Leaderboard

The AF is short 1,920 pilots, which equates to a loss of $10 billion. So by my simple math, that roughly equates to $5 million per aviator. Doesn't a bonus of $100,000 a year make more sense and still allows the AF to get off at a rate of $1 million vs $5 million if qualified dudes were to accept a 10 year contract after their initial contract is up?

If one more idiot says enlisted pilots are the solution...

It's all fun and games until we make you drink it.

So basically learn nothing and repeat the mistake the Marines made on skipping the Super Hornet to wait for 5th gen.... Yeah what could go wrong?

Watch to see what board of directors that guy ends up on...

18-02 CBM c-130 to Peterson, CO ANG KC-135 to Pennsylvania ANG C-5M to Dover (T-38)- AC-130 to Cannon (T38)E-3 AWACS to Tinker C-17 to MCCord (T38) RC-135 to Offut KC-135 to NY, ANG (T38) - A-10 to DM C-17 to NY ANG E-3 AWACS to Tinker (T38) - U-28 to Cannon C-130J to Yokota KC-135 to Fairchild, WA KC-135 to McConnell KC-135 to Iowa ANG (T38) - MC-130J to Kirtland C-130J to California ANG (T38) - F-22 to Tyndall

That 10,000 gallon douche! Just to make sure he sees this when he google gargles his own name, john venable. Hell, was probably pointing at his patches as he made up numbers for how much it cost to make himself in that article. This line is so good, it's an instant classic: " and enticing some of these “graybeards” to return will be relatively easy. " I'll make it easy, just follow my list. 1. I pick where to serve. Easy. 2. I fly. And I pick when. Easy. 3. I will have an office and beer will be in the fridge at all times. So Easy. 4. No PT test, ever! Insanely Easy! 5. No deployment, ever! Easy. 6. I keep 100% of my retirement pay. I'm sure there's a way. 7. My salary will be 100% tax free and will be based on my monthly base pay at my airline at my seniority number. Act of Congress, if well motivated, is possible. 8. I can leave whenever I want. Easy. 9. No OPRs, 1206s, CBTs, etc (code for anything else/qweepy I don't want to do). Easy. 10. 36-2903 is waived. I get to wear whatever uniform items I have in my closet in whatever combination I come up with. I'm thinking the old white "blues" service coat with all, some, or no medals, V-neck t-shirt in brown, 1st generation PT shorts in my regular size (alright, XXXL will keep the creeper sweepers away), and black boots with white socks. Hat will be an "operator" cap! If I decide to wear one. Easy, just close your eyes when I walk by the front office. 11. On wingman day, I will hold council in my office where we will talk about beer, gambling, flying, airlines, airline apps, what's hot, guns, beer and guns, tell stories and other fun shit. Easiest thing in the world. 12. Once a month, I will lead a formation low level to some place cool. Jan - St Croix. Feb - Wherever they grow cheap roses. Mar - any NCAA tournament city, but just for 1 night; don't want to get it too much trouble. Apr - A Florida Spring Break hot spot. May - Cali. Jun - Vancouver. Jul - Anchorage. Aug - St Johns. Sep - Dealers choice. Oct - the best Octoberfest in America. Nov - Vegas. Dec - Hawaii (I'm sure there's a JAATT that needs filling out there). Easy. So in summary, compensation scale tipped towards AF, all bullshit removed, and AF QOL improved. Easy. Out

i don't know liquid either... that being said "good dude" != good leader. if a guy is giving N/N checkrides out to pilots talking about airlines he's a <edit> <edit> and should have his Q code pulled.

I’m not saying you’re wrong about Liquid because I don’t know him, but the attitude he showed with those posts was the same kind of toxic BS that is driving people out in droves. Maybe he is a “good dude”, but I sure wouldn’t want him as my boss. There are a lot of “good dudes” that the AF absolutely ruins by convincing them to do what it takes to be part of the management club. That’s when they stop living in reality and say and do shit that drives us crazy (N/N checkrides for talking about airlines). I hear the crap that leaders say, and I just say to myself that I will never be able to do that with a straight face. But these “good dudes” sold their souls to the devil and actually believe the shit that comes out of their mouths. It’s like they have no idea how we see right through the bullshit. And just what in the hell is with the AF’s irrational fear of the airlines? So many managers don’t want to acknowledge the airlines, or come up with some bullshit to tell us about why it would be such a bad idea to be an airline pilot. They imply we aren’t patriotic if we we discuss being an airline pilot. I think they’d rather me talk about joining ISIS. Instead of ripping on or ignoring the airlines, freaking show me some positive change. Show me just why in the hell should I stay in the AF.

I completely disagree.

A close friend of mine runs this site. He's ALWAYS looking for patches. The collection is already willed to the Smithsonian when he passes away.

Management buddies? Liquid is a good dude, he has been promoted again and I think his job and circumstances keep him away from this forum...I am assuming. We are friends but I don't discuss this place with him. As for other senior folks, I wish I had a better answer. I am admittedly disillusioned having run in those circles and I am truly sad to say many are sycophants that could care less what you post on here because they believe alternate realities and nothing you can say (even the facts), will convince them otherwise. When you try to tell the MAJCOM/CC there is a retention train wreck coming and his response is "they will stay because they are patriots"...you reply, but sir they have done their duty over and OVER again...then he replies "fuck them, we will just make more." Some of these assholes made it worse out of pure malice...one in particular REALLY fucked some good people over and they got out. One dude had a life-long dream to fly the B-2, the now 2-star select refused on principle (our manning would have allowed it), so a Great pilot bailed. The same guy then stopped another guy from going to TPS (another life-long dream), because he was a CV-22 flight lead and we were short...so they guy got out and now flies for Delta. Much of our senior leadership is septic...the only reason they are pretending to care is because we are indeed 1920 pilots short and it is only going to get worse...MUCH worse.

