For the (Old School) Rotary Wing Aviators of the US Army: Solo Alley "Under These Rotor Blades..."

[GodBlessTheUSA]

Circa 1969-1972. Prior to moving the primary helicopter school from Fort Wolters, Texas, to Fort Rucker, Alabama.
This was the famous pool at the Holiday Inn in Mineral Wells (I cropped my very young self out of the photo).

My father told me the tale of when a graduating class of pilots threw some foreign national pilots (Thai?) into the pool as was custom; everyone got thrown in after their successful solo flight. Unfortunately, the foreign pilots couldn't swim and it took a while for the (probably) inebriated Americans to realize that their foreign classmates were drowning.

God Bless every man that went beneath those rotors.

 

[kuduboss]

The day you soloed, you were driven back from the flightline to the main heliport by bus. On your way, you'd swing by the hotel for the honor of being thrown in the pool by your classmates. I also heard that story but don't know if true or not. It wasn't a physical thing. We wanted to be part of the ritual. We knew where we were headed but we weren't walking ... we were flyin'.