The Effect of Combat on Aircrew Subjective Readiness and LSO Grades During Operation Desert Shield/Storm

The effect of operational tasking on aircrew readiness during combat operations continues to be an area of intense investigation within the U.S. Navy. The recent Persian Gulf War provided a unique opportunity to collect data examining aircrew work/rest cycles and operational tasking in a combat environment. For 4 consecutive weeks during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, 18 A-6 and 18 F-14 aviators onboard the USS AMERICA (CV-66) completed daily work/rest logs of their activities while conducting operations from the Red Sea. Activities on the work/rest logs were coded to a resolution of one-half hour. Several flight parameters were also obtained including: 1) takeoff and landing time, 2) flight duration, 3) mission type, 4) consecutive days during which a flight occurred, 5) landing signal officer (LSO) scores, and 6) arresting wire engaged on landing. In addition, after each mission aircrew provided a subjective assessment of the amount of time that they needed to rest before another air-to-ground strike mission could be flown (a measure of subjective readiness). Multiple regression analysis indicates that flight duration, the number of flights per day, and the time-of-day that the flight occurred, impact heavily on subjective evaluations of aircrew readiness. Few consistent relationships were observed between the independent measures and LSO grades. The data obtained here represent a unique look at aircrew work/rest patterns as they effect aircrew readiness during armed conflict. These data provide unique and valuable information to air wing commanders and senior mission planners when tasking carrier-based aviators. In addition, these data provide an essential database for squadron and air wing flight surgeons to draw upon when assessing aircrew readiness.