Sylver's Performance Review

Posted on 26 Nov 2014 @ 12:51am by Lieutenant Commander Dea Mialin & Chief Warrant Officer 2 Oliver Sylver

988 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Episode 07 - Sojourn
Location: Starbase 84 - Shuttle
Timeline: MD 04, 1200 hours

[ON]

Next up on Dea's list was Staff Warrant Officer Sylver. His performance as a pilot was not new to her. Standing outside the shuttle while she waited. Lieutenant Commander Mialin greeted her pilot, "Good afternoon. I'm sure you're ready to get this out of the way. This shouldn't take very long since its just a typical requal."

"Yes Ma'am," Sylver nodded, looking at the shuttle for a moment. This was one of those things that needed to happen; it was routine. "Where would you like to start?"

Dea boarded the shuttle and took a seat in the copilots chair, "I'll pull up the designated path. You have control of the shuttle. Follow the designated path for entering the course and speed restrictions."

"Yes ma'am," he said and took a seat, frowning as he let out a soft breath. "System check," he said and started running them through the pre-flight check list.

Monitoring things from the copilots seat, "Request permission for departure and take us out when you are ready." Dea's role was to evaluate each pilot's performance individually under real flight conditions. The course only existed to allow that to be measured easier.

Sylver nodded, smiling as he got the comms up. "Starbase 84 Flight Control, this is shuttle Echo Bravo Niner...SWO Sylver, requesting permission to stretch this baby's legs.

You have permission to depart. Don't stay out too long, Echo Bravo Niner

"Roger that," Sylver said and smiled as he took over the controls. "Nice and steady..." he breathed, to the shuttle more than to himself. Flying this thing wasn't an issue. It was flying it prettily. He was a fighter pilot at heart.

Dea watched their departure from the station. Taking a few notes here and there. "Ok show me what you're capable of Sylver." Since he was one of her experience pilots she didn't expect any major issues with this particular flight.

He gave a nod of acknowledgement, taking a deeper breath. The course before him was obvious. He started at standard speed, doing what was a typical normal flight. He kept an eye on the location constantly, aware of what needed to be done. When the signal for the high speed came up he shifted and moved his hands...going to max speed, making the shuttle work for it. It felt good. It felt like he was once with the shuttle when it was like that. The course went from just fast to with obstacles. "Like flying through a meteor shower..." he breathed, his lips twisted in a smile. Half of this was instinct. The other half was skill.

"Yes but meteor showers can be unpredictable," Dea replied with a smile making a few notes. So far things were looking good but this evaluation flight wasn't over yet. Even as a passenger there was something about flying in a small craft that couldn't be put into words.

Oliver smiled, nodding as he watched the route. "It's what makes flying such an art..." he said and nodded. He let out a breath as he approached the area clearly designed for emergency procedures. "Emergency landing on a moving target," he said, getting them to match the speed of the object. This was something he had done before. It was a matter of knowing where to land...and it wasn't always pretty. In fact, it was a bumpy landing...but it was the way it was. These landings were never smooth.

Dea nodded with a smile of her own, "You are right that is why its an art as much as a science." Carefully monitoring his emergency landing, "Well done Warrant Officer Sylver. That is one of the hardest skills to master even though that kind of landing is never pretty."

"Should see it with a wounded bird," he said and got out of his seat. "I am now going to manually check the systems and then fly us back."

"Oh I've been piloting a wounded bird and had to complete this kind of landing. It was an experience I'll never forget," Dea commented letting her eyes take in the view outside.

He smiled weakly, nodding as he opened the panel, so he could do a quick check of all the systems. "Yeah, I had the displeasure of flying a winged bird through a wasteland of broken up ships during the war. Miracle I didn't get myself killed. In comparison, these babies are far easier to deal with. And less claustrophobic." He finished and got back in his seat." All systems good, let's get going again."

"I know the feeling," Dea commented, "She's under your control." She checked the ship's systems then added another set of notes to her information on Sylver's evaluation. "Things are looking good."

"Always a plus," he said and got the shuttle going again. "Just the end bit now, I'll make it smooth as silk..." he chuckled, leading them to the last bit of the course, which was a standard landing into the docking back again.

Dea had lost track of how many times she's heard a similar comment only to have things go the other way. However Mialin trusted the pilot's she flew with. "Sounds good to me."

Oliver was true to his promise. The ride back was smooth and the landing pretty standard. He chuckled as he powered the shuttle down, with a soft sigh. "I do love flying, ma'am."

As she turned to face him Dea couldn't help but smile, "There is something in the blood. You can take a pilot of out their craft but you they will always be a pilot. Flight is amazing. Excellent work today. Have a good time on shoreleave."

"Will do...and you too, ma'am," he said and flashed her a warm smile, nodding at that.

[OFF]

LCDR Dea Mialin
Chief Flight Control Officer
USS Galileo

Staff Warrant Officer Oliver Sylver
Flight Control
USS Galileo
[PNPC Devin]

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