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stop posting your trolling Shazaam shit in irrelevant threads?

I asked you a simple yes or no question...and yet you couldn’t even answer without getting emotional.

So I never spend my AD time PLANNING to go to the airlines. I litaraly just got bored and had a friend applying to Skywest. When he showed up for his interview, I decided to go through class with him, so I applied. (Keep in mind that this is 2017 pre 'Rona). I was in class two weeks later. Here are things that I learned in the first six months, keeping in mind that I ignored all the airline talk in the squadron cuz I was gonna be retired and only half listened. All advice I am about to give is based on your stated preferences, which are remarkably similar to mine: -Living in base is EVERYTHING. Commuting sucks. Don't do it unless you just can't stand living in one of the bases of your desired airline. I had to commute DEN to ORD for all of a month. After that, sitting reserve at home was awesome! Putz around the house with the phone on. NBD. -Once I got a line, the advantage of a regional is that there are a lot of kids who are super hungry for hours, so I gave away enough trips a month to work 30-40 hours (8 ish days away) per month. That was also perfect for me. Working just enough to still enjoy it just became easier after COVID. -Disadvantage is pay. Skywest starts out at $50/hour when a major airline doubles that. But, I was a Nav, so I didn't have the turbine time requirement to go straight to the "Majors". I think the same work schedule is possible at the Major Airlines fairly quickly, but I can't speak to it, I only have second hand knowledge, which is probobly the same as you have from the beat up old reserve LtCol who works for Southwest that you hang out with. -Huge advantage is travel benifits. My wife and I have produced no crotch fruit and don't plan to. Kids out of the house is same thing. Wanna go hang in Hawaii for the weekend? The price is zero. Want a beer in Germany? $Free.95. You get the idea. We actually ran the calculations, and with my time off to free time ratio, we hit the road so much that the math said it trippled my paycheck in '19 in that benifit alone. YMMV based on crash 9/11, crash of '08, 'Rona, Godzilla attack, etc. Bottom line is that I love it. Best part is going into work, getting on the jet, doing airplane things, and walking off with about 5 min of time spent on briefing/debriefing. You go to work to go FLY. The way God intended it. Appologies to anyone here for my threadjack, I hope it's good info. Come stop by my airpark home with your fancy RV sometime. I'll provide the beer. 7CO0 is the airport ID just NW of KDEN.

I've clearly stated I think climate change is real and we need to do something, but this is not the thing, this is a political stunt that does far more harm than good. I am in favor of actual investments in science not a move that placates the wacky far left and costs thousands of jobs while doing more hard to the environment. How about we use some of that unity we were promised built a real bipartisan national strategy to reduce emissions and convert to renewables before we wreck the American economy. Neither side will be happy int he short-term, but that probably means we have a real solution. Instead we have an out of touch administration playing to the extremes. What a great narrative when John "Climate Change Czar" took his private jet to the climate change summit and said displaced Keystone Pipeline workers "will have better choices” and can “go to work to make the solar panels.” Huh...over 60% of solar panel production is in China...come on man. We are years away from increasing efficiency and increasing large scale solar panel production here in the U.S. at a competitive price point. These people need jobs NOW. Oh and he made those clueless comments while defending his use of the private jet... "The only choice for somebody like me" Come on man!

Well you're right man, it's a good problem to have; and while optimism for the airlines is great, I think IDE offers you more security and promotion potential. Just reading your post, I feel like you already know what you want to do. Don't follow the crowd man. Make your own path.

I'll always support Kinzinger over the spoiled drunk that's never had a day in his life where he had to be accountable for his actions. Sent from my SM-N975U using Baseops Network mobile app

Somebody does, otherwise they’d leave it alone.

That old guy probably figured using his age as and excuse he could disobey orders, start touching the police (you libtards would be screaming assault if tables were turned). Police didn’t use excessive force...he couldn’t handle a small shove and it’s plausible he over acted and self-injured himself in the process. Stay at home old man!! Didn’t his leftist friends tell him if the police weren’t going to get him, the virus would. Root cause....stupidity. Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

Uhhhh ok? You are comparing apples.to oranges right now. What grounds or data do you have to make any of the above assumptions? Is flying a plane more dangerous than entering a domestic violence scene (definitely no). Did those at Haditha exercise good ROE judgement? (no) Do law enforcement officers have the same legal and moral obligations to risk their life as uniformed military members (also no). Honestly man, if you're not an expert on how the law enforcement community calculates, and mitigates risk, and how they apply a completely different use of force spectrum, you probably should just refrain from comment. I know enough about the career field to know they are completely incomparable.

