B52gator

Every time I see this pop up I think "finally, the truth has come out!. This chick is going down." This thread is a lot like going to a strip club, you think you're going to go in there and bring home a hot-ass stripper to bang...but you end up just going home dissapointed.

Fellas, The book "Unbroken" is a MUST read. The book is about Louis Zamperini, a former Olympian who became a bombardier aboard a B-24. Crashed, spent 45 days floating on a raft in the pacific, and then spent two years of absolue hell in Jap (can I stil say that?) POW camps. I cannot even begin to fathom, what this man went through. Please check it out.

cake eater!

Chuck, All great points and I don't disagree..how far do you take it? You're in the know far more than I, what is your opinion? Does it stop with the aircrew? You can't burn everyone in the chain, I know that. My only point is could someone have prevented it from happening? Could a fellow crewdog, supervisor, etc have stepped in and stopped what was going on? Again, my opinion only, but if leadership knowingly ignored what was going on, are they not just as responsible? If it was a free-lance/cowboy thing that was done without prior knowledge, then fine, let it be. But rules and regs are there for a reason and it is on leadership to ensure that the operators are following them...not trying to "put on a good show." I am fully aware this can happen anywhere and isn't limited to a specific airframe or base. It is a sh!tty situation and I feel for the C-17 community and the AF as a whole.

As much as I hate to say it, especially because I knew the pilot in question, it was only a matter of time. After seeing videos like this, it is obvious it wasn't the first time the jet was flown like this. http://www.youtube.com/user/mfreyhol#p/a/u/1/mEXeluarrqo EDIT: I'm an idiot today, can't seem to figure out how to embed the video. While the accident lies on the AC, I don't think leadership should get away unscathed. There is no way they didn't know about this (this inicident is eerily similar to Bud and Czar 52). I'm not a pilot, never was, and I have been out (STS) for two years...so my expertise is limited and my opinion doesn' t mean dick, but it doesn't take a genius to realize that this sh!t was way illegal and was eventually going to get someone killed. At the same time, if this had been going on for awhile, it is on the other crewmembers to speak up. In the Czar 52 incident, several Navs and Cos spoke up about Bud but were ignored by leadership and called "pussies" by him. As a RN, I had to push an issue up the chain due to repeated blatant violations of B-52 regs by a certain pilot. On more than one occasion, I thought we were really going to fall out of the sky (stalls and overbanks). I tried to keep it at the buddy level talking to the pilot in question, but to no avail. So I had to push it up the chain. Call me a ######, a rat, whatever, but there is no need for that kind of sh!t in a non-combat situation. Lives are on the line...not just the dudes in the plane. This incident is a vital learning lesson for ALL aviators. If you haven't yet, highly recommend you read the Czar 52 report "Darker Shades of Blue." Very good read about epic fails at all levels. Be safe and smart out there fellas. http://www.crm-devel...ue/darkblue.htm

Just out of curiosity...for old school Nav/Radar types (guys who were trained as Navs and upgraded to RNs), how is the CSO program working out? Are there battles with a scrawny little spit-fuk about who rides where? Or do they have to actually work their way up to the left like everyone else? Been "out" for two years and just wondering how it is working in the real world.

In my current job, our retirement pension is something that we constantly have to defend because it is usually the first thing brought up for proposed cuts when times are tight. Even though I am a republican, I am thankful for the union when jobs and pensionz are on the line. Similar to this situation, smarter heads will prevail and all will be safe.

Need a team last minute.... League ID: 560297 Password: BUFFS Linky: http://football.fant...eague/baseopsff

I'll schedule it for this Thurs. @ 9pm CST. If I don't get two more teams signed in by Thurs. @ noon, I'll keep it at 10 teams. Sorry for the confusion guys.

9/12 signed in. You last 3 get a move on!

Try it again...I had the wrong password in. It still is BUFFS.

Here is the info: League ID: 560297 Password: BUFFS Linky: http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/league/baseopsff Draft is next Sunday 1330 CST. Beware the Madden Belly Sweat!

Alright dudes, we are at 12. I'll be setting up the league today with a draft scheduled for probably sometime after the 3rd pre-season games are done. Standby for further.

12 is ideal, but 10 will work. At 9 right now.

Thats all well and good, but who is the chick and is she into role play? (In all seriousness, nice job. You didn't panic and took care of your crew. I was in BUFF once that "lost" 3 engines)

Yep...I'll get it worked out and post when it is up and running, give me a day or two. 12 teams. No money this year...tried that last year and it didn't pan out for getting the guy paid (same for year previous with me!). So far: Cooter Saint b52gator Helokitty HerkDerka BigJ Scooney AlphaMikeFoxtrot lilbigman Bergman Snafu Techsan

Go see Inception. One of the best movies I have seen in a long time. For those of you who have seen it, thoughts?

I'm going to stir the pot a bit...I went to the airshow in Duluth last weekend and while I had a great time, I couldn't help but think about how much money the AF spends to execute the Thunderbirds' "mission." With all the belt tightening going on around the Air Force, why are things like the Thunderbirds and the God awful Tops in Blue (these guys need to be thrown out the back of a speeding van) still given huge budgets to travel all across the globe? Why not get rid of them? Now I realize this will never happen (public image, PR, blah, blah, blah), but I suspect that most of the rank and file of the AF would agree with me. As an AF guy, the Thunderbirds never made me feel proud to be in the AF...my job and the people I worked with accomplished that. Now I'm not saying that the AF should stop doing airshows, I think the other demo teams are really good and sending a jet or two from the various airframes to an airshow is a "good deal" for the dudes in the unit. I have no idea what the budget is for the Thunderbirds, Tops in Blue, etc, but I imagine it isn't small. Wastefully spending money like this, while there is a drawdown of personnel and allowing aircraft and equipment to age and deteriorate with out adequate replacement. I know these are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to unnecessary spending, but I think I am stating the obvious, or maybe I am just getting bitter in my old age. Thoughts?

