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GW

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Posts posted by GW

    Is it worth getting a type rating for getting hired by the airlines?

    in General Discussion

    Posted · Edited by GW

    Short answer: no. Your training and experience points to your ability to successfully complete any training program you start.

    Longer answer: maybe. The name of the game (stop me if you've heard this one) is seniority and if Southwest is what you're looking for (honestly don't know who is requiring Bus types to attend training) than do everything you can to make you hire date as soon as possible. If that means diverting some real cash and a few days of your time in a simulator then only you can really answer your question.

    Not a definitive answer I know, but obviously nothing in this industry is.

    GW

    Edit: to c-21's point a good buddy in my new hire class went a got his 737 type and hewas hired into the airbus. So my advice: don't overthink it

    Advanced Instrument School (AIS)

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    AIS no longer has the end of course presentation.

    Also, they've added a one hour brief on UAS Systems! This former C-5 then RQ-4 guy talks about how unmanned is so much smarter and w/e. He did well at calming folks down, but the atmosphere was openly hostile. He called us "legacy thinkers."

    Then, he pulls out his personal UAS! It was a thousand bucks and had 4 rotor blades with a camera in the middle. He proceeds to take it off and crash into the first row of student desks!

    There weren't even any SU-27's around...Guess it "lost link."

    If this is what they're teaching at AIS now (and I only graduated two years ago) than the AF has completely lost sight of the intent of this course.

    100hrs on NVGs=20% Disability?

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    Correct me if I'm wrong here but I thought too much disability upon sep/ret was a bad thing when looking for employment post AF. True?

    F that noise, it's my hearing and vision that I'm purposefully destroying in the defense of this country. If somebody has a problem with that I probably don't want to work for them anyway....

    GW

    FFDO Program and MEPS

    in Aviation Medicine

    Posted

    I'm not a Doctor, but I'll take a look...

    It has to do with checking a box on the medical history form.

    Still not enough info, unless FFDO doesn't mean what I think it means.

    Stop being coy, spill it and let the collective experience chime in with their opinions.

    GW

    U-2 ATC Comm

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    Easy...it wasn't the AF, it was the Guard (flying F-106s at the time). They love to fly and the pilots get some kind of extra active duty credits while the Florida Guard got free flying hours when the active AF scrambles them. They were loving it! Of course, that was 1983, not 2009...25 years does make a difference. But then again, we didn't come home with pine trees in our wings, like Chuck Yeager did, and laugh about it. Times were changing then, too.

    Here's the bitch of it: I'm in the guard.

    U-2 ATC Comm

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    The JAX commander was laughing his ass off as I explained and said they didn't mind at all, the pilots were having a great time on the missions roaring around at low level and the Feds had to pay for all the flying time (since it was a directed scramble) so the Guard unit got all the flying time for free. He said to keep on doing it, but unfortunately HQ SAC had already alerted the AD Center and blew the deal.

    Where did this AF go?

    Because that's not the AF I know now...

    GW

    Questions on UPT Packet/Application Process

    in Air National Guard / Air Force Reserves

    Posted

    I noticed that most units require a photo of yourself with your application package. I have some ideas of why they do this, but am I right? I see it as a way for them to make sure your in decent physical condition, and to ensure there's nothing obviously wrong with you. Or is it really a way for them to determine your potential for helping them pick up girls at bars? haha

    It also gives us something to laugh at after sitting in that stuffy room for 8+ hours and we're trying to remember who the F that second guy after lunch was.

    Tracking Semi-annual currencies and metrics

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    Thread revival/hijack.

    Does anyone here have any experience using the scheduling output function from GDSS2?

    I'm looking to import the G2 schedule into a squadron calender on a intranet web page and I'm hopping to avoid re-inventing the wheel.

    Note: I'm not taking about a simple static HTML page here, I'm looking to keep the information in a database.

    GW

    PureEdge Viewer for Mac OS

    in Squadron Bar

    Posted

    I unzipped it and everything, it just didn't install. Are you running Leopard?

    "I dream of an Air Force that uses programs that allow any computer to run them: good/crappy, reliable/challenged, Mac/PC."

    Sigh. You both had my hopes up for a second, but no luck. The installer gives me an error when I attempt to load. As far as I know there was a software update from Apple a while ago (at least since 08) that for some reason prevents the installer from loading the reader on an Intel Mac.

    How's that paperless Air Force working out for everyone?

    GW

    Well Deserved

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    21st Special Tactics Squadron from Pope Air Force Base, N.C

    Good group of dudes to work and play with.

    Highly recommend going on that trip if it shows up on your x-country board.

    The praise they receive is well deserved.

    GW

    Maximum age (requirements)

    in General Discussion

    Posted · Edited by GW

    With great trepidation I start a new topic here, standard disclaimer search function failed to turn up the info I'm looking for.

