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HIGH FLIGHT
by John Gillespie Magee, Jr
(Annotated for Army Aviators)

Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds1 of earth
And danced the skies2 on laughter-silvered wings 3;
Sunward I’ve climbed4, and joined the tumbling mirth5
Of sun-split clouds6 -- and done a hundred things7
You have not dreamed of8 -- wheeled and soared and swung9
High in the sunlit silence10. Hov’ring there11,
I’ve chased12 the shouting wind along13, and flung
My eager craft14 through footless halls15 of air.
Up, up16 the long, delirious17 burning blue18
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights19 with easy grace20
Where never lark or even eagle flew21
And, while with silent, lifting mind22 I’ve trod
The high untrespassed sanctity23 of space,
Put out my hand24, and touched the face of God25.

(1. It is the responsibility of the Pilot in Command (PC) to insure that all surly bonds have been slipped and properly stowed IAW Chapter 8 of the appropriate aircraft Operator’s Manual (Dash 10). See also FM 1-202 chapter on “Dynamic Rollover Characteristics of Rotary-Wing Aircraft.� 2. Sky-dancing will not exceed one ball-width of trim with MILES/AGES installed. PC will insure that other limitations listed in Chapter 5 of the appropriate aircraft Dash 10 are not exceeded during this maneuver. 3. Laughter-silvering of aircraft components must comply with paint schemes illustrated in TM 55-1500-345-23. 4. Not to exceed 30 degrees of pitch or maximum continuous transmission limitation. 5. Only mission-essential personnel are authorized on flights to join tumbling mirth per AR 95-1. 6. It is the PC’s responsibility to insure proper sun-split cloud clearance IAW AR 95-1 when operating under VFR. 7. All hundred things must be listed on the mission brief sheet (DA Form 5484-R) and signed by a designated mission briefer. 8. Undreamed-of things must be entered in the mission briefer’s block of the risk-assessment matrix and assigned an appropriate numerical value. 9. Simultaneous iterations of wheeling and soaring and swinging will not be attempted except as a demonstration maneuver by an IP/SP. See also caveat at 2 and 5. 10. Sunlit silence will invariably be followed by sunlit RPM audio alarm and warning light illumination, simultaneous decay of sunlit N1, N2, NR and TGT/EGT/TOT, and a 3000 foot-per-minute rate of uncontrolled sunlit descent. 11. Not applicable in the event of sunlit silence: however, hov’ring there in sunlit noise and sunlit vibration may be attempted if Performance Planning Card data indicates that OGE hov’r pow’r is available and aircraft controlability is not in question. 12. See FM 1-107, Chapter 6 “Air Combat Maneuvers.� 13. Forecast shouting winds at flight level will be annotated in block 15 of DD Form 175-1. Encounters of unforecast severe or extreme shouting winds require a PIREP. See Flight Information Handbook (FIH), Section C for format. 14. Flinging of hesitant craft will only be attempted if PPC data indicates 10% safe-pedal margin exists for ambient conditions at the planned time of fling and will continue to exist for the duration of the iteration. 15. Footless halls will be recorded in meters. See FIH, Section D for conversion tables. 16. See “Requirements for Supplementary Oxygen� in AR 95-1. 17. Long, delirious episodes will be reported to the Flight Surgeon UP AR 40-8. 18. Burning blue has been associated with aircraft fuel cell delamination and requires an entry on DA Form 2408-13-1 upon termination of flight. 19. Windswept heights will not be topped at NOE altitudes unless the crew has been Mountain-Flying qualified and briefed for the maneuver. 20 TM 55-1500-345-23 does not provide for the painting of personal or “pet� names on Army aircraft. 21. The PC is responsible to insure that the flight route does not overfly or encroach upon Wildlife Refuge/Wildlife Sanctuary areas at less than the Minimum Overflight Altitude indicated on the Sectional Aeronautical Charts. 22. The crew must carefully monitor silent lifting minds at high altitude to avoid encountering retreating brain stall at airspeeds approaching VNE. 23. Requires filing of DVFR flight plan through FSS to NASA in order to trespass the sanctity of space. 24. Crew and passengers are required to keep personal appendages inside the aircraft whenever indicated airspeed exceeds 40 knots to preclude injury to personnel or damage to the airframe. 25. When maneuvering to touch the face of God, crew must exercise extreme caution to preclude inadvertent contact between Him and the main rotor blades. )