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Be delegating responsibility to the squadrons. There is no reason for waivers or approvals to require an O-6 approval. Let Commanders be commanders, give them the power to run things the way they see fit, tell them the only reason to bother the O-6 is if they need something, and get rid of all the pointless meetings (most of which can be accomplished with an email).

I feel ya. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Fuck yeah...that’s about the only thing that will matter to anyone when they’re having a beer on their porch at age 69, unless they were a careerist douche, then they’re drinking zima on their porch alone, lamenting “their” staff job they never got. There are lots of bros who probably should have been given a DFC, etc., but what went down was glossed over as “just doing their job.” The good, and even the bad, memories are all that matter in the end, not what job was held, school attended, or even airframe flown. Here’s to wiping shitbags off the face of this earth!

A story from the U-28 within AFSOC. The U-28 flies more combat hours annually than every other AFSOC MWS combined. This was brought up for bullet writing on OPR/PRF and the Bob said that those hours are “different” and “don’t count as much” as a CV-22 guy. Also, the U-28 community hasn’t been around long enough to get a purebred Sq/CC (about to change) and above. As such, it’s natural for the single engine doctor plane with some sensors on it to be pushed to the side in favor of AC/MC-130 or CV-22 people. Additionally, not a single DFC has been rewarded to a U-28 aircrew member. There are many, many missions where Draco crews have done outstanding work to save friendlies on the ground and some fantastic work in the counter VEO fight, but no DFC. Reason? “They’re just doing their job”. This includes the most meritorious military sortie of the entire year in the entire Air Force (https://www.afsoc.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/2020763/u-28a-draco-crew-receives-2018-mackay-trophy/). During that same time, over 2 dozen AC-130 crew members were awarded DFC’s (https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2018/05/14/distinguished-flying-crosses-awarded-to-23-ac-130-crew-members/). Those guys absolutely deserved to be recognized for their awesome job on the referenced missions. However, it’s just an interesting comparison. I think a big part of the lack of Draco recognition comes from classification of certain missions, but it’s still unfortunate. U-28 people get school and other jobs, but there is definitely a outsider feel to the community. I don’t have a quantifiable comparison, unfortunately. However, the mission satisfaction and impact you get to have against some really bad people is amazing.

Gotta give that DP to the next 1-below. Don't worry, he's got it. AF never gets it wrong. PS - Retirement fucking rules.

The MAF has always had boner for T-Tail airlifters in leadership positions. The running joke at the KC-135 FTU was if you’re the #1 tanker guy in the wing, you were #15 guy in the wing behind all the C-17 drivers. Getting rid of Phoenix programs would be a positive in the MAF.

Eh, Lando is way more fun.

‘Mildenhall model’, if approved, is doing away with the groups, creating a pseudo A-staff under the wing, and moving some maintenance back into the ops squadron. It’s basically what I saw in the Navy for 15 years, and it does have goods and bads, but if it pushes some waiver authority and go/no-go decisions to the SQ/CC level, it’ll be a really good thing.

With the elimination of BTZ, there will be more slots for both IPZ and APZ (As I understand it, with the goal of eventually meshing those two into a single multi-year zone). I don't have insider info and thankfully have never been an exec but I would wager there will be a lot more APZ picked up this board across the rated categories with a marginal increase in APZ in the non-rated categories. I'm IPZ for this board as well....DP on my 1-below to O-5, didnt get picked up. P on my IPZ PRF. So I got that going for me....

Weird how the Navy/USMC can figure out a way to not have 6-9 middle men in every organization, and the squadron COMMANDER commands real authority, yet the Air Force thinks it is impossible. We are such a bloated organization. It’s ridiculous how many random organizations there are that shouldn’t exist/be independent entities, and only exist to create another useless billet for “command.”

This. Phoenix is an absolute waste of talent management. If you are an expert in your craft (and you don’t need to go to the WIC to be so), you can probably figure out how to run the mobility machine without flying “other” missions.

