Champ Kind

Whoever told you that had a gift for understatements.

Not a chance.

I'm sure the guys that fought with the 379th in WWII would just be honored beyond belief to know that their "heritage" has been pussified in the form of a reflective belt-award from a friggin' safety contest, in a place over-ridden with non-ers so far out of touch with the war that it brings tears to a man's eyes. Great job.

Now it all makes sense.

Thanks, Buzz Killington.

We'll need a pic of the girl to verify the story.

There were Kiowas in the movie, too.

You don't mean Firebirds, do you?

It's the Died. It will never change.

Slight threadjack, but this is one of the most (intentionally) hilarious patches I've seen. (Saw it zapped on a crew bus in Guam)

Can you elaborate on this, Boxhead? Is it really a separate qual, and if it is, is it one of those that everyone winds up getting anyway once they get to their unit? Kind of like NVG Assault qual for new co's in the Herk (PM duties)... You don't leave the schoolhouse qualified, but you open/complete a training folder once you get to your unit.

Please tell me there is more to the story than this. Are you saying that these are crew dogs having to fill up sandbags on their off days from flying? Did they piss someone off? What kind of shit is going on out there??!?! We've all joked that OTBH is liked a minimum security prison, but DAMN....

Thanks a lot, guys.

I was trying to look up whether or not I am entitled to FSA if I am stationed overseas and I am TDY to the States for more than 30 days. Based on some of the unofficial things I'd read, it would appear that I am, but I don't walk into finance anymore without having first seen the reg in black & white, and I usually have a copy of the applicable section in-hand for when they say, "Uhhh.... sorry, sir, but...."

I checked the link that Baseops.Net posted above, but does anyone have an official website that governs the family separation allowance (i.e., something I can look up, print out, and take into finance)? Thanks!

TFAT CBTs take like a collective 5 minutes to click through, for all of them. I wouldn't sweat the ctrl-D thing on those.

Live on the island.

Buy a case of beer and/or a bottle of your choice of booze the day before. As one of my bros in pilot training said, you'll either be "drinking to celebrate, or drinking to forget."

Agree to all of the above. FCC's are some of the hardest-working and best dudes. No question. The fact that people in Finance are wasting their time on queep like this, trying to withhold ENTITLEMENTS to people out there hacking the mish and keeping our broke-ass fleet in the fight is complete BS. Here's a tip, dweebs: Drop this issue, and re-attack on things that actually require your attention, like getting in the books and having the ability to answer your "customers'" questions, pay out the proper entitlements in a timely fashion, and for fuck's sake fix DTS..... you know, if you can fit it into your hectic hours, and all.

Unless you are flying on, a commercial aircraft, "variations" should ALWAYS be "authorized" PERIOD, DOT. Hell, even on some TDYs where you do fly commercial variations may still occur, and therefore need to be "authorized" in advanced. It seriously makes me angry how inept the Finance career field as a whole seems to be. TWO MONTHS to pay out CZTE/HFP Over-paying due to an error in the "system" and refusing to take the money back all at once, instead resorting to deducting it from my pay for months on end Inability to answer any (A N Y) questions about how their ominous "system" works This is just a small example of the ass-hattery I've seen with these people. I seriously do not leave/hang up with finance without having a rank/name of who I dealt with, because it invariably gets screwed up. At least then I can ask for that specific person and hold them personally accountable (assuming they aren't "on leave" or "attending training", as per their coworkers). I've said it before (on here, and in a finance office), but if Ops did our jobs the way that Finance did theirs, there would be more smoldering holes in the ground than tails on the ramp.

I've heard the same thing even from some old heads still on AD.

She should take it as a complement. Now, anymore pics to share?

Sounds like a "missed meal", to me. Full rate, baby!

Ok - I'll admit. I don't know a whole helluva lot about labor unions and the like. However, I do know that a shitload of people are losing their jobs, and they are people who have worked for these companies for a long time, and know nothing else. As such, they may or may not have higher education, thereby limiting their abilities to smoothly transition to another career with comparable pay/bennies. I am just saying that it sucks that these people were just trying to make an honest living for years and years, while their CEOs were squandering money away with lackluster "innovation" and marketing strategies. I am a firm believer in Smith's "invisible hand" that is guiding the market along, and I feel like capitalism thrives on survival of the fittest. I don't think that we should be bailing out the Big Three. But, it does suck for the people that have lost/will lose their jobs, and their families.

I'm stationed at Yokota. I've always been more of a Chivas guy myself, but I'll keep an eye out for you. If I spot some off-base, I'll PM you with the cost.