General Discussion

Is there any kind of pre-test available to study before taking the tests? I'm working on the first class right now and so much of it is "this person you've never heard of said this, but oh yeah this other person you've never heard of said this". I'm afraid the test is going to be a bunch of questions about the first commander's opinion of an unheard of AETC wing on critical thinking...just stuff that no one really cares about.

I am wondering if this is just a local thing or is there an airforce wide movement among leadership in the flying community wearing abu's to "blend" with the rest of the troops ?

So, I did a quick search (sorry if it wasn't in-depth enough)...but there are apparently two-year, accompanied positions opening in Guam for B-1 folks. I'm curious what info the forum has regarding Guam. Is this something I should jump on immediately, avoid like the plague, or something in between? I'm married, with an 11-year-old. I've only been in flying positions, both in the line squadron and the FTU, my whole career. I'm told the Andersen assignment is also flying, but I also know B-1s will only be there for a small time during the two years this assignment would span.

Interesting take on the use of the word hero- https://www.huffingtonpost.com/william-j-astore/why-its-wrong-to-equate-m_b_655611.html

In order to not derail a classic thread, but continue a rather good discussion, I'll pose this question here. What is so "dangerous" about a high speed abort on a long runway? I hear people brief over and over that they would rather continue the takeoff for "x" than do a high speed abort. Here is my take on it (keep in mind, all my experience is in the C-130 and we routinely take off and land with about 8,000' more than we actually need.) Say you're taking off full length on Runway 25 at LRF. You have 12,000' of runway in front of you. Say you get an abort call just before rotating, we'll call it 110 KIAS. Definitely a high speed abort. But you also have about…

A question to the old hats, especially the fighter dudes and former FAIPs: Does flying ever become fun again?

I know AFI 36-2903 leaves the wearing of scarves up to MAJCOM. By why are they no more? I think It was back in 2008 AETC brought the hammer down but I can't find any other restrictions that apply to ground duties?!

Final T-37 Checkrides are today at Sheppard. After this class graduates, there will be about one more month and then July 30th they will fly the last of the jets to the "Boneyard" (AMARG at DM). Large number of you all flew the Tweet, thought you'd want to know...

This a big deal? I guess not... Unlocked article link below: https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/hospitalized-pentagon-chief-was-in-intensive-care-unit-12b3f1a6?st=n7pns02pvqo4gy7&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

https://weartv.com/news/local/deputies-plane-crashes-near-magnolia-springs-home-catches-fire

We seem to have extras...any takers? https://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/australia-looks-overseas-for-defence-staff-20111227-1par2.html The Australian Defence Force is trying to recruit laid-off soldiers, sailors and air crew from Britain, the US and other western countries in order to fill recruitment quotas. Australia is reportedly looking for defence specialists, such as fighter pilots, submarine crews and officers and are offering fast-tracked citizenship as an incentive, The Australian reported on Tuesday. According to the newspaper the Royal Australian Navy has sent a delegation to Britain to discover how many retrenched sailors, particularly en…

Need some help... Contemplating McgUire as a follow-on (C-17). Can't really find info about the housing situation (off base), except you have to drive about 30-45 minutes, and sometimes up to an hour to get to base from home, and then, you are forking $1500 bones on a mortgage. Where are the places to live? And what/where exactly are the new communities around the base? Looking for a 4 BR, approx 175-225K...am I dreaming? I've heard Mt Holly, Burlington, and Cherry Hill. Am I barking up the wrong tree, or are there different places locally that I should try to research. Thanks

Damn it. https://www.airforcet...ash-Afghanistan Anyone know anything about this yet? Nickel on the grass.

https://www.fool.com/...s-to-india.aspx

Open question to any and all units that have an active SOF program and those that work as a SOF or have worked as a SOF. What if/any relationship exists between the SOF and the Command Post with regard to command and control of assets? Please don't reply to this topic but PM me so I can provide a .mil email address. I'm using this as a tool to reach out, not violate OPSEC. Thanks!

