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Everyone is going to do contract initial pilot training. PPL, IFR, Multi. Then shorter T-6 direct FTU or shorter FBF. SGTO happening now T-6 is going away for everyone eventually and IPT direct T-7s for all my friends.

You have a rosy outlook on violent encounters. We aren't dealing with redcoats vs. colonial army rules of war either.

Nope. Nor do I hope to be. Around my normal territory, if a weapon is produced folks back away. If a weapon is fired, folks run. We aren’t dealing with organized squads of trained paramilitary. Even in Phoenix and Vegas I wasn’t carrying to win a protracted gun fight ….

I've never shot a rifle or pistol at a person and hope I never have to. And I don't doubt that my accuracy would be drastically decreased if that person might be shooting back. But I would be very interested to see an in depth study like the above data on CC shootings. Just based on personal experience, I've been to multiple shooting ranges both civilian and military and have coincidentally been shooting next to police officers multiple times. Not a single time was I impressed with any of their shooting. I know that there are many cops that would shoot circles inside my groups, but I wonder how the hit rate of CC shooters would compare with the average. That said, more bullets is always better, which is why I'm still looking to figure out a folding M4 for my truck gun.

I was discussing this the other day, after seeing what the USN pulled off almost overnight. AF buy a slew of the same darn Beechcraft and get on it NOW. All those turboprops can be delivered in 3-4 years. Guys need real flying and learning in the real world and all the things one learns by doing that. T-6 onward to King Air onward to "Heavy Whatever" is WORLDS better than T-6 to F it, we do it live. Kudos to the USN boys. AF...take notes and execute on a T-1 replacement.

Where do I sign?

we are so fucked

The FDIC just published this document regarding its preparations for the failure of a Global Systemically Important Banking (GSIB) organization headquartered in the U.S. with complex global operations. https://www.fdic.gov/sites/default/files/2024-04/spapr1024b_0.pdf It basically outlines how the Sec of the Treasury, Federal Reserve, and President will transfer all the assets to a Bridge Financial Company. I thought it interesting that they mention they plan to put the company into FDIC receivership on a Friday evening so as to be able to mobilize the plan and prevent a contagion by Monday morning. "The appointment as receiver late Friday afternoon would provide time, while most global financial markets are closed, to form a Bridge Financial Company, mobilize resources needed to conduct business beginning on Monday morning, and communicate with key constituencies (including employees, counterparties, and claimants) around the globe. The FDIC recognizes that a Friday night appointment may not be possible in all instances, and the timing will be highly dependent on the nature of the failing institution, how it fails, and market conditions at the time." The plan says it ensures that only claimants (shareholders and creditors) would incur losses and that US taxpayers would incur no liability. Translation: they'll print the money. "The ability of the FDIC and other regulatory authorities to manage the orderly resolution of large, complex financial institutions remains foundational to U.S. financial stability. While recognizing the progress that has been made toward enabling such a resolution and ending “too big to fail,” we also recognize that the resolution of a GSIB has not yet been undertaken. When it becomes necessary to do so, carrying out such a resolution will come with a unique set of challenges and risks." Any bets on who it's gonna be?

Concur unfortunately At this point (phase 3) you’re starting to refine and shape the product, allow for greater responsibility and lay the foundation for a future aircraft commander who can lead a crew, handle change, manage priorities and execute the mission. You only get that in the training environment of actually flying an aircraft in the real world with all its variables. Comment not directed at you but the GOs, SESs, CODELs and policy makers lurking here for ideas on what the AF should be doing.

This would be a good idea. I thought my TC-12 training was a good feeder for the Herk. It would give the student a more complex airplane with more than one engine to worry about. At this point anything is better than the ridiculous idea of T-6s straight to whatever heavy the student tracks. Would probably be fairly cheap operating cost wise too. All those are reasons why the AF would most likely never go for it.

https://www.navair.navy.mil/product/T-54A Perhaps, but it WILL fly in the valley-of-the-downs! Ah the good ole' days of doing an NDB approach sucking O2 mask with an engine simulated out. And uphill both ways.

