FLT

Let’s pretend for a moment that you are a Flight Leader (FL)- that means you have up to three people underneath you. As the leader of that flight, you are responsible for the activities of those people and reporting them to your commanding officer. Orders given to you by your commander will be funneled to your troops through you- it is up to you to decide on how to translate these so they are understandable and able to be done. That right there is the flight lead's basic function; it may not seem like much but you're actually performing an important exercise in the VEN system.

Story Coordination

To provide you with an example, we'll say you are Dramas Five of Dramas Squadron in the Defensive Wing. Now, you have Dramas Six, Dramas Seven and Dramas Eight in your command. In your story, you are currently about to provide initial contact against three to five enemy targets of similar specifications (like a TIE-Interceptor or an A-wing). As FL, you need to get into your squadron's topic or communicate with them in some way or another so you can plan with your group and do exactly what you guys want to do. Depending on the number of enemy fighters, the damage to your own craft as well as morale and any number of other factors involved in your story (faith, feeling or fortuitous luck), your group will need a strategy or story they want to be playing out.

Lets say that we decided to have three A-wings vs. your group's four TIE Interceptors- you are now with your group and brainstorming ideas. Don't think of this as some gap in posting time; the other two flights in your squadron should be doing similar things, posting off and on so its a kind of random fluidness. Back to your flight though, your group decides that they want to take out one of the three fighters on the first pass and be forced to split- your idea is to move the story forward but make it interesting. Once you've decided the above, you'd put in things like a head-to-head grudge match, or coincidental explosions that help or hurt you, maybe even some team maneuver- that's just it... We don't know! The ability to be creative with your group and plan is paramount if you want your group to succeed. Plus, if you guys are brainstorming through the ComNet, IRC or sometimes, although a little frowned upon, MSN- you are communicating. If you are communicating you are getting to know each other which is what really spawns good story-writing and an overall good time in the first place.

So, what have you gotten from this? You need to pay special attention to your flight's posting, not just your wingman anymore. Since you have taken the test following this text, you will have had to study a little more than before and will thus be more knowledgeable. You need to make sure your story is making sense and that you have coordinated it with your flight members so that it runs smoothly and moves the story ahead. Stagnation from one group will soon spread to others, so you must make sure that you guys are not being drawn back or off because of some outside or interior problem. If there is a sudden drop in activity from your people, and say they don't post for a period of three or four days, you have every right to send them a message and ask what's going on. This brings us to our last and maybe more "official" activity.

Taking Command

Story posting is what you'll be doing the majority of the time- your ability to strengthen your flight through smooth yet entertaining writing as well as communication amongst yourselves will set you out from the other flight leads in your squadron, or even the Navy. However, story posting doesn't just happen sometimes. It's very possible that you may receive a member of your group that simply pops into the squadron thread every once in a while to say "Sorry, I haven't been around... I'll see you around... I'll post soon..." While it may be sincere, you need to message them or contact them in some way or another and get the following-

1. Reason for not posting or getting in touch

2. If they are on leave- find out when they will return to official VE activity and get a final report.

3. If not on leave- ask what their schedule is like and compare them to yours so that you might be able to converse with them live in an attempt to help them through posting.

4. Ask if they have any questions or problems, and tell them that you will get an answer for them no matter what. If they have problems, you have to let them know you can and will help.

Now, the above is your basic "what's up" message and can be sent in a variety of patterns, taking out one or two of the above to fill out the needed message. For instance, you'd only do one and four if you think they aren't coming around to posting on your story or they just don't seem active overall. On the other hand, if you know they are on leave or will be soon, send one, two and four. It all depends- you need to be versatile. Plus, you may have your own way of dealing with things. Even if you don't now, you'll probably develope one. Just make sure you are getting all of the information you need so your flight isn't left hanging.

As we've mentioned above, you are directly responsible for your flight group and if they fall behind, the blame will fall onto you unless your commanders find that there was nothing you could do. What that will mean for you, no one can be entirely sure- it all depends on the commander and how bad things get. You could be demoted, or simply removed from your position, or neither. You could be perfectly fine and be assigned some new members...

I like that last one personally, so my suggestion is that you do the following to keep your nose clean and make sure that your commanders know you are doing your best to keep your group running smoothly.

1. Send a report every week indicating your groups strengths and weaknesses- include who reported for that week and if they had any comments, questions or concerns that you needed to relay to the higher-ups.

2. Post in your squadron thread often to show support for your group and make it evident that you plan and communicate with your group.

3. Report any lack of activity from your members or leaves immediately so that your commanders can be aware of it and deal with it as soon as possible.

4. Post on your story to show that at least you have been doing your best, mind you that they may not see it as such if you've failed completely in your FL position.

So- quick review. If you have someone who seems to kind of disappear for a about half a week: message them. Don't be angry, just ask what's up and tell them to get back as soon as possible or atlesat give you a final answer on their status (active, semi-active, leave). You need to coordinate with your team to make your part of the story interesting and fluid. You must translate orders so they're understandable. And last but certainly not least- you must remain active yourself and not abuse your authority. If you have any questions, comments or concerns that you simply have no idea about, you can contact your SC or XO.

NOTE: All of these rules and regulations that we've supplied you with are not definite- they are not protocol. As a Flight Lead you are no longer completely dependent on someone for instruction- it is up to you to act and make your group the best it can be. You need to decide what needs to be done based on facts and keep a cool mind- emotion and haste will only hurt you. Take your time but don't procrastinate- get it done and do your best.

You may now proceed to the SAE