I can't agree with this point entirely... because we simply don't have the renewable technology to handle a majority, much less 100%, of our energy needs. Not to mention, our continued technological breakthroughs in oil/gas technology are the exact reason the US beat all other nations in reducing CO2 in 2019 and 2020. Coal is the greatest CO2 emitter, bar none. Thanks to hydraulic fracturing, we're shutting down our coal-fired plants at a record pace, and are able to deliver a much cleaner energy product to the end customer. So in a really ironic way, we need to continue to develop oil/coal infrastructure to make them less impactful on the environment. Fair point on the economics of the pipeline, but don't cite the NRDC. They're left of the Sierra Club in their environmental activism (near Greenpeace), and are hardly impartial on the topic. Fun fact, I had to deal with them protesting outside of a power plant that was switching from coal to natural gas. What were they protesting for, you ask? They wanted the entire thing shut down. The only power plant next to a metro area. Genius. Electric cars just shift the energy need to something else... and in this case its the US power grid. You seriously think our power grid is prepared for an all-electric car surge in usage? For an electric car to go 100 miles, it needs around the same amount of electricity as a "average American home." So we're adding ~200 million homes to the grid by 2030... but without fracking to provide cheap (clean-ish) natural gas power? Hello poverty, or rolling blackouts. At the end of the day, someone has to pay the piper. All this plan does is shift the polluting burden from the end consumer (me and you) to energy companies, who are going to be running their power plants ragged just trying to keep up with more demand. I think we're on a good path, actually. Electric cars are naturally finding their spot in the market, primarily for folks who are doing short-distance commuting in cities. Gas cars are becoming more efficient (but way more turbo-laggy, another topic for another thread). Power plants are switching to cheaper and cleaner forms of energy, and the US is looking at installing offshore wind. On the future front, US companies are actually close to mass-producing biofuels that could power planes, and Lockheed continues to claim they're getting closer to a fusion reactor. Couple that with the steady increase in energy efficiency among US homes and our electronic devices... and we're not looking too shabby. Despite what one might read elsewhere. End point: I'm sorry, but all of these "green new deal" plans, and electric car mandates read like an economic suicide pact in the pursuit of some sort of moral panacea. Rather than pushing for "zero emissions" (an impossibility), we should look to foster a market that can reach "lower emissions" (reality). Which is what we're doing.

BODE, First, thanks for 20 years of service to our nation. Solid advice being presented so far and as mentioned your first stop should be a sit down with your family. Being a commander was always a goal for me and I am humbled I got the chance and only you can answer if the chance at command is worth giving up potential seniority and other freedoms. If you stay and are able to get command you may be really lucky and have the opportunity to make a difference in someone's life, you can not place a value on that experience. I am retired but not an airline pilot, however from the numbers I've seen you will have no problems getting on with an airline once the gates open back up. There is of course risk on that side but the long-term financial reward is very appealing. I would advise you take a long-view approach. Being a commander is something you can't go back and get once you get out. For your own self worth, does the opportunity for command experience outweigh the potential financial stability? If you are looking to hedge your bets do you have the opportunity of turning down IDE and remaining on active duty? I know some will say that is the kiss of death but I can assure you it is not, it truly is situation dependent. I know several folks who turned down IDE and still became squadron commanders, Lt Col's and in one case a BPZ O-6 Group Commander.

Oh man. It's a shame those airline interviews treat your baseops.net reputation as important as your flying hours. You need at least 1500 likes I hear to even get in the door. 😂

Careful, last time I called him out he went and found my last 18 posts and down voted all of them, lol.