Order a leather nametag with just a set of wings. Remove the Command patch and put your favorite squadron patch on. Wear. Leaving it hanging in the closet seemed like such a waste.

Let me google that for you.

Sorry, should have clarified. Enlisted RPA pilots would be a short term bridge that would work. However, I think they will end up having similar problems keeping drone operators as the drone industry becomes more in demand. My point is that putting a guy making 30K a year into a cockpit and expecting him to stay a day past his commitment is crazy.

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

And you have a problem with old people coming back, Junior? Show a little respect for your elders. And get off my lawn. Ram!! Get me an Ensure! And give me your lunch money.

No, you’re a tool because of your “I’m an operator” bullshit. No one cares. You’re also a tool because in a thread where we regularly have civil discussion on a near-daily basis about guns themselves (with gun laws typically in other threads), you rolled in and said we couldn’t talk about any guns because of an event. Wrong for two reasons: 1) there was already a thread for the event itself to hug it out for your sensitive psyche in addition to being able to participate in threads discussing the legal aspect 2) By your logic after the NYC incident no one should have been talking about their F-150 or rental cars. How dumb does that sound? So yes, go fuck yourself. Or start your own discussion board with the tin foil hat guy and PYB.

So, there I was. No shit. Middle of an ORE at Shaw, first of three sorties for the day turning ACT x ACT x RED. I was a brand new CMR #2, all thrust, no vector; I'm a pitbull on a fvcking leash. Brief and ground ops were uneventful, up to the point where PFL (wussy flight lead) calls Ops and tries to cancel due to isolated VCTS. Fvcking FAIPs. Ops recommended he grow a pair so we took off and headed west. After precisely 69% of the vul covered, with a clean picture and most of my missiles expended, the SOF calls on AUX - mushroom cloud overhead; we need to divert to WRB. PFL quibbles, something about it being his turn to cook dinner that night. Those of you who know MatMac are aware: this is no joke. Anyway, Georgia is a state where (up to that point) I had yet to slay so I tactically declared BINGO and reached back with my right hand to make sure my helmet bag contained my trusty mark-1 divert kit: deodorant, toothbrush and a box of rubbers. On vectors to WRB I've got snowplow called up and I wisely aimed for every rainshower I could... On the ground, we talk to TA about turning our jets. Well, I talked to TA. PFL was on the horn with his wife and then PF Chang's ordering food so he didn't get in trouble. Turns out TA will take 3 hrs to turn the 8 jets so we go to the bowling alley to get lunch. This is where the fun starts. It's summertime, so school is out. I spy a group of four lovely ladies (who were looking for heroes) on lanes 6-9. I give PFL a 5-spot and directions to order a burger, then I go anchor by the ladies. Turns out the outgoing blonde is the wing king's daughter and the others are her friends from the nursing program who happen to be visiting during the summer. Shitty food is consumed. Numbers are exchanged. I depart for Base Ops with digits and the hope of a road trip some upcoming weekend. I proceeded to do the most thorough pre-flight inspection of my life. Low and behold, I find an EMS bit ball had popped after landing! Sure, if I had noticed it on my post-flight then maybe they would have had time to send dudes from Shaw to fix it that day. Not likely though. Now, everyone knows that flight through precip is likely to trip one without any real problems, so PFL comes over to survey the situation. He closes the panel and asks what I'm gonna do. I give my best pep talk about how happiness comes in small doses and opportunities to be true heroes are rare. His response: "I know dude, that's why I need to get home. I'm only allowed two TDYs a year, I don't want to burn one in WRB." SQ policy was to divert as two-ships but I sit idly by with a shit-eating grin on my face as 7 jets blast for home and I walk off to the Qs, helmet bag thrown over my shoulder. Aftermath: he told me the lettuce wraps were particularly good at home that night. Me, on the other hand - I got back the following afternoon and was completely spent. 4 nursing students not worth burning one of your allocated TDYs on? For me it was, and all it cost me was a phone call to my neighbors to take care of my dog. Well, that and I did have to replenish one divert kit.

His trial has confused me. I was informed that SGT Berghdal served with honor and distinction. What happened?

You in the pile for this month's AFRC board? (yesterday and today actually, I believe!) What have you heard for timelines on approval? I was told to expect an approval decision in 3-4 weeks and class dates a few more weeks after that as well as UPT base preference. I was hired in February so I can't wait to have a date to count down to!

You mean every USAF base Class VI doesn't carry Weed? The USAF is fucked, gentlemen.

According to the Jeremiah Weed website, you cannot get it anywhere in Florida. I bought the last bottle at a store in Ohio a couple months ago and eventually got it back to Florida with me where it currently rests in the mini-fridge freezer for the day I get a UPT slot or turn 30

Ha. Looked at the Bio. Ironic that a previous duty title was Chief, Detainee Affairs and Personnel Recovery Division... So this "crisis" has been going on for some time. We passed the "predict the problem and solve it before it happens" phase. Then we got to the "let's just react to the problem" without seeing really anything as far as new effort or incentive for people to stay/return. Now it's more like "The school bus is hanging over the cliff, let's assemble a tiger team with our top people to generate a bullet background paper detailing effective lines of effort to solve this. Then we can have a follow-up meeting in 6 months with edits and comments to staff it to all agencies involved."