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Just as I would never trivialize the sacrifices or challenges our airmen faced in Vietnam or WWII, I would expect our officers to not trivialize the sacrifices and challenges our military has faced since 9/11 in Iraq and Afghanistan. Our Air Force crews have not experienced anywhere near the losses we did in previous wars, but our military has suffered sufficient losses to not be marginalized by reminiscing of better times when fighter pilots felt more appreciated. We shouldn't hope for the times when air to air combat and incredible losses resulting from ground to air fires define our Air Force's worth, contribution and legacy. We should be proud of the asymmetrical advantage we provide our nation as we engage this enemy during this time. And we should be very careful about marginalizing our military's most recent combat experiences to our joint partners. Our Air Force exists today, with significant investment of taxpayer dollars, so we don't have to experience the challenges and losses that we experienced in WWII and Vietnam. It is foolish to wish for "real air combat" and losses to fix our problems and define our worth. My Dad flew Huey gunships during two tours in Vietnam and my grandfather flew B-17s in Europe. There was plenty of admin bullshit and useless bureaucracy then. Robin Olds rebelled against the same. Don't view the past through rose colored glasses and think we are so much worse than we were in the good old days when aircraft were shot down, ground forced needed Beyer air support and morale was high. Especially when it pisses off those who sacrifice, kill and serve.

Isn't that what DEERS is for? I seem to recall dropping off birth and marriage certificates. And a bunch of other stuff.

I agree with you that the AF mission in GWOT is vital and not without risk. I've been on a few sporty ones myself both in Iraq and Afghanistan, but always in the mighty Viper and not in the C model as you assume. Did you see a photo of me in Cosmo or something? Combat loss = directly attributable to the enemy (shot down, crashed while engaging enemy) Number of manned aircraft combat losses in GWOT 2001-2008 = 3 (1 x A-10, 1 x F-16, 1 x MH-53). Not sure how many we've lost '09-present but I'm pretty sure there's a couple more. Source: https://www.airforcemag.com/MagazineArchive/Pages/2009/January%202009/0109world.aspx Number of manned aircraft combat losses in Vietnam 1964-1973 = 2,251 Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aircraft_losses_of_the_Vietnam_War Would you really look a Thud or Jolly Green driver from 'Nam in the eye and tell him your missions during GWOT were "intense"? I wouldn't. Combat, real combat, hardens a fighting force and makes it very focused on just one thing: killing the enemy. We are not, despite your objections to the contrary, engaged in this type of combat, nor are we focused on killing the enemy. The Air Force is focused on SAPR, diversity, inclusion, CBTs, SOS, masters degrees, VSP, BRAC, and sequestration. Seriously, go to www.af.mil and you'll see what we're focused on. It's going to take real vision and leadership to regain our fighting focus. Gen. Welsh may be able to swing the pendulum a bit, but he's one of the few that get it and he's having to fight his own people to get it done. I'm incredibly proud to be in the Air Force. But if we're not careful the next war may catch us with our pants down.

And will now vote Democrat in the next elections in America...

I agree Rusty. We need more action, less talk. More leaders, fewer managers. We have toxic, self serving and underperforming commanders at many levels and they should be removed. Many old bosses, me included, are no longer commanders and can only influence decision makers from the staff. It is not so much about fear of rocking the boat as no authority to make change. Commanders need to be held accountable for their unit's climate, morale and performance. Commanders must also hold staffs accountable for how well they support. Senior commanders must be held responsible for their subordinate commander performance. I don't know the details, but it looks like USAFE just did this. CSAF has the ultimate authority and responsibility to make the common sense changes we need. The best way to notify CSAF and MAJCOM commanders of bad leaders, those who are abusive, self-serving and immoral is through the IG process. It is not perfect but it is more effective than complaining on a message board.

'04 11M PC approved today! I put my app in early-to-mid Feb, and it only took a couple phone calls to keep it moving at surprisingly good pace. I had about 18 months left on my UPT commitment & the same for my GI bill transfer. Sq/CC & Wg/CC both approved, functional disapproved, but all that matters is the SAF/PC office approved. Here's to hoping this wave of approvals keeps going!

