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You know, I love Cyber. I've been doing it for close to 20 years. I crossed from E-to-O into it. I set life goals based on the AF telling me that's what I'd do. I read about it at home, much to the annoyance of my wife (who doesn't want to learn about the new Win10 hack?). All the pilots I've met that actually love to fly do the same thing - study it in their off time, talk about it... sometimes even dream about it. If I'd graduated from my commissioning source and tech school to be told I'm now going to be a MFP/Services officer I'd want to burn it all down. Hell, if they told me I'd fly a Viper I'd still be angry - it's not who I am. That's not being jaded, that's being human. Doubly so if I went to any of the shit-holes the RPA bros are at. This doesn't even begin to touch the outright lies and blunders the whole RPA community has had directed at it from on high. It's almost the same as the missile fields, without the long heritage of shit or "investigations & programs" to fix it. Basically, "You're so important to the USAF and Nation. But not important enough for us to put money, men or brain power to fix it." It's an affront to justice we're taught as Americans and the trust we placed in the institution of the Air Force to go through what some of the RPA dudes have gone through. That doesn't end because you make O4/5/6. It doesn't end because you get to a cushy staff job off the line. It doesn't end because you get more money, or a ribbon with some metal on the end of it. Your lack of compassion, empathy and understanding are very telling. Broadly, you're just another troll, well done. Specifically, you're myopic view on status and money are indicative you're lining right up with that part of the AF machine for box-checking promotion - more concerned about yourself and what you can get, less concerned with the people executing your mission.

Since I've had quite a few tonight and am bored...i'll be your huckleberry. Our Air Force is broken code-3 and is getting worse by the day. You're either a naive dipshit or a pathological liar on the level of Mrs. Clinton. Either way, you're doing our service a huge injustice. If many in our morally corrupt society wanted to join...they are more than welcome to. We actually are an all volunteer force even though it quickly escalates into indentured servitude on the rated side, which you are quick to take advantage of (15 year commitments right?). Many in society are welcome to join and yet they don't. They don't answer the call. They don't possess the selflessness and patriotic sense of duty. As the culture continues to erode...more won't. "Some members" are so sick and tired of the culture that clowns like you and this current administration are responsible for. JQP nailed it with his latest updated blog post regarding fighter pilot manning. Our Air Force is falling apart at the seams and you're blind as a bat for not seeing it. Shame on you and those around you for not fixing it when you had the opportunity and insight given to you by members of this board. I gave you advice a couple of years ago when I was on my very last deployment- it mimiced everything that you hear here. I took your advice though and thank you for it. My feet made the right vote. You're welcome for my service but that service wasn't for you. It was for the boys and girls who's daddy's came home because I was in some shit hole for the umpteenth time doing my duty. It was for those that still believe in this great country and Liberty. I voted with my feet for my personal reasons and am grateful every single day. Not only did I spend my first year out of AD making more money than you do (no matter what your rank is), I saw my family a lot more and focused on "real shit" that includes lots of mission oriented flying. Having a desire to spend even more time with my family and maybe eventually get back into owning a business, I decided to go fly for a major airline. Holy shit is the grass so much greener than the rotten brown shit you constantly urinate on while telling everyone that it's getting watered. People like you truly don't get it and think that the airline opportunity is WHY we left...it most certainly is not! Back when I was flying vipers, there was no amount of money that would've made me even utter the word "airline." It is however the reason WHY we no longer have to work for dumb shit mother f~ckers who erode the incredible service and culture that we were so proud to be apart of. I miss it, but it's gone. Sticking around won't make it come back. I now spend ample time writing recommendations for my military bros and am so happy to get words when they get hired. I encourage everyone that I know to get the f~ck out ASAP before retards like you institute stop-loss. Most heed my advice like I heeded yours. All are thankful once they reach the other side. Someone in this thread nailed it when they mentioned the ripple effects. Most of the <1% of us that sserve end up with family that follows in our footsteps. It's part of the pride that we took in our former culture. I had two boys that were ready to fly jets. One of them heads off to study Aero Engineering next year and our discussions have already concluded that he is best NOT going into the USAF. My other son figured this out for himself a few years prior when he cried himself to sleep because I had missed Christmas yet again during one of my 9 deployments. How do these numbers fit into you're spreadsheets? Your 1% is about to become .1%! You're f~cking high. Our AF will be on life support and the culture will be so bad you might regret ever joining after you do. Forget doing SAPR 4 times a year. Well make suicide prevention a quarterly requirement as well. You should be personally satisfied but you likely won't be and its getting worse by the day. Who cares about money...but NDAA is already trying to screw you yet again because you make too much. Professionally satisfied...I was but God knows that most aren't. I'd consider this doubtful. Bottom bottom bottom line... Chang, you're a bumbling idiot. That's the beer, not real emotion. It's frustrating that no matter how much people on this board inform you, you always know better. You look at our lives quantitatively as though we are numbers and green/ red bubbles. We look at our lives personally because they are. We will never see eye to eye. When we resort to looking at things quantitatively- we leave. The emotion, culture, and personal aspect are why we joined and why we would stay (or otherwise leave). You should go ahead and retire Chang. Thank you for your service.

