approximately five percent of
the Chief Master Sergeant jobs which re-
quire special qualifications.
The new function was developed as
part of the response to the Chief of
Staff's challenge to broaden the man-
agerial responsibilities and authorities
of senior noncommissioned officers.
Major commands will identify jobs in
the CONUS and overseas which they want
to be filled through the new system.
Recommendations will be reviewed by MPC
officials, and 200 to 300 will be selec-
ted for the initial operation.
Each position will be specially se-
lected on the basis of level of diffi-
culty, executive ability necessary, as
well as skill and knowledge required
according to AFMPC officials. They say
the jobs will be filled through a highly
competitive comparison of information.
The new program will provide Air
Force MPC assignment managers with a
comprehensive file on each active duty
Chief Master Sergeant, including selec-
tees to that grade. The file will con-
tain, as a minimum, the NCO's most re-
cent performance reports and a complete
printout of critical personnel data.
In addition, affected NCOs are
strongly encouraged to provide brief
summaries of personal, educational and
professional qualifications, experience
and desires and any other information
they may deem appropriate. This utili-
zation folder will reflect the assign-
ment history and personal aspirations of
each Chief Master Sergeant in much more
detail than is currently available.
With this data, and that provided by
major commands on positions requiring
special qualifications, assignment man-
agers will have all the factual informa-
tion necessary to assign individuals to
specific jobs matching their capabili-
ties .
Personnel officials say that quality
control features are built into the pro-
gram and the whole process will be care-
fully monitored to evaluate its effect-
iveness.
COMNAVICE picks
Military Members
of the Quarter
The COMNAVICE Military members of the
quarter have been selected. PNSN Suzanne
Roberts of NAVFAC has earned the honor
of Sailor of the Quarter.
The Petty Officer of the Quarter hon-
ors have been awarded to RM2 David W.
Thomas of NAVCOMMSTA. Thomas is the
first recipient of the newly-instituted
Petty Officer of the Quarter award.
A COMNAVICE certificate will be awar-
ded to the Military Members of the Quar-
ter. Other benefits, in accordance with
COMICEDEFOR instruction 1650.1G, which
will be presented to the members will be
a Letter of Commendation from Commander
Iceland Defense Force, a Priority Three
on station aircraft for Environmental
and Morale flights, and such honors as
determined by the unit commanding offi-
cers. An additional bepefit will ap-
pear when the members compete for advan-
cement—the honor includes a full point
on the multiple used to compute a sel-
ectees advancement possibilities.
Sailor of the Quarter Roberts is from
Baton Rouge, La., and has been assigned
to the NAVFAC Admin Office for the past
six months.
Petty Officer of the Quarter Thomas
is from Oklahoma and has been with NAV-
COMMSTA since May last year. RM2 Thomas
is a Receiver Supervisor.
NSGA survey
conducted today
Naval Security Group Activity (NSGA)
conducted their Human Resources survey
yesterday and today.
The survey, correctly titled the
Human Resources Management Survey is es-
sentially the same survey taken by Naval
Station personnel in September 1975.
All personnel from E-l up took the
test to express their feelings about the
command, barracks life, leadership,
group pressures, chain of command, etc.
The NSGA survey is the first in a
series to be taken by the Naval Station
tenant commands.
Patrol Squadron 56 cites Arctic aviators
By Lt. (j.g.) Pat Crandall
About 160 miles north of the NATO base lies a latitude parallel
labeled 66° 40’ on the charts but more commonly is referred to as the
Arctic Circle. Beyond this another 250 miles, where the sun is for-
bidden in winter, is a tiny island known to the Norwegians as Jan
Mayan. Remote as the island is, its significance to aircraft naviga-
tion is not lost, as it provides radio navigation signals known as
LORAN. The island is a demilitarized installation manned entirely by
Norwegian civilians.
The crews of Patrol Squadron 56 know the island well. Twice a
month their skipper, Commander James E. McNulla, is asked to send one
of his P-3C aircraft up to Jan Mayan to deliver mail to the handful of
men who work there. Since the island is ice-covered, the lone landing
strip is used for emergencies only. Due to this, the mail must be
dropped from the Orion aircraft as it passes overhead. It is not an
easy drop as evidenced by the rugged mountains that line the approach
to the field.
Volunteers for the flight are not hard to find—due to the singular
distinction that befalls all travelers above that 66° 40' latitude.
The Royal Order of the Blue Nose is a cherished tradition of all
sailors and VP-56 is no exception. Every neophyte on the flight to
Jan Mayan has visible proof of his accomplishment upon his return—
a greasepencil-blue proboscis. A certificate of initiation is also
presented that will serve as a reminder to that time when he ventured
where few have gone, beyond the Arctic Circle.
A02 Ken Adams gets the traditional "blue nose" treatment.