That's tight. It blows my mind that the Rattler LT is the same length as the Charger *after* they added 1.25” to the barrel. I've never paid much attention to the "braced pistol" world until now. The Rattler is crazy $$$, but .300BLK is a pretty neat round. I just gotta wait for my ATF approval for the silencer and I'll be ready to find somewhere for a little training. I'm sure they're plenty of options on Texas🤣😂 Might have to at the Charger to the wishlist... I decided I'm going to try and minimize the number of calibers I own, and 9 mm ain't going anywhere anytime soon.

The real question… does the T-54 have a “god box”?

When does this rise to the threshold for domestic terrorism?

Cost and risk, Navy already has gotten the aircraft delivered to meet mil training requirements and has costs for support already worked out so the AF could piggyback off that. Any new acquisition program would take years before anything would get decided let alone delivered, methinks this would be the VFR direct solution Copy, cheat off the Navy’s homework AF and just get this plane now. Basing suggestions: Dobbins for ATL, JRB Ft Worth for DFW and a tenant unit on a AZ ANG facility in PHX.

My Bud went to the T-1 retirement event they had at RND a few weeks ago. He said that they (ATC Brass) told the crowd the T-7 was still a few years away, like 2030ish! And that in the future the AF was looking at UPT being T-6 to T-7 for all pilots, like the old T-37 to T-38 syllabus of yore. That was from the mouths of the AETC Commanders. I’m sure some of you guys attended as well.

I am guessing you've never been in a gunfight or you are a world class combat tested shooter. It is one thing to drive nails at the range, quite another once the adrenaline starts to flow...trust me. Countless studies have proven the impact of stress on accuracy in real gunfights. The data on police shootings is very consistent, annual hit-rate averages in large departments such as New York City, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Las Vegas, for example, have typically ranged from 22% to 52% over the decades. A more recent study in Dallas examined 149 real-life OISs recorded over a 15-year period by Dallas (TX) PD. In nearly half of these encounters, officers firing at a single suspect delivered “complete inaccuracy.” That is, they missed the target entirely. At 120 BPM – You begin lose fine motor skills. You are unable to dial a phone or aim a weapon. At this level, gross motor skills are generally unaffected. At 150 BPM – You begin to lose your complex motor skills. Hand-eye coordination and timing deteriorate. Practiced techniques that do not require fine motor skills are still generally available. A 180 BPM and above – At this level you begin to lose rational thought processes. Though trained gross motor skills are not drastically affected. In the 134 cases where researchers were able to calculate the hit rate, “incredibly” it was merely 35%. Another study examined fire rate, as stress increased so did the first rate, by a factor of two. Combining these too factors together, it is usually better to have more rounds. We can also discuss actual stopping power of the .45 versus the 9MM. While the .45 is a larger projectile it is moving at a slower velocity and has less penetration than the 9MM. Hollow-point 9MM rounds typically penetrate deeper and interestingly expand to almost the same size as the .45. I am not hating on the .45, I own several but from personal experience I would rather have more rounds. It really is. The size, portability and maneuverability beat anything else I've tried when using as a vehicle weapon. I was lucky to do a lot of training with the "lads" and did the driving and shooting course...I felt like a complete stooge the first couple runs. The charger allows me to easily control the weapon pulling it from behind the drivers seat, across the front of my body without the muzzle banging into the steering wheel or getting hung up int he headliner. A few of my collection (anyone want a Glock 30, WAY to small for my hand), for size comparison, as you can see folded up it is very small and the stock folds out in one fluid motion, making transition very easy.

Why not just replace the T-1 with a COT solution like a CJ3?

