tac airlifter

Yea, what a terrible idea. It's already hard enough for us to do this right, how can anyone expect a guy on the ground facing those additional myraid of difficulties to do a better job? Just because the technological capability exists, doesn't mean it's a good idea in practice.

Just returned from Bagram, and I thought it was the easiest deployment I've ever had in terms of queep. Not one word was said to me about my rolled up sleeves or civilian jacket with my flight suit. I didn't wear AF PT gear the entire time. Sorry to hear about that one guy, but for my boss mission was definitely the number one priority and nothing else mattered.

All joking aside, did you guys ever find that sperm bank at home station? It would be a legendary squadron fundraising opportunity.

I'm not a T2 guy or even a 130 guy now. But if you don't understand exactly what the language means then you lack the overall understanding of what asset brings what capability to the fight. If you want to be taken seriously when talking to other communities, expecially in joint ops, then you need to use the right language.

Wow dude, you must be awesome!

I don't mean to be rude, but how much LL experience do you have? You can't fly a route aggressively enough visually to do the same thing with an aircraft that a T2 guy with TF does. Modified contour is what you're describing.

Wow dude, you must be awesome!

You guys might be using the language differently. You certainly do need a TF radar to do true TF. If you don't have the actual radar then you're just doing what slicks do: modified contour. You can "follow the terrain" visually and calculate your own start climb points/turning radius on a chart, etc. and the actual flight profile will follow the terrain. But that isn't the same as what the T2 guys do.

The 53rd uses everyone elses aircraft, so the number of tails with "53" written on them is irrelevant. The 61, 50, and 53 are all dual H3/E qual'd and use each others birds. The 53rd was not replaced by the 41st, the 41st was deactivated at pope and stood up at LRF as a J squadron, whereas the 53rd was deactivated as an AETC squadron and stood up immediately after as an AMC squadron with initial cadre from the 61/50th.

No complaints here!

Great retort, but you lose cool points when it takes three years for your comeback.

I haven't used that particular sight but I've used the reflex and I'm currently running the trijicon tripower on my LMT piston MRP. It's a good sight and trijicon makes a good product, but were I to do it over again I'd spend the extra couple hundred for a good aimpoint (have one on another gun, love it). These style sights (fiberoptic lit) are great in theory but have a few problems in execution. The reticle is really bright when outside, even under cover; however, if you are looking at something really bright and shooting from cover (think every covered range you've ever used) the washout starts to be a problem. The tripower is great at night though, because you can turn it on and it will be as bright as any aimpoint. The reflex (and this is similar) is pretty useless at night. These sights are designed as a supplement to iron sights, not a replacement the way Aimpoint/EOtech are. Bottom line, I'd pass on this product. For a little more you'll get an aimpoint or similar lit optic and be happier (I also have both an aimpoint and EOtech). Battery life is very long for quality optics and washout won't be an issue. You won't have to worry about how bright the reticle will be on various objects. FWIW, I'd also pass on the dr optic/ACOG combo above. I'd love the ACOG if I were shot down in OEF because engaging targets at 300m would be a realistic possibility, in fact that's what is on my issue M4 (minus dr. optic). But for plinking or home defense or competition in the states I don't really use magnification. Just my preference, but it's a very expensive set up. Still cool though, just not worth the price to me personally.

Why would the SARC care if I have consent to wipe my ass with their bath towel?

Don't you find that logic inconsistant? It's ok to tackle a guy in the store but you'll get fired if you chase him out the door? Employees have the potential to be hurt over merchandise inside and outside. Also, in their off time at another store? Seems like Sprint is reaching for authority it shouldn't have. These guys are private citizens and shouldn't be beholden to corporate policy when they aren't on the clock. Something is fundamentally broken with any system that rewards and encourages people to be pussies and punishes them when they take a risk to help others.

It's after the 12th. Any idea what the final outcome was?

