Zero

We've been down this road, and similar paths, constantly and consistently since the 1970s. I'll believe that Big Blue is serious about CSAR (and CAS) beyond the A-10 when the following things occur: 1. SPECIFICALLY, in-writing, designate a MINIMUM of FIVE squadrons (of the MDS of their choosing) that will take CSAR as a PRIMARY mission. These squadrons will take dedicated, three week (or longer) TDYs to Moody AFB to learn, refine, and become proficient in the CSAR mission so that when the last Hog flies West, the mission is so deeply ingrained in the PRIMARY focus that no stress or strain can erase it. Why 5? I'd argue that's the absolute minimum number for a somewhat regular AFFORGEN deployment rhythm. Welcome to the world of low-density, high-demand. Who's going to want to go into no-kidding combat without Sandys? They will also publish the recurring training events that will prove to the entire CAF that the commitment of NEVER leaving a comrade behind on the field of battle is alive, well, and preserved in the United States Air Force. This won't happen, because it hasn't happened. In order to do this, those five squadrons will have to give up other missions in order to focus on CSAR. It isn't a pickup game, and if we relegate it as such, we're breaking faith with our own. Period, dot, full-stop. So, what can we ask that F-16, F-15E, or F-35 squadron to give up in exchange for keeping CSAR alive at such a pace that our own don't lose faith in our ability to come snatch them from the Valley of the Shadow of Death on the worst day of their lives? Draw the line in the sand. Demonstrate the commitment. Spoken words are hollow. Write it. Sign your name to it and accept the accountability for the decision. If we're not willing to do that, to that level, then we have to get serious in another way. Alternative COA: Give the mission in its entirety to the US Navy. Carriers are near the fight and are mobile. Sign it all over if we're not willing to do what it takes and maintain the mission at the standard that was forged in the skies over Vietnam. The mission has been tinkered with and tossed around a few times, and every time that's happened, it hasn't been good. We had to relearn the TTPs in Desert Storm, and that only happened because enough A-1 vets were retained in the young Hog community to keep the idea alive. Draw the line and go big, or punt on fourth down. Doctrinally, the USN is the closest to the USAF CSARTF in terms of composition, so push it all over there. Zero's perfect solution because I have the pens: Get serious about what war has really been over the last forty years, and the elements that will endure REGARDLESS of the war we want to fight. Our track record on predicting future conflict is pretty terrible, so (as they love to say at Air University) use the past as prologue and keep the things that you've always somehow needed, even if you didn't want them. Get serious about the USAF commitment that's existed in this manner since the original Sandys made it clear that they would walk through Hell in a gasoline suit to bring a comrade home. That means extending the A-10 until 2035, with all that's needed for such sustainment-- depot, WIC, FTU, test, and spare parts. That timeline gives the service time to develop a proper follow-on A-10X. You can even bolt-on some after-market add-ons to make it a VERY formidable F/A-10X and take the low-end counterair vs the low-slow toys so that the super expensive machines can focus on their high-end fights. Better yet, call it the ATTACK-MULTI-role FIGHTER, or AMF. You could field it in no time since you've got a foundation that you know works-- put some new versions of the -34 on there that get 15K lbs of thrust or more, add on every means of plug-and-play munition, EW, and comm suite that already exists, and of course, keep the gun. Done. On the ramp by 2035 so that the last of the c-models can take their place in the boneyard. We need the pickup truck in an era where everyone just wants the sports cars. EVERY conflict since Desert Storm has proven that. Bottom line at the bottom is that there is a numbers game that we're losing and will continue to lose so long as we don't accept the harsh reality before us. Budgets aren't big enough to field an entire fleet of exquisite and VERY expensive fighters. You can't field an NFL team with all quarterbacks, but it's also damn near impossible to field a winning team without those high-speed, highly paid leaders who pass and carry the pigskin. You need linemen. You need knuckle-dragging brawlers. There's already not enough to go around, and the trend is continuing downward. If you're going to transfer the mission, DO IT RIGHT, and START DOING IT NOW so that the new guys can learn from the experts. If you think it's a pickup game and that you can re-learn it on the fly after your one upgrade ride four years ago, you'll be joining Jack in the Esfahan Hilton. We're already late.

Not to say that they thought of everything... but they kinda thought of everything. Helps to have a Hog Driver running the design and implementation. There was "NO" way they were going to block the gunsight.

AGR-20s are great, and the Hog can carry a lot of them... but the word on the street is that's not what was used to down the drones.