Stop being a bitch.

Been eying this for awhile, wife finally got it for me for our anniversary. Sig Sauer 1911 Emperor Scorpion. First impressions are very good. More to follow.

I gotta start using this one more often, should definitely go over well in the debrief... Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

Logical, fact based, unemotional opinions backing arguments of substance over an issue that matters to the future of the USAF... Seems like an anomaly around here sometimes... FWIW, I'm an in-res IDE guy who followed on to ASG. Like others, I found the first year to be almost a complete waste. It gave me a sister-service networking opportunity and a chance to write - something I plan to do upon retirement. Other than that, I went to school to go to a second year of school. The real learning was in the second year, and made the entire experience worth it. Scoff what you will, this same model (two-years of mid-career PME) has been used for centuries by some of the most successful armed forces in history. We aren't inventing new ways to educate here... We are in fact lagging behind in that department in my opinion. We don't have it all figured out. In fact, the over-education of our officer corps as they proceed toward O-6 is a real topic of discussion... But there has to be a balance. Not everyone can depart the line for two years mid career. Not everyone should. Not everyone has the drive, brains, or desire to. That's not a bad thing. That's expectation management. But sending officers of 20+ years experience to just a little under three and a half years of schooling in their service is not overeducation IMHO -- ASBC (4 weeks), SOS (6 weeks), IDE (1 year), ASG (1 year), War College (1 year) - three years, spread out over the career, is nothing. Just my opinion. And realizing there's other things that pull dudes off the line for months/years -- WIC, TPS, JPME-II, Safety School, staff, etc -- I guess my question is, what's the alternative? Where do our officers get the education they need to be effective in the joint world? Because I'm telling you, the USAF is getting murdered in the joint environment. It should be our wheelhouse, and we suck at it - something that's still shocking to me given the quality of some of the dudes I was at school with. Short of throwing folks into the deep end and letting them sink or succeed on the job, the only prep for entry into that world is PME (of all forms, correspondence included) - comments on the quality of that prep aside. These aren't things I knew about or cared about on the line. They are things that I touch daily now, in a joint and service-headquarters level environment in which there is far too little understanding of history, theory, politics, and doctrine to go around. That speaks directly to the quality and breadth (read: civilian schools and PME) of our education programs... You're on to something when you talk about broadening/diversifying the school experience. But there is an element of quantity that has to come into play as well - because flying the line forever isn't an option yet, and if you're going to go to staff anyway I'd rather have you be trained and educated at the staff than not. Spears accepted willingly. Cheers, Chuck --spelling edits

^^Now that's a keeper...a wife, that buys you guns, that is...

My friend is a retired finance troop, but he'd like to borrow a flight helmet for his campaign for county clerk. Anyone able to hook him up? I'm asking for a friend...

