General Discussion

Come this fall, there will be a new and extremely powerful supercomputer in Afghanistan. But it won’t be in Dave Petraeus’ headquarters in Kabul or at some three-letter agency’s operations center in Kandahar. It’ll be floating 20,000 feet above the warzone, aboard a giant spy blimp that watches and listens to everything for miles around. That is, if an ambitious, $211 million crash program called “Blue Devil” works out as planned. As of now, the airship’s “freakishly large” hull — seven times the size of the Goodyear Blimp’s — has yet to be put together. Full article: ISR Blimp

Originally saw this here. Here's the text from a related story that was easier to copy and paste: The website to the commission and its actual report isn't loading correctly, but the link to it is here.

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of two servicemen, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and returned to their families for burial with full military honors. Air Force Col. James E. Dennany, 34, of Kalamazoo, Mich., and Maj. Robert L. Tucci, 27, of Detroit, will be buried as a group Jan. 14, in the Dallas-Ft. Worth National Cemetery. On Nov. 12, 1969, Dennany and Tucci were flying the number three aircraft of three F-4Ds escorting an AC-130 gunship on a night strike mission over Laos. After the gunship attacked six trucks and set two of them on fire, th…

Dudes, I'm about to buy my first house and I was curious what y'all do to prepare your house for both long deployments and 3-6 week trips and TDYs? I'm expecting about 250+ days gone in the next year... I'm single and was just wondering if y'all have a checklist of things to do/shut off/hire people for, since no one will be there to take care of the day to day stuff? Googled a bunch of stuff but it was just random things here and there. I'm looking for more of an all/mostly encompassing checklist. Thanks, Banquet

New show on Discovery, starts Fri 14 Jan--I've got my DVR set. Trailers look interesting.

Fellow pilots, Cranium's up & FYI: New charting specification should appear in the NTAP soon: Here's a sneak peak (attachment). Also, "Taxi into Position and Hold" is going away, to be replaced by "Line up and Wait" even here in the CONUS. Link below to new rules on use of LUAW. FAA Notice Fly safe! Graphic Notice for MTA_Final.pdf

I am running into some problems trying to see if I qualify for partial DLA. I was forced moved because of renovations from one base housing unit to another. From reading JFTR Vol 1 U-5630 Ch. 5, Part G, Para 15, it seems as though I would qualify. However, no one at my base seems to know who is suppose to fund it. They need a LOA (line of accounting?) to process the payment, but finance sends me to TMO, who sends me to housing, who sends me to Privatized housing, who sends me to finance, and the circle continues. Has anyone had an experience with this or any idea on how to help? Thanks in advance!

I cannot imagine that this situation is very unique, but I haven't been able to find any definitive answers. My wife and I are expecting our first child, but the expected due date falls right in between the scheduled completion of a TDY en route at Little Rock (C-130J initial qual - I'm currently an E/H guy) and our RNLTD to our next base (Dyess). My question: Is there any way to extend one's TDY en route without taking leave until after the due date? It would be good to have some continuity in our OB/GYN appointments and have the baby in Little Rock, then travel to Abilene, versus the other two options of: -Her leaving Little Rock in the third trimester and …

On September 3rd, 1951, a strike force of U.S. Navy Grumman F-9 Panthers was going in to hit the railroad freight yards at Wonson, North Korea. The formation was from VF-51, the "Screaming Eagles," staging from the aircraft carrier USS Essex. While over the target area, one of the aircraft, tail number 125122, was struck by anti-aircraft artillery fire and lost elevator control. The pilot, a 21 year old NROTC aviation cadet, managed to nurse his crippled aircraft back across friendly lines, then, unable to land, ejected from the aircraft near a friendly air base. He then parachuted to earth safely and without injury, though certainly shook up for the ordeal. …

Do any of you T-38 pilots have any recent experience landing at civilian fields in SoCal, as far as getting an airstart? How about Palm Springs? I know SBD, Chino, Van Nuys, and Long Beach are good to go.

My grandfather enlisted in the Army Air Corps in the late 30s, and then he spent most of the War in the South Pacific as a nav and pilot on 17s and as an IP on 29s in Mississippi (to the best of my knowledge). Well, he died in 2003 and left all his medals and ribbons to me. However, my grandmother (his wife), just passed away last week, finally putting me in possession of said medals and ribbons. My question is: how do I found out what each one is for? He stayed in the service for years and years as a reservist after the War ended, so I can't figure out which decorations belong to which time period. I'm assuming there's a website out there that would have all of these thi…

Just a reminder that so far we have 130 posts on the thread to win yourself a 2011 HeliOps calendar. Once we reach 200 posts then the thread gets closed off and those posters win a calendar each. So there are another 70 calendars waiting, is one of them yours, click on the link, sign up, make your post, and get your name on one of them, its that simple. https://www.heliopsforum.com/index.php?threads/200-heliops-2011-helicopters-at-work-calendars-to-be-won.264/ Cheers and have a great New Years.

https://www.switched.com/2010/12/27/navy-pilots-flew-helicopters-into-lake-tahoe-for-facebook-pictur/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYExH8hpgXI&feature=player_embedded

The Air Force lost a great airman today when 1lt Anthony Riggan and his wife nicole passed away in a single engine plane crash in Co Springs on their way home to spend Christmas with family. https://www.krdo.com/news/26248211/detail.html Anthony was a B1 pilot at Ellsworth AFB and a UPT classmate and good friend to me and many in the Air Force community. He and Nicole will be sadly missed.

