FallingOsh
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Posts posted by FallingOsh
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Got it, those images present an unprofessional image. I also understand that glorifying sexuality is unprofessional. However, does it not concern you that the Air Force then ignores its Janus-like behavior when it glorifies sexuality in the vein of Pride Month which celebrates GLBT lifestyles?
No. That's hypocrisy and hypocrisy is approved.
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Are skydiving pilots required (or do they just usually) wear parachutes? The article sort of makes it seem like the pilot rushed to the cabin, grabbed an emergency parachute, and then quickly put in on and bailed all while the plane was falling to the ground lol.
Unless it has changed in recent years, there is no FAA requirement for jump pilots to wear an emergency parachute. If the aircraft door has been removed or modified for jump operations (most aircraft) the special release for operation may require the pilot to wear one, but not always. It's not required, but obviously a good idea according to most jump pilots. There are lots of stories about jumpers hitting the tail and damaging flight controls. Not to mention flying around with the door open could be hazardous to one's health.
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A picture of a woman in a bikini is not sexual harassment but it is sexually offensive material.
Every time I start reading one of your posts, I think it's from a snap, green horn Lt.
I don't think these actions alone will make an impact on the number of sexual assaults, but
but we just do it anyway because actually fixing the problem would be too difficult. Blaming fighter pilots for Air Force woes is easy and vogue so we'll just do that.
I'm not surprised the Air Force is going this direction. It was only a matter of time. It does absolutely baffle me that people of your rank actually sit around scratching their heads trying to figure out why active duty members are running for the hills. You can only accuse good people of being racists and rapists for so long before they eventually push back or walk off.
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Heard they were thinking about trying the Scorpion.
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I'm not serving 22+ years to turn my back on the greatest nation on Earth. The only one born of the love of Liberty, the one whose Constitution I've sworn to protect and defend. My loyalties run deeper than my irritation at our current Congress, Administration, and Court.
That said, I may get a Condo in Costa Rica, just for fun and to stretch my retirement $$.
I'd NEVER consider giving up US citizenship.
I think you guys are overreacting to the term expat.
"An expatriate (sometimes shortened to expat) is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing. The word comes from the Latin terms ex ("out of") and patria ("country, fatherland")."
Being an expat doesn't necessarily mean giving up your citizenship or turning your back on your country. I'd gladly move to some diving haven like Belize for a few years.
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Funny, but not real. Believe it or not, I've actually ran two segments of 2004 Athens Summer Olympics torch relay. It's nothing like that video...there are support runners all around you, vehicles front and back (to include a media truck full of cameras that drives in front of the torch bearer) and guys on motorcycles cutting through the route ensuring each relay goes as planned. There is also a back-up in case a runner's torch gets extinguished. It happens on occasion, but the torch is simply re-lit and goes on.
Samsung was the primary sponsor of the relay that year, and was kind enough to let us keep our torches (which cost about €300 apiece, if I remember correctly).
Cheers! M2
show off
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Synopsis: PA officer deployed to Afghanistan for 9 month...apparently her only deployment of her career. Now she says she has a hard time coping with her experiences, which included limited Internet service, bad food, and the threat of possible attacks. She stated sometimes she can talk about it, but often she can't.
Whether or not she has PTSD is really none of my business. It is my business to call her fucking stupid for giving interviews on the subject. Some of the comments at the bottom of that article hit the nail on the nugget. Outspoken weakness like hers gives ammunition to those who think women aren't tough enough for combat. Of course she had to throw a tidbit about sexual assault in there for good measure. I'm surprised she didn't go ahead and blame it on a pilot.
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Mother Russia doesn't allow fire in Moscow. These Olympics might be slightly more entertaining than a normal winter Olympics. Hopefully.
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Just think.. this guy was ID'd as a superstar by his leadership.
Any officer with a few OPRs has undoubtedly been identified as a SUPERSTAR!, IDE ASAP!, LINCHPIN!
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General Hostage steps in to force Wilkerson's hand (and save some face for the Air Force)?
