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You're not going to like what I have to tell you, but if you take it to heart, it will help you in the future. Your attitude is 100% the opposite of what it should be. You need to debrief yourself on why you came up short. I'm willing to show you how, but only you can take the steps required to make it count. I can guarantee that you will never, ever hear a CAF pilot say "why can't I catch a break?" in a debrief. If you ever hear a MAF pilot say that, punch him in the face and tell him to fix himself. Asking a question like that is a way of absolving yourself of ownership of the situation. You are the only one who can control your performance, which means that you need to figure out why you failed to reach your goal, strike your target, execute your airdrop, or get hired by a squadron. A good debrief is the most important part of any sortie. It's an opportunity to actually learn lessons, rather than just observe them, in order to be better next time. Doing that requires brutal honesty, and often requires admitting and owning your failures and shortcomings in front of your peers. You don't have to do that yet, since this is a personal exercise, but realize that if you're going to be a successful AF pilot, you should be the type of person who can put his ego on the shelf and take a good honest look at his performance, good and bad. Learning from a debrief usually starts with a question, called a DFP or debrief focus point. Your DFP is NOT "why can't I catch a break?". Instead, your DFP is really "why wasn't I good enough (in the eyes of the only people who matter, i.e. the ones hiring you) to land the job this time around?". That is the question that will drive your future actions and spur you to be better if you can fix it. Once you have your DFP, identify your contributing factors, or CFs. No one knows these better than you. What are your weak points? Maybe you stayed up too late drinking before the interview, or maybe your grades weren't very good in college. How much flight time do you have? Is it less than your peers who are also applying? Remember, the people you're competing against are shit hot, top-1%-of-Americans kind of people. If you have 45 hours and a PPL under your belt but they all have 200 hours and an instrument rating, then this could be a contributing factor to the overall outcome. I realize that you don't know everything about everyone else, but you know what the weaker areas of your application are. List out 3-4 of them, ideally ones that you can improve upon moving forward. Step three: identify a root cause. Usually, there's one CF that's more important than the others, which led directly or indirectly to the chain of events that caused mission failure. What is your biggest shortcoming? Put yourself in the shoes of the hiring board - what part of your application would cause you to look at other applicants rather than snatching yourself (sts) up right away? Usually in aviation, everything can be done better the next day. That might not be the case for you - your college GPA is probably pretty set in stone, for example. However, there are always things that can be done to improve your application and, more importantly, yourself. That leads straight to the fourth and final step: the fix. What can you do to improve your odds next time around? What concrete actions can you take to prevent that root cause from holding you back in the next interview? Map it out on a piece of paper and post it somewhere where you'll see it often. Use this framework anytime you fail and you'll find yourself succeeding more and more. No pilot has ever flown a perfect sortie, but the good ones work hard to get a little bit closer the next time around.

It’s awfully quiet here. Republicans keep the senate while Dems take the house. The house will do everything in its’ power to get rid of Trump while tripping over themselves while Trump has guaranteed himself another Supreme Court pick when RBG bites the dust thanks to the senate. Here in Texas there is hardly any “blue wave,” as some would wish. Let the 2020 blood bath begin.

My sortie got canx’d and I’m bored, no pics of boobs on my phone but hoping if I restart this 6.9yr old thread maybe some of you have additions. Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

YMMV then as with everything, I guess. NAS Jax has always had a good flying club with strong support from base leadership.

Really dude? You're trying to get into an hyper-competitive job, had an actual Air Force pilot write out a detailed game plan of how to approach the situation, and this is your answer? Frankly, as someone who's competing against you, I'd be pleased if more of the competition had this attitude. I'd get more interview invites, for one. I know it's difficult. Maybe you're just venting to us, but I don't think this is the place for that.

Isn't that the whole purpose of jail? It's not suppose to be a fucking vacation resort that people want to go to!

This is where I sit as a prospective reservist: AFOQT November 2013 (attempted to go active duty) Interview: February 10, 2018 hired within 1 week MEPS: June 6, 2018 FC1: September 3-8, 2018 Board: November 14, 2018 OTS/UPT Dates ??? An age waiver got approved sometime in there... Will update once I know more.

I would have thought that would be obvious.

It is unfair. Life is unfair. Its by no means an insult to say that maybe you aren't right for the job. I might not be. I have no doubt that as a pilot I could fly fighters as effectively as any of them, but I also know that my own personality contrasts those of many fighter squadron pilots, and that could be a reason why I never get selected, if that is my fate. So what if its unfair? If a job you've never done (and therefore aren't certain you would like) is so central to your identity and existence, thats a problem. If you wanted to join a particular fraternity, but nobody would sponsor you and none of them would give you a bid, it could very well be that you wouldn't choose to be with them either, if the roles were switched. Maybe don't turn so much of your life's happiness in something which, in the end, you cannot fully control...

