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HICKAM AFB, HI - Break or stay here... you're lucky. Billeting - We stayed in billeting in the new section which we basically one-bedroom apartments, very nice and close to everything on base. Hotels - If you can get off-base they'll put you up at one of the Outriggers most likely. We broke for a few days, and stayed at the Outrigger Luana and Outrigger Waikiki. Outrigger Waikiki has Duke's bar and restaurant with a friendly staff and the likes. Although, if you own laptops, BRING THEM!!

Ramstein AB, Germany - For things to do while deployed to Germany, check out: www.letsgo-europe.com. If at all possible try NOT to stay at Sembach - bare conditions with sparse food/entertainment opportunities. For billetting on-base at Ramstein, make reservations early. They separate aircrews from Duty Pax. Transpo is LESS than helpful - especially if you have Duty Pax... A good hotel in downtown Ramstien Village is the Ramstienerhof-- the food is the best I had in 5 rotes to Germany and the ow

San Salvador Marriott Courtyard San Salvador (Esquina Calle 2 y calle 3, phone: 503-2-2493000) is probably the best place to stay. Safe (armed guards patrolling the grounds), nearby shopping and food (La Gran Via is right next door, the Walmart is just beyond that, and another mall just past it). Lots of US fast food nearby. Good free breakfast (local fare), and discrete taxi service to Comalapa if needed. Rooms are standard Marriott, always top standard. The Hotel Princess (503)298-

Seymour Johnson AFB, NC is the home to the F-15E Formal Training Unit (FTU) for F-15E student pilots and Weapon System Officers (WSOs). There are two FTU squadrons; the 333rd Fighter Squadron (FS) "Lancers" and 334th FS "Eagles", in addition to two Operational Squadrons; the 335th FS "Chiefs" and 336th FS "Rockets". The squadrons conduct formal training for initial Strike Eagle qualification (Basic or "B" Course), requalification ("TX" or "Transition" course), Instructor ("I") qualification cour

Almost everything you need about the course is on the AF portal page for the 45 AS at: https://www.my.af.mi...123772727040040 The course is divided between the simulator phase, currently under contract with Simuflite in Dallas, and the flying FTU at Keesler AFB. The course is relatively fast paced, but not so much as UPT. It's much faster than Altus, lasting 6 weeks. Instructors and evaluators are big pretty big picture, and appear to genuinely care about getting the students qualifi

CFIC (as of 09-02) TD1: Inprocessing, FlightSafety academics TD2: FlightSafety academics TD3: AM: FlightSafety academics, PM: OFT1 TD4: OFT2 TD5: OFT3 TD6: OFT4 TD7: OFT5 TD8: OFT6 TD9: Report to Flightline Flightline training is 3 rides then a check.

Enter your FTU Gouge here.

Enter your FTU Gouge here.

Enter your FTU Gouge here.

Enter your FTU Gouge here.

Wake Island - Wake is almost Gilligan's Island, except no MaryAnne and Ginger. This tiny atoll can be really fun to visit. It has one bar, Drifters Reef, they will make you buy the bar if you wear your hat. These dudes wait for weeks for you to make that mistake. Mike is the "mayor" of Wake, he will greet you when you land. Call early and ask what they might need from civilization. Newspapers, milk, whatever. The trick is to get a fishing trip, and/or a "mits" mini pickup truck. Tour the island,

Bangkok, Thailand - The DAO will hook you up with transportation and accommodations. Le Royal Meridien (662) 656-0444 was fantastic and has excellent service and great rooms, gym, hot tub/sauna and pool on the top floor. Free breakfast to boot. The Meridien is right downtown, next to Planet Hollywood (the PH might be out of business now), and walking distance from Hard Rock Cafe. There's a good Thai place right across the street and a Starbucks. Phantip Plaza is the place for bootleg software an

Singapore - Diplomatic clearances are a hot topic with Singapore. You will overfly Malaysia on the way in and out. Make sure you you have it all in one sock, at least DIP-wise, before you even think of taking off for or from Singapore. If you are going into Changi In'tl, contact Changi Ops at least 30 minutes out with ETA and fuel request. Take a close look at the Foreign Clearance Guide for entrance requirements. Changi Int'l provided us with excellent ground service. The operations center will

Saipan - Aquarius Beach Towers was a dump! The name is misleading, when we pulled into the drive we knew we had made a mistake. The building is an old high rise apartment building that was converted into a hotel. The rooms are apartments, so there is plenty of room and even a washer and dryer, but the place is run down and pretty nasty. After stepping out of the shower I realized the only towel in the whole apartment was a wash cloth! Not the greatest service either. I dont have a better suggest