I’m curious on your use of the term grift when the VA, through comp and pen exams, determines what, if any compensation to be awarded for anything claimed. Either they award it, they don’t, or if you claimed it under false pretenses and they awarded it, they can investigate you and possibly file federal charges for defrauding the government. This isn’t claiming an expense under $75 on a travel voucher with no review or audit. There’s a review conducted and they determine if you are to be compensated or not. Even if you’re awarded any disability payments, those are subject to review whenever the VA chooses. You can use your uncles scenario all you want, but he didn’t award his own rating, nor was he accountable for conducting a review of his rating over the years. Is it an imperfect system? Yeah, much like everything else in the government.

Nah, the flexibility to leave if I want is worth more than $20k a year, even in the current jobs environment. That should tell the AF something about its climate. (Yeah, I know it won’t actually.)

BLUF: hell yes, it's a fighter pilot's Air Force. By Pawnman's logic, MAF pilots (& CSOs even more so) should be running the Air Force, due to how "overmanned" the community is/has been. Obviously, the AF overstates MAF manning--ask any tanker or airlift bubba from the past decade or two how overmanned their flying units really were, relative to OPSTEMPO--but being on the right side of the AF's "Red Line/Blue Line" charts should give MAF folks a huge advantage when it comes to career development opportunities. I have no experience and few special insights into the RPA community, but in talking with some friends, this is likewise true with the 18Xs. Plenty of 18Xs who've done their time in ops units, who could fill CAF staff billets, but they're not allowed to do so, because that would give them too much of a career advantage. BTW, the historical record backs up my personal experience: fighter pilots running the Air Force is old news. Fighter, attack, pursuit, or observation (read single-seat) pilots led the Air Force and its antecedents (Army Air Service, Army Air Corps, Army Air Forces) from the air arm's establishment in the First World War until the first born-and-bred bomber pilot--Gen John Ryan took over in 1969. Fighter pilots took control of the service again in 1982, when fighter pilot Gen Charles Gabriel took over. So for the past century or so, fighter pilots have been running the Air Force for all but about 17 years (1969-1982, as discussed above; and 2008-2012--when Norty Schwartz, a SOF pilot, ran the service). Schwartz only got the job because SecDef Gates fired Buzz Moseley over the fighter pilot's all-too valid advocacy for buying substantially more F-22s. Note: I don't include Curt LeMay (CSAF from '61 to '65) as a bomber pilot, because he spent the first 8 years of his career flying fighters. It is still very much a fighter pilot's Air Force, with predominantly fighter pilot senior leaders taking care of their own tribe. TT

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I agree some people milk the system, that’s inevitable. But I’ve known a few dudes who were 90-100% that looked able bodied. However, they’re all getting hip and knee replacements in the next few years, as well as spinal surgery to replace buldged disks and to fuse vertebrae. YMMV. Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

https://clearedjobs.net/job/instructor-pilot-a-29-super-tuscano-fighter-san-antonio-texas-477430

Meet the new bonus, it's like the old bonus of 25K, except it says FY21. I have no idea, but I have the pitchfork and torch market cornered.

JFC that pisses me off. Reminds me of my last PT test where there were 15 people and somehow 13 of them were on profiles. The only two healthy enough to test were me and another pilot. Shocking.

I agree with you on this, but the AF should've done this 10 years ago, when the first indications of a shortage were showing. But it didn't, putting us where we are now. Now, to give those opportunities, means taking a body from an operational unit because the shortage has gotten that bad. Can't even rob the MAF pilot pool anymore to at least get a pilot body in a staff seat that once was held by a CAF pilot. Same with non-flying deployments. MyVector is a step in the right direction. I was initially planning on just finding another flying assignment, and accepting that retiring as a major was a real possibility. Basically I had no desire to go to Scott and not fly in return for a miniscule increase in promotion opportunity. However, after some talks with my CC, I dug deeper in MyVector and found some staffs I didn't know about or think I'd have a shot at going to, and applied. I ended up getting my #2 choice, and going to work somewhere I thought I'd never have the opportunity to go to based on my DT vector. Pilot bonus up to $35K for most initial eligible pilots is another step in the right direction (even though RAND says it should be roughly $48K to really affect retention). So the ship is turning in the right direction, or at least starting to, but I fear it's too late, and the AF has just accepted the next 5-10 years are going to suck until it can produce it's way out of the problem.

