Leaderboard

You’re missing the point. It’s not about efficient use of taxpayer money. It’s about feeding the beast that is the Defense Industrial Complex. It’s not about winning wars, it’s a jobs program... too big to fail.

Completely disagree. When a new pilot or nav would get to my last Sq out of IQT, they would feel immediate pressure to saturate themselves in everything non-flying. Gotta find bullets for that OPR, and flying could only be 2-3 of them. They also got speeches from Sq leadership about how your wings don’t matter, it’s about being an officer. Meanwhile, they have very limited flying and training opportunities to fly and get better. They get pulled off the line for a week at a time to look at urinating penises, and other stimulating additional duties. Most were shocked at how little flying matters in a flying squadron. Maybe things are better in your neck of the AF. I truly hope so.

I know a dude who volunteered to come back (he's probably on here). He was twice passed over for Lt Col and took the 15 year retirement as a Major. He's been flying for the airlines for around 4 years now. He volunteered to come back for a 3 year tour and AFPC's response was "we're only taking pilots who retired at 20 years at this time". LOL. Personally, I think they did him a favor.

Very telling that a “what’s right with the AF” thread quickly sank into stories of what’s wrong. The organization is broken, and no one below O-6 is causal. Some are contributing.

The axe is still there. Probably because MX doesn't have to inspect it.

So, AMC standard?

His entire post is par for his anal spelunking career. The entire thing is right out of AF PME.... Step 1. Relate to your audience: “while I consider myself a pretty salty major”. Bullshit...salty majors don’t cry when they’re not a first look school select. Nor do they tell me to zip my flight suit pocket the day I get back from recon after a 6 month deployment. Step 2. Tow the party line: “I would challenge all of us to do some introspection and stop poisoning the well when we talk to the up and coming pilots.” GFY, you didn’t come to this conclusion, the brass at the top dropped that down your gullet like free shots at the Blue Oyster. Also, only GOs use the word “introspection”...not heroes like us with masters from Trident/Toro/TUIU/whatever they are now to keep them in business. (We all know the best schools change their name to maintain accreditation.) Step 3. Boast to the world how awesome you are. “Hey Pilot Network, I just sat down with the CSAF. Everyone look at me and how I just sucked my way to Sq/CC!” I would love to read that OPR bullet.

If they bought the jets they’d still have no pilots to fly them. The contractors utilize ex-military pilots which frees up the smaller number of AF guys to train and focus on their tactical proficiency. If they did try to purchase jets, you’d be talking an even larger burden on UPT to grow the 11F ranks in order to fill cockpits. We’re already seeing the strain and cuts to UPT in order to boost production just to man the jets we already have.

I did look at them, all the time. While much of what we do is archived in our final reports and outbriefs, there was still a lot of mission info that resided in those emails. I constantly got questions about details that I could find in those emails, but now they're gone. But not my problem, it was the government's responsibility to maintain those archives and now they've lost them. I guess if Hillary could get away with it, they felt they could as well...

Yes, I always assumed my username was a not particularly subtle clue as to my post-AF career path. My industry is prone to booms and busts as well but I don't see any scenario where I end up back in blue at this point. I just thought it was odd to get a call in June 2018 after I got out in early 2013.

From RAF Banter .... If the Americans had to drop the A-Bomb in the 21st century...

3! Cannot agree more. I always had to remind myself Queep will never kill you, but the aircraft will....quickly. Prioritize accordingly. Because of my prioritization, I'm now teaching UPT (an idea I used to abhor) and really enjoying it.

Once you realize the DoD exists to spend the taxpayers money, EVERYTHING makes sense.

Yeah but let’s not forget the generation gap. Face it, a lot of young guys are millennial p-ssies. I had a young guy telling me how bad life as a new guy for some addt’l work he was assigned, I had to explain to him that having to talk to retired pilots about new aircraft technology that took up his xbox free time wasn’t the same as constant deploying then TDY plus the myriad of other crap that jaded my generation. Bottom line, I crush young guys when they complain because they are too inexperienced and stupid to know any better.

