Leaderboard

It worked for me quite well. In Oct 2009, I three-day-opted a non-flying remote to Iraq. I had 22.5 years of service, was a U-2 interview pilot, and evaluator in both the U-2 and T-38. I didn't want to retire. The three-day opt required me to retire 1 May 2010. I was determined to defeat the threat. I was working a number of angles, but nothing was panning out. By early 2010, I hadn't found a solution, but I did figure out that I could request a 6-month extension to my retirement date if my Wing CC wrote a letter asking for it. At the time, the Beale Wing CC was a 1-star. I presented my case that extending me 6 months was in the best interest of the 9th Wing and the Wing CC agreed. AFPC isn't going to tell a 1-star to pound sand: I got the extension. Around that time, AFPC announced the VRRAD. In my first phone call with the VRRAD person at AFPC, I explained that I was still on active duty. "Will you be retired before 31 December 2010?" "Yes, I will be." "Then you are eligible for the VRRAD." Basically, one office in AFPC was requiring me to retire... and another office in AFPC was allowing me to return to active duty as a retiree. I never told the two offices about each other, and figured it was best if they didn't know my plan. My VRRAD got approved. So, on Friday, 29 Oct, I had a short ceremony in the bar and retired. The following week, I came back to Beale, to my old desk, which I obviously didn't vacate... turned in my week-old retiree ID card... went through in-processing with a room full of 18 year olds (at least I got a verbal waiver from the Vice to skip the Right Start briefings). I even submitted a travel voucher for my 33-mile drive from home to Beale AFB for my first day back on active duty. In 2013, after 3 years, the VRRAD was coming to an end... but I asked the Wing CC to write me a letter requesting a 1-year extension. He did, and I got it. Finally... I retired 1 Nov 2014. It was my third set of retirement orders, and the second time I actually retired.

Recently declassified photo we have in the squadron. 2020-09-09 14-57.pdf

Sim, I want to tell you something. I was on this forum when you were still popping zits on your funny face and jerking off with the lingerie section of the sears catalog.

Personally, I’m just stoked for an administration that doesn’t do this: EXCLUSIVE: Trump administration secretly withheld millions from FDNY 9/11 health program To top it off, their admission of doing it is a dogshit insult and the best they can do is “try” to fix it/not do it going forward. It’s an abomination that Biden and Trump are the best choices this country of 330+ million can come up with. That said, only 1 party hasn’t made 9/11 first responders grovel for money for care as they pay the price for their service over the years. First Zadroga; now this. That alone will keep me voting D. Anyway... 🍻 to all those lost that day 19 years ago today that went to work that morning with expectations of coming home that night. I’m pouring a little more out for the 343 brothers lost that day and the nearly 1 in 8 that have gotten cancer from being down there; folks that rely on the very program this administration has admitted to withholding money from. Politics didn’t matter for those helping that day; why should they matter now?

Just so we're clear...everyone understands that it's not in his power to forgive these taxes, right?

Got my CMP 1911 today. I had honestly forgotten about it since I submitted the application almost two years ago. It's a 1945 S/N R&R field grade. It'll go well with my Garand in the heavy metal class whenever three gun opens back up.

Looks like Sim joined on Sept 19, 2007 and Prozac joined a little later on December 10, 2008. FWIW, I joined in early 2005 and I still jerk off to the Sears catalog. Don't hate.

My point is that I haven’t sworn allegiance to anyone but the Constitution.