Hey fellas, tomorrow I will be attending a town hall meeting held by the SECAF at my deployed location and I can assure you I will be the first to ask whether she is planning on granting approval to waive UPT ADSC's and why were we allowed to apply in the first place if they weren't even sure they would let anyone out.

Good luck, and thanks for your service! Although it does make me sad to see the AF meat grinder push people to make decisions like this.

Tell the guys in the MAF that the fastest way to poison the crew force is to show any sign of "Leadership by Q-3" that many OGs seemed to have embraced as of late.

Reminds me of a briefing several years ago by some 2-star at AMC: he asked for questions and after some silence, a flight engineer stood up and asked "Sir, why do we fly around empty (or with only a few pallets) on so many cargo missions?" The answer: "We don't." The engineer then said, "Sir, I have all my paperwork for the last year of missions and I'd be happy to show you all the missions where we had active legs without cargo." "Next question, please." I think that was the same briefing as the infamous "those of us on O&M don't have the money to buy TP to wipe our own asses but the TWCF squadrons have new computers, uniforms, boots, etc." I don't think I ever applauded a question that hard before or after.

You have reached the rank and position where all but your brashest subordinates will give you honest feedback about your policies and leadership. It is not as simple as asking; most will apply the safest translation (for their career) to anything you say. The only way you can convince them (assuming you are being honest with your intentions) is through action, over and over. Each time you don't act in accordance with your word will have 10 times the effect of each time you do.

Nah...all my brain can is think "click mypers...click baseops...lie on an EPR...repeat"

Don't underestimate the importance of good ol' fashioned bullshit sessions with your folks. It's the only way you'll really get to know them.

Immediate promotion and Air War College in residence?

You actually are taking away from those who have served in combat during the past 12+ years. Sharpen your message because it sounds like you think we haven't taken any combat losses in the past ten years. I think you mean fighters shot down. Combat intensity may be low for C models but it has been quite for virtually every other combat unit. How about you focus on the next "no-shit shooting match" with realistic training and high end equipment while many of us continue to perform the vital airpower missions our leaders ask us to perform in the defense of our nation. Your community may be lost in the wilderness but many aren't.

Rip Its have contributed more to operational safety in MAF aircraft than reflective belts, gloves, nomex and iPads combined. I keep two in the deep pocket of my backpack, like go-pills. Sometimes you just can't sleep, even with ambien, and you need some caffeine 8 hours into a flight. Is it the healthiest way to live in the desert? Nope, but sometimes it's too late to live healthy. That said, it'll be the maintainers who will be pushed over the edge.

Page 8: https://static.e-publishing.af.mil/production/1/af_a1/publication/afi36-2107/afi36-2107.pdf

My wife used part of mine to finish her BS and she's a stay at home mom. If I don't go back to school when I get out, I'll give the rest to my son if he needs it. I agree it didn't make financial sense in the short term, but now she has it if she ever has to work. The real reason, however, was that she wanted it and she's proud to be the only college graduate in her family. We often do irrational things to keep our marriages going.

Judging by her picture, I find it very hard to believe anyone has actually winked at her...

STUFR

I can absolutely guarantee any amount of money saved by catching the one dude who's cheating on his BAH (though I'm still unsure how this will catch anyone) will be dwarfed by the metric ass-ton of man hours lost by having the entire Air Force stop what they are doing, find the documentation, go to FSS and be immediately and efficiently helped. Sort of made up the last part. Kind of impressive really, someone measurably reduced the productivity of the entire USAF active duty work force...for an OPR bullet.

Come on... cut me some slack. For the record when I joined I never planned on wanting to get out early. I totally 100% bought into the blue. I'm not sure I'd call myself a kool-aid drinker, but I was damn near close to it. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I'd want out of the organization I fought so hard to get into and admired for so many years. For me, the biggest disappointment.... is this organization not being what I thought it was when I joined. In the end we'll all be fine and most of us will go on to have successful careers in civilian aviation, but that's not what I grew up dreaming about. I never wanted to tell my grandson about my third leg into LAX flying my Delta jet... I always wanted to tell him about this awesome organization I got the chance to serve and help make this world a better place. I have had the chance to do some really great things over the past 7 years and wouldn't trade them for the world, but unfortunately for me the bad FAR outweighs the good.