    I am looking for the actual AETC Memo, AFI or DOD Reg that spells out the AF UPT age limit.

    I am NOT looking for anecdotal evidence of "my buddy start back in 2005 at age 29 1/2, so I'm pretty sure the limit is that you have to start UPT by the time you're 30"

    Thanks

    Hercs Rule

    GW

    C-130 Hercules questions

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    Is there a difference in time between the initial qual for the various models of the 130 at LR (E,H J etc)?

    Also how long is seasoning typically for 130 guard guys, and is there any way to go off orders during seasoning to back to a civvie job? This question was asked on a couple of boards around here and I'm trying to get some info before throwing a hat in the ring to the 130th in WV.

    I know the J model course for the full Vis, SKE, NVG, Air Land, Air Drop you're looking at spending about 6 months at LRF.

    E's and H's school house? When I went though the 53rd a few years ago it was the same amount of time, can't say if that's still the case, but would be suprised to hear that it changed.

    Seasoning at most slick guard 130 squadrons will run 90 days (unless there's some extra qual or mission that the unit owns). I've seen guys break up the seasoning days for civilian job considerations. I don't know the mechanics of what was required to make it happen, I do know that in the one instance I'm thinking of, it did not work out well for anyone involved. The flying suffered at the expense of the civilian job, and the civilian job suffered at the expess of the flying.

    I would say if your coming to the guard all ready rated you'd be ok, but if you're just out of the pipeline hitting the line for the first time, its not the ideal situation.

    GW

    USOs at Airports

    in Squadron Bar

    Posted

    I didn't see it mentioned so I'll add it to the list.

    Charlotte has a pretty good one, up stairs from the food court in the main terminal.

    GW

    Edit: and after reading the rest of the thread I notice osulax05 already pointed it out. Disregard everything I said after hello.

    Guard/Reserve Alternate slot info

    in Air National Guard / Air Force Reserves

    Posted

    How does a guard or reserve unit typically go about prepping an applicant who has been selected as the alternate? Will the applicant go through the same pre-board procedure (physical & etc) as the primary? I realize that in many cases the alternate gets the green light for one reason or another, does it make sense to have the alternate ready so if the nod comes at the last minute there won't be a scramble?

    Is the board schedule/procedure the same for guard units as for the reserves?

    interview > sponsored by a reserve unit > pre-board screening & paperwork > reviewed by either March or September board > more waiting (if selected)

    Back when I was going through the process I was an alternate at two different guard units at the same time, and ended up being the primary at one of them. So it can happen, I am proof.

    The short answer to your question is: it depends.

    In my situation, I never heard another thing from the first unit, while the second unit had me take a physical and get my security screening paper work started. I'll let you guess where I ended up.

    Now, after the fact I learned why I had been prepped as the alternate at the second unit: both of the primaries that were selected ahead of me had issues. Issues that didn't disqualify them (geography for the first, and family health matters with the second), but raised enough concern that they prepped me, just in case. One month later I got the call that I was the new primary.

    My point is, that there are a thousand different reasons why a unit would do things the way they do, and no two guard units will do it the same, it all just depends.

    I never got involved with the reserves, they could have their own standardized way of doing things, but I doubt it. One of the reserve guys here should be able to speak to that.

    Good luck. Keep at it, perseverance counts.

    GW

    C130J (Herc) info

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    1) Is the 130J operational and flying around the desert? (excuse my ignorance please...google and wikipedia just aren't cutting it these days)

    Yes, it very much is fully operational. The Guard has been deploying with it from 04 thru the start of 07, and is now deploying on the AEF rotation schedule. I won't say too much more than that on a public forum.

    2) If so, do the 130Js deploy as much as the 130Es out there currently? (ie. 4 on 4 off)

    The actual rotation cycles (ie 4 on 4 off etc) varied from guard unit to guard unit. I would expect the AD (ie the 41st, and the 37th at some point) to do their own thing when the time comes.

    3) Finally, does anyone know why the 130J community in Little Rock would want C-17 guys to crossflow? I get the hud, no nav/fe similarities, but after that I'm drawing blanks.

    Several reason that I know of, most of which have already been discussed crew concept, msn, avionics.

    In my opinion it was and still is, an attempt to break out of 50 years of "Herc-isms" and get some new blood and perspectives from the C-17 community into an airframe that looks and flys like a Herc, but doesn't act like a Herc.

    I fly with some people that know a lot of/all the people at the school house right now, including some former 17 guys, PM me if you're interested in getting info straight from the source.

    BTW, the full Qual/MSN course has several different "flavors", the one you mentioned clocking in at 6 months (assuming you can run them concurrently) is for guys right out of UPT. Depending on your current qual the course could be considerably shorter.

    GW

    Edit: Just re-read your post, coming over as an AD IP to the J would put you in the "short course" category, not sure what that's running these days.

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