General Discussion

Hi all, In the past few years I have honoured to witness some excellent lowfly from the guys and gals of the USAF, and in turn they have recommend that I share some of the snaps with you here. Keep up the great work, and if you are ever in the position of planning a lowfly sortie in the UK and would like some high quality photos then drop me a DM and hopefully we can sort something out. Discretion assured, many thanks for looking, enjoy the photos.

Fill in the blanks: "In the [insert Military Branch], you're actually a ______ first, then a pilot second" and give me a reason why this is the case I've seen it on multiple posts here and there, decided I may want to try to coalesce these answers all together under one. For example, marketing tells me that going Warrant Officer Army Pilot all you'll do is fly helicopters. I find this a little too good to be true as with any leadership position there comes a bevy of staff duties to fulfill. Like making sure the fridge is stocked. For example: In the Marines, you're actually a rifleman first, a pilot second. Because "oo-rah kill". So let's hear it! Wha…

I pulled a chair up to the window here in Crystal City, and I can see part of the puzzle palace, the monument, and the Dome. I'm not as impressed as I once was. Believe it or not, I'm constantly challenging my own thoughts more than anyone else and I don't like the feeling of, or giving the perception of, shytting on my country. But just when I convince myself that my concerns are overwrought, they get reinforced. Like this article from Gallup. https://news.gallup.com/poll/509189/confidence-military-lowest-two-decades.aspx My career in service was a pretty big chapter in my life so I have an interest in whether my investment was a wise one. Yesterday, I saw a…

Anyone have any information on the new AF helicopter only training program? Are they scheduled to use the Bell 505 in replacing the TH-1H now being used? How long is the new course? Is the obligation still 10yrs after winging? Happy Holidays all.

Just an opinion question here. Do you think MX is inadvertently torpedoing efforts to modernize and upgrade older aircraft by reporting a higher than actual mission capable rate? Not to take anything away from MX, those guys are miracle workers; however, from a bystander's perspective, it seems like it is a lot harder to pitch "we need new engines" when on paper your aircraft is reporting an 80-100% mission capable rate. The obvious retort to the request for new engines then becomes "well, if your airplane is functioning so well, why do we need to spend the money on new engines?" I have a strictly ops oriented point of view, with no real grounds in MX or acquisiti…

All, What's the largest aircraft in an air-to-air kill. I'm pretty sure it's the B-52D (2 kills in Vietnam during Operation Linebacker II), however I can't find a reference for whether it is the largest aircraft with an A-A kill. Any help would be appreciated.

I just got passed up in ROTC for a rated slot, so I won't be flying in the AF unless they pull me from the alt list; I'm not counting on it. Anyways, I want to fly for a career once I get out of the AF and as of now have ASEL Comm and CFI, working on CFI-I and AMEL Comm. Not only do I want to fly while on AD, but I want to instruct and build hours. I have several questions that I will put below. Assuming there is an aeroclub on base, would I be allowed to instruct on the side? If none on base, how about instructing off base? What are the clubs normally like? What kinds of a/c do they usually have? Just light singles or twins too? Would I even be able to work th…

Reports from England today (Feb 14): A quarter of the RAF's trainee pilots are to be sacked in the latest stage of the Government's defence cuts, reports claim. Up to 100 student pilots will be told the news tomorrow that they have no future in the service as part of the latest ramifications of the defence spending review. They are said to include some who are just a few flying hours hours away from earning their wings as fully qualified pilots. Job cuts: One-in-four new RAF pilots are to be sacked as part of new defence cuts, it has been claimed According to the Daily Telegraph up to 20 fast jet pilots, 30 helicopter pilots and 50 transport aircraft pilots are to …

Ive done this before but this time I'd like to add a limit on classes. Please post the oldest guy you can remember attending UPT in the last 4 years. Search function has not been helpful with this inquiry. Thanks for the info. Cheers

Folks, I got the text from my work account, but be on the look out for an article running in the AF Times regarding the force management stuff included in the latest NDAA. I will try not to violate the copyright, but some of the highlights I remember -15 year retirements - VSP - Early Retirement Incentive Pay The two bits of commentary in the story stuck in my memory 1. The author mentioned that the NDAA was rolling out force management options not seen since the post Cold-war Era drawdown 2. A congressional aide was quoted (under anonymity) that law makers said that the services were not planning for large drawdowns...but it seemed quite s…

Killers, I'm looking for some experiences on the transition from a fighter to a helo. Please reply or PM me if you or someone you know has done this before. Thanks Airwinger

Looks like they forget to check the refueling method earlier. Now there is a problem. Maybe they'll subcontract the refueling to the USAF.