Yeah.... someone in my office kept leaving the paper cutter open and I kept tripping and cutting myself on it.

Countless amounts of blood? Really?

Tell them to fight for negative feedback! When I was an OG Exec I had a great Boss... probably once a week at the end of the day we would usually have a bullshit session and I would "tell him how it is" from what the average crew dawg was thinking. He asked me one day why I was always giving him bad/negative news and I told him that I was telling him what he didn't want to hear and what his Sq CC's didn't really want to tell him (although I always told him both the good and the bad). After that at every OG Staff meeting he ended with an around the room "tell me what I don't want to hear". He took that info and when he would go to the Sq's and have bullshit sessions with his crews (also huge) or fly with them, even him acknowledging some of the queep they were bitching about made the crews feel like at least Leadership wasn't blind to what was going on at their level. It is amazing the difference in attitude and morale you will get from your people when they genuinely think the boss knows them and cares.

These totem poles are not the same height. And being a MSgt isn't really near the top anyway.

My best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with the girl who saw UPT ADSC waivers pass out at 31 Flavors last night. I guess it's pretty serious.

Hey 48, Shaft had a 1405 date too. They put it in sometime last week apparently. Nothing for me yet, but fingers crossed. For those unaware, the 1405 date is based on US Code section 1405 (hence the name). It's the date your retirement pay will be calculated based upon. It's automatically entered on your CDB (accessible on vMPF) when you hit 17 years as an E, 18 years as an O, or upon retirement. In other words, if you aren't one of the first two and have seen a date show up in that block (right above your DoS) recently, SOMEbody thinks you're retiring soon.

That big red button is pretty irresitible. A fellow I know at AFPC says that UPT ADSCs won't be waived, for what that's worth.

It would be more credible if you could at least get the CSAF's name right.

I read: "We just wanted to push the button to see what would happen. We didn't actually have a plan or anything."

I call bullshit on this article. You say the delay was for waiver authority. What about all of the applicants that don't require any waiver? Mine sat for a month and a half with no movement. No ADSCs and eligible. Isn't that what the eligibility check was for? You say you didn't know which waivers you'd need. The ADSCs you said you would consider waiving were listed in the PSDMs. How about get approval for those. You didn't know pilots had UPT ADSCs? You say 5,000 people applied that weren't eligible. Maybe some, but I doubt 5,000 people couldn't read their PSDMs and figure out if they were eligible. Thousands couldn't figure out they didn't have 15 years service by 31 Jul? Not sure what's going on here, but this is a line of crap. And why would you want to attempt this again next year?

I have no idea how many have been relieved of their duties (if I were to guess, I would guess low), but I can tell you how many have been promoted right in the middle of it. The answer is notably not zero. Bendy

Nothing I have said trivializes any of our service, including my own. I'm quite proud of it, actually. My concern is the prevention of losses in the next major conflict. Since we don't have the tempering process of intense combat to keep us focused, we will need bold, forceful leadership to cut through the bullshit that has filled the vacuum during 10+ years of a low-intensity conflict and keep us focused on fighting and winning the next war. Right now we are failing at that, miserably. If you can't see the bullshit that I speak of, perhaps it is you that is wearing the rose-colored glasses.

For those who haven't tried it yet, I recommend making a citrus Rip-It float with vanilla ice cream while you're still able. Use the orangey-yellow can, full sugar. Tastes like a cream soda float.

Or 'tard waiver

BT, I don't know. CSAF decided to protect LRS-B by cutting force structure. 500 aircraft and a bunch of people. You would think personnel cuts would be related to aircraft cuts but they didn't look at that early on. They only looked at "overmanning" in AFSCs and year groups. This FMP has been an absolute fiasco and people should be fired. They won't be fired because we are too nice to each. We tolerate incompetence and mission failure. We only fire people if they embarrass us, which is wrong. I would love to know how many people A1 and AFPC have ever been relieved of their duties. Not many I guess. You are not asking too much. Our senior leadership has let down many people and this loss of trust will be difficult to regain. Keep nailing the PI and TOT and try to not get too frustrated by the uncertainty.

