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IMHO, inaccurate. I can't speak for Global Chickens, but Ellsworth is probably the best MQ-9 base. Tax-free state (better than CA, same as NV), significantly lower ops tempo, no hour+ drive to work, and relatively generous BAH. Everyone here who came from Creech prefers it here. That said it's still flying RPAs, which sucks. I know it's moot for you, but I wanted to throw it out there for other guys in a similar situation.

I was going to PM, but I'll throw them out there and accept whatever spears fly my way. Bear in mind that I will meet my IPZ O-5 board in less than 2 years, and I have already spent 3 & 1/2 years in AETC teaching TP Stalls, power-pitch-roll, & the WANTS check. The five available were RQ-4 to Beale, MQ-9 to Creech, MQ-1 to Creech, T-6 to Vance and T-6 to Laughlin. Had this been my 1st or 2nd assignment I would have gladly taken either of the last two . I loved my time in the Texan, but to put my family through that - especially when I now have school age children - is not OK with me. And I appreciate what the RPA guys do and realize that these two locations are the best available to them, but remote piloting is something I have zero interest in doing. If there was a cockpit at either one of those locations I would likewise have taken them without batting an eye. But in my mind Vegas with the bros = f**king awesome; Vegas in the minivan = meh I plan on rolling the dice and declining the assignment. If I end up in Kabul for a year then so be it. If they want to waive my ADSC and send me to Vegas for one year then I'll do it with a smile. But I'd rather do that and find out what the civilian world and AFRC have to offer than spend the next 6-9 years of my life doing a job I don't enjoy. As a sidenote, I keep chuckling over the fact that I've been waiting to be offered the bonus for several years because I knew I would take it. Then, the year I am eligible they fail to offer it in any reasonable time frame, while offering me an assignment I'm not willing to take. Had they offered the bonus in March I most likely would have taken it and wouldn't have a say in any of this.

The jet was being flown "out of configuration"... there were no numbers or charts anywhere for what he was doing which is why I stated above that he was basically acting as a test pilot. They may have tried what he did in the test phase, but what he was doing was not part of any standard flight profile for a C-17.

I wasn't on board with the idea of a draft either...but part of what doing a draft does is forces people from a large cross-section into the military. Even if the rich and influential people manage to keep their kids out, you now have voters across a large spectrum who are in the military or have kids in the military. Because we've shown the American people we'll do any job, no matter the cost or lack of resources, and because so few Americans have contact with the military, we are now the answer to every problem. Libya? Send the military. Afghanistan? Send the military. Iran? Military will take care of it. The American people are far too willing to commit to military action because, on the whole, it costs them nothing. Their kids aren't in. It's all financed with deficit spending, so their taxes aren't going up. There are no food or steel or rubber shortages. It makes the American people apathetic when our political leadership wants to use the military for every minor problem around the world. Part of what convinced our government to end Vietnam was the fact that draftees came from a wide-range of backgrounds, creating a wide-spread opposition to sending our military to die in a rice field thousands of miles away for nebulous objectives. Now, most Americans couldn't find Iraq and Afghanistan on a map, and most think we're done deploying.

You don't even have to be in a stack. Just be on the boulevard when a B-1 has too much gas heading back to the 'Deid. I swear I got an RA one night 30 seconds after a Bone checked in at a waypoint that was 75 miles behind me.

Nah, the tanker only goes to 10 degrees, frequently, for no reason, with no warning, and only after you are about 100k into a 120k onload with a jet that is approaching MGW.

For you .380 lovers out there, Cabelas.com has the 250 round Remington yellow brick boxes on sale for $82. You can purchase up to 5, and it's showing only me $20 shipping for the 5 boxes. Pretty solid price if you're looking for .380 ammo but I would definitely hurry! https://www.cabelas.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=706337&avad=48247_a4642dd7&WT.mc_id=al35987&rid=12&WT.tsrc=AFF

DING! We have a winner! Ever wonder if they give the same grief to the services clowns at the chow hall (yes, I said chow hall; always has been, always will be) who wear the silly Chef outfit? Or the goons at the gym in the polo shirt and docker type pants (do they even still do that?)

Or just a shoe clerk or E-9 jealous he doesn't get to wear flightsuits so no one can wear flight suits.