"The decision from Michael Hostage, the commander of the air combat command, to issue Lt Col James Wilkerson with a "notice to show cause" letter – giving him the option to demonstrate why he should remain in the military or retire – was based on an "underlying pattern of misconduct" that went on for much of his 20-year career, the air force said. Wilkerson chose to retire, it said."
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/03/fighter-pilot-centre-sex-assault-row-retire?CMP=twt_gu
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Here's what I think is lacking, and I accept the possible spears.
We all agree with what he's saying. We all agree that the problem is somewhere between the CSAF and us. The "leadership" in the middle, somewhere along the line, is just silently ignoring what he says and going on their merry way with compliance-at-all-costs culture. What is the CSAF doing to force THOSE leaders from squashing the initiative he seeks to foster?
I think it's time for a reign of terror, in a perversely awesome sense. I know he's busy. But random visits, unannounced, everywhere, all the time is the answer. Down in the trenches, talking to maintainers at DM at 0300, or pilots getting back from TDY at HRT, or that FS at Mountain Home whose CC has apparently lost its mind . . . or hell, ANYONE at Cannon. Solicit honest feedback, with no entourage in tow, and no warning to the chain of command.
Then follow up. When a stupid policy letter like banning #69 is issued, or Jim Slife opens his mouth about Art 15s for rolling your flightsuit sleeves, or an AMC senior leader pulls one of their famous political crucifixions of an aircraft commander . . . call THEM on the carpet at 0700 in service dress. Put the fear of God into the O-5s and O-6s. Start specifying that some regs CANNOT be made further restrictive, and that to do so is to risk being fired by the CSAF himself.
I'm hopeful. But what I think is necessary is to make the careerists in the middle be scared to death for their careers if they do not push decision-making back to the appropriate level and stop thinking all rules are created equal and unbreakable.
Curtis LeMay meets the Common Sense fairy.
All of what you said... plus the next few CSAFs must have the same mentality of General Welsh if we really hope to see lasting improvement. It will take a generation's worth of time to change the fucked up culture we're all so frustrated with. One guy serving one tour as CSAF won't do it. Can he serve indefinitely?
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If the mentality and leadership of General Welsh actually trickled down, the Air Force would be an incredibly improved place. I'm still hopeful it will. If a man of that caliber can't do it, I'm not sure who can. I wish I had the ability to speak that eloquently.
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Don't worry. My bullshit TDY ends tomorrow and I have to go back to work. No more rants for a while.
I don't think anyone minds a good conversation (or argument) on these forums. You're welcome to keep coming back for a discussion, but throwing a temper tantrum like that won't get you very far. It's evident to me that you've already made up your mind about fighter pilots and no amount of talking will change that. None of us is in favor of sexual harassment. None of us actually thinks saying STS and 69 are required in order to get the job done. The problem is that you think stopping those silly games is going to stop sexual assault in the Air Force.
Clearly, eliminating songs and STS isn't the answer since sexual assault rates aren't dropping. Like I said before, why don't senior leaders stop collectively pointing a finger at fighter squadrons and actually make an effort to root out the true problems. If the OG consistently has the lowest amount of SAPR reports in the wing, why are leaders continuing to crush us?
You say we're stuck on the little things, but it's exactly the opposite that's true. We don't care about that stuff. You do. Senior leaders do. There's only so many times you can call someone a sexist rapist before they start ignoring you and walk off. I've got better things to do than listen to so called leaders accuse me of being a sexist rapist.
Then... THEN... you tell us we should grow some balls and stand up against the injustices of gym bags and reflective belts. You're exactly right that those issues are minuscule. They're minuscule, but they're manifestations of the larger problem. The problem (wait for it) is that senior leaders focus on the tiny, useless crap. It's the same mentality that thinks outlawing STS will stop sexual assault.