In AFG the kids crowded around our MRAPs like they were ice cream trucks to beg for anything we'd be willing to give them (or anything they could steal). Keep in mind that most of these kids are ADHD spoiled brats, who are one of 69 brothers and sisters, with little to no adult supervision or parenting. So they basically run amuck and do whatever they want until an Afghan adult comes along and literally beats them into compliance. Now, imagine a mob of 100 or so kids, all going crazy because Santa Claus has come to town (seriously, most of these kids have never tasted Gatorade or eaten a bag of M&Ms before), and some dick throws them some Rip Its. I remember looking back into that village as we were leaving and seeing columns of smoke raising up from various points around where we had the shurra. Now, it was probably something standard, like the elders were signalling the Taliban we were leaving, but it made me laugh because it painted the mental image that by giving a mob of Afghan kids like 4 or 5 Rip Its, we had caused a mass riot that was destroying the village. And now Rip Its are gone ::pour one out for my homies::

Thought it was interesting from Fri's CMSAF Q&A that 80,000 robot emails went out notifying people they were eligiable for one or more of the voluntary programs and that about 11,000 had applied. So about 13% of the folks are looking to get out. Then he stated that of those 11,000 or so only about 6,000 we actually eligible. To which I yelled at my computer "THEN WHY DID YOU SEND THEM A ROBOT EMAIL TELLING THEM THEY WERE ELIGIBLE!?" Argh...

It's all good though, because according to Col Oh all we need is to eat healthy, exercise, and get 7 hours of sleep a night. I know at KAF I never had any problems with accomplishing those, between eating nothing but mermites for months on end, working 14 hours a day at a minimum, and getting woken up by the occasional rocket attack.

The best way to prove you're not a "assholedouchebagfuckstains" is by threatening people on the internet.

Cripple fight!

I'm only leaving this open so people will berate the OP. StoleIt is off to a great start. Posted from the NEW Baseops.net App!

You know what you do when you aren't interested, aren't involved and/or aren't asked to participate in the conversation going on? You STFU...and drink your whiskey. Bendy

From John Q. Public... I've been measuring my shots at General Mark Welsh carefully over the last week or so, because I've been working instead on trying to help diagnose the organizational and systemic issues associated with the drawdown. More to say on that in a day or two. But first, I am going to take a shot at General Welsh. Please, for the love of God, STOP PREACHING INTEGRITY to airmen. Just stop. Don't remind them to have integrity. Don't do it. It has ZERO effect upon the rank and file. None. The vast majority don't need to hear it and get offended that you feel the need to remind them. The few who demonstrate they do need to hear it probably aren't going to respond meaningfully anyway, and should not have their shortcomings driving how you communicate with everyone. The only impact this has is NEGATIVE. It's bad. It hurts you because the current perception -- a fair one -- is that the leadership and staff level of the Air Force is where the real integrity problem lives. Airmen complain of a say/do gap, an endless game of "I've got a secret" . . . and one-way commitments that leave them with no bargaining power. I've written elsewhere that personnel and evaluation policies are being allowed to persist when we know they're telling us lies and leading us to wrong decisions. If there is an integrity problem, it's not among the audience the attached article seems to be addressing. So why not target more discriminately? Best commander I ever had (and now one of my professors says the same thing) used to say "show, don't tell." Great advice. Fire the next commander you catch lying or the next Chief you catch defying your intent. That'll go a long way toward reinforcing the value of integrity.

I will add... I'm so glad our sons found your Dos Gringos CD's!

Don't remember seeing this posted, think it's worth the read: Kissinger: To settle the Ukraine crisis, start at the end

It's a horrible idea. Horrible. 12 hour days are standard. Add travel time, etc and your pup won't be able to go out for 13-ish hour stretches every day. Which is a foul. After UPT, you're going to be deployed/TDY all the time. Sometimes with little/no notice. That's just life in the AF. What are you going to do with the dog then? You can't just count on driving the dog over to your parents house while you're gone...you have no idea where you're going to live. And do not--do fucking not--be the asshole who asks his buddy's wife to take care of your dog for you while you're at work/TDY/deployed. Until you figure out your life, not just during UPT but after, forget about the dog.