Christchurch, New Zealand - Chateau at the Park was a great hotel [03-348-8999] . Don't do the hotel bar on weekends unless you like the geriatric scene. (Cheap beer, though). ~Copthorne Commodore Hotel was very hospitable and clean hotel close to airport and downtown. Excellent bar and restaurant. Golf across the street at Russley CC. The Patterson Family goes out of the way to accommodate DOD travelers. Check out the free bus pass at front desk. Acceptable gym. Good pool/hottub. Updated 7

Clark AB Philippines - Blood suckers! I urge you to avoid the Holiday Inn and their attempts to rip you off every chance you get. This place knows that you can't leave base, and will milk you for everything you've got. San Miguel's go for 5X what they go for out in town. The business center's prices are outrageous, and last but not least they will not let you bring anything inside the hotel. The will even search your bags to make sure you haven't brought in outside soda's, beer, or food. They ma

Chuuk (Truk Islands), Micronesia - Field is 6000' with a small ramp and only served by NDB/DME approach. Getting a clearance to get out of there can be a pain if there are other inbounds since there is no radar and everything is done over HF. Served daily by Continental Airlines. There is a small USAF Civil Action Team (CAT) that maintains a compound above the airfield on a nearby hill. The only resort is the Blue Lagoon which is a nice place on the water. There's a couple restaurants and a bar

Bucholz AAF, Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands - Not much on the Atoll, you blink and you miss it...there are two buildings for aircrew to stay in-one at the billeting office and you can stay above Macy's (that is where you want to stay, seemed reasonably nice, brand new) Not much for a room, just the essentials (bed, tv with 2 channels AFRTS, and a bathroom), not many places to go eat, a cafe next Macy's or the Pacific Cafe, yumm Best bet is to go the miniBX and get some steaks or burgers and s

Kuala Lumpor, Malaysia - The Ritz Carlton is the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in. We got arrangements to stay there made through a guy named Vince at the American Embassy. They treat guests like Kings. When we came back to our rooms after spending some time in downtown KL, our beds were turned down with a cookie and bottled water on the bedstand and slippers placed at the foot of the bed. Any place that's got a phone next to the crapper is awesome. In KL, visit China Town... it's a 2 dollar (10

Gwang-Ju AB, Korea - Hidden Valley Inn was a total dump. Kunsan is great compared to this place. If you're going there your scheduler screwed you over. We were forced to divert in there to pick up cargo. The controllers' English is horrible. Gwang-Ju is a ROK base with a 30-person USAF presence keeping the lights on. The base commander happens to be a Captain. If you can stay off-base it's great (big city 1.2 million people) but on base you're screwed. Make sure you read the Giant Report and do

Atsugi Japan - BOQ was very nice. Limited parking depending on the airwing schedule. BOQ is very clean, three computers available in the lobby, walking distance to the flight line. Flight plan filing is done at Japanese base ops. Great Japanese take-out restaurant just outside the main gate. Go through the security area and it's on the same side of the street across the intersection. Iwakuni MCAS, Japan - If you can avoid Iwakuni, do it. TA is slow, trans sucks, and the Q's are usually uncomf

Hong Kong - New World Renaisance hotel was a Palace! (852-236-94111) Great hotel on the river over looking Hong Kong. It's less than 1/4 mile from great shopping, a park and the river boat to Hong Kong proper. The best bar area is Lan Kwai Fong. It's owned by US, Brit and Aussie Ex-patriots. A lot of fun, good prices and plenty of eye candy. Best days are the weekend.

Anderson AFB, Guam - Outrigger is a very nice hotel with an excellent location - right in the middle of food, entertainment, beach, etc. The only problem with the Outrigger is that checkout can take forever, just plan your alert sequence accordingly. ~Pacific Islands Club (P.I.C.) was fantastic! Excellent crew rest awaits! The PIC is a full resort with snorkeling, swim-thru aquarium, water park, slides, golf, tennis, sailing, etc. Everything you could ask for (which explains why billeting is hes

Diego Garcia, BIOT - AMCC is your point of contact for everything here. They have snorkel gear, bicycles, and other sports equipment that will make your stay bearable. There is a shuttle that runs between all over the base every 15 minutes, or check out a bike unless you want to hoof it everywhere. The club has a make your own pizza and the O'club has live music and a patio right on the beach with a local live band that was decent. There is a comissary-type store with convenient hours and a "shi

Brisbane, Australia - Holiday Inn 61-7-32382222 was a nice hotel with pubs and restaurants nearby. At Brisbane International our handling agent was Brisbane Jet Base, 61-73860 phone, www.adagold, or 129.9 Mhz. Glen was running the show - fuel, customs, food and drink was outstanding. Glen will broker the exportation of some XXXX Bitter or other hooch from Down Under. The Aussies' seem to like Americans more than we like ourselves, and their a-political outlook is a pleasant change. Geelong, A