Meh, color me unimpressed. I automatically tune out anyone calling for a draft outside of a World War 3 scenario. A draft is a good idea, just not for the military. Randomly selecting college educated citizens over the age of 30 to be Congresspeople would probably get us better government than we get now.

Hmmm...I could have sworn I saw the phase, "I've got him on the fish finder," in there somewhere!

Rockchalk, if you are FTU bound...there is no decision...try to get to Ellsworth. It is 1000% more focused on tactics and is a way better place for a young guy. The MX and sortie rates are demosntrably better in the Tigers and TBirds. If Texas is your kind of place and you stick around long enough, you'll end up there anyway. So go to South Dakota. There's plenty to do in Rapid. Abilene will be waiting like a giant vacuum of suck to bring you back anyway

I'll honestly try to answer this without ranting. FWIW I'm currently in Abilene after spending ~5.69 years at Ellsworth (and ~1 year before that at Dyess). Personally, I vote for Rapid City all the way and twice on Sunday. The city is vibrant for a small town and is in the middle of a great little growth spurt. Although it's population is ~75000 (not counting the Lead/Deadwood/Sturgis peeps), which is smaller than Abilene, since it's the only "big" city for about 350 miles in any direction, it's got a lot going for it. There are about twice as many places to eat with a much better variety than in Abilene. It's got a good small local arts scene, all the shopping you need, and is in the middle of a downtown renovation project that's bringing some awesome small business growth (both shops and restaurants/bars). There is a semi-pro hockey team and the games are a blast. In South Dakota, you can shoot in just about any state park, and CCWs are $10 with a mil ID (reciprocity in something like 17 states). The folks are mostly conservative but with a libertarian streak, so state government stays out of your business for the most part. Schools are about average. I don't have kids but my friends who do usually don't complain much. Winters are harsh, although the last few have been fairly light. Expect a good solid 2 week period in late January or February where temps don't get above 10 degrees. It's not unbearable and you don't need anything crazy like engine block heaters. You will get sick of the wind and learn the true meaning of wind chill. You mentioned the outdoors activities so I won't harp on that. Tons to do outside. Lots of tourist spots to hit up - Rushmore, Crazy Horse, the Bandlands, and Sturgis to name a few. Deadwood is a blast. There is skiing available at Terry Peak about an hour or so west of town. The local airport has ~5 different carriers. You will still pay regional airline prices, but you have decent options for flights. Since the only two B-1 squadrons are ops squadrons, the base seems to be more focused than Dyess. For the last 6+ years, Ellsworth has had a squadron deployed for 12 out of every 18 months. MX rates are generally better than Dyess. There is currently a big airspace initiative that would give Ellsworth the biggest training airspace in the CONUS (about 2x bigger than UTTR/NTTR). If that goes through, flying will get even better. The backyard MOA (Powder River) is better than at Dyess (Lancer), and allows for low level training. In short, I had a blast at Ellsworth and would go back in a heartbeat. As for Dyess, I'll just tell you the reasons why I don't like it and you can decide if they apply to you or not. Abilene is so anti-progress it boggles my mind. The city council actively works to prevent new businesses, especially restaurants and bars, in some misguided attempt to prevent the city from becoming like "the metroplex" (which is an insane notion). The downtown, and I use that term loosely, is usually a ghost town after business hours. There are two decent restaurants downtown, but you'll spend ~25 minutes driving there from the good areas of town where everyone lives. Bars must close by midnight on weekdays and 1AM on weekends. I realize this isn't a huge concern for a lot of dudes but it says something about the local population and their values. You can't swing a dead cat without hitting a church - some VERY conservative. Again, might not be a negative for some. It's Texas - west Texas at that, and you can't easily escape it. American Airlines is the ONLY carrier at the local airport and routinely cancels flights for weather or lack of aircraft availability. The flying at Dyess is sporadic and frustrating. MX rates are consistently low. The scattered nature of the units on base (schoolhouse, weapons school, test, and one ops squadron) seem to prevent the wing from having a real focus. The local airspace sucks - to get good training accomplished requires scheduling at least two or three different ranges. On the plus side, there is a zoo. You are also 2.5 hours from Ft Worth, 3 hours from Dallas, and 3.5-4 from San Antonio and Austin. I should state for the record that I hate the state of Texas with the burning passion of a million suns. Hope this helps.