Magellan

Really. That would just end up whacking those who speak the truth to power, and further insulate the corruption and cronyism.

I am just wondering how many people will take the Bone Us money this year if/when it gets released.

If it burns lesson learned.

So what is life like for a regional airline pilot? Asking for a friend...

So when I was a casual Lt back before ORE/ORIs ended having a forklift license was useful multiple times as opposed to waiting on loggies or MX folks to move our gear, and it even helped during a short notice ONE tasker. This was back when C-Models started coming apart and where grounded UFN and we needed to pack a bunch of stuff right before Christmas for a CONUS deployment. Honestly, I think it would be awesome if all the Lts waiting for pilot training got trained to drive buses, fork lifts, etc. Because then the ops squadrons can just go to transportation check out the equipment, use it, and return it entirely on their schedule. Plus then it would be easier to screen for buffoonerous personnel before people bend airplanes. If you can't drive a bus or a forklift do we really want to trust you with an airplane?

Just avoid anything east of Fairfax. Problem solved. 😀

https://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/Docs/perdiem/browse/Allowances/BAH/PDF/2022/2022-With-Dependents-BAH-Rates.pdf https://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/site/bahCalc.cfm By the way the search function is INOP I literally searched for BAH which is in the thread title and got nothing. Cheers to Washington DC going up!

Clearly a victim of the system. Only shitty (can’t say silver) lining is the age of the fatalities was all age 52 plus. Praying for all victims.

Can you pay the mortgage for 15-30 years? Do you want to pay the mortgage for 15-30 years. If not rent.

Retention could tank even further. I think it is a false assumption that those 30% were staying anyway. The IDE, Staff, DO, SQ/CC, School, Staff hustle to stay Tier 1 and survive until 20 years becomes A LOT less appealing if you pay them $245,000 or more less...

Guess they over forecast the COVID-19 retention spike...smooth move Air Force...

Well given the direction this country is going since we are about to pass a 3.5 Trillion dollar piece of legislation I wouldn't be surprised to see the Airlines get nationalized if the party in power felt it was time to go to war.

Halfway down the runway 10 knots fast?

I think things are great! Come on in the water is fine.

Yeah that is coming to a screeching halt here soon. GOCO/COCO contracts are all drying up as we pull out of the Stan and you will see the NGB Title 10 money dry up pretty soon as well. That only leaves a handful of contractor jobs left, tons of qualified experienced contractors with no jobs, and lots of folks that were feeding their family's off of Guard/Reserve pay checks whose missions will dry up and be shifted back to AD units. There may be a few hold outs on the NGB side if certain units commands get in bed with the right customers, but there isn't enough of that to go around. Interesting times... The other civilian opportunities that aren't contractor flying have always been there, but people had to really network, polish their resume, and be able to crush an interview or know someone who could pull you in to land them.

So if we just make the pay comparable to the airlines and fix none of the other BS that pilots hate how does that help exactly? Because if the money is the same and airlines are less BS don't the airlines still win for all of the other reasons mentioned? That said I know folks on all sides of the fence who were: 1. "f'this noise I'm out" as soon as their ADSC was up 2. Palace chase ASAP to get a line number then pick up AGR orders 3. Airline & TR 4. Stay on AD with no bonus to have free agent status with regard to assignments 5. All in bonus takes that are ride or die Air Force. The only demographic I see winning/gaining anything under a "pro pay" system is the folks who are all in Air Force already. It seems to me like the system has those camps modeled as it is doing what it can to apply the bonuses given the constraints (imposed by congress) they are under. Also, Springer has life figured out. I take as much pride in flying the aircraft that I own and/or rent as I do anything the USAF has put me in. Plus it can be just as much or more fun. In my case I just married well to a woman that agreed to buy me an airplane with her salary! But I know plenty of AD guys that can afford to own planes and fly a ton even on the AD salary. Everything is just a tradeoff.

Selection, non-selection, or both?

https://www.yourcentralvalley.com/news/local-news/pilot-killed-in-crash-at-porterville-airport-identified/ Nickel in the grass. 🍺

Depending on the situation (And not trying to advertise) but Noom is a fairly good option for people looking to get their life back in order. I.E. trying to regain a sense of control over their life. They throw a bunch of psychology at the wall and I am sure some people will find that 15-25% of it could stick for them. And it is cheaper than seeing a clinical psychologist or licensed therapist. Plus it is just on your phone so the only people that know are you and your credit card company. I would argue it is a much better approach then self-medicating with delicious fried food and booze. Even if not nearly as fun in the short term...