I feel dirty asking Franken for help, but email was sent.

Call me gay, but the sweet sounds of Shepard Smith could put me to sleep. To steal a bit from Family Guy..."Coming up next: Handsome man recaps news in pleasing baritone...more on that...later."

I'm sure you do, but no one cares. I don't know how this turned into a BUFF thread, but I feel the need to stick up for the BUFF a bit and hijack a bit more, so I'm going to jump in. The problem with The Mighty BUFF is that it is more or less on life support. Unfortunately, I feel the BUFF is and has been for quite some time the red-headed step-child of the AF. I think the powers that be are too afraid to axe it for political reasons so they are just waiting for it to die and go away. We keep changing mission focus, we haven't been in the fight for a long time, we had 2-3 years of major screw-ups, and outside of the BUFF community, nobody really likes us (jealousy!) or wants to play with us. While a versatile platform, we (I say "we" because once a BUFF guy, always a BUFF guy) can't seem to specialize in a mission. That fault lies squarely with leadership in the community (IMHO). When I was in, nuke, CAS, stand-off, high alt bombing, and LL mining/flying/rigging (been out awhile, do we still do that?) were our "missions." I think I may have even forgot a few. As I was getting out, the EW mission was being talked about and we just started with targeting pod stuff. The problem is we became "jack of all trades masters of none." We weren't really specialists in anything. I was in during the glory days of BUFF CAS and thought we did a really nice job with it. It was new to us and there were growing pains, but I felt the community as a whole stepped up nicely. That mission and the ability to effectively drop JDAM saved the jet in the early 00s. I know high and mighty true CAS warriors get a little sensitive and scoff at the idea of a bomber infringing upon their precious mission, but the fact is the BUFF could perform quite well in a quasi-CAS role. The BUFF was an effective platform for dropping JDAMs supporting dudes on the ground, plain and simple. That is all that really needs to be said. If anybody can disagree with that, I'm more than happy to listen. I'm biased, but I feel the BUFF is one of the most versatile and one of the best combat aircraft of all time. If you take a look at its original mission compared to what is today (and everything it has done in between) in truly is a remarkable airframe. I didn't mean to get into a BUFF loving tirade, sorry about that. Back on thread track: Harvest Hawk is just a way for more people to get involved in the fight. I think there are more than enough platforms with their fingers in the CAS pie.

Disclaimer: I understand the importance of recognizing the good work our people do. However, again the term "warrior" gets thrown around way too much and PA tries way too hard to boost the confidence of those who are not necessarily in the real fight. I give you exhibit A: http://www.minot.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123195144 3/16/2010 - MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. -- Whether Airmen deploy to the Middle East or to Central America, or their families require defense for a fatal illness, the base Allergy and Immunizations Clinic provides life saving vaccines, antibiotics and serums for the body on a cellular level. "What we do here is extremely important," said Staff Sgt. Christopher Brown, 5th Medical Operations Squadron allergy and immunizations technician. "We help to ensure the health of the Airmen and their families. If they get sick, it impacts the mission." Every active duty member on base is required to get the flu shot annually. This prevents the virus from spreading across base and ensures the mission continues. "Our people travel all over the world," said Tech. Sgt. Patrenia Hawkins-Hearn, 5th MDOS allergy and immunizations noncommissioned officer-in-charge. "They are exposed to many different contagions and our inoculations ensure both the safety of the person and of the mission. We vaccinate about 15,000 people every year." But it's not just the base's active duty personnel these Airmen protect, it's also their children. "It's really about helping the kids," said Staff Sgt. Ashley Swink, 5th MDOS independent duty medical technician currently assigned to flight medicine. "It is knowing that what we're doing is helping someone." Sergeant Swink works with various units in the medical group as she trains to become a fully equipped field medic. Her skills are best utilized at deployed locations, she said. While administering preventative vaccines and antibiotics is a large part of the clinic's mission, there is another section of equal importance. "We also do allergy testing," said Sergeant Brown. "Anything from hay to grass to things like cats and cockroaches, we can produce vaccines for these allergies. The serum we make may help to lower a patient's symptoms and someday cure the disease." He added in most cases they are able to cure the individual for up to 90 percent of the allergy. Click here for a list of available serums available on base. According to Sergeant Brown if their allergy is not on the list they can refer the patient downtown to Trinity and the cost would still be covered by the Air Force. "The procedure also helps to control asthma," Sergeant Brown said. "Especially since allergies and asthma go hand-in-hand," added Sergeant Swink. What really makes the services these Airmen provide great is the fact one can continue their treatments at every stateside base and in select deployed locations. "The good thing about our serum is that it's standard across the entire DoD [Department of Defense]," Sergeant Hawkins-Hearn said. "It doesn't matter which branch you serve with, we're here to help." Additionally, the clinic performs pulmonary lung testing, which helps find if a person has asthma and many other lung diseases. "The base firefighters are required to do a yearly pulmonary lung test," said Sergeant Brown. "We also provide education for preventative diseases." Yet, why continue the work? What makes being an allergy and immunizations technician worthwhile? "The job is self rewarding," Sergeant Brown said. "This is one of the only jobs you can see everything you do is good." "It's knowing that shot you gave may save someone's life," added Sergeant Hawkins-Hearn.

"2" This kid has something against ROTC guys apparently. So what if they ask stupid questions, I don't give a sh!t. If you don't like the thread, stop reading it and don't help the ROTC cadet who is obviously so far beneath your Lt. status.

In the words of Teddy KGB, "Pay that man his money...he beat me...straight up" How do you want your $ Helo?