Apparently they took a little sight seeing trip around Guam. Nice little "show of force." I have a hard time believing they were armed with "nuclear tipped" missiles though. https://www.foxnews.c...territory-guam/ The Air Force confirms that two Russian bombers on Tuesday circled the U.S. island territory of Guam, prompting U.S. jets to scramble and respond. Two U.S. Air Force F-15 fighter aircraft, operating out of Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, intercepted the Russian Tu-95 bomber aircrafts, which left in a northbound direction, said military spokeswoman Capt. Kim Bender. Bender said no further action was taken but declined to give more details, citin…

Is that a C-21 with a landing gear problem on Fox right now?

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

Two 301st FW F-16s collide at Nellis

https://ksn.com/2016/07/15/ksn-to-carry-live-stream-of-doc-first-flight-sunday-morning/

For those who have recently retired, how long did it take to get your DD-214? I am still on terminal leave, but applied for my DD-214 several months ago and have heard or seen anything.

So I've been seriously considering applying for a pilot/OCS seat within one of the service branches. I've narrowed it down between the Navy, Air Force , or maybe even the air national guard. I'm currently leaning navy but having second thoughts because I've heard that don't do too much flying. Can anybody attest to this? Any advice or how to choose between these three branches?

They are looking for military statics for this AirFest. Small ramp area, so can't bring in the big aircraft. T-6, any fighter, or some of that AFSOC stuff that is different and cool. One-day show, 4 Nov, sponsored by Hangar 24 Craft Beer. Concert on ramp after the show. Non-towered airport, 8001x100 runway, FBO has contract fuel. Arrive Friday, or come in Saturday morning. Show doesn't start until ~1300. Ping me for details if you think you might want to show up.

What's the purpose of a numbered Air Force? Are they each tasked with a specific mission or geographical area?

I know this isn't the perfect forum for this question, but I figure a lot of you can help. I'm trying to buy an RV-8 to use for fun flying as well as cross country flying. The basic VFR plane is affordable (at least I'm trying to convince my wife that it is). The problem is if I add the IFR package, it's too expensive. I'm going to be using the plane for cross country flying that eventually will be LONG cross country flying (Montana to Louisiana). My question is, if I don't have the required IFR equipment (btw, presently, I don't know much about IFR flying), how practical would it be to use the plane for long cross countries? Will I end up cancelling a LOT o…

My package is in for this AD board and after doing some research on different aircraft I decided I would like to fly the transport/tanker aircraft. From what I have read my persoanl choices would be 1st C5 2nd C17 3rd KC10 Of course I would be happy to fly any air force aircraft. I was just wondering what other peoples choices might be in this area. And why.

I'm about 5 weeks away from track selecting and torn between T-1s and T-38's. I've been told I have the grades and skill to make 38's, but not sure of what I want... I have a few questions for fighter drivers: 1) When does the studying end? How much time are you spending in the vault for the first few years? When does the studying let up (if at all) 2) What's the possibility of flying a UAV tour? Have any of you flown one yet? Do they suck? 3) Is it true that UPT studs who can't hack 38's are cut loose instead of moving into the T-1? 4) Is anybody on this forum over 6'2" ? I'm a bit worried about pulling 9 G's considering our mighty T-34 maxs out at +4.5 …

I did some University of Miami flight suit pencil pocket tab patches for the AFROTC guys. And have a few left. If anyone can use any. Let me know. https://members.aol.com/afsocwes/umtabs.jpg