General Discussion

"What outsourced company would be so stupid as to not bolt down seats?" Oh, gee, I dunno. Contract depot maintenance has such a sterling record.... Things don't seem to be looking too good for American. They're on the downswing while their major competitors, especially Delta seem to have righted the ship. If I were a betting man I wouldn't be putting money on American right now.

So the new USAF captain board just posted their results and many of us believe there were some mistakes made. There are people who were wash backs in flight school who got promoted and others who graduated in the top half of their flight school class and top of their FTU class who were nonselected. There is a certain airframe in which everyone at that schoolhouse when the packages were sent in was nonselected. My understanding is that a promotion board cannot discriminate based on the job. A promotion board has to select based on job performance while a retention board can discriminate based on the job. Maybe there was a paperwork issue out of that FTU? Has anyone had exp…

https://chronicle.com...oud-the/134830/ Interesting article by an English Professor at USNA. The primary points and recommendations seem to be as follows 1. Academies are superfluous because more officers are generated from ROTC and OCS/OTS than from the academies themselves. Comment: It is true ROTC and OTS provide more officers than the academies. It is also true that Lts from the academy are generally no better than those from ROTC or OTS. Based on my own experience, the most effective JOs are prior service from OTS, ROTC and/or the academy. Largely because they are more mature (age) and more committed. By the time they reach Capt/Lt they all kind of ev…

This is probably a question for finance guy. When you elect to take a pay advance when you PCS, when would you be taxed on the income? I will be deployed all 12 months in 2012 so I have zero taxable income. I’m trying to figure out if I can take 3 months of advance pay in December while it’s tax free, then pay it back next year resulting in essentially 9 months of taxable income in 2013? Any help is appreciated.

I'm putting the final touches on a novel and would appreciate help with the following re: C-130s. 1. The antagonist, an arms dealer, owns both a C-130, and a small island in the Gulf of Thialand. Bearing in mind that 1. artistic license is acceptable but still must be believable, 2. his pilots are "down-and-dirty" former GRU Spetsnaz, 3. it's an island! it can't have a long runway, what would be the minimum runway length? 1700 feet feasible? Less? I'm aware of the record landings and TOs on the Forrestal. Maybe I could put that in the book. 2. does the Herk have the ability to start without external generator? (can't remember the equipment name - been a few years …

Maj. Garrett Knowlan was struck by a boat and killed during the single man raft isolation exercise. https://www.pnj.com/a...text%7CMilitary

What is everyone's take on the new policy at Dafra? How long do you think this policy will last? Warriors, Effective immediately, civilian clothing is authorized for all Al Dhafra personnel in the Phantom East and West compounds while engaged in off-duty leisure or physical fitness activities. Members are required to be in uniform during any official duty (including in/out processing) and on all other US portions of the installation including MOTOWN, Munitions Storage Areas, Patriot Battery Compound, etc. Clothing worn off the US portion of Al Dhafra AB must still comply with AEWI 36-2903, Community Standards, Chapter 3, para 3.1.1. This policy consider…

Coach Christensen can't handle losing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaJDqBNo4cI EDIT: Potentially NSFW due to language.

Folks, can anyone help me out with a list of pubs, flashcards, checklists and the like that will help me succeed at UPT? I have been an Army Aviator since 2002 and will surely have to "unlearn" as much as I will have to learn. The rote memorization required in Army flight school was obscene and I can only expect that the Air Force school will be a lot of the same. Anything I can start to study ahead of time I'm sure will be better than showing up cold. Thanks! Paul

I am unfortunately in the process of being medically disqualified from flying related duties. I finished three months of training but had to be removed because of my medical problem. I am currently preparing my reclassification package and was wondering if anyone with experience can tell me the proper protocol to ask someone for a letter of recommendation when you are no longer in their chain of command? Most of the people going to the board commissioned through ROTC and received really good LORs from their leadership at ROTC. I am prior service that commissioned through OTS so that avenue is not available for me. I am hoping to get LORs from my past leadership but mo…

Looks like the Boeing folks have a new cruise missile up their sleeves...no, not literally https://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2012/10/25/boeing-successfully-tests-microwave-missile-that-takes-out-electronic-targets/

OK guys, I have some Brit buds who volunteer at the Bentwaters Cold War Museum and they have been working every angle they can to get a static display A-10 and/or F-4C for their facility with no success, so they asked if I had any other ideas. They've already contacted USAFE who tried getting the Spang BDR jet sold off to them as scrap, but the proposal never got anywhere and returning that particular airframe to display condition would have been too costly for the museum. They also asked for a Hog via the NMUSAF, but that organization changed its loans legislation after 9/11 so that it does not provide artifacts to non-government based agencies outside of the US.…

The USAF can't even outfit the A/G fighter with pods continuously.......how are they gonna get 177 for Eagles. Any 15C model guys know if/when this will happen? https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2012/10/air-force-f-15-upgrades-aim-double-service-life-102912w/

Did a search and only found a couple posts from 5 years back or so regarding the time between UPT graduation and follow on training. I'll be graduating UPT here in June of 2013 and am planning on getting married shortly after (like the weekend after). I'm just wondering what the current average amount of time is between graduation and follow on training, i.e. SERE/Water Survival/MWS training/etc...? Any help would be appreciated.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20209770

I have UTFSF but haven't been able to pull up an old thread with any good info. I'm seeking some help from fellow Exec types, former Exec types, or casual UPT types that might be able to give a little input. I'm trying to find good/somewhat recent examples of Duty Titles that have been used for junior CGOs who are on casual for an extended period. We have several 2d Lts, 1st Lts, and a couple Capts that have been doing an administrative assistant type role and we also have a couple who have been assigned as the lead casual. I'm curious about what Duty Titles folks have had in the past or know of. Any input is much appreciated.

Any Shaw guys on here got any fallout news? https://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/02/us/women-in-air-force-say-sexual-misconduct-still-rampant.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

By The Associated Press FILE - This Feb. 2, 2012 file photo shows CIA Director David Petraeus testifying on Capitol Hill in Washington. Petraeus has resigned because of an extramarital affair. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File) WASHINGTON — David Petraeus has resigned as director of the CIA after admitting he had an extramarital affair. According to his letter of resignation, Petraeus asked President Barack Obama on Thursday to allow him to resign, and on Friday the president accepted. Petraeus said in a statement that he had shown "extremely poor judgment" in having an affair.

https://www.theblaze.com/blog/2012/11/02/anti-gun-bloomberg-turns-down-help-from-the-gun-toting-national-guard/ So apparently Bloomberg only likes the NYPD to have guns so they can shoot 9 innocent bystanders while they unload 18 rounds into a maniac in broad daylight?

Has anyone tried this? Looks to be an Android equivalent of Foreflight. Is it worth a download?

https://www.cnn.com/2....html?hpt=hp_t3 Twitter war! Video of missile defense from inside Israel: https://www.liveleak....=c83_1352921667 Strike on Hamas leader: https://youtu.be/P6U2ZQ0EhN4

Anybody seen this? https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2012/11/15/fighter-jet-crashes-near-florida-air-force-base

I can't find this posted before so here is the skinny. Veterans Day offers a reminder of the service and sacrifice of America’s military personnel. AOPA is honoring the service of active-duty military members by offering them a complimentary one-year membership in the association. AOPA announced the offer in May as part of an effort to reach out to members of the military and support their flying goals. The association offers resources for pilots of all stripes, whether they fly recreationally or for the military. If you know someone in the military who would enjoy an AOPA membership, please share the offer. https://www.discoveraopa.org/aopamilitaryaopapilotmagad…

https://m.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/petraeus-scandal-puts-four-star-general-lifestyle-under-scrutiny/2012/11/17/33a14f48-3043-11e2-a30e-5ca76eeec857_story.html

https://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/11/19/marine-corps-forms-squadron-to-fly-new-next-generation-strike-fighter-jet/?test=latestnews The Marines just broke ground on their first F-35 squadron at Yuma with flights planned before the end of the year. After all the ass-pain of the VSTOL variant, I'm curious if there as any real tactical viability (or even need) to operate from "unimproved surfaces at austere bases" and special amphibious landing ships (although I've heard the Marines are going to have to operate some C models because of their fleet commitments to the Navy). After 30 years with the Harrier has this tactical need shown itself enough to go through…