Great question, as someone who has led OST trainers to about 100 different fields (in addition to operational missions) I feel I can provide a good answer. First let me say that I totally understand why the hardship of going many places seems like a non-issue to those who haven't done it. But once you start dealing with every variable you may have on a single flight the amount of knowledge and skills to master becomes apparent. What are the variables? In no particular order: climb gradient, obstacles (including low close in that need to be visually identified) runway markings (including asphalt/pavement combo's producing visual illusions), and as for visual illusions there's also slope and even runways that turn a little (although admittedly I've only seen this on dirt strips), a vast array of different approach types and markings (more on this later) and then PA, weather anomalies, weight and balance variations (PCN) local restrictions (in GIANT report) and localisms like traffic (trust me, locals in the backwoods of Utah can get weird). If this doesn't sound like any big deal, let me tell you that every single pilot who I instructed that cross flowed from another platform has at some point become completely overwhelmed by the mass of variables one must account for and master to do the air land mission successfully. Spoo, you mentioned you've never flown a full PT for real. Well, it's common for airlift dudes to need that skill on short notice. First Jeppsen approach I'd ever seen was a NDB full PT into Jordan without radar and down to min's (NDB being the only approach available). Mission can't stop or slow so the pilot can take their time examining the approach; you get handed a pile of shit you weren't expecting and have to be good enough to make it work right now. Conceptually, that's true for every type of mission (I don't fly airlift anymore, so I have another perspective now) but I really think it's under appreciated by people outside airlift. Also, let's talk about PA. Landing a heavyweight aircraft at sea level and 8000' is very different and when time is critical, one must be prepared to quickly and accurately examine TOLD and account for complexities. I've done both (sea level and 8k' PA) in training and operationally on the same mission. I did a lot of OST's in the -130 world and pushed us hard because when the time comes downrange I want myself and my students to perform like rock stars no questions asked no matter what weird shit is thrown our way. A lot of guys don't appreciate the many wind and cloud variables that a pilot can run afoul of until they've done a lot of LL's in the mountains. I don't want someone f'n up a mission into Salerno when they can practice at Gunnison. I mentioned visual illusions; they really can get pretty bad. When your mind is concentrating on keeping track of a lot of stuff, including 8 different ICAO approaches and controllers who may or may not be proficient in English, suddenly guys find themselves on final and it doesn't look like what they expect so they carry some power and land a little long. Except this runway is only 5000' so they're screwed. I know, I know, guys reading this will laugh at how dumb air lifters can be. All I can say is that good pilots have burned the brakes and the plane trying to make the impossible work because they were saturated with difficulties of the "new." Think of all the fighters that have crashed into each other doing complex air-to-air. Dudes are focused and easy things become hard, it happens to us all. That's why we practice. As for instrument procedures and what makes one harder than the other; man, just pull out a FLIP and ask yourself if you can fly 5 random approaches with no prep time, full PT and no radar in mountainous terrain to short fields at minimums with all the additional complexities of crew and mission and timeline on top of it (not to mention an enemy that knows airlift is a soft target); and in the -130 you've got about a 10% chance you'll be IFE at the same time for one reason or another. If you can do it no sweat, then I applaud you. But from experience I think it's a difficult task for any aviator to handle and only guys who practice and train to a high standard do it well. It's interesting for me now in a squadron with fighter and bomber and airlift and tanker guys. The truth is none of us are better than the others as a community, and each of our (old) missions have hard things that outsiders don't understand to be hard. The discriminator between good pilots and bad ones is not what they tracked out of UPT, the discriminator is who really tries hard to be good and works tirelessly to be good and holds themselves to a high personal standard. Airlift guys practice OST's at different sites because it really is a hard skill to go into vastly different circumstances multiple times in a single mission. You can only think so fast and process so much at a given moment; sometimes I'd do missions where I was at cruise at 20,000' for 3 hours and had time. Mostly I'd hit 7k' on climb out and immediatly be in the descent for some random spot with half the runway closed, a sandstorm blowing in, radios being jammed, something leaking out of the #2 and dudes barfing in the back. Hope this answers the questions, cheers to all.

Wow dude, there are so many things wrong with your point of view. For starters, it is possible to live on a beach and work for AFSOC. Secondly, unlike when the fighters were there and it was merely one of many locations to PCS to, AFSOC only has two bases and the missions are split. It's very possible for someone to spend their whole career at Cannon and some poeple also have kids/schools/wives/jobs to worry about in addition to the mission. I appreciate your zeal for getting it done, but people stuck there have a right to gripe. It was a bad choice for AFSOC and directly contributes to a high level of suck many spouses and kids have to endure on top of their husband being gone half the year serving our nation. All so a corrupt town can get some government cheese.

Taking away his retirement pay is extreme, But I think people want some consistancy in how the AF handles DUIs. When good guys can have everything taken away but a general gets to retire at general pay it seems unfair. Maybe if there were some standardization in how these are punished we wouldn't see an outcry like this claiming for his balls in a shoebox.

If you love beautiful scenery, beautiful weather, delicious wine and strong crosswinds, Lajes is the place for you.

We'll agree to disagree here. With better technology you don't need 10 years of experience to interpolate the image, you just look at it. This is like people saying the J or -17 needs an FE. Technology compensates for that crew position and in the case of an MX-15 or 20, the image speaks for itself and you don't need an "expert" to determine what it is.

Indonesian cops don't want you if you've got an unnaturally large dong. Personally, I wouldn't put leaves from something called the "itchy tree" anywhere on me, much less that.

MX-20D with ELAP. Wow. Too heavy for me but I'm very impressed.

Why shouldn't ADDS be approved? 202v3 says aircrew "should" use the OWS (not shall). That said, I'm not an expert since my MAJCOM supp says: 2.3.1.2. (AFSOC) When local military weather services are unavailable, crew may contact their home station or use any FAA approved weather system or service IAW with 2.3.1.2.5. (Added) So anything the FAA says is ok, is ok. Have you looked at your MAJCOM supp?

Thanks for the answer. I figured you guys (civ airliner) would have to report an RA, we just have a different mind set about it. VMC if I see the traffic, I'm not necessarily following the RA; IMC is a different situation, obviously. But what makes you think these guys would be squawking 1200 at FL 290? I thought everyone in class A was IFR.

Exactly, and that's the standard VFR departure.