Gonna hang it up next year and make it an even 30. 23 years AD and 7 in the Reserves. I've always said that when the bullshit outweighs the benefits, I'd vote with my feet. Apparently I have a higher tolerance for the bullshit than I ever imagined. Like some have said, it all comes down to what right looks like for you. It wasn't right for me to take a pay-cut and alot of time away from home for a couple of years to get the ultimate benefits that the airlines offer. I loved what I did-- flying the A-10 and being in a position to teach young pilots has always appealed to me. I executed my career MY way, to the detriment of promotions on AD-- did a great staff gig in Europe but refused to go to ACC or the Pentagon. Got passed over for O-6 on AD but picked up immediately once I joined the Reserves-- best thing that ever happened to me. I would have been tossed around like a barracks bunny on a Saturday night as a full-bird on AD. Had to wait to pin-on with the Reserves, but got a great opportunity out of it that worked out well for my family. Through it all, I was able to do what I loved and provided great opportunities for my family. And now my beautiful bride has decided that she doesn't want to leave our current location and so that means it's time to hang it up. Assuming I don't get myself fired in the next 8 months, I'll have had a chance in this seat for far longer than is normal for a command tour. I enjoy being in the trenches and leading from the front, and I found a way to do that. It cost me some opportunities, but kept me true to what I valued most career-wise. I deployed six times, flew on some pretty high-end real-world missions, earned a WIC patch, got to command a couple of outstanding organizations, fly the A-10 longer than the eleven-year old version of me who started this dream could have ever imagined, but most importantly, got to coach my kids' sports teams for 12 years and help my wife start a number of successful businesses. But I never felt like I had to sacrifice who I was and what I truly believed in to further my career. Maybe that's why I tolerated more BS than I thought I could. Hell, it's only a lot of work if you do it. Turns out you can still be a fighter pilot in today's Air Force. Then again, I've joked that I'm not really in the military-- I'm in the AF. And I'm not really in the AF, I'm a Hog Driver. Don't use these stories as a recipe or a map-- what worked for me and others won't necessarily work for you. There's nothing wrong with getting out-- if you're doing it for the right reasons. And there's nothing wrong with staying in-- if you're doing it for the right reasons. Just make sure the right reasons are still with you when you hang up that smart-looking uniform for the last time. Now the hard part: I have to figure out what I want to be when I grow up.

Standard playbook across the force for the last 20+ years... 1. Cut to the bone. 2. Demand Congress pay for newer and more expensive toys since you're now below critical capability and stalling. 3. Get denied. 4. Act surprised. Gnash teeth and tear garments at AFA. 5. Get promoted. 6. It's somebody else's problem. Return to step 1.

Back around the late 2000s (2008ish I believe), there was a sudden push to revisit the “heritage and importance” of scarves. Funny to see it come full circle in the opposite direction, but that’s what happens if you stick around long enough to see yourself become the villain. Drew some ‘toons about it back in the day— definitely a few options that could be 36-2903 compliant.

Get ready y'all... we're living out the book "Catch 22."

Here's a solution that I've thought on for awhile... leave the GOs in place until they solve the problem. Make tours task-oriented rather than time-dependent. Nothing gets solved because nothing HAS to get solved-- it just depends what you can "say" you've done to your boss and on your OPB. And the bloated staffs with career civilians know that they just have to mind the clock until the latest guy goes away. That's why we've been talking about the pilot retention crisis for TWENTY YEARS. Capt Zero remembers the first visit from The Bobs asking why we CGOs thought our peers were getting out-- back in 2004. And it wasn't a new problem then. Starting at DO, you should be given a task to complete. For most DOs and CCs, that will be a full deployment cycle-- 2 years. Take a squadron from reset through ready. Do a good job? Move up and on. Don't do a good job? Thank you for your service. Same for every O-6 and up. Here's your tour-- here's what I need you to do. You have four months to tell me how long it's going to take. Do a good job? Move up and on. Fail? Thank you for your service-- it's time to retire / fire. Make it about what you actually get done, not what you say you've done. Will never happen-- because most GOs have risen on their ability to say what they've done-- the system worked just fine for them, so why would there be an impetus to change?? There are some out there who can walk the walk and have the stories to prove it. Too many are just paper tigers, with their accomplishments being as thin as the OPBs they're printed on.

Mission success! A184C0B3-2E8C-49E1-ACE0-7C5ED5C4793F.mov

Appreciate the words Springer-- definitely a ton of work, most of it dealing with USAF bureaucracy, but totally worth it to honor an warrior's legacy. We've got at least two jets now, hoping for two more ponied up soon to round out a four-ship. DFW ATC has been amazing-- said we could get a few thousand feet for the pull up-- for a Hog, that's all we'll need. We make the run right across the southern approach / departure corridor into DFW, which should be interesting to say the least but those guys have been unbelievably helpful so far. If we can get a tanker to help us out with a pre and post TOT topoff, that would be greatly appreciated and thanked with the appropriate gift of some fine adult beverages delivered to the crews. You know, for the effort. It's a Friday afternoon flight, so we'd take that into consideration in the selection of fine beverages to say thanks with.

We started tackling that piece right away— and you’re right, the USAF hurdle is the biggest. Whereas our own service puts all kinds of red tape around it, the first thing the guys at DFW said to me was “We do this all the time— we’ll get you everything you need to make this happen.” Can’t say the same for Big Blue, but they did say that it should be streamlined since we already have the jets lined up insofar as a unit that wants to do the flyover.

Baseops never disappoints... thanks all-- got in touch with the right people. Now for the seventh consecutive miracle... and that is to get maintenance to pony up some jets.

Long shot, but I know there are experts here who might be able to help. BLUF: Long-time A-10 leader passed away this week, and is being interred at DFW National Cemetery next week. We're looking to see if we can get a 4 Ship flyover but have no idea where to start with the airspace. That cemetery is 10nm SE of the eastern runway at DFW, so airspace should be simple. Right? Coord through official USAF channels to approve it is underway, but would like to know if anyone has any words on where to go otherwise; ATC POCs to coord and/or approve, or even just to find out if there's no way to proceed. They've done Memorial Day flyovers there, but I'm sure they have plenty of time to coord in advance for something like that whereas we have a week. Any point-outs are greatly appreciated, even if it's to show that it's unpossible so we can plan for an alternative COA here at Moody. Thanks in advance. Cheers, Zero

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