Basic Duties of the Flight Lead

The primary responsibility of an FL is to take care of his flight and keep them engaged with the rest of the squadron (via the squadron thread/meetings,etc); after many years of observing squadrons, we've found that delegating the following duties (and success with those duties) leads to the fulfillment of that overall role. The duties are as follows:

Collecting Reports!

That's right! It's your job to make sure that every member of your flight sends a report directly to you! Not the SC or XO, but you and you alone. Why? The SC/XO have busy schedules as is; it's much simpler if they collect only one or two reports as opposed 6-8. They're delegating one of their major duties onto you, essentially.

It's extremely important that you receive reports though. Make sure that your members know when their reports are due. If you're not sure what day you should ask for them, ask your SC/XO; different squadrons sometimes make reports due on different days.

Also, if you do not receive a report, it's your responsibility to ask the Flight Member(FM) why they didn't send one in, and then request one regardless. If a member repeatedly misses reports, you should mention it to the SC and XO in your report.

Deliver Your Report

As was mentioned in the portion above, it's critical that you send in a report; if you don't, then the squadron commanders don't know the where-abouts of your flight members. This leaves them without a bearing on their squadron and makes them unable to address problems as they arise.

It should also be mentioned that, as a member with greater responsibilities, you will be judged more harshly if you do not send in your reports. Again, this is a critical responsibility. Don't forget it!

You can find examples of FL Reports here.

TIP! Making reports look good is another great way to show your squadron commanders that you want to bring excellence to your flight. It can be fun to make your own template as well; adding a little flavor to reports is always a good thing- just make sure they're coherent!

The Great Communicator

An essential part of leading your flight is getting the members to communicate. Although the entire squadron is writing on the same story, it should be your goal to make your flight into a team. In fact, flights are sometimes regarded as "mini-squadrons," because of highly functional they are.

Getting your members to actively talk with one another one a daily, or bi-daily basis is the maximum goal. You can do this by getting an e-mail going between the three or four of you. By doing this, you will not only be keeping in touch with your members (reducing the number of surprise disappearances), but you'll promote comradery and act as a constant incentive for people to stay in the VEN. Furthermore, the best writing happens when all of the flight members are on the same page. Promote discussion, and if you can- visit with them on IRC whenever possible. Either way, you're the point man for your flight, and you want to know your people the best that you can.

Note: One of the great advantages that your commanders have by having FLs is that when they give orders- you can pass them along. This ensures that every member is reminded to report, or to post on the story, or to remember some other detail. When an SC/XO makes an official order, they expect you to repeat it to your members.

Being the Leader

Chances are good that you've been selected for this position because you're highly active, you're well motivated; in all respects, a well-rounded, pilot... Right?

By accepting the role of flight leader, you're accepting an increase in your responsibilities, and one of those is to act as a role-model for your flight members. You can do that by leading them. By that, we mean keeping your promises (if you tell people that you're going to post: make sure that you post!); or by putting time into your posts so that they lack spelling or grammatical errors and move the story along. You can lead them by enjoying yourself and having a good time on the squadron thread. You can also lead them by representing your flight, as well as your squadron, with dignity by treating members of other squadrons (and other divisions) with respect.

Try to be kind with your members, and also be patient: they'll be thankful for it. If you can, try to help your FMs improve their writing. You can offer to take a look at their posts before they make it, or critique it (gently) once it's written. If someone doesn't seem to be posting a lot, it could be as simple as not knowing what to post- help them brainstorm. It's also possible that they're confused about the plot and may be afraid to make a post; again, communicate with them, figure out the problem, and see if you can't help them along. If you ever run into any situations that you can't seem to figure something out: speak with your squadron commanders. Even though they're busy, they'll be more than happy to help you out if you get stuck.

Keeping a Fun, Safe Environment

Generally speaking, people come to the Vast Empire to enjoy themselves. As a member who's been through the new recruit stage, you might have perceived moments of boredom, times when the VE seems to lull. As an FL, it's our hope that you'll try to bring energy to the threads and VE activities wherever possible. If you have ideas to keep people busy, or something that you think might be fun for your flight or the squadron- do it! Or, contact the squadron commanders about trying it. We want people to have a good time here, so any activity that adds to that is probably going to be acceptable.

The flip side is that we want to keep the VE a safe place for people to enjoy themselves. One of the dangers of being in a place where people are mostly anonymous is that members can sometimes feel like it's easier to hurt or disregard other people's feelings. If we can, we'd like to avoid any unnecessary fueds, fights, squabbles, temper tantrums or bullying. If you see something going on in your flight that seems like it might ruin the fun for some of the other folks, or even intimidate them: we'd like you to remind them that the VE doesn't tolerate rude or immature behavior at the cost of other people's nerves. Once that is done, it'd also be good if you mentioned the incident to your squadron commanders, just in case there's another isolated innocent.

If there are more serious cases, like harassment, hateful speech or outright threats being made on the ComNet or on IRC, it must be reported. We don't expect you to handle those situations; we much prefer it if you hand them off to your squadron commanders to be handled. The quicker things are dealt with, generally the better. If there's a situation on IRC, you can also send a private IRC message to the moderator so that they can end it. We don't mind having fun, but we want to protect our members. That, too, is now your responsibility.

Recognize and Reward

While all three of your flight members may not be top-notch, all three of them may be doing pretty alright, or maybe it's just one or two. Perhaps you have a member who's phenomenal; he or she is posting consistantly, with depth and generally bringing a great attitude to the squadron. Now, in your mind, do you think these people deserve at least a little recognition?

Absolutely! We encourage you to watch your members not only in their failures (so that you can help them get bettter), but to watch for their successes. If you see that a member has been sending in reports consistantly, or misses only very rarely- that's reason to reward them. If they're posting on a regular basis, or perhaps they're doing something else unique with their posts- reward them!

How? It's actually very simple to give rewards in the Navy. When you see a member succeeding, you can mention in your report that you think that individual deserves some kind of recognition. Now, rewards can come in two differant ways: medals or promotions. As a Flight Leader, you can make suggestions about either. There are only a select few medals that are usually given to Flight Members, so your options are hugely expansive, but they are affective. Furthermore- they can be given more than once, so don't be too bashful about suggesting medals or promotions.

Lastly, as a Flight Leader, you can give an award. Note that there's only one award you can give, and you must "okay" it with your squadron commanders. The medal we're referring to is called the Merit Cross. Notice that it has four grades, so by all means: be ready to reward it! Our hope is that, by giving your own medal away, you can better learn about the basic purpose behind medals. In time, you'll develop a feel for exactly when, and what to give away. Always keep your eye out.

---

If you feel like you've understood the above materials, then you're one step closer to becoming a Flight Leader. Click on the link below to proceed to the final pages of FL Basics.

-OR-

return to FL Basics.