If you want to stop sexual assault, stop blaming pilot culture and instill some sense of responsibility among your airmen. IMO, sexual assault and rape stem from a culture of entitlement. Young airmen are told they're warriors. They are the key to all things military and without them the castle would crumble. Give every kid a trophy. Stroke every ego. Well, now you've got a force full of people who think they're next in line for CSAF. If they choose to slap some chick on the ass or take some drunk girl home after a party, well that's their right as an award winning warrior goddammit. Stop telling everyone how supremely special they are and try focusing them on the mission for a change.
Of course, this is just my opinion. But what do I know...
Welcome to the forums.
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What I am saying, CSAF is saying and Lt Gen Rand is saying, is that it happens too much at work and we need to knock it off.
The only thing the three of you have in common is that you have no idea what really happens in a fighter squadron.
Why do you think senior leaders aren't putting their entire weight against the real problems?Because Senators have a habit of calling them out on national television, that's why. Civilian leadership (hypocrites by the way) pounded their chests and said something must be done immediately.
Do you really think cracking down on inappropriate traditions is the only think being done to address this?Cracking down on inappropriate traditions is just one of many completely useless and ineffective things being done.
Not sure why so many have lost faith.If you and other senior leaders understood then things would be improving. If you understood what is actually happening at the operational level, there would be improvements. The problem is that senior leaders are so disconnected that they can't fix the real issues.
Why don't you stop focusing on the group with the least amount of SAPR complaints? Instead of vilifying pilots for our terrible, inappropriate traditions, why don't you stand in front of the other groups and acknowledge that the OG is actually leading the way in terms of acceptance, professionalism, and lack of sexual assault? Pilots have become a lighting rod for blame. It's easy for a base full of airmen to unite in pointing a finger at fighter pilots. It makes them feel like they're not doing anything wrong because it must be the pilots' fault. Nothing is going to change if the collective Air Force voice says fighter pilots and their silly games are to blame and everyone else is a victim.
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It was the SQ/CC of the Spang F-16s that were in deployed to Kandahar who got fired for the "chiefed" comment.
I'm late on this reply, but when did this firing happen? I thought the 480th CC was a good dude when I was there. Hopefully it wasn't him. He was a good dude, so it probably was.
WTF does that even mean? What article of the UCMJ is violated by the use of a common English-language phrase? If this is tested and stands, does it then set precedence for CCs to ban any word or phrase they happen to dislike? Complete bullshit...can't wait until somebody fights an LOC for saying "so to speak."
I get what you're saying, but everyone knows what this means. We can bitch and nit-pick, but we all know what constitutes an "inappropriate" so to speak. That's what makes it funny. If you don't understand that, please stop using STS because you're not doing it right.
I'd bet my balls that the official paperwork says something along the lines of "CGO used sexually suggestive verbiage specifically barred by the CC." You can split hairs over what is a legal word and what's not. Anything that comes close to "sexually inappropriate" is a hot potato for leadership and you will most certainly be considered guilty immediately.
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Anyone know the source unit? Gotta be DM, Hill or Mountain Home given 12AF fighters.
I've never heard of a WDO in a hawg squadron so I think Hill or Mountain Home.
I think everyone in the squadron should just not say anything to each other all day, finish the minimal amount of work required, and go home. Obviously working our asses off and fighting the man hasn't worked. Give them what they think they want, just to see what happens.
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No I dont think you guys get it. The world will keep turning with or without the Hawg. There isnt some celebration every time the AMR cell publishes the CAS/Fires portion of an Op Order with the illation of "oh thank god we got A-10s." Your drinking your own Koolaid if guys under fire would care whether it was a Viper, a 15E, or a Sopwith Camel providing them with Air delivered Fires they just want something. Nobody is ever gonna see a situation where a fixed/rotory wing with guns checks in to a TIC and they say "awww no dude its cool we really need the A-10 to do this job."
Maybe its the difference in how Army Aviators come into their jobs and the cultural difference between the service, but 80% of the Aviators in our community are prior enlisted dudes that went Warrant. A good size chunk of those guys (especially in the last decade) are Combat Arms (Infantry/Armor/SF/etc) who have actual experience. So its not hard for me to go talk to them about what they think, 3 of them work in my office. Some of them in my battalion are your biggest critics. We are more concerned that your actually able to have the money to come do coordinated excersices with us rather than have platforms with specific jobs that have never coordinated with each other because the money was used to keep different color horses in the stable.