Air Force awards $2.4B contract for new helicopters to guard nukes https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/24/politics/air-force-helicopter-contract-nukes/index.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+CNN+-+Top+Stories%29

Hello everyone, As a proud sponsor of Baseops.net, I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Jim Gilmore. I'm the owner of www.AimHigherJets.com. For the past three years I've built the store from scratch with the goal to turn it into my full time job in the near future. We aren't the typical hobby store. We carry hundreds of military diecast airplanes. But our niche is that we produce extremely high quality customized mahogany models. These aren't your typical mahogany models that you might find at the BX or from overseas. Our models are extremely detailed with custom tail flashes, tail numbers, pitot tubes, windshield wipers and antennas where appropria…

Although this link is to a story about AF issues with innovation (I will not attempt to comment on its validity or the author since there are many experts here on both), this is something we talk about across the services. Is being a “free thinker” a personality liability? We all have personal biases and want the way in which makes our living to be the most relevant, but are we going to lose our military edge because we cannot look for answers that may not support theses biases? What are your thoughts? https://omnifeed.com/article/ricks.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2014/12/03/a_pilot_speaks_the_usaf_is_harder_on_internal_ideas_than_it_is_on_evil_insurgents_ac_130#./a_pi…

Speaking of bullshit media headlines... First Lady Onboard Plane That Reportedly Just Misses Military Jet Really? Just misses? I love the quote burried in there "The FAA is investigating the incident. The Boeing 737 landed safely after executing the go around. The aircraft were never in any danger." Is it really that big of a deal? Obviously making the first lady's plane go around is not ideal but c'mon, this shit happens every day at multiple US airports. I guess it's sensational news when you've got other stories out there of controllers falling asleep. edit: sprrelling

Interesting. Any A-10 drivers out there up for this? "The U.S. military’s veteran A-10 Thunderbolt II is built for battle: a titanium-armored cockpit protects its pilot from explosive projectile hits, and it can carry weapons like a 30-mm nose-mounted cannon to take out enemy tanks. Now the National Science Foundation (NSF) plans to arm a retired Thunderbolt not with bombs, but with scientific instruments, and use it to study the inside of violent thunderstorms—where winds, hail, and lightning would take down lesser planes. The NSF recently awarded a $10.9 million grant to the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., a to refurbish a retired Thunderbolt fo…

https://medium.com/war-is-boring/the-air-force-wants-to-junk-half-of-its-best-jamming-planes-3f16d164cac1 Thoughts? I personally think it's a big mistake. Does anybody else in the CAF care? Does the Air Force really understand what EW can bring to the fight?

Just wanted to let you guys know that the American Fighter Pilot series is now being widely advertised for a March 22nd 7-episode DVD release. Sweet. [ 16. March 2005, 14:11: Message edited by: GooneyBird ]

Wondering if we will see more of this with the rise of "Grey Zone" warfare: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/23/world/americas/colombia-airline-flights-venezuela.html?_r=0 There was no specific mention of a loss of separation but it was enough to get a "sharp diversion". China seems to be practicing this also: https://www.lawfareblog.com/chinas-harassment-civilian-ships-and-aircraft-south-china-sea-reminds-us-why-we-need-more-us-freedom This article and referenced speech imply they make no distinction or even attempt at distinguishing between civil and military traffic for interception or harassment. Could ICAO as a governing body respond? Su…

New Guidance Memorandum for AFI 36-2406. New AF 910, AF 911, and AF 707 (EPR and OPR forms). All available at e-pubs ( https://www.e-publishing.af.mil ). Highlights:

Please forgive this IFR civvy flyer's ignorance, but given that military aircraft must be able to operate no matter how bad the weather, how come Ramstein has become the first DoD airbase to install a CAT III ILS? (Ramstein's ILS) Does the use of a PAR service at military airfields make ILS, whether CAT I, II or III, redundant? [ 04. January 2007, 22:38: Message edited by: Toro ]