Photo By Lt.Cmdr. Michelle Tucker | 201019-N-OU681-1088 CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (Oct. 19, 2020) Aerospace Physiologist Lt....... read more read more
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The Department of Defense named Training Air Wing 4’s aeromedical safety officer (AMSO) recipient of the 2020 Military Health Systems and Allied Health Excellence Leadership Award.
Lt. Christopher Greil, assigned to TW-4 at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, received the DoD-level award in addition to being named Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA) AMSO of the Year for 2020.
Military Health Systems evaluated nominees based on multiple criteria including major clinical achievements, enhancement to the profession and support of the warfighter, leadership, community service, and self-improvement.
“Only one winner from all military services was selected at this level, so this is a significant achievement and a testament to Lt. Greil’s leadership, community service and commitment to excellence in the MHS,” Cmdr. Maria Barefield, U.S. Navy Office of Global Health Engagement said.
Greil made safety improvements to emergency oxygen and pressurization systems, lessened the effects of airsickness for student pilots resulting in historically low attrition rates across TW-4, all while accommodating COVID-19 spread mitigation procedures such as increased classroom spacing, reduced class size, mask use, and temperature checks. These new procedures allowed mission-critical training to continue without significant operational impact.
“I feel incredibly honored and humbled to have been recognized, especially in a year when military medicine has faced so many unprecedented challenges mitigating a global pandemic,” Greil said.
A native of Missoula, Montana, Greil is a 2003 graduate of Montana State University with a Bachelor of Science in biology and neuroscience. He earned his doctorate from the University of Montana in 2008. Most recently, he completed the Space System Operations/Engineering Certificate program through Naval Postgraduate School and is the only Navy Medical Service Corps officer with cross-discipline training in medical research and military satellite systems. He works with TW-4’s four undergraduate pilot training squadrons, is responsible for training new aviators in aviation life support systems and egress survival, and manages a physiological events investigation team of 10 military officers and flight support contractors.
The CNATRA AMSO of the Year award recognizes the top AMSO across the entire Naval Air Training Command. The awardee is selected based on the level of one-on-one interaction with their respective squadrons and their proactive role in addressing aeromedical issues while improving the quality of training. Greil previously earned this award in 2019.
“We are thrilled to have an officer of Lt. Greil’s caliber on the CNATRA team and we are so fortunate to benefit from his contributions,” CNATRA Rear Adm. Robert Westendorff said. “His steadfast dedication to the students and the protocols he implemented have helped us continue to safely meet production requirements and train the world’s best aviators to meet the needs of the fleet.”
His hands-on work with students as well as his training events in the aircraft those students will fly have been a highlights of his time with TW4.
“Professionally, I find it very rewarding when the work I do has a positive impact on the successful outcome of a student aviator,” Greil said. “Personally, I will forever cherish having been given the opportunity to practice skills upfront in a T-44C Pegasus, experience carrier landings in the back of a T-45C Goshawk, and perform aerobatics in the T-6B Texan II. Those are memories I will never forget, and life experiences I have dreamt about since I was a child.”
Greil maintains active status with the Aerospace Medical Association, the society of U.S. Naval Aerospace and Operational Physiologists and the American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. He is also one of the first Medical Service Corps officer to complete the Naval Resident of Aerospace Medicine NASA-Johnson Space Center Space Medicine course.
CNATRA, headquartered in Corpus Christi, trains the world's finest combat-quality aviation professionals, delivering them at the right time, in the right numbers, and at the right cost to a naval force that is where it matters, when it matters.
| Date Taken: | 03.15.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 03.16.2021 14:32 |
| Story ID: | 391518 |
| Location: | CORPUS CHRISTI, TX, US |
| Hometown: | MISSOULA, MT, US |
| Web Views: | 463 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Training Air Wing Four Aeromedical Safety Officer Earns DoD Recognition for Leadership, Excellence, by Anne Owens, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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