Mexican aerial drone crashes in backyard of El Paso home EL PASO (AP) — An unmanned drone belonging to the Mexican government crash landed Tuesday in El Paso's Lower Valley, officials confirmed today. "I was told that it crashed in somebody's back yard, and that no one was injured. I was paged at 6:28 p.m. on Tuesday, so it happened shortly before that. We were told it was not a police matter," said Detective Mike Baranyay, a spokesman for the El Paso Police Department. The crash occurred at Yarbrough and Loop 375. Police said the U.S. Border Patrol seized the aircraft, which was to be transported back to one of the international bridges so that Mexican offici…

Hey everybody! I hope to someday become a C-17 pilot for the USAF. It's a long ways away but hopefully I can go from USAF ROTC at a flight college, then to SUPT fly the T-6 and T-1, then hopefully the C-17. I'm not even close yet but I am already planning and studying civilian flight textbooks. (FAA Airplane Flying Handbook, Private Pilot Training Textbooks... Etc...) Here are just a few questions for C-17 pilots or any other people that know about the plane: 1. For training, I'm guessing lots of it is in the simulator, but how many flights do you get in the actual plane? 2. How many hours of countable flight time (Sim, or real) do you get at training? 3. How much time…

Jerusalem (CNN) -- The Israeli Air Force shot down an unidentified flying object over the Dimona nuclear plant in the Negev Desert Thursday, the Israel Defense Forces said. The object appeared in a designated no-fly zone, the air force was scrambled and the object was shot down, the IDF said. The object could have been a party balloon, the IDF said, but forces have not yet found the debris to determine what it was. There have been unconfirmed media reports that it was a motor-driven object. The air force reacted according to procedure when the object was spotted, the IDF said. The Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz reported that last October "IDF warplanes interc…

So, the new BAH rates for 2011 came out (STS) today. I'm moving to Clovis in a few months and guess what, the BAH for my paygrade dropped by $70 from CY10-CY11. The strange thing about that is house prices in Clovis have skyrocketed since the AFSOC takeover (almost double vs a few years ago in Clovis). So a similar house in Clovis to the one I'm in will cost $500 more per month than the one I'm currently in and I'm going to lose $300 per month in BAH. :bash:

5 generals mishandled $87M, comptroller says By Bruce Rolfsen brolfsen@militarytimes.com Five generals have been disciplined for mishandling $87 million and failing to meet Air Force standards. Gen. Roger Brady, Gen. Stephen Lorenz, Lt. Gen. Glenn Spears, Maj. Gen. Anthony Przybyslawski and Brig. Gen. Sandra Gregory received letters of admonishment for acting inappropriately in 2005 by allowing the Air Force to over draw its fund for permanent change-of-station moves, according to Lt. Col. Todd Vician, a service spokesman. All had budget- or personnel related jobs. The Defense Department uncovered the shortage in 2006 during a routine audit. Brady and Lorenz…

Did a search and all that came up was MC-12 info. I'm looking for current and specific info on C-12's. The following are my questions: 1) What's the ops tempo like? 2) Are they all short tours? 3) Where are they located and where do I find current locations that are open? 4) What are the pros and cons with this gig? 5) Does this assignment make you eligible for a non-vol MC-12 tour? Mobility dude here looking for some "change". Considering C-12 as an option for next assignment or short tour. Thanks!

Looking to find a ways to fund a PPL, grants, financial aid, loans, etc. I'm aware that the GI Bill will refund up to 60% of all certifications AFTER a PPL but the first 5 or 6 grand is still hard to come by. Thanks for any help.

I read on the AF rag (online, I rarely pay for that crap) that Gen Welsh is taking over USAFE. I remember he was the first commandant of cadets in a long time (since Olds?) that we all liked and truly respected. That's a huge deal for a bunch of cynical and bitter college age kids at the Zoo. I remember his speech. Usually speakers were ignored or worse by a bunch of disrespectful jack asses, this time everyone left the auditorium in dead silence. In any event, congrats USAFE I think you have a great new commander. Link below to the transcript: Gen Welsh's speech

Wall Street Journal December 6, 2010 Pg. 1 China Clones, Sells Russian Fighter Jets By Jeremy Page ZHUHAI, China—A year after the collapse of the Soviet Union, a cash-strapped Kremlin began selling China a chunk of its vast military arsenal, including the pride of the Russian air force, the Sukhoi-27 fighter jet. For the next 15 years, Russia was China's biggest arms supplier, providing $20 billion to $30 billion of fighters, destroyers, submarines, tanks and missiles. It even sold Beijing a license to make the Su-27 fighter jet—with imported Russian parts. Today, Russia's military bonanza is over, and China's is just beginning. After decades of import…

FG, Wanted to take moment to formally recognize you and say thanks for your participation and input on this forum. Unfortunately, this forum highlights the often negative relationship between Ops and Support. You are definitely in the business of taking care of folks as demonstrated by the number and depth of questions you answer. How in the world you found your way to a forum full of prima dona aviators is a mystery, the fact that you stayed and have contributed and helped so many people is a testament to the type of professional you are. On behalf of all the folks you have helped on this board, thanks! CH

Pretty cool gig... LeMieux: Tyndall to Gain T-38 Detachment BY: Unattributed , WMBB News 13 11/30/2010 Washington, DC: U.S. Senator George LeMieux (R-FL) today announced the Air Force will be sending a T-38 detachment to Tyndall Air Force Base. The ten T-38s will provide dedicated adversary support to the F-22s currently stationed at the base. “This is fantastic news for Tyndall Air Force Base and the Panama City area,” said LeMieux, a member of the U.S. Senate Armed Service Committee. “This detachment will complement the existing F-22 program operating out of Tyndall. Bringing more planes to the area will also bring more jobs, increasing economic activity thro…