Shack. Aircrew (not just pilots) are the war fighters of the AF. Could you immagine an Army staff with 0 infantry, armor or artillery expereince. A lot of people disdain staff but in all honesty some people really love and thrive in it. For the first time in your military career you get to think big picture/strategic and you can help shape some very large plans across an Enterprise. Definitely not for everyone but for the people that are beat to death from being line IPs year in and out, it offers a welcome change of pace with a new an enhanced skill set. Is it for everyone? Probably not. But when has reducing the number of oppurtunities in a career field ever helped that career field thrive. We need to keep doors open not close them. The pilot retention crisis isnt about people wanting staff, not wanting staff, not wanting RPAs, wanting more UPT jobs, whatever.... The key thread to all of this is that it's really about people wanting a wide array of oppurtunities and a slight a bit of control to vector themselves to where their own interest lie.

Think big picture Joint level. It saddens me to see Force Support O5 working FMS cases or non-pilots reciting buzzwords about weapon systems to Joint planners and Foreign partners. Our international allies look to us for expert advice, do you really want non-pilots spew bullshit to these allies? We need experienced and knowledgeable rated guys at the Joint level!

Couple month trip to the sandbox and some tax free income or 18 years of responsibility for another person and all the hardships that come with children. Unsat on SA/Decision making. Please, get prego and stay home if that’s how you make decisions, I don’t want you anywhere near me in a combat zone.

LOL, comments are turn off for the youtube video, but the comments on the article are great. One poster instantly jumps to the "she was pregnant because she was raped," card. You know, because the only way girls in the military get pregnant is through rape... Total hit job, and she's not wrong. She's right that it's just a small portion of people, but it's not just women. A Chief friend is deployed right now and, just in the last week, has had 7 people fall out of their deployments. One girl has already been extended almost 3 months as the 4th replacement just fell off for one reason or another. We had a NCO that has been in for nearly 20 years and has NEVER deployed. She finally gets told she has to deploy and turns into a total train wreck because, "she can't be away from her kids that long." Guess who didn't deploy due to a sudden onset of migraines about a month before deployment... I'm continually amazed at the number of unplanned pregnancies and new found ailments that miraculously pop up just prior to a deployment. Edit: Just chatted with my Chief buddy. He said one of his sections only has 19 people and in that section alone (just in the last week), 5 people fell out of their deployment.

Nope, they've been the "Silver Arrows" since rejoining F1 in 2010-ish. Which is an homage to their original Silver Arrows of the 1930s. The cars were the familiar silver/black/turquoise in pre-season testing. They proudly announced they went full "woke" with the new paint job. Because virtue signaling...

B courses have been cut down for years, and yes, the general product has lagged behind preceding years. Lots of kicking the can down the road to the CAF. So, it’s the entire AETC pipeline that’s a problem, not just one part. It’s also not as much the tactical employment part that is concerning, it’s the general airmanship that’s alarming (decision making, risk mitigation, SA, basic flying tasks like instrument approaches, etc.) As I’ve said before, the naturally strong swimmers persevere and overcome quickly, but the average guys lag the fight and it takes way too many “concerning” flight hours until you have a reasonable amount of faith they’re not going to kill themselves or someone else. This is a common viewpoint amongst the experienced members in the CAF. I’m not speculating on what happened at SW or LN, but I won’t be surprised if this type of stuff is a CF, yet is summarily ignored and swept under the rug by “leadership.” Now for you ACC (that’s right, you’re not innocent in this), the quality/quantity of training is bullshit. When I was a LT-young Capt in the viper, I got about 269 hrs/yr in training (not accounting for any combat hours). I now see the same aged guys (who have had alarmingly less AETC training than I got) get 40-50% less flying. Our sims are also dumpster fires. The mission complexity and difficulty has increased significantly over this same time period. You want us to do something well beyond combing the desert (and not finding shit), get fucked! Organize, train, and equip...how do you think you’re doing ACC? Maybe some serious introspection is on order. And I haven’t even had my first beer today...time to go fish and lower my blood pressure. (“You’re cool” directed at the bros executing the training mission)