To: SASless
It was at the time of this incident the operational philosophy of Coast Guard Aviation that the plane captain be given sufficient training to relieve the pilot when flying with a two-man crew. I was already able to run-up the engines and taxi the aircraft as these were a part of my maintenance responsibilities. When flying with a two-man crew the plane captain would fly in the right seat. There were similar requirements for helicopter operations. The pilots would turn over control to the plane captain and give him instruction in handling the aircraft, keeping it level and maintaining directional control. Some pilots would go as far as letting the plane captain takeoff and land the aircraft. The pilot would also allow the plane captain to operate the radios and converse with ATC. I do not feel that I placed the pilot the aircraft and myself in any danger (with the possible exception of trying to land on the wrong runway).
I received similar training on the Beech JRB and the PBY. I also received similar training on the HO3S-1G, the HO4S and the Bell HTL-1 but I have to admit I was never able to hover stationary over a fixed spot.