How fast can the current iteration of AWC be completed? The book answer doesn't have an answer. https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/Portals/10/eSchool/documents/PME/Combined_PME_Handbook_current.pdf It lists 7 months for ACSC (which is very doable)...but doesn't put a timeline for AWC. It looks comparable to ACSC maybe a little shorter.

I believe some would say that is a feature and not a glitch. This way you can have the shiny penny Major's fill the staff and school slots, get promoted to Lt. Col, and be on their merry way to CSAF. In the meantime how long will the USAF be able to string people along as Majors on AD with 5 shots at Lt. Col before the USAF exercises a forcing function?

Which 2 commandants? Webb and Pabon? While they may feel that way I don't know many officers that make it to the O-6 of the Air Force without a strong implicit bias against white space. Whether they realize it much less admit it is another thing. The subconscious is a weird beast. Also, unless you are max performing a timeline to make O-6, which isn't really a thing any more with BPZ being eliminated, what is the draw back of doing AFIT or any of the other schools? It could affect IDE looks maybe... But what do people gain by being the same cookie cutter Blue Patch as all your peers? The USAF TPS course is more of a fraternal right of passage coupled some academic exercises and lots of really cool flying that isn't even objectively graded. The knowledge I gained from the year of TPS was much less useful than the year I spent doing MAJCOM OT on my MDS prior to TPS. The only benefit of USAF TPS over the other schools I see is getting to know your classmates (and their families), and that is a double edged sword if the ones you (and your families) click with during that year don't both stay at Edwards after TPS. That said I also think the establishment over values what the course teaches when the real value of the TPS pipeline is the selection process. You could probably take the pilots, CSOs, and FTEs selected and give the TPS resources to the CTFs and get just as good or better product at the end of the day. But then you lose the fraternal right of passage, and the token MS in Flight Test Engineering Degree. That said the job options that are available as a TPS grad are awesome. Developmental/experimental flight test is the best mix of flying and nerdery out there. Plus your peer group are some of the most outstanding individuals you will ever get to work and party with.

The best combo I know of is your SQ/CC and any 2 TPS grads you can find. Even better if you can get to know them well, but you are already on the clock for this year. Line IPs, Group/CC, Wing/CC, etc don’t mean much unless they are known by someone on the board. I know TPS grads that used a Professor. But it should be an Aero, Mech, or EE professor to carry much weight. Better if that professor has successfully recommended folks for TPS before. Don’t fudge or get cute about hours. You have what you have. They only care about hours after UPT. Just fill out the form following the instructions in a way that won’t get scoffed at by O-5s and O-6s who are really smart at sniffing out BS. If they want you to have more hours before TPS they will put you in the later Alpha class as opposed to the earlier Bravo class. This works out to 16-18 months from when you hit send until showing up at Edwards to rack up more hours. Also, if you have GRE scores and DLAB scores put them on the form and check all the boxes associated with them. You might just get a good deal, and it looks better (more motivated) than white space and empty boxes.

A Master's in Engineering makes you more competitive at the board, but it is not a requirement. A letter of recommendation from a TPS graduate (or 2) probably has more weight for pilots quite honestly. Plus you get a Master's of Science in Flight Test Engineering for going through the course. The only thing a Master's in Engineering opens up for you is if you want to get selected for the TPS PhD program after TPS. In my class about 1/2 of the pilots had an Engineering Masters, 1/3 had non-Engineering Master's degrees (ERAU, MBA, etc.), and some had no Master's degree prior to TPS. Plus there is an AFIT TPS option. Take the GRE and get a Letter of Academic Eligibility from AFIT for their Aero or Electrical Engineering Masters program then apply for TPS with the AFIT box checked on the application. As far as how to get a letter of recommendation from a TPS grad. Find out who the TPS grads are that are working DT on your airframe, get in touch with them, and convince them you are they guy or gal they want to work with. Figuring out a permissive TDY out to Edwards or just straight up taking leave to go there on your own to check it out sends a pretty strong message. Plus you will realize where you are signing up to live for possibly the bulk of your active duty career going forward. The flight line is like an airshow everyday especially when TPS has qual eval aircraft in town, but it is a very remote place to live for people that like urban amenities...like a drive through Starbucks, fully stocked liquor store, or gym that isn't as old (or older) than all the bombers on the flight line. If you want to do an online MS go for it. It certainly won't hurt you. One of my classmates did the CSU program that was mentioned, and I know at least 3 TPS grads that did the MS Program from the University of Alabama. https://catalog.ua.edu/graduate/engineering/aerospace-mechanics/ms/