Lt. Cmdr. Christopher Moran and Lt. Jared Bailey successfully completed a transatlantic flight from Naval Support Activity (NSA) Bahrain to the United States from Jan. 6 to Jan. 15, passing through eight countries and four continents.

Moran and Bailey flew a C-12 Huron aircraft from the Kingdom of Bahrain to San Angelo, Texas, for periodic depot level maintenance that is required once every five years. The C-12 is designed for short-range logistics flights so preparing for the 8,240 nautical mile transatlantic flight required careful planning of fuel management, aircraft maintenance and support, diplomatic clearances and routing.

The flight crew was made up of four people which included Moran, Bailey, Naval Air Crewman (Mechanical) 2nd Class Matthew Bates and Eric Knudsen, a civilian maintenance contractor.

The pilots and crew planned well in advance to prepare for any scenarios that could happen throughout the trip.

“Being flexible is the most challenging part. Inevitably, something may not go according to plan, and you have to adjust to it in a limited time,” said Moran.

According to Lt. Cmdr. Roderick Smith, air operations officer at NSA Bahrain, the smoothness of the flight was ample evidence of the pilots’ professionalism and attention to detail.

“The trip required exceptional planning. Only through this planning were they able to make this trip successful,” said Smith.

Moran and Bailey felt privileged for this unique opportunity and thought the trip was highly symbolic. For both aviators, the trip marked their last time flying the C-12 aircraft. However, Bailey will be separating from active duty, and this may have been one of his last flights with the Navy.

“I was fortunate to get on this flight. It was a great experience… as it was my last flight [with this command],” said Bailey.

Moran echoed Bailey’s sentiment on the enriching experience of flying over several different countries.

“The accomplishment of the trip was a great experience. It truly brought unique challenges and opportunities,” said Moran.

Even though Bailey is separating from active duty, he feels that flying is not over for him. He is still passionate about flying and hopes to make a swift return to the cockpit.

“I love flying… it never gets old,” said Bailey.

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