General Discussion

Saw some interesting bits in the new 2015 NDAA just passed by the House and now going to the Senate. These changes are almost definitely going to be signed into law by the President. The number of AD Enlisted Aides in the entire DOD will be restricted to 300 (current level) OR double the number of AD O-10's plus one each for the number of O-9's, whichever is less. So currently there are around 300 Enlisted Aides for the 165 O-9's and O-10's, but that will shrink to around 245. There are currently about 80 Air Force Enlisted Aides. If our portion remains consistent, that should shrink to about 67, or 13 people doing a real job again in FY15. Non-AD (retirees, depen…

Another air show crash. Pilot didn't make it. https://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/06/01/pilot-47-dies-in-crash-at-air-show/

(All posts concerning SGT Bergdah's release have been moved to this thread) Sounds like US Army POW Sgt Bergdahl has been released by the Taliban?

Can anyone say with any authority how much having a type rating helps when interviewing for an airline? Before I drop 6-9 thousand on a B737 or A320 when there is a good chance I may not be assigned to said type, does it really add that much to my military background in Strike Eagles?

Per the VSP thread, I agree it's a good idea. Post all your FY14 & 15 VSP/TERA/PC/seperations lessons learned here. The intent seems to be so that guys can speak somewhat directly to those leaders staying in so they in turn can better create an environment where buckets of experienced guys aren't trying to leave at the first opportunity. I'm getting out soon (non-VSP or PC unfortunately) and will post my own contributions when I'm not on my phone.

How should we properly manage a lump sum check this sumer/fall? I'm expecting my CY14 AGI to be through the roof, so I'm switching the rest of this year's TSP contributions from Roth to Traditional. This should lower my taxable income by about 10K ($17,500 total max allowable Roth and Traditional TSP allowed this year, not counting combat pay contributions). What are some other moves to lower taxable income when expecting a lump sum? Also, where are some of the better places to park the separation payment, besides hookers and blow? Does anyone recommend a particular Vanguard fund or something similar?

https://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20140515/CAREERS/305150044/Air-Force-offer-3-years-off-airmen-start-families Apparently the Navy has been doing this since 2012. I get that they will supposedly get "reset" in a new year group but won't it still be obvious when you have a 3 yr gap in OPR/EPRs?

Andrews eyed for new Air Force operations headquarters

Alright, I know I'm about to offend some very respectable people here, and I'm sure there's much more to it than someone in my position could possibly know, but this has been bugging me for a while. As seen in articles like this one: https://www.airforcem...-the-Table.aspx, the AF considered divesting either the B-1 or the A-10. My question to all the Strategic-Level gurus is: If they could save just as much money by cutting the fleet of B-1s, then why would they ever consider cutting the A-10? Here's the reasoning from my perspective, (an Apache pilot who has worked with F-15Es, Vipers, A-10s, and B-1s on real missions in Afghanistan): The B-1 is an awesome…

This thread was inevitable.... Please keep content relative to year.

https://m.kcra.com/news/plane-crashes-at-travis-afb-air-show-in-fairfield/25806746 Apparently this was the performer: https://www.eddieandreiniairshows.com

When in the hell are we going to actually protect our own country? N4T Investigators: Rogue Mexican Army troops crossing the line There are about 28,500 US military personnel in South Korea right now assisting in deterrance and defense of the 15th largest economy in the world that also has the 6th largest military (by AD personnel) with a 2.9 million reserve force and we have almost no US military actually stationed on and tasked to defend the southern border. Can we get at least half of that on our border? One can dream though...

https://www.airforcetimes.com/article/20140430/NEWS/304300047/

https://thediplomat.com/2014/04/us-philippines-enhanced-defense-cooperation-agreement-bolsters-pivot-to-asia/ https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/04/28/remarks-president-obama-filipino-and-us-armed-forces-fort-bonifacio The President (or somebody from the US government) signed the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement with the Philippines yesterday. I glanced through the brief 10 pages of the agreement, and it does not stipulate the number of personnel, aircraft, vessels, or locations, but that certainly will follow in the next few years. FYI for anybody with memories of Clark AB, the former installation now has some 50K residents and is a sizable inte…

Did anybody hear about the mass piss test they did at Dover to include transit aircrews coming from overseas? Full disclosure this was beer talk at Ramstein with other aircrews so it might have been exaggerated. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

https://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/apr/22/pentagon-plans-replace-flight-crews-full-time-robo/ ALIAS envisions a tailorable, drop‐in, removable kit that would enable the addition of high levels of automation into existing aircraft to enable operation with reduced onboard crew. (Image: DARPA) By Douglas Ernst - The Washington Times Tuesday, April 22, 2014 The Pentagons research agency tasked with developing breakthrough technologies for national security has come up with a plan for dealing with shrinking budgets: robotic flight crews. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is currently working on technology that will be able to replace up …

Those old plastic sleeves get pretty bad with revisions to the point that you can no longer read the writing through the ink residue that is worn off the previous revision. Further more, my checklist weighs more than my ipad and otterbox combo... I've seen a few units with some water proof / tear proof checklists pages that you can write on with a pencil, no smearing, etc. Those checklists were about 1/4 the weight. Anyone know about these? who prints this sort of thing? Thanks in advance

Did a search and didn't find a relevant thread...I applied for a humanitarian assignment about 2.5 weeks ago to be near my father who has cancer. It's currently at the submitted to BPO step. Does anyone have any knowledge on these things and how fast they move? I spoke to my assignment team and there's an open slot at the base I want and they said that they don't anticipate filling it until the fall cycle; does this availability of a slot tilt things in my favor?

Did a forum search for this incident and nothing came up. I'm sure there is more to the story than what this article presented, but talk about luck and timing... 2013 F/A-18 crash: Out of fuel, out of time and one chance to land https://www.stripes.com/news/navy/2013-f-a-18-crash-out-of-fuel-out-of-time-and-one-chance-to-land-1.277698

If you're PCS there. Taking leave to go. Maybe even if you're there TDY (good luck). See you there, hopefully.

Went into the BX for the first time in a few years today looking for a mouse for my laptop. I was quickly reminded why I avoid the place like the plague. The selection is godawful. The prices are typically 25-50% HIGHER than other retailers. Sony X65 headphones? $30 on Amazon and Walmart. Yours for only $80 at your local BX! Microsoft Military Appreciation Touch Mouse? $50 at the BX. $40 online. 3 year old PS3 games? 50% off at $25 at your BX or you could go to the mart or GameStop and get it for 5-$10. Cool speakers for your obsolete iPhone 3? Of course they are on clearance, at $50! Clothing selection is amazing. You can always find a sweet Affliction…

Hi guys, I've applied to 2 guard units so far and no luck...but going to keep trying for now. If I didn't have a good paying job I would totally apply for AD. I know it is difficult to get into pilot training no matter how you go about it, but I imagine it would be easier to get picked up if you went the AD route instead of the guard units. I'm considering going AD for a few other reasons. Browsing through this forum I have read account of AD pilots who have just had an absolute blast in their AF careers. They got to fly numerous different airframes and traveled to all sorts of interesting places. Along with that they work with a great group of guys and form…

Senior Air Force officer loses job over 'inappropriate' emails Sacked for emails...that must suck. Anybody at Randolph have more info? I was in Venom's squadron 10 years ago, so I'm curious as to what happened. I'll take a PM if you don't think it's appropriate to post here.

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.

We all know that the DoD loves to block music service websites, so my question is what have you found to allow you to play music. Live365 used to be the go to site but it recently was blocked. I don't have unlimited data so using the phone is out. All that I can find left is YouTube, which isn't ideal for music streaming. What is everyone else using? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk