General Discussion

China urges U.S. to halt surveillance near its shores By Lucy Hornby BEIJING (Reuters) - China called on the United States to reduce and eventually halt air and sea military surveillance close to its shores after a series of territorial disputes this year. The request was made during a special session on maritime safety between the two countries' militaries on Wednesday and Thursday, Xinhua news agency said on Thursday, citing China's Defense Ministry. Five times this year, Chinese vessels have confronted U.S. surveillance ships in Asian waters, the U.S. Defense Department said in May. China said the U.S. vessels had intruded its territory. There has since be…

Great video being featured on youtube. If someone can post the video in here that would be great. For some reason it's not allowing me to post it... NORTH KOREAN CAMP link to video -Yerfer

We got the message today that officially the wing is planning on at least a 6 month slip to the closing timeline. There was a congressional policy letter that got forwarded to us a few weeks ago. It proposed a new study or something that would add 6 months onto the timeline for the closure. We still don't have any official word either way, but I wouldn't mind if we got extended for a bit!

Hey guys, Assignment night is coming quick, and I can't decide how I want to rank the C-17 bases in my dream sheet! They're all pretty sweet spots, so how do I decide? If anyone out there can tell me the pros/cons of each base, that would be helpful. Thanks in advance!

https://online.wsj.com/article/SB125314575889817971.html#mod=WSJ_hpp_LEFTTopStories YGBFSM. No shit Iran's missile program "isn't quite there yet," but it's not like you can deploy this thing the day after they do "get there."

"After extensive internal review, Air Force officials released Sept. 17 their basing criteria that will be used to determine the future basing of joint strike fighters. The basing criteria were approved by the Secretary and Chief of Staff of the Air Force. The basing criteria are airspace, flight training ranges, weather, support facilities, runways, taxi ramps, environmental concerns and cost factors." https://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123168380 I am glad it took an "exhaustive internal review" for the Air Force to figure out the criteria for basing the JSF. I am waiting to see where this ground breaking discovery ranks in the history of air power...jet engi…

so I will. Happy Birthday Air Force. The guys on this board (and the SECDEF) give you a lot of sh-t but you keep me employed and my nation safe. So thanks Big Blue and keep on keepin' on! ZB edited for admitted oops - looking at AM/PM clock...

The Obama administration has proposed the possible pull out of all 40 F-16s from Misawa AB to the government of Japan. The discussion are supposed to have taken place back in April and have only now been released. The move could possibly start at the end of the year with the agreement of the new incoming administration of Democratic Party of Japanese leader Yukio Hatoyama. As part of the same strategic review plan the US has also told Japan that they may also remove 50 or so F-15s from its base in Kadena, Okinawa. Both proposals are pending as the Japanese government are still concerned about the situations in North Korea. Japanese officials say the moves could s…

I recently heard that the rules on wearing partial PT uniforms had changed... ie people could now workout while wearing just the shorts and a civilian t-shirt or vice versa, so long as they were not at an official formation. I was in the gym recently with a buddy when he mentioned to one of the enlisted troops we work with that folks might get upset about partial uniform. I spoke to him afterwards and told him I'd heard that the rules had changed but I'd look into it... Anyone got the low-down? Did the regs change? - PS. I thought I asked in another post but I couldn't find the post or topic. Feel free to add your other PT uniform gripes/complaints here. Oh yeah,…

Well it's about that time... and I'm waivering on what order to rank the fighters. Now I'm set on the fact that I want to fly fighters, hands down, but with very little experience in the AF I'm having a tough time ranking them. My current sheet looks like this 1) A-10 2) F-15E 3) F-22 4) F-16 5) F-15C For those with more wisdom than myself (which doesn't exclude many) can you tell me your thoughts on the A-10/F-15E world and the foreseeable future for Lt's in the airframe. Also, many of the guys around here say I'd be crazy not to put the F-22 first. And I'm honestly considering it. Insight into that world would be great, as well. Moral of the story is my dream sheet is …

I had a student bring up an interesting topic the other day in my graduate level MIS class. We were discussing technology in aviation ( I try to combine my current job of teaching technology and my true love - aviation, when possible) when he asked me why with the advances in technology the black box hadn't been moved and located on the ground (on a server type system) instead of in the aircraft. The technology exists for each aircraft to have a private network connection using satellite or even ground based stations located around the world. All aircraft systems output could be broadcast, voice communication could be captured (internal and external), even passenger ca…

If any pilots/co-pilots are interested in a 60 or 120 day tour at the Deid with an AFRC C-130 unit from Jan-Apr, send me a PM. The catch with a 60 day rot is that you have to have a buddy to do the other 60.

I'm honestly not sure how to react to this story on the BBC website. Should I express dismay at the unfortunate and sad death that resulted, or should I laugh quietly and think they have some kind of shit-hot bomb aiming gear on that C130? And what are the odds of this happening? link The picture of an RAF Herc that accompanies the article is captioned "The RAF tries to reach local people with leaflet drops". I wonder if the copywriter didn't have some kind of warped sense of humor also.

It's starting to get cold up here in NY...anyone know where I can pick up a good ABU parka/field jacket/whatever they're called? Most of the ones I've seen are like $180...anyone know if there are cheaper ones out there? Also, can you wear an ACU-patterned jacket over the ABUs? I can't seem to find any regs for ABU wear...

How are the US investigations into BAe Systems going? And are there any similar investigations ongoing into US defence companies? Source: BBC

This is true. It is on pages 77, 172, 218, and 434. You have to dig to see the charges. We (retirees) would lose the Medicare for life benefit and would have to pay. We would lose TRICARE as a total care package. We would not be allowed to keep TRICARE so when Obama stands and says if you like what you have you can keep it, he lies. This is a "Heads Up" on a battle we are facing now and down the road with the new Administration. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has already drafted proposed legislation that would basically reduce our TRICARE for Life benefits to a system whereby we pay deductibles and co-pays up to $6,301 the first year for you and your spouse, wi…

I am a Navy veteran, Air Force brat and avid enthusiast for airpower of all branches. I was privelged to serve in the Navy as an enlisted aircrewman in helicopters, and everything I learned there I have applied to how I conduct myself as a civilian and as an airline pilot now. I grew up as a "70's" child looking thru fences, standing on the flightline or riding my bike to the end of the runway. My heroes were all pilots, mostly Air Force at the time. The Viet Nam era was winding down when I started high school, and I recall vividly the POWs returning from North Viet Nam. I read about the F-105 pilots that flew over North Viet Nam, and the obstacles that they faced beyond …

Does anyone else find it a little sac religious (pardon the pun) that SAC is now “Strategic Airlift Command???” When I see articles about SAC in action overseas, I am expecting shit to be nuked. You think they could have come up with a different acronym for an airlift command.

So lately I've heard from a couple of people that once you log 100 hrs on NVGs, you qualify for 20% disability. Is this true? If so, where is it written?

In a recognition of special operations forces’ reliance on their conventional partners for “enabling” capabilities such as intelligence analysis and engineering, U.S. Special Operations Command head Adm. Eric Olson is rehabilitating a long-lost “truth” that acknowledges the contribution non-special ops forces make to missions. SOCom and its subordinate commands have long touted four “SOF Truths” that encapsulate the command’s self-image. These four statements have become enshrined in special operations lore, frequently quoted by special ops officials. But few special operators know that the SOF truths were written by a non-special operator, or that a fifth truth wen…

This is a little old, but I thought it was cool that out there was an actual tracker available to the general public by NASA. Check it out.

Does anyone foresee a replacement for the C-21 in the next 5 to 6 years ?

The Lady Endures by 2nd Lt. Kidron B. Vestal Chief of Public Affairs, 380th Air Expeditionary Wing 10/19/2009 - SOUTHWEST ASIA -- The year was 1968. The Tet Offensive began in Vietnam. Simon & Garfunkel premiered the soundtrack to The Graduate. Martin Luther King 'had a dream.' The U.S. Air Force had a vision. The plane known as the U-2 Dragon Lady, Aircraft No. 068-0337, came on board to offer strategic, aerial capabilities equal to none. She exceeded her 25,000th hour of flight Oct. 18, 2009, in a mission out of the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing, Southwest Asia. America's premier, high-altitude intelligence, reconnaissance, and surveillance plane i…

Needing to buy a gift for a F-15e pilot.... I'm not looking for generic strike eagle stuff.Searching to find something with historical significance... Any ideas?