Do tell more

Sounds like the SASC/congress should shit on the AF leadership that shits on this non dual status idea and make it fkng happen. 2k pilots short, getting worse over the next few years, with retention being the biggest unsolved issue. Seems like an easy fix to retain talent in key positions where talent is required.

My, how things have changed since I left McChord.../sarcasm. Yet another prime example of why I hope to never return to AMC. Edit: Hope the new blood can get away from the ball and chain more.

New LTs at UPT were already saying “this is the coolest job in he world! Too bad the AF sucks and I will be getting out in 10 years” as soon as they showed up. No one was saying that 10 years ago when I went through UPT. LTs are dumb, but they aren’t stupid.

The ARC can’t even get guys to fly blue air as a GS-13. How will you find all these pilots to fly red? Also, the T-X needs a radar, jammers, etc to be adequate.

Oh good. Another data point for the CSAF that “it’s not about the money.” Could we as a union agree to stop shooting our own feet?

Yeah, I respect said dude that made the post, but’s he’s off the mark there. Telling LTs about the AF screwing up RIFs, VSPs, promotions, squadron manning (I.e MAF crew ratio reduction) isn’t poisoning the well is valuable education albeit mostly negative. However, there’s an easy solution for this, if the Air Force doesn’t like us passing on the screw ups to the younger generations, stop fucking screwing up on a perpetual basis!

With some of the very people responding, I have heard them talk about how the ship is sinking and the efforts to stop it have been pitiful. Put them on a Facebook page full of Sq, Gp and Wg commanders and leadership and they start talking about how “pretty darn good” things are. I am at a point where I don’t blame leadership anymore, I blame the idiot O-3s and O-4s who know how bad things are but would rather gain political capital by jerking off people in positions of perceived power.

I'll see your domesticated animals and raise you a bear. Buffy was a Malaysian Sun Bear that was donated to the 40th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron by Laotian pilots following a rescue. Buffy was hand raised, drank beer, and wrestled with the pilots daily. There was even a duty position in the squadron at NKP called the BCO or Bear Control Officer. Following the ending of the Vietnam War, the aircrew arranged for Buffy to be donated to the St Louis Zoo in 1973.

Whichever SRIDs didn't properly read submission rules should be hand slapped and publicly tagged as an idiot. Probably AMC. Amirite?

That is because AMC doesn't value dudes who are good leaders that are excellent, mission focused pilots. Being the #1 IP in an AMC wing will get you a cheap looking trophy. Being the #1 FGO in an AMC wing gets you a fancy medal at the awards ceremony with a pretty good shot at "the path."

I don’t know why it’s so hard to just say “we had an idea to try and make things better and we fvcked it all up. Sorry guys, we will do better next time” and then fix it and move on.

Pretty sure it was posted pages back as well. My RUMINT (same as here, but different source) was there wasn't a good enough scrub by CC's/SR's and individuals who should have been auto-non-recommended were still sent up as DP/P. So SAF/HAF had to scrub them all because CC's/SR's didn't "do their job." Apparently, like we're doing with school and the rest now, SR's are supposed to be the arbiters of good/bad news...which is fine with me. Ya'know...leadership. Now, whether those CC's/SR's got that guidance was not made clear to me. But given how we're all confused over what's different this time vs. every year before it...I'd guess not.

Anybody else get the email from the AFPC 2-Star? He sent it out to all the Wing Commanders and outright LIES about the reason the board was delayed. He says it was due to a higher number of eligibles. Funny how just a 5% higher eligibility will extend a board by 4 months. Just goes to show that few senior leaders will just tell the truth and fess up when they screw up. Of course no one is gonna hold anyone accountable.

I'm currently TDY for something like 55 days and I'm staying at a motel that costs $93 a night... I just got the AmEx platinum card that gives you $600 in free points if you put $5k on it in the first 3 months. 55 x $93 = $5115; perfect!!!!! Who needs a GTC!

I always wondered what would happen if people stopped jumping through their asses to get orders. Just do nothing, and when your DEROS is up or whatever and you don't have orders, you stay an extra week while the FSS gets fucked by some O6s.