Dudes, apparently I pissed a bunch of you guys off and that's my bad. My buddy Sparky told me this morning and he defend me as a stand-up guy so I'll take what I deserve. I didn't serve in the selfie age, I didn't own a camera till I got married and I wasn't married while I was on active duty. The pics of me in uniform are few. This pic was taken while I was flying some missions in the back of either a C-17 or C-130 with a buddy of mine who happened to be a laodmaster and was able to get me on a few rides. That's his helmet, he snapped some pics, we were doing some training airdrops and I was pumped to tag along. I do believe that patch was swapped with someone from the flight deck but I can't remember but I do remember I had another sweet morale patch on the other side as well. My eye sight is 20/400, so no, I never had the opportunity to go through or washout of UPT. We used those pics because they were some of the few I could find. I don't believe anything claims I'm a fighter pilot though I would have liked to have been one if PRK or Lasik was accepted back then. I do believe I have a few pics from survival as well in BDUs but in fear of someone accusing me of trying to be a SEAL or Ranger, I'll refrain. Instead I was self-loading baggage who got to fly in the back, perhaps supporting some of you and coordinate SEAD missions, since airborne EW was my specialty. I appreciate all the dedication to keeping me in check...and if you ever think about running for office, my advice would be not to. Oklahoma has a $1.5 billion budget deficit which we're trying to sort through and I'm having to defend a picture I took 10 years ago with a flight helmet. Hope this clears it up so Duck can get back to his crown and cokes.

Adam, just replace the damn pictures with current ones.

Sadly what most of you are describing as currently valued characteristics in AF leadership can be seen in the civilian world as well (paperwork over substance). I got out of the AF back in 1992 and am now a university business professor. I have said for several years that we are the most educated we have ever been as a nation, but have less sense than ever. We value the degree (paperwork) over actual learning (either through study or experience). The importance of degrees (the more the better) is way overrated by our culture. And yes, I do realize that demand is why I get paid as much as I do. As an experiment one semester (with his department head's permission), a friend of mine offered on the first day of a Junior level required class (quantitative analysis) the option of each student taking a C- but never attending class again or attending class and receiving the grade they earned through study and effort. 13 of his 30 students took the C-. They just wanted the class credit (since it was a course known to require some thought/work). He's at a good business school on a prominent university's campus (not top 20, but AACSB accredited and well respected).

F the supervisor. CC's approve or disapprove PTDY. Submit your paperwork to your CC and if he asks, tell him you have not signed a lease, etc.

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This is a very true statement, but don't have any delusions - you're not one of them. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I have nothing to add, other than another data point. I just went over 17 yrs active service, but am seriously considering going reserves and trying for the airlines now. I'd be turning down a healthy retirement, but three years is still three years. I don't know if I can follow the dipshits they put in charge these days. But the AF will be fine, my 3700 rated hours will be replaced by someone else with 200-ish. Nothing lost.

Lol. I like this guy. He's funny. Fighter pilots trying to be popular? Air Force founded upon company men? Core value speech aimed at people worried fundamentally about the future viability of our force in general? More posts please!

Great learning opportunity indeed. To the new co's/lt's or anyone who's considering a career in the Air Force: take a look around on this forum. By and large, you'll find examples of attitudes which, if you make the mistake of emulating, will not bode well for your career. Oh sure, you'll make friends, and you'll probably be popular in your social cliques at work. But the truth of the matter is that being cool and having all that swagger -- really, rebelling against your employer, more or less -- is not what being an officer is all about. Yes, you can be a pilot and a good officer at the same time. You can even be a really good pilot while being a really good officer. At some point you will be expected to be a company man, particularly if you ever want to experience command (of people, not just a jet). The Air Force doesn't require you to be popular. Follow the core values, and set the example for your peers and those below you. "Service before self"... really think about what that means. Does it mean you get to focus totally on flying, and leave all that other officer stuff to lesser people? No, it doesn't, particularly in the fiscal environment our nation finds itself in. Before you complain and moan about how you're getting screwed, take a moment and dig deep... is this even supposed to be about you the individual? What does "serving your country" even mean, if it must be on your preconceived terms? A lot of these guys are poor examples to follow. Don't just blindly follow the advice of the popular guy. Think for yourself, consistently do the right thing, and be a good leader. Do these things and you should do great. And now for some more snark from the peanut gallery...

I'm calling it. GC is is ILS. ILS is most likely a AFPC officer that was butt hurt about not getting a rated slot out of his commissioning source. Now he finally has a chance for his "wings" and is sipping the blue kool aid a little to much. Being in AFPC he has plenty of time to post on here while he takes his 2 hour lunch and works a few hours a day.