They’re changing the logo and leaving the actual offensive part: it’s imitation “maple syrup”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CLBEYcLAqwN/?igshid=16va63nlyboj9 Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

@Steve Davies Red Eagles got a mention today on Joe Rogan Podcast with Thunderbirds driver/MMA Ref

Congrats on the school offer, it's great to have choices. Don't forget about Pensacola for Nav school, or NAS Whiting (not 100% sure if they still have an AF command position or there anymore). There's also PIT in San Antonio, though it's a different kind of student...But at least in a real city which should give you more choices for schools and a bigger airport to commute from if needed. Granted, that's only a handful of spots in the trainer world that are closer to civilization. It might be worth talking to some O-6s you may know about command (I realize your time is probably limited to accept or decline school). One thing my boss told last time I sat down with him to discuss career options/paths is that you'll have to make a choice going into the command boards-do you want to command regardless of location/job, or do you have certain commands in mind? Neither is wrong, but it's something to keep in mind as you make your decision with your family. The plus side is you'll be eligible to compete on both the AMC (core specialty) and AETC boards, so you'll have more chances to make command, especially if you make both lists and want to go back to AETC. I'm not sure if airlines also consider category/class in your flight recency, but you could also look into flying with CAP to keep flying and accruing hours if you don't want to pay to fly out of pocket should you end up somewhere non flying. Best of luck in your decision!

You haven't seen the planes I flew on have you.😃

You too! It might be worth sending an email to the POC or submission email address to confirm they got it. With them hopefully hiring a primary/alternate to two squadrons I’m looking forward to four of us getting picked up!

Bode, thanks for twenty plus years of service. It means something if your people are telling you to stay in. You won’t change the Air Force but you’ll probably change a few lives, as corny as that may sound. It seems you’re trying to make a decision between long term financial security for your family and getting hired by the airlines. One option exists, the other frankly doesn’t, and won’t for a while. That recovery target has been kicked down the road repeatedly, and without CARES you’d see enormous furlough numbers. What if nobody hires for 8 years? That could easily happen. Commuting to NJ would be a challenge, but so would commuting to your airline job. You noted the PCS frequency and potential UPT base moves. Consider how much control you’d have as an airline pilot. It’s actually very little. When the furlough comes, you have basically zero say in the matter. And, you may only be trading gripes about AF management for gripes about airline management, and feeling beat down by either one. The grass is always greener. It’s definitely a good problem to have. Best of luck making your decision!

There is a growing argument for Salt based nuclear reactors being the only available means of scaling up electrical generation and the country investing the most in it... is China. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I love this dudes channel. His use of whiteboards makes me wonder if he went to some weird engineering nerd WIC or something.

This is a real concern. Germany thought they could go all wind/solar and now they are in the middle of one of the coldest winters in history while Putin snapchats his handle on the gas valve during declining EU/Russia relations. Its not just commuters. There is a reason Tesla and GM started looking at Pickup trucks next. #1, they are by far the worst gas guzzlers. #2, they have a huge niche as a business utility vehicle. There's a huge market for electric vehicles, it just hasn't been fully realized. Once you've been hooked on the convenience of NOT having to go to a gas station, its really hard to go back. The only hiccup with electric vehicles at the moment is infrastructure for cross country. And therefore, the luxury Sedan market will probably be the last one to convert. GM plans to be all electric vehicles by 2040. I think you overall point though is we cannot just skip from mineral fuel to clean energy. There is a step in between that isn't fully realized yet, and this is the crux of the issue. There isn't an energy source yet that is as cheap or abundant as mineral wealth that can sustain the worlds growing population.

Engineering Explained on YouTube addresses this question. BL: not as impossible to convert as you’d think over the next 20 years. https://youtu.be/7dfyG6FXsUU

It’s amazing how many WB guys I’ve talked to who haven’t been to work in 60-90 days, only flew 6 days in a month (and went to somewhere awesome), all while getting paid great money. I can’t wait...please don’t fuck this up for us Rona!

You spelled her name wrong...racist.

How much have you talked to your family about it? Are they good with 3 more moves? Are they okay with potentially seeing you even less than before? There are other things you can be doing while you wait for the airlines. Remember to add your pension to any job you take outside the air force. If you stay in, you're essentially giving that up. On the other hand, you sound like a pretty good dude and we could use more commanders like that. Staff is hit or miss. I have had staff jobs I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy and jobs that were great deals. I think it comes down to the impact on your family. Both are good options - good luck!

No one is being skipped here but on vaccine days you can show up at the end and if they have leftover shots they’ll give it to you instead of throwing them away. They tend to run out of extras pretty quick.

He’s probably more interested in whether you like dog shit fake syrup or not...says a lot about a man’s character!