At this point anything that is flight time for guys going multi eng heavy would be fine but if the Navy can find the resources (granted fewer pilots to train for their heavy community) the USAF can too https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/first-t-54a-trainer-jet-arrives-at-naval-air-station-corpus-christi/ar-AA1nHW9c?cvid=9bde1b3471da4db689e9e85ad188cb6c&ei=4 USAF buys 120, send studs to a civ multi course after T-6s, then to Flight Safety for a type course or AF written syllabus, then a flight syllabus in the T-54 to teach Air Mobility basics (air mob mission planning, transport aircraft form, simulated air refueling & delivery, NVGs, etc… Syllabus NOT focused primarily on repetitive basic sorties but heavy military airmanship, reasonable length, shooting for stud grad / winging 3+ months from start. 3 bases, east-central-west, near major airports / airline domiciles to develop operational experience and entice Reservist support

No, they haven’t but that doesn’t stop them from trying when the alternative powers are not friendly. I think things would have been much different had the UK and USA had not been on good terms post WWII. During the Civil War, England recognized the Confederacy’s “Belligerent Status,” stopping short of recognizing the sovereignty of the Confederacy. The Confederacy had envoys on British Naval vessels, Ala the Trent Affair. At risk were lucrative trade deals etc, but you could also argue that fomenting conflict between the two sides by respecting a belligerent status and remaining neutral was sacrosanct endorsement that either the South could win or a stalemate could emerge. Otherwise they would have supported the North. Neutrality equates to not caring about a return to the Status Quo - Ante. Applying a realist view to this, smart on the part of England because a divided America would have reduced the overall power balance by shifting it two nations instead of one. Thus increasing or safeguarding its status as the leading world power at the time ala Pax Brittanaca. Also we are not an empire. IMHO. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/ar-AA1nIxGp "Ukrainian forces are withdrawing US-provided Abrams M1A1 main battle tanks from the front lines after at least five have been destroyed by cheap Russian drones, according to the AP." <insert lawman calling AP a putin puppet> "However, the evolving dynamics of warfare, particularly the proliferation of Russian surveillance and hunter-killer drones, have dramatically altered the operational landscape. It turned out that the Abrams were more vulnerable to Russian attacks than previously believed." "The failure of the Abrams to make a difference is a costly miscalculation. The export cost of an Abrams tank can be around $10mn, while Col. Markus Reisner, an Austrian military trainer who follows the weapons being used in Ukraine, told the Euromaidan Press that the Russian suicide drones being used to destroy them can be as cheap as $500 each (a ratio of 20,000:1)." -------------------------------------------------------------------------- https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/ukraine-maps-show-russian-gains-amid-fears-us-aid-too-late/ar-AA1nLVfE?cvid=149b9212c973403096e273627ebf1743&ei=5 "Russian forces continue to maintain momentum on the battlefield in Ukraine as maps show Moscow's latest gains amid concerns about whether an aid package for Kyiv just passed by Congress can thwart Moscow's momentum in time." <insert lawman calling MSN a russian disinformation agent> "While welcoming the bill, military analyst Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI) said on X, formerly Twitter, that the U.S. assistance may help Kyiv fight in 2024 and into 2025 but Russia will still likely make further gains this year, and "it doesn't fix all of Ukraine's issues."" <Rob Lee is clearly pro putin> "Meanwhile, in analysis for Carnegie Endowment for World Peace, Eugene Rumer, director of the U.S. think tank's Russia and Eurasia program, said Ukraine "has no good options, even with the latest aid package." "Many military analysts have already come to that conclusion privately but are unwilling to voice that sentiment," he wrote in the commentary published Thursday, adding that the U.S. deal "is almost certainly the last package of such magnitude, regardless of who gets elected as the next U.S. president." <obviously the Carnegie Endowment for world peace is a putin sock puppet>

generally peaceful nothing to see here /s

What to do about these University protests? These leftist students are demanding campuses "Divest from Israel" which apparently is code for "Get rid of the Jews". https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/news/cal-poly-humboldt-gaza-protest-closed-campus/ Here's a vid from the inside of "Intifada Hall" at California Polytechnic University at Humbolt. https://x.com/visegrad24/status/1784282619481383342

"The finding is broadly accepted within the intelligence community and shared by several agencies, including the Central Intelligence Agency, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the State Department’s intelligence unit" If you can't trust these agencies to prop up your narrative, who can you trust? 🤣