craino21

May 17, 2017 was nearly 2 years ago? Also, 4 people pled guilty and took a plea deal and avoided sentencing. Who knows what will come of this but I don't see reason for a facepalm yet.

It's been a mix. Most of the units, Moody, Patrick, DM, have flown themselves out while NY flew down in C-17s. You'd be surprised how long it takes to fold and unfold a -60 for air transport and it usually makes more sense to cross country instead.

I'll take the first 365 days without a deployment since graduating UPT for $1000. Not flying will blow, but to actually have a year of 9-5 to remember what my wife looks like and not spend half the year in some desert sounds good to me. Montgomery is shangri-la compared to Afghanistan/Iraq.

Got an email from my SQ/CC today that the IDE/SDE list will be out on 21 Nov.

Well I'd rather an engine fall off than the cockpit (statements I never thought I'd have to make).

It's going to take a 308 beam completely failing (which I've already been expecting daily for a couple of years now) and a complete loss of the crew to get any traction on a -60 replacement. And even then, they'll just ground the -60 fleet and completely kill CSAR when that happens. Hooray.

And we've tried that and it was worse. I'd agree that AFSOC has changed in the last decade, but so has ACC. Do we really need to change MAJCOM every decade to see if things have changed for the better? Also, a word of caution, ACC's support of CSAR is far different from USAFE's, and for the better (assuming this is who I think it is). In a perfect world if we were just adding helicopters to the Air Force I'd agree that AFSOC would probably be the place to put us, but this push feels like a cheap grab for money and additional airframes. I do not see this as AFSOC trying to do the best they can for PR. I'm a huge fan of the tilt-rotor concept, and I think the CV-23 would be a fantastic CSAR aircraft, however I think the CV-22 is too compromised to truly replace the HH-60. And if we're talking a mixed fleet it's not just a little more expensive, it's fantastically more expensive. The only way to replace the -60 is a direct replacement, at least in this economic environment. What prevent's the CV-22 from having a place? Training, asset allocation and money. As soon as the CVs at Hurlburt start flying up to Moody for CSARTFs we can begin this discussion. Do you see that happening any time soon? I don't. EDIT: Busdriver beat me to it.

Any chance I can file an IG complaint over all of these ridiculous inspections for creating a hostile work environment?

Alex, we'll have to swing back by the roundabout again when we return from Afghanistan! I think we can do better than we did last time.

Or just go in and take as many tests blind as you need to get to Joint. It's not like the tests are that hard. The hardest part about the tests is getting them scheduled around the flying schedule, etc. What's the worst that can happen? You have to take 6.0 anyway?

Not the full story. Ask your intel bubbas, they should be able to tell you what happened.

One of my buddies just got picked up to go get another masters and teach biology at USAFA. He will also be flying the Otter (supposedly all rated instructors fly the otter as well, so you keep earning flight pay and gate months). I can't speak to the actual life as he PCSs in the spring. I know in our squadron we got an email stating that they were taking applications, he submitted his and got picked up. He's a pretty squared away dude (he was also picked up for TPS at the same time and got to choose) but if they'll let someone out of the -60 to go they'll probably let you out of anything.

The Air Force has helicopters? I'll believe it when I see it. The acquisitions system will find some way to mess this up, just like CSAR-X/PRV/HH-60M.

Nope, still pretty spot on. I didn't even know anything had happened until I saw this thread.

Lock 'em forward, switches.

It's definitely a pretty well known technique in the helo community, and is generally how I fly all approaches, even practice ones in VFR. I'd say it's about 50/50 whether guys do it or not. Of course, most of our guys get nosebleeds when they get high enough to be on instruments, but it's definitely not unheard of.

Fair point, and you're right. There's not another group of selfless patriots I want to come snatch my pink ass out of the fire than a couple of Jolly's with PJs in the back. Threadjack complete. So, Army wants new unis huh?

I should have clarified, I'm speaking more specifically about the PJs in the RQSs. I can't tell you how many times I've seen PJs on alert wearing they're ACUs, MARPAT deserts, or whatever, then when they get alerted for a mission, or go on a training sortie wear a completely different uniform (usually nothing uniform or military about it). At the same time my FEs and Gunners are out preflighting, whatever and until a month ago couldn't wear 2 piece flight suits because they were an Army uniform. Is it jealousy, hell yeah it is. On an only tangentially related note, I think this is only one symptom of PJs in RQSs drifting away from their core competency, actually rescuing people. Two CSARTFs in the last 6 months at Moody we've had live PJs at the start of the sortie (the only two times I've flown with live PJs in that 6 months by the way). Both times they wanted to do live infils to building take downs for the first half the sortie, then wanted us to fly home and drop them off before the actual CSARTF, you know, the rescue part. I'm not saying these guys aren't bad ass, can't run farther than me, whatever you want to say. I am saying that they are ParaRESCUE Jumpers, and seem to think they're ParaSpecial Ops Jumpers. There is certainly a place for PJs in STSs, etc, and that changes they're mission set, but that's not every PJ in the AF.

Because they like to think they're "Special" and don't have to play by the same rules as everyone else? Even if ABUs were the most tactically perfect uniform ever devised they'd wear something else to draw attention to themselves.

Count me in the "non-fighter" guys who care. But then being a JOLLY I'll always be SANDY's biggest fan. And like Rainman said I knew what a SANDY was long before they could save my ass.

FEs definitely aren't going anywhere in the helo community. The CV-22 has FEs and the CSAR-X will have FEs... or at least a combination FE/Aerial Gunner position. If you want I can put you in contact with some of out HH-60 FEs, shoot me a PM.

Yeah, but it's not like the other options are the size of a -58. Yes the -47 is the largest of the 3 options, but not by as much as everyone likes to think. All 3 of these are big ass helicopters. Of course I think we should go for a really big helicopter and just buy a few MI-12s.

We get qual'd on the M4, and have a pretty fun little shooting course for a couple of days prior to every deployment We also have our M4s in the cockpit in combat too (HH-60s).

Damn it... this just means it's going to be an additional year (at least) before we replace the -60s... the whole point of this was to get something close to off the shelf so that we could field it quickly, by the time all this is over we probably could have gotten a brand new helicopter...

Listening to the talk around our squadron if you transfer to the Coasties you lose a rank. Not a big deal for some but maybe something to consider.