Edwards could be some of the best flying you’ll ever do... but IMO if you have kids over 10ish, you’re basically trading their youth for your flying career. Bold statement and there are definitely ways to minimize that (live with an hour+ commute, send them off base for school,etc) don’t get me wrong, the weekends can be great, lot of amazing things to see/do within 2 hours drive, people are amazing, they just love the mission... but the kids get lost. Leadership doesn’t see it as a problem, rumor is they moved the gate years ago so it doesn’t count as a remote, so schools are Cali-worthless, the pools are freezing, they built one in housing with no heaters... kids come out blue. Make good friends, have good times, leave before all the other kids leave or they’ll be the only ones in their peer group left. as for masters, yes technical is better, embry is not as good, but showing initiatives are what matters... vol for any “tests” in your airframe, tell your sq/cc - they might know a dude/dudette, have them write it in your OPR (“ready for tps now”) and if nothing else call the squadron out there that handles your airframe and ask for an ADO, they’ll help you out. They want to know that you’re above average intelligence, ready to learn something quickly and then apply it, and have better than average pilotage... so finds ways to get those experiences on paper. Turn off the autopilot whenever you can and trim the aircraft to +/-1 knot and see if you can get it to stay for 5 minutes, do full after burner climbs with the same tolerance, find what is difficult and dedicate time to perfecting it. If you want it -go after it, if you just want to apply one day, they’ll smell you out... many folks apply a few times and have years dedicated to getting their app ready. There’s actually a reg that governs the application, go read it now see what they want, then make those things happen in you career.

Man I’d love to see Kinzinger slap that....idiot.....right down.

Gotcha. Thanks for the clarification. I thought you were implying one couldn't gainfully retire as an FGO without the need for a full-time occupation; premise which of course I vehemently disagree with. To bring it back on topic of the airline talk, as someone who will be circa 46-49 with a check in hand, a kid out the house, and a working spouse, I'm going to be wanting to prioritize time-off over pay, full stop. I've debated a lot what potential avenues I'd be willing to take at that time (GS stamp licking job, FW EMS, part 135/91, sim jobs, even expat .mil contracting), and so far have come up fairly empty-handed for one reason or another. The only construct I've been able to research that remotely touches on the kind of work-life allowance I seek in a post-mil pursuit, is some airline outfits. But a place where I can't readily drop trips/schedules as a **perma-junior guy and still eek out 70-80K, is just not worth the trouble for me. (**not working past 60, so less than 11 years longevity from .mil to when I quit all work life full stop) -break break Congrats on AD retirement btw! I have two things I rather be doing right now as a young man that my work impositions are getting in the way of: (1) The hobby and (2) more time back home. Suffice to say, the wife is tripping over herself to partake in both, which is probably why she's my second wife and not my first one. 😮 And I digress. Cheers! 🍺

The irony of Biden's killing the Keystone Pipeline in the name of "Climate Change"....Killing the pipeline will actually INCREASE carbon emissions. To offset the amount of oil lost by cancelling the pipeline the U.S. will have to add 646 Train tankers of oil per day and it will consume 1.4 Million gallons of fuel (usually diesel), everyday to move that fuel. That is the equivalent of adding the emissions of 490,000 cars to our output. Well done Never Trumper Climate Savers.

Will report back. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

2nd shot did in fact suck. But I didn't die.

Maybe someone just wanted to remove an outdated (possibly racist) stereotype image. Same is happening across the Air Force right now. Why on earth would I care what they call my maple syrup?

KC should have signed her https://www.beaumontenterprise.com/news/houston-texas/article/lake-jackson-mom-tackle-15943328.php?fbclid=IwAR2vjmkF_NpEUlJiCd6WT2Ecf1lAOC8g6T-wVrjGVJgV6lmzMaJtNQw-bK4

After watching some of the videos presented to the Senate this week I’m convinced that Pence was in much more danger than I previously thought. Pelosi too. In the end the government was able to resume work fairly quickly which is a testament to the strength of our institutions. I thought the first impeachment was a partisan waste of time. The second is perfectly justified but the GOP is so full of cowards that nothing will come of it.

