General Discussion

https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100609/ap_on_re_as/as_afghanistan

Linkage A cut/paste from the article that concerns me: This struck me as pretty bad. How many people have had their boss tell them "if you can't get a ride or your plan falls through, call me and there will be no questions asked"? Granted calling the boss isn't exactly plan A, but the option DOES exist, and I DO know dudes who have called leadership because they were in a bad spot and out of options. The fact that this is being used to bury this guy seems like a dangerous precedent. Granted there is plenty of other stuff that seems to be going on here, but that one particular incident was highlighted. I know some of you guys are in leadership positions, an…

I tried to find this on here already so get pissed if I ask this question twice. Someone told me that there was a way to get up to $5,000 for a one time certification. Basically, it is covered by the air force and includes things like getting a PPL, if you have a PPL then getting a commercial cert, getting a CDL, becoming a CPR instructor, whatever. The idea is for you to improve yourself and the AF covers it. It is not TA or the MGIB. Is this too good to be true or has someone done this? Thanks, Barney

Fatal Shooting outside MacDill AFB Highlights -

Picture and article at: Link

Gentlemen (and Ladies) I am about to select a subject for my dissertation for my English Language and Linguistics degree, and am considering a linguistic analysis of spoken discourse in Aviation English (i.e. the words and phrases that are used everyday on the radios). At the moment, I am trying to establish whether or not there are areas that I could look more closely at with a view to researching them in detail. If I get lots of shoulder shrugs to these ideas, I'll have to start again! I wondered if anyone had any observations they could share about problems, issues or general observations related to following: The choice of words used to communicate certain…

Hi guys. I'm one of the regional pilots who joined here when we had our poser become national news. Please forgive me if I'm asking a dumb question. Last week I was in my local library and picked out a book on the first Schweinfurt raid in 1943. As I was reading it, I remembered that my grandmother had once mentioned that she lost a cousin on a mission to Schweinfurt. This book has a detailed but incomplete list of casualties and my relative is not mentioned there. Of course, he could have been killed on a later mission. So. I've been wondering if anyone knows of an office anywhere in the Air Force or Army that might be able to tell me something about this guy…

Anyone seen these yet? I saw a couple comm Nazis wearing them on Blues Monday.

I have searched and asked around, now for the almighty baseops to come to the rescue. Where did the term motherhood come from as it pertains to briefings before a sortie?

According to AF Times: "Gen. Arthur Lichte, who officially retired in January, now sits on the board of directors of EADS North America. A division of European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co., EADS North American announced Lichtes confirmation to the board Friday." And I thought this acquisition bullshit couldn't get any worse. Hey Art, did it ever cross your mind that this might not be the best time to run off and join the EADS board? I mean the whole improper contract award did happen under your watch at AMC. You didn't make the decision but I'm sure you argued the case for your boys. Did the thought even cross your mind that it might be good to sit this …

THE COST OF BEING A PILOT.. But then what? Once you pass the check ride and get the license, what comes next? Often it is the desire to get an Instrument Rating. But then how do you justify another $6000 - $8000 in expenses to get there? How do you get past the almost $9000 in expenses to get that Private Pilots License. Most people answer the good old fashioned way, save up or get two jobs. We do a great job promoting General Aviation to get to the Private Pilot level..but then what? How many of you have had that pilot as an Instructor or Check Airman with 4 or 5,000 hours and they are in their 60’s. So this is why I am writing about this topic. Those pilots, t…

Apparently USAA needs our help. This seems like it could be very gay. New Legislation

How on God's green Earth can a two-star get popped for a DUI and still remain in the AF complete with a full retirement? I understand the AF has changed...but its changed less for some than for others.

Good news, especially for you AETC folks in Texas and Vance: The Million Air FBO's at Hobby and Fayetteville Arkansas just got the military servicing/fueling contract. Although EFD is close by, swing into HOU next time you're in Houston. We went through Hobby back in Feb, and it is top shelf: good flight planning, professional line crew, free snacks/drinks,... even the crew car is a BMW 5 series. FYV probably has the same, as this is a Million Air standard. The movie theatre is impressive too. The tower guys at Hobby are great, and give you whatever they can. Hobby has 7600', and Fayetteville's 6000' of runway. You T-38 pilots are out of luck at FYV, but HOU…

Breaking News: Shooting in Wichita Falls Don't know how valid this is, but my friend said some of the people gunned down were service members. If you have any friends or relatives over there, might as well be safe and check on them...

In light of the much talked about AF "bullsh*t" on Active Duty as well as the seemingly inevitable stint in a UAV, I'm considering the Guard route instead of AD. For those of you that are Active Duty, do you wish you went Guard/Res, assuming you would keep your airframe? *Sorry if this belongs in the Guard/res forum. I just thought it would be a little redundant to be asking Reservists and Guardsmen if they wished they were Reservists and Guardsmen.*

anyone know if Big Blue will approve ADDS for wx products?? the FAA released an AC certifying the web site as an approved wx source. I might as well answer my own question though and say we'll be 10 yrs behind everyone though. sigh

Anyone know her?

Just saw this on CNN: A military training jet crashed in a north Georgia forest on Monday, killing at least one person aboard and setting several acres of woodland ablaze, local and federal authorities said. FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said the crash of the twin-engine T-39 trainer caused no injuries on the ground, and it wasn't clear how many people were aboard. It went down just north of Morganton, Georgia, about 80 miles north of Atlanta, Fanning County Sheriff's Maj. Keith Bosen said. The mountainous area is ringed by national forest land, and the the crash caused a fire that was estimated at as much as 10 acres, Bosen said. The T-39, a military version o…

Thoughts & Prayers to all the family & friends and squadron mates of those killed in the USAF CV22 that crashed west of Qalat in Afghanistan. Your sacrifices were not in vain. Rest in Peace and Godspeed Guys. ISAF: 4 killed in U.S. aircraft crash in Afghanistan By the CNN Wire Staff April 9, 2010 -- Updated 0655 GMT (1455 HKT) (CNN) -- A U.S. aircraft crashed in southern Afghanistan, killing three U.S. service members and one civilian employee, a statement from NATO-led forces said Friday. The cause of the crash of the Air Force CV-22 Osprey was not known, said the International Security Assistance Force statement. Several other service members were inj…

Great SR-71 story... https://gizmodo.com/5511236/the-thrill-of-flying-the-sr+71-blackbird

Good Day, A few of my co workers had a visual passage of two F-22's and a Tanker near Edmonton Alberta (YEG). I'm curious if this is a common practice when transiting foreign airspace instead of a fuel stop due to the sensitivity of the aircraft? Will this experience likely happen again over Alberta with traffic moving to Elmendorf? I would love to have seen it. Thanks Barry

It looks like there's a new member in the Muammar-Qaddafi-Batshit-Crazy-Muslim Club: Karzai to lawmakers: "I might join the Taliban" If this isn't a journalistic misquote, I think we need to have a Pred pilot earn a DFC for this idiot.

OK, I've searched about nine different ways and can't find a previous thread. I've been using a three D - cell, LED Maglite for years. I've just moved to a new jet and my bag is now stuffed to the gills with charts for said airplane. I'm looking for something smaller that will still illuminate all the dark crevasses of a large airplane, with a minimum amount of bag space. Any suggestions? Thanks!

I read a report recently in which an officer wrote that he graduated ENJJPT in the early 1990s and was designated a 'banked pilot'. He then did seven months of school cross-training to Intel. I don't know if he returned to the cockpit. Can anyone say whether such a categorisation was either common or permanent? Seems odd to spend so much money training someone who then ends up doing a completely different job.