You're right. My bad. The GAU-8 is inaccurate, the A-10 isn't a good CAS platform, and Army guys will be just as happy with the F-35 as they were the hawg. Thank God you were enlisted so you can know everything.
So where the hell are we on the light attack anyway? Is the AF buying the Tocano?
Not for us.
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Hoss, for ######ing Christ dude. Everybody gets replaced. The Sandy guys said exactly what ever hog guy is saying when it was their turn. The 111 guys said it about the mudhen, the 14s said it about the Rhino. The A-10 will someday go to the boneyard, the question posed is are you so irreplaceable either directly or by augmentation to make it worth it to keep you or start that process. If the whole world blah, blah, blah.
The problem isn't the fact that we'll be replaced. It's that the program is being cancelled before there is a viable replacement ready to fly. I'd be first in line to fly a new CAS platform. There isn't one. You, your ego, and you're perfectly tuned gun should be upset that your Army bros won't have a dedicated CAS platform to call. I can't figure out why you're running round and round with this other than a simple inferiority complex. I'm sure you've seen CAS jets miss. I've seen CAS your platform completely embarrass themselves while spraying bullets around like some kind of happy ending. Does that mean you're all terrible at everything all the time? Does it mean you always miss? From what I've seen, yes, but is that true in your eyes? I doubt it. Ease the fuck up and go ask a handful of your Army infantry bros what they think of the hawg going away. Nobody gives a fuck what you or any other pilots (fixed or sling wing) thinks. It's about the dudes on the ground we want to go home safely. Take your penis envy elsewhere.
Why does everyone confuse/mix accuracy and dispersion? It's annoying.
Thank you. Beat me to it.
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Some of the videos involving car accidents in Russia are downright scary .
The wife is over there now visiting relatives .
"Visiting relatives"
From the CCIR it sounds like the dude is a complete asshole; an entitled asshole. He's a reservist not on orders by the way.
An entitled airman? No shit?
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Don't know who this clown is, but he probably got it for hangIng out with my unit doing some worthless desk job in the SFA office down at McMurdo. If he did it for 30 days, that checks!
The guy/girl is worth a billion dollars and y'all are worried about an MSM? Who gives a shit?
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ask any JTAC in the world if he would rather an A-10, or a goddamn UAV. YGBFSM.
just thought this line was worth repeating
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And of course the Hawg has the canopy up.
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Did they walk away?
not a qualifier for a landing
More SARC briefings soon.
in General Discussion
Posted · Edited by FallingOsh
This.
The reality is that these professions take a certain type of personality. I'm sure we all have friends from past generations and from foreign militaries that we've met over the years. There's a reason a Vietnam vet can sit and bullshit with a vet from Desert Storm, who can sing songs with an OEF vet, who can booze with an RAF pilot, who can chase skirts with a Eurofighter pilot. We're all cut from the same cloth. It takes a certain kind of personality to do any type of job and ours is no exception. The problem is that our profession attracts a certain personality type while our leadership demands another. Yeah, got it. Porn, dirty songs, booze, etc do not have their place in the professional environment. Got it. They're gone. But you will never cut the wild-hair-on-your-ass attitude out from the type of person who is attracted to our profession.
I'm not making excuses or tooting my horn as a fighter pilot. The same applies to the dudes in Ranger Battalion or the Marine sniper or the Navy SEAL or the C-130 pilot landing on a short dirt strip. Our jobs must have a person, male or female, who is willing to work for minimum wage, spend many months per year away from home, and take the lives of other human beings. If you can find some liberal punk from UC Berkley who's in touch with his feelings to do these jobs then please, hire him. But reality says you cannot have both. You cannot have a dedicated professional killer and a soft-skinned politically correct poet in the same person. If you want the PC type in our military then go find some to replace us. I dare you. If you want professionals to continue to carry out the mission, then get the fuck off our backs.