After getting over the fact that we weren't going to find out this week, I'm just glad that we have an actual date for release, which is nice. Never thought I would ever say this, but I hope the weekend flys by. 😃

Just a regional guy here (gimmick a break, I was a fucking Nav), but I am flying for THE regional. Skywest flies for American, Delta, UA, and Alaska. We are seeing a huge uptick in travel, and many of our jets have been full or nearly full. Now some of that is due to scope clause, but we are getting busier and busier. I do see the industry picking up steam faster than they thought it would, and see no reason why that wouldn’t continue. Our company is talking about resuming upgrades this summer and new hire by fall. Traditionally, the regionals are the first to see increase in flying. We are also adding cities right and left due to being scoped out of traditional routes. (Using a 737 at 60% capacity KDEN to KIND is a symptom of scope). Side note: if you are a USAF pilot, DO NOT go UQ in your last year, or you will be sitting here with me, yanking gear for a Nav.

Yes, it is/was pretty remote like 14 miles, all on base at 55 mph, from the Rosamond “gate” to seeing the guard shack and other base buildings. BUT it was an awesome assignment I'll be honest, a lot of people from the DT community seem to dislike Edwards; however, having been assigned or TDY enough times to the other DT locations, Edwards ranks pretty high for me for the exact reasons Stitch and Magellan noted. One thing they did not mention is that you are about 3 hours to everything...beach, mountains, Vegas, etc. Personally, it was great being so close to the Eastern Sierra Nevadas and all of the great hiking there. The Edwards airspace is great too...not quite as good as the NTTR, but it is the only place where the highest and lowest elevations in the lower 48 exist. More importantly, make sure you know you want to tread down the DT path. Just like in picking an airframe in UPT, you should pick TPS or non-TPS based on mission not location. For most communities, once you go to TPS, you will not return to the 'regular' AF. You'll have opportunities to integrate with the operational test and even operational squadron folks from time-to-time, especially if you are a fighter or bomber guy, but it's unlikely your old community will bring you back for leadership or other opportunities. You'll still be managed by your old communities developmental team; however, for all intents and purposes, you're a persona non grata to the old community. Unfortunately, the test world has not capitalized on this gap and talent management has suffered as a consequence. Nevertheless, the DT world has improved in its efforts to be relevant for the rest of the AF by working with current warfighters, which may help soothe the sting of not being able to do the real-world mission anymore (if that is your desire).

Spent 2.5 years at Eddies in the late 80’s, worked maintenance in the F-15 Combined Test Force. Yes, it is/was pretty remote like 14 miles, all on base at 55 mph, from the Rosamond “gate” to seeing the guard shack and other base buildings. BUT it was an awesome assignment; saw the space shuttle land several times and leave again on top of that modified 747, watched a B-1 land on the lake bed with a nose gear that wouldn’t come down touched down on the mains and skidded to a stop with the nose of the jet on the dirt (pilot did a great job, very minimal damage), there was a human powered bicycle “motor” airplane covered in what looked like saran wrap with a giant wing span flying at like 5 feet AGL up and down the flightline. Down on the NASA ramp they were still flying the oldest but youngest B-52 in the fleet. I was a “B” model used for flight test, yes the exact same Buff you see in all those old-ass flight test movies, it was oldest in years but youngest in flying hours. Then there was the annual “MASH Bash” and BBQ keg party on the ruins of Pancho Barnes’ “Happy Bottom Riding Club” made famous in the movie “The Right Stuff”. Went to Nellis from there, didn’t know how good I had it at Eddies till I left. Good luck and chase your dream.

This post exemplifies the real crisis in our country: an inability to talk to each other. Your first paragraph is filled with assumptions you believe to be facts. Your second paragraph is also assumptions masquerading as fact. The foundation of a functioning democratic society is disagreements are civil and resolved by good faith conversations. That means listening to the other side and asking yourself “could they be right? Can I understand their viewpoint? How can I convince them of mine?” You’re right about one thing: we don’t have much left to talk about if “talking” just means I’m brow beat with your opinions. How do you think the country hold together when convincing conversations cease and power is used to force those you disagree with to obey?

Man, I think it’s been three years or better since I’ve looked at Baseops. Almost Five years since I retired. Since everything went crazy, I found myself wondering what the BO crowd was saying.Tonight, I finally looked. I’ve read through a few threads, and must say...I am still impressed by the level of discussion here. Y’all are awesome. And also, thanks to Congressman for standing up for what he believes is right. Takes some nuts. Props to y’all for great discussion as well. Quality people here, man. Proud to have served with most of ya!

