Summary: The feasibility of consolidating the Army and Navy undergraduate helicopter pilot-training programs was studied by the Department of Defense.
The study concluded that consolidation of the separate programs was feasible, and that large savings could be realized by this action. The claimed savings of $13.8 million or more annually are probably conservative because they do not include reductions in future retirement costs of both military and civilian personnel no longer needed, future veterans' benefits for those military personnel, and base operating costs for the Pensacola, Florida, Naval Air Station. These items could result in additional savings of as much as $9.2 million annually. There are also potential savings from base realinements made possible by this consolidation. The transfer of helicopter pilot-training loads to the Army will leave the Navy with substantial excess capacity at the seven bases involved in pilot training. It appears that one or possibly two bases may no longer be needed as training installations. Converting these bases to naval air facilities for use as outlying fields in support of jet and prop pilot training would result in large savings. The training syllabus used by the Army can be tailored to meet Navy and Marine Corps needs.