Seriously, just don't go to some gucci ass school with new 172s and G1000s. Get into a 152 like everyone else did. (I have never flown the 152 because my IPs as a kid were all HUGE)

I had to meet with the cops on mine, you get to learn alot about what you never want to learn. Oh, and most people aren't completely dishonest, just a little bit.

Great, solid answer. I feel like I just sat thru an initial IPUG ride. Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

@FDNYOldGuy thank you for the encouragement! @Flying Pillows I've probably had 15 no's at this point, but all it takes is one yes! Keep at it. Good advice around here.

+1 on the offer for help. I'm no expert, I never sent packets or interviewed with fighters (interviewed with 2 heavies and got offers for both) ,and just another soul starting off on this adventure, but I'll certainly put my .02 in for feedback on a packet, if anyone wants more eyes on it. Don't get disheartened. You're vying for a very coveted job and competition is fierce, but we can always improve and keep plugging away. It'll happen when/with whom it's supposed to!

It'll happen man. Just keep improving that application packet, look for little ways to improve its appearance, the content, etc - just little things that help it stand out. Maybe look at ways to improve your interactions at meetups as well if that's a factor. I was feeling exactly the same way, it really sucks until it doesn't. Have you had any interviews or have you been getting shot down before that point? There's also plenty of folks (including myself) who'd be happy to take a look at your application and give you feedback. I shared mine with a few people who were super helpful.

I have nothing constructive to add other than we're on page 69. Nice.

Just had my first interview this weekend, find out in a couple weeks. Wish me luck everybody! Congrats, that’s awesome!

Shaft showed me around the airplane earlier this year at an airshow he was at. I was impressed at how clean they were. Sure looks like a great gig for someone that loves flying a tough mission and doing something very rewarding.

This is why splitting AFSCs on promotion boards would be helpful. It prevents flyers from having to compete with guys who are sitting or graduated squadron commanders in the same year group.

The callsign issue was a smaller part of something bigger. No one was fired over that one thing, if you read my previous posts there is more to the story which will be release after the UCMJ actions take place and the CDI results are released. I’m saying this because a lot of people keep focusing on the one issue thinking that way they were fired. It’s not. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My favorite part is we spend all our time on here complaining about piss-poor leadership. Then whenever leadership is removed for cause, there's always a brigade of people calling the guy who got removed "the best commander I ever worked for" and saying "it wasn't the commander, it was his subordinates". I wonder which leadership the board actually thinks deserves to be removed. Because if this is the kind of environment guys are cheering for...holy hell, what's left to remove someone that the salty aviators of BODN would actually agree with?

Wait, you let them drive? Bold move Cotton...

You might be the “best” person in the world, but if you support murdering babies in the womb and allowing anyone and everyone to pour over our southern border and be welcomed with open arms, I could never vote for you. It says something about your morals. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I don't get it.

The only person responsible for this tragedy is the sick motherfcuker who pulled the trigger. Big Blue contributed by incompetence, but doesn't bear ultimate responsibility. I also don't necessarily want SAF/CSAF fired now unless there is a chain of firings from lowest to highest. THAT might get some attention and put lasting pressure on folks to do their job AND be judged by job performance. But, now that both the HASC and SASC have weighed in to grab some political attention, you can bet some senior heads (er, yes...) will roll. Because, you know, do something... BTW, I, as a gun owner am not responsible for this tragedy. Neither are the millions upon millions of legal, responsible gun owners in this country. I do want to, you know, do something, because... It is ultimately about control. Those who want to blame me want to assert their control. I'm agin that.

Laws against shooting others as in murder. Check. Laws against using a firearm in the commission of a felony. Check. Laws against felons obtaining/possessing firearms. Check. Laws mandating felony convictions put entered into FBI's NCIS database. Check. Big Blue f'ing this up. Check. So, to some the solution is more government. The same government that can't do this. Sick fcuk, abusing his wife and his infant. Now this. Rot in hell, you motherfcuker. I also hope that Big Blue is named as a defendant in a giant civil case as being negligent and culpable and the families get huge dollars. I also hope OSI pogues and Holloman leaders in place at the time draw, at a minimum, career-ending paperwork. Those who are supposed to audit such processes as well. Do your fcukin' job, morons.

I don’t leave home without my carry weapon. Only exception is if I am going somewhere that has a metal detector or I know I am getting checked. I made the choice a long time ago signs/retarded rules are not going to get me killed. I would rather deal with concealing a firearm illegally/against a establishments rules and saving my family than watching my family be killed. Each to their own, it’s a personal choice, and I know the potential consequences.

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Well, I was picked up by the 148FW. This forum has been an absolute staple in helping me along the way. As a non-prior enlisted dude, I felt like a fish out of water most of the time. So, thank you everyone for all the help that has been poured into this awesome site!!! Feel free to PM me if you guys/gals have any questions at all. I want to be able to give as much back as I can.

Who said this egregious shit?

Don't feel like searching 50 pages of post but I feel these a applicable to said video.