Yes, a technical MS is an unstated (compared to FTE) desire for the test pilot track. However, ERAU’s programs generally do not meet that bill. Nevertheless, one of the pilots in my class had a masters from ERAU and did well. For pilots, the community is looking for a great pilot with operational experience and the ability to think like an engineer--in the air and on the ground. Adaptability and a disciplined approach to exploring the unknown are also highly sought and trained to at the school.

100% this. Just keep applying everywhere. There are people in their 30s who have gotten picked up for fighters/bombers so their justification is nonsense. You've still got plenty of time keep applying everywhere. I mean applying AD simultaneously won't hurt but keep trying for the Guard/Reserve. If active duty stuff isn't out of what you want could consider, the Navy/USMC aviation side is something you should look into as well.

Nothing really gets stone walled-Texas can enact whatever programs it wants for Texans pretty much on its own if it was important enough to them. And Texas has the resources to do so if it wanted to. States don't have to wait for federal funding or laws, especially the bigger states whose economies rival other nations. For example, if universal healthcare was so important to Californians, they could implement it without federal funding. It would likely raise their state taxes, but there's nothing federally that bans them from implementing it. If it's a good idea, other states will do so, and maybe eventually other states will get on board and vote at the national level. And California has done things like that in the past (like for car emissions standards). Smaller states will have trouble doing things unilaterally; they likely have a much smaller economy, so it's harder to implement government programs if they want to; they have to lobby for outside help from other states. Without the Senate, big states can screw over small states, as well as the people within those states. For example, federal funding for programs (from federal taxes levied on individuals and businesses) could be diverted from small states into big states, and the small states would have no recourse due to their small population. Or big states could decide "nuclear power is great, let's do it, but where should we put the waste?" and vote to put it in say South Dakota, because SD wouldn't have enough representatives to block that vote. You do see this issue within states as well, with the conflict between urban centers and rural areas. So the even dividing down to states isn't perfect. But it helps protect minorities (not just race/ethnicity in this context, but rural vs urban, big vs small businesses, industrialization vs environmentalism, etc) within the population. Otherwise, democracies (both direct and representative) can devolve into mob rule or a significant consolidation of power once a majority realizes it can vote for things that only benefits then.

I flew MQ-9s and killed people. I saw an entire spectrum of reactions. Some people handle it without issue, some people break down crying in the debrief, some people go home and drink too much, one dude passed out when it was time to shoot. You never know what you're going to get from someone until it happens. The people who approached the task of killing as just another job to excel at seemed to have the least problems. That's the approach I took and would recommend. It is not a job for the squeamish. I saw heads and limbs blown off, injured dudes flopping around trailing their guts behind them and shit like that. What the view looks like from other planes I can't tell you.

Conversely, I spent the last two years at Purple flying local Out & Back flights. Memphis to Knoxville was my favorite...45 minutes there, on the ground long enough to eat the catering, then a 45 minute flight back. Widebody FO pay and I didn't even leave the state of TN. I slept in my own bed every night. Didn't even pack a bag...just showed up with my company iPad. I cleared $200K my second year, and that's with dropping about 15-20% of my trips for .mil leave. After two years of that, I decided to change it up and bid Captain. The lines aren't as nice, but the pay is ridiculous. After everyone is through training on this bid cycle, I should be senior enough to hold a reserve line. That way I can get paid to wait at home by the pool/phone.

I ran across Dan a few times during my career. AFROTC field training, a few of the same strike package during Desert Storm out of the 'Lik and at least one Flag. All I'll say is that not everyone shares as high opinion of him as he does. That's been a trend since ROTC. To proclaims one's self the "most lethal pilot" in the USAF or whatever he said when I leafed through the book in an airport bookstore is a bit of a stretch, considering the company he keeps in aviation history. A good driver with some good stories? No doubt. At least his books are selling. In my final comment below, I realize I may be somewhat biased considering my background. However, I think it's still extremely valid. The one question I have for him, should we cross paths again would be this: Considering the success of the fighter version of the F-15 over the history of it's four-plus decades of operations, how can someone write a history of the fighter pilot and fail to even mention that aircraft once? I get the whole Eagle-Falcon rivalry.......but considering the F-15 was probably the last US aircraft designed purely to fulfill the role of a true fighter (not a pound for air-to-ground) and has a pretty enviable kill ratio in combat (ya know..... the actual job of a "fighter pilot"), you'd think it might have at least made it into the index.