Danger41

Keep up the min run attitude and see how well that works in your flying career.

Dang, that was insane. I think that is the best pilot reaction ever. Literally 1 minute hack after almost getting decapitated, he figures it out "it wasn't my fault". Lol, I love that.

^What BashiChuni said. Going to UPT as a Guard guy would be great. Knowing what is waiting for you at the end of the training would be great. The luck and timing thing of AD is very real and if you have your heart set on flying one thing and that's not in the drop, then tough luck. For example, the first drop I witnessed at ENJJPT was back in the days where if you could fog a mirror, you'd end up in a Viper. The next one, half the class went to RPA's, 5 others went to U-28's, and 1 guy went to Strike Eagles. It's back to mirror fogging = Viper now, but the unpredictability sucks as a student.

Sun shades for the 38's?! Back in my day we had to carry 40 pound parachutes into the Texas summer heat for a double turn and we liked it! The ramp was uphill both ways if memory serves correctly. Cool video!

Not knowing anything about this situation, but all the IP's out there know how frustrating it is to give syllabus ride 2 after some chode IP in the sq pencil whips the first gradesheet, gives you nothing that the student has to work on, or just marks everything up to MIF by clicking "quick complete". However, as Capt Nobody in the AF, I'd be pretty disillusioned if my gp/cc told me that.

^That is the coolest thing I've ever seen.

If your lifelong dream is to fly a fighter and it didn't work out for you in UPT for whatever reason, I say jump at it. I flew Eagles for a much shorter time than I flew U-28's and I look back on that time very fondly. Don't give into the Baseops "everything sucks" mantra, and make your own decision. Trust me, the first time you strap on a fighter and go rage around, it will be worth it. If you don't go for it because of whatever reason, you'll regret it and have that "what if" thing. And if you want to be successful in fighters/tactical military aviation, you've got to be confident. To become confident, you better work your ass off. If you don't work for it and still think you're the best, you're out to lunch and are a joke. Fortune favors the prepared.

Confirm quals?!!?!

No they're not, students now are obviously just superior performers and their assignments reflect that.

As a fighting pilot/American who has spent significant amounts of my kids' lives fighting low intensity conflict aka terrorist hunting, I'd much rather have the right tools for the job at hand than some gold plated waste of resources being misused. Listening to fighters/bombers getting tasked to do NTISR to eventually drop on a bulldozer for the 9th time is such a frustrating experience. We need to just get pretty much every CAF asset out of the OIR fight and let you guys train for your actual missions. And how many fancy nukes do you want? It was those old piece of shit nukes that kept Ivan from crossing the line and Taiwan full of freedom. I think the hundreds we have now that work are adequate. All this future war planning is funny to me. It's like saying that deck will look great on the house when it's done but not fixing the water heater. Yes, you can still get clean but it's a miserable experience.

I'll believe it when I see it.

U-28 1. Ops Tempo: High but stable for now. 3 gone, 6 home with usually a week in transit on both sides of that. 2. Lifestyle: It's fine but expect hours switching around a lot with night flying and early mornings regularly. 3. Community morale: Good but the older guys are getting worn out. 4. Advancements & Future: This thing evolves all the time so it's always on the cutting edge technology wise. That's a plus. In a few years, the U-28 will be replaced by something else. What that will be, I have no clue. 5. PCS Locations: Hurlburt and Cannon. 2/3 chance for Hurlburt. And in AFSOC, all roads eventually lead back to Hurlburt. Bottom line, if you pick based on mission, this airplane has one of the best in the AF now. If the big one with the Commies kicks off, we will not participate. But in the current counter terror fight, we get to have a big impact.

Interesting back story on Gucci's post above. Shortly after I made my post at the top of this page about rehacking expired CFI via IP Form 8, I contacted the FAA trying to get either an exception to the rule or get the rule changed. After several messages and phone calls, the guy said he would see what he could do. I hadn't heard anything else until my instructor at AIS mentioned the change and then Gucci's post corroborated. So shockingly, it appears the system worked.

If your final product is less than one, you're a God damn sexual Tyrannosaurus, swinging dick Air Commando, U-28 driver.

A lot of you us sound like my wife in that every problem is the end of the world. I apply the same game plan of nodding and saying "okay" to most of these gripes. There are some serious problems in the AF, but to not even join based on queep is ridiculous. And you don't get excited flying a jet with USAF on the side? Wtf excites you? Maybe CAF/MAF life is just totally sucky, but in AFSOC you won't get anywhere if you aren't a mission hacker--regardless of PowerPoint skills. 2Niner, do what you want, but if you join don't show up jaded and crusty like a lot of these guys. Your career will be miserable if you do. Instead, snapshot your lowest moment in a cubicle and compare it to your lowest moment as a pilot, and they won't compare. When I get down about work, I think back to when I was roofing houses and my mood drastically improves. And the coup de grace about military flying is that I don't keep in touch with roofing buddies, but I'm still close friends with my UPT class. That camaraderie is rare and makes it worth it.

If every kind of review is flawed, what do you suggest? I like the idea of peer reviews and think people are mature enough to see through bullshit and rank people accordingly. Especially in an instance like this.

I'm willing to bet he is a jokester Captain somewhere absolutely laughing his ass off at the massive freak outs he can induce.

I wonder if he's any good at pinball?

That'd be a huge jump. Why would they do that?

Out of Klamath you'll go to either Lakenheath or Kadena (haven't heard of any TFI to a Guard unit that Viper guys get occasionally). After that, most of my bros either IPCOT (stayed out in Kadena and switched squadrons), went to Lakenheath, or went to another airframe (Raptor, IFF/UPT, etc). However, a couple guys did go to Klamath to be IP's as they now have an AD Det there.

U-28's in on that?

That is the most unbelievable thing I've ever read. Almost like saying you made it through Captain Skyhawk without hitting a mountain on those fast levels.

Recently had 2 guys in my flight not make Major whom I think are deserving. Am I allowed (as their Flight Commander) to write a letter to the board on their behalf for their APZ look?

Cool guys, thanks. That was kind of what I was getting at drewpey. Thanks all for the info.

How long is the ADSC for attending WIC? What kind of opportunities does it open/close for you as a mid-level captain? Specifically asking from an AFSOC perspective, but in general as well.