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I can provide some insight on the J carbon brake and AMAX data as I have been involved with both. I can also provide POCs at Lockheed for the test pilot roadshow if you want to PM me. RE: Carbon brakes. USAF completed their own testing without LM involvement, and their goals did not include assessing stopping performance differences. They were only looking at form/fit/function and mx perspective. Testing was on an E model and USAF cleared the carbon brake mod on all models. On the J, they discovered that cold brakes couldn't hold against TO power. Oops. I think a workaround has been created for that. A few other J operators completed their own testing, so I'm not sure if LM has sufficient data to update all TOLD. The primary benefit is extra brake energy capacity which would eliminate many of the brake energy limitations if implemented in in the performance manual. RE: AMAX climbout data. LM does have this data. I have been pushing to add it to our C-130J preTOLD app as a low-cost option and major benefit for operators. Unfortunately can't get into the details of those discussions, but I'm still pushing. LM owns all J aircraft data since it was originally a commercial development effort. RE: BUFF re-engining. Not involved with this, but my experience with engine upgrades (C-130J, C-5M, NP2000 props) tells me that more thrust should only be considered if current performance is thrust-limited over a large part of the envelope. More thrust drives a lot of other major changes - pylon structure, directional controls, stability margins, VMCs, etc. - and blows up the project scope. Primary benefits are fuel efficiency, digital controls, mx reduction, better access to parts/spares, etc.

Holy shit dude, read the Israeli study, listen to professionals from places like John Hopkins, etc.

Deadline to apply is today!! Best of luck to all in getting those Apps in on time!

Criminally underreport? How do you know that? Illegally funding gain of function with tax money in a foreign country to hide from congress then lying to congress is an example of real criminally under reporting. We just received an email that the COVID tests we’ve been using for high schoolers (in Florida) are recalled due to inordinately high false positives. Is anyone going back in time to subtract all those false positives? No. This whole thing is bullshit. In a real pandemic you don’t spend all this time and effort trying to convince people a pandemic is happening. It’s apparent.

That’s how the guard works - no promotion past O-5 until you’ve been selected for an O-6 job. It generally helps keep the wrong people from weaseling their way into a job simply because they “have to go somewhere for their O-6 job” like on AD.

If I understand it correctly, you'd forfeit 1/30th of your retiree pay. As a reservist, a paycard is 1/30th of of your pay rate + flight pay, and you can log 2 of those per day. So based on my cursory understanding of the process, you'd make more money in the long run if you're talking just military money. Where you'd really lose out on money is missing stuff at the airline. As an example, when I was a 330 FO, I missed out on a 3 day GS that would have paid me $13k (including 401k), because I was a at drill. My drill check for that weekend was $1,500. Clearly and extreme example, but even now as 717 FO, I recently missed an easy 2 day GS that cost me ~$3,200. This is just GS opportunities, I'm not even talking dropped trips or reserve days that you'll have to do to work at the reserves. That stuff adds up fast! As someone who has done two jobs for the last 8 years, I can say, I've lost a ton of money for being in the Guard (cost of doing business). But more importantly, I've lost TONS of my free time and life on the outside...that's the truly painful part. I've talked with so many guys who've said their only regret was not getting out earlier and they can't believe how much free time they now have. I absolutely can not wait to get out and only have one job. If you want to teach, there are plenty of opportunities at DAL. You can be a sim instructor (paid min of 85 hours at whatever you can hold), if you don't mind living in ATL or commuting to the sims. If not, we have FOs who are part of the line check airmen cadre called LVPs...they do some instruction. Or you could get your civilian instructor ratings and teach at the local FBO on the side. I do this from time to time and find it quite enjoyable. Best of luck in whatever you choose. More than ever, the AF needs good IPs with lots of experience.