Pretty sure he Googled his name and found this thread... Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

Sparkdiggety is Adam... Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

Copy all; problem is it's awfully hard to find civilian schools where true critical thinking is happening. I can only speak to the history side, but in current-day academia, what passes for critical thinking is figuring out how to take a historical event--no matter what the event is--and turn it into race/class/gender/sexuality narrative. Not many schools out there with military historians who actually do operational mil history. Good on ya' for reading Tooze, btw--I'm still bitter at him for not writing a good conclusion chapter. Regarding ACTS, the bottom line is this: the majority of the faculty in the mid-30s were fighter pilots, and the vast majority of the students were fighter pilots, too. A substantial number of instructors and students were graduates of ivy league schools; Hal George forewent the opportunity to clerk for a Supreme Court justice to become a pilot. Grandison Gardner had a master's from MIT. Leon Johnson (he was just a student, not instructor) had a master's from Cal Tech. I could go on. Possum Hansell had a master's in mechanical engineering from Georgia Tech. He entered ACTS as a fighter pilot--he was even part of Chennault's demo team--and graduated a diehard bomber advocate. Bottom line, despite being outnumbered, the bomber mafiosos somehow still got everyone to buy into the notion of unescorted HAPDB doctrine. Either the fighter instructors--which included future four-stars Vandenberg and Partridge--couldn't argue their way out of wet paper sack, or (more plausibly) the bomber guys made some pretty darn good arguments. If you're really interested, Conrad Crane just came out with a new book, American Airpower Strategy in World War II: Bombs, Cities, Civilians, and Oil. I haven't read it yet; it'll probably screw up everything I know about WW II strategic bombing. TT

Just because you don't understand whats going on in his pictures doesn't mean he's misrepresenting himself. He's a stand up guy.

As to your early examples of CSAFs, a lot has changed in 60 years. The structure of the military is entirely different, the way we wage war is different (air, land & sea vs air, land, sea, cyber & space), and the world has changed. These require our leaders become educated, there's more to leading military than tactical prowess, eventually one needs to learn to operate as higher levels by building on their tactical knowledge. Yes we overeducate our leaders in quantity but not in quality. Fewer high quality programs would be more valuable, ones that actually required significant effort but made the effort worth the time put in, and not cramming a 2 week course into 5. We need highly educated leaders but we need to max perform these education opportunities to return them to the operational front as soon as possible to leverage what they've learned not sit them on the side lines for 4-5 years.

You mean the comments from the masses on "Russia today" aren't overwhelmingly sympathetic and pro-us? shocking.

So what I'm hearing you say is you think you have found a place online but you're not quite sure. You have the place reserved but haven't signed the lease. Seems like PTDY is due. Take that shoe clerk!

Just for transparency, state quals/schools attended...? Not trying to be a smart ass or out you, trying to illustrate the point - because I think there are a lot of in-res IDE grads who would agree with your statements. The schools could be a hell of a lot more. Myself included. But to your specific point, would leaving the mass unaware and uneducated be the right alternative? Is more civilian schooling the right avenue of attack then, or merely less military-institutions? What does that get you? There is a difference between the haves and the have-nots, which is why the AF invests in the mid career schooling in many forms. I'm on the leadership-receiving end of inbound personnel right now. Education, in its many forms, is actively sought - be it WIC, IDE, SAASS, even high-end degrees in your Masters/undergrad, etc. They're looked at and considered, something that took me a little by surprise to be honest. I still believe we could do much better when it comes to getting our force educated... But no schooling is not the answer. Chuck

All these schools, what a waste of time/resources to pull an operator away for a year. We have leadership that can't lead, procure, strategize, manage resources etc. I'd abolish every school we have as they are self-licking ice cream cones of mediocrity.

Ok, a couple of you appear upset, but for the young guys on this forum, I'll state a similar message to my post on the SOS/ACSC board, then pull up my tent stakes on this issue. Our Air Force is honorable, lethal, and excellent. It is an organization that many in society would kill to be a part of. Some members of this forum have thrown that opportunity down the tubes during an emotional event. If you decide to leave, make sure you do it for the right personal reasons. The future opportunities in our AF will be incredible. You will be personally, monetarily, and professionally satisfied and rewarded. Get excited and be a part of it. It's your future.

Ah, the 'ole argument by homosexual reference. 60% of the time, it works every time. Classy.

You're projecting again. What is it with you F-16... excuse me, ahem... "Viper" pilots?