Keep in mind that I'm 33 years old, so it'll likely be inherently more difficult to get an interview, but let me offer my 2 cents: I've been at this game since I was 22 years old coming out of college...that's right, going into year eleven of this game in some form or fashion. I've applied to all of the following: 2009 - 2010: Air Force Active Duty (2x; non-select, then board cancellation) 2010 - 2013: 13 different ANG/AFRC units (12x non-select; 1 interview, 1 selection by a KC-135 unit...had to eventually relinquish my slot due to some tough family stuff that would have certainly interfered with successful UPT completion and more) 2013 - June 2020: Get the personal life situation in order, while everyday thinking about applying as soon as things were. And they are now. June 2020 - Present: 6 applications submitted (2 outright rejections due to age, 3 I've never heard back from, 1 that still has the chance to interview) I'm old, but have decent numbers: 96 Pilot, 87 PCSM (97 with 201+ hours), ~60 flight hours (post-solo) and on-track to finish my PPL this Fall, assuming CA wildfire issues don't keep grounding my flights. At my age, I've come to learn to learn two things: 1. Patience isn't just a virtue, it's the ardent protector of sanity. While life is indeed short and years certainly do go by fast, unless you're already in age waiver territory chances are you've got several years to make this happen. I know we'd all like to be picked up on Application #1, but man, patience is key. We're all pursuing a career that is as cool and as fulfilling as it gets, and part of that career is the process: Enjoy it! Don't let impatient steal the happiness that's found in all of this! I know it seems like, if after 13 applications it hasn't happened that it may never happen, but I promise you: keep at it, improve in someway every month, quarter, etc., and simply don't stop pushing. It will work out. Be patient, and let the math (i.e. # of apps submitted over time) work in your favor. Eventually, even after years of applying, there's gonna be a unit that's gonna be like, "Ya know, this is the 3rd year in a row this guy has applied, he's visited several times, and wow, he's now got his PPL, instrument rating, and his PCSM just hit 99. Let's get him in here to interview." 2. Be yourself. ALWAYS. And when you get that interview, come more prepared to this interview than you have anything else in your life, and be yourself. Take it from someone who's done it: pretending to be anybody else but yourself is incredibly difficult, a cancer to the soul, and I have no doubt squadrons can see it coming from around the corner. My granddad used to say, "I can tell by the way that joker walks what he had for breakfast," and I'm sure these hiring boards are no different. I highly doubt you'll secure a pilot slot simply saying everything the board wants to hear, and if you do, you're likely to be eventually be weeded out, one way or another. So be yourself--and always strive to be your best self, but that's a different topic--and take comfort in knowing that, whether or not it worked out, it did or didn't based on you being you. There's solace to take in that, I promise. Eventually, it will work out. And in the off-chance it doesn't, and, somehow, it's become official that being an ANG or AFRC pilot wasn't in the cards for you, you'll be able to look yourself in the mirror knowing you didn't sucker out, and you'll likely have some awesome civilian flying and ratings to sustain your love of aviation as you move into the next phase of life. Best of luck to all, and as many others have said, don't stop improving, and don't stop applying!

I saw some got a TBNT but I have not heard anything.

Still waiting to hear back from the original congrats email

Arch nemesis of Carlos Danger?

Does that come with auto-Republican party registration? Give me a break.

End of Sept may be optimistic

The guy who said that realizes the Marine Corps also has a fighter community right? But ok getting (sorta) serious to second what Desk Jobs said just shoot for what makes you happy and develop some thicker skin.

Well that fucking backfired, didn't it?

Thank you so much for confirming; just the signature it is! 🤙

Wish I could get back in and serve under Big Scary Orange Man any day and twice on Sunday. But you maybe retired (perhaps like me) and we can just sit on the sidelines with paycheck of the month club. Not a bad deal as I don’t miss the extraneous B.S. Just gave my Wife a Trump Photo Documentary book. Pages and pages of the guy and/or couple with the troops, at memorials, military cemeteries - Yup that’s a true warfighter hater. She’s still looking thru it. Horrible book for you, but she loves it cuz she’s a take no crap kinda girl. I bit my lip serving under several less than brilliant presidents, they were my Boss bottom line and we collectively did not hit the ground, cry, whine or make disparaging remarks. Civilian now, seeing the world personally and able to view from another lens besides camo. Military spends money, civilian sector makes money. Very fortunate and opinionated like most and able to poor mouth but don’t, at least not as much as we could. Keep those facts coming, this is a very interesting topic at times.

Lol. THE Commander in Chief. I’m guessing YOUR CinC. But no longer in my Chain of Command brotha. The Wife’s the only one who holds that title for me now!

In addition to some issues already brought up, are Herk crews going to now be qualified in and maintain currency in every mission in the entire MAF and be expected to be proficient at all of them when employed?

The liberal media is getting this entirely wrong, as usual. The mayor of SF, when asked if Pelosi violated the city health order: "So look, Nancy Pelosi has done so much for this city and even this country and in the midst of this pandemic and all the stuff that’s happening amidst this election, she is in Washington D.C. fighting against a tyrant every single day," Breed said. "We need to be focused on the issues and the fact that over 180,000 people have died in this country and we have a president that continues to divide us." YGBSM. Can democrats just have some integrity and condemn that she did the exact opposite of what they've been saying? Why doesn't she just admit guilt and apologize? Why is the political system so broken in this country? What choice is there for a rational voter when it's just Republicans and Democrats? Every day further convinces me that constitutional amendments are in order: ranked choice voting and term limits for people in congress.

Not to be "that guy" but a minor point that muscle does not weigh more than fat. 1 pound of muscle weighs the same as 1 pound of fat. Muscle is more dense, therefore 1 pound of muscle will take up less space than 1 pound of fat.