I’m a pretty center-of-mass Democrat/liberal that happily voted for Biden in the general election. I am happy with the way things are going for the most part. Biden wasn’t my first choice in the primary, Buttigieg was, but he wasn’t my last choice either. I wish he were about 15 years younger but oh well…I would support an upper-age limit on all federal public office of maybe 70 or 75 years old. I voted for Kerry/Obama/Hillary/Biden in my adult life for reference. I’d like to see the bipartisan infrastructure bill, the debt ceiling raise/elimination, and the “human infrastructure” / Build Back Better reconciliation bill passed here in October. If we fail to do those things that will be disappointing but I’m cautiously optimistic they’ll all happen in some form. I am happy with Biden’s COVID response, the American Rescue Plan bill passed in March, most of his appointments and his stewardship of our economic recovery from COVID. Also happy with ending our involvement in Afghanistan even if the pullout was ugly. Good riddance to that place. I spent a fair amount of time there personally and I don’t want to see any more American service members die there for no good reason. I’m in a guard squadron where almost everyone is very conservative and that’s totally fine. We all get along and have some lively debates from time to time while still executing the mission. Never had a problem with anyone due to politics either on active duty or while in the guard. Never questioned anyones competence or fitness for office solely based on their strong support for Trump or Biden or whomever. Happy to discuss more via DM or in person at the actual squadron bar; my days of debating folks here endlessly are done. Take it from me, it ain’t worth your time haha, I would know! 🍻

He was my squadron mate of mine at the time and a bunch of us were watching the final table online. We were cheering like a bunch of drunk college kids when he won. You absolutely love to see it. He did stay in at least for a while, I’ve kinda lost touch with him so now I have no idea long-term. To the OP, I would talk to your CC, the wing retention manager and the JAG as required. Don’t do anything stupid to get soft “kicked out.” If you’ve had a good career and enjoyed it and are just trying to move on despite a bonus-driven ADSC, work the process and don’t burn any bridges. It’s always a good time to do things the right way. If you’re crushing it in terms of outside talent and have a fantastic opportunity, I’m sure you’ll have similar opportunities when Uncle Sam does let you move on to greener pastures, hopefully sooner rather than later if the only hooks they have in you is money that you’re willing to pay back.

He was, almost...from Cannon of all places. https://www.worldpokertour.com/player/derrick-rosenbarger/#playerTab1

Reposted since it’s my current argument…and it’s only stronger after the Afghanistan embarrassment (which I also somewhat predicted as well when Biden in July was bragging about the competency of the Afghan military…though I didn’t think the collapse would happened nearly as fast as it did). So not only would we not do anything militarily to stop China, we’re so in bed with them economically that we don’t even want to piss them off with what we currently say/our current foreign policy. The entertainment industry is so in bed with China that they refuse to even recognize the atrocities committed by the CCP (but somehow the US is evil due to “systemic racism”) and also they (entertainment industry) refuse to recognize Taiwan as a sovereign nation. The MSM by and large also sweeps the atrocities committed by CCP under the rug when compared to the other nonsense our media focuses on (Trump collusion with Russia as one example). With all the above, I’m willing to bet that the American population by and large would not support military intervention if China goes into Taiwan…and they wouldn’t support a massive hit to our fragile economy due to the US imposing stiff penalties against China for doing so. In the end…I think China invades Taiwan NLT summer of 2024. The CCP isn’t dumb and they also realize everything I mentioned above—so why wait until a new administration potentially takes over in 2025 and the ballgame changes?

Agreed. Our losses if we intervened would be staggering. There’s no appetite. If the Chinese invade, we’d sit and watch while wringing our hands, just like we did when Ukraine was invaded by Russia.

If China were going to attack Taiwan, there’s never been a better time than now.

Same. Just my two guessing cents but I think it's even money that the PRC that they will begin actions / invade before or timed with the upcoming mid-terms. https://www.breitbart.com/asia/2021/10/01/record-38-chinese-pla-aircraft-enter-taiwans-air-defense-zone/ They're probing and testing responses, military-diplomatic-economic-informational, to gauge second order effects when they invade. How will the markets react, how will Western media react, how will third countries react, etc...

Any guesses on implications of Chinese military activity around Taiwan? I’ve never seen anything quite like it. if they were going to invade, which I’d always thought unlikely, there’s no better time. We just lost a war, no political appetite to pay the price of defending Taiwan militarily, etc. Perhaps it’s just harassment, but there’s no doubt the level of aggression is increasing. Open source article (which is lame) for context: https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/threat-china-invading-taiwan-growing-every-day-what-u-s-ncna1273386

And awoman.

Noted. They've got a lawful order. They can follow it, or they can get out. Those are the choices. And it's not about my promotion...it's about caring for the people I've been entrusted with, cadets who are smarter, more motivated, in better shape, and more creative than I ever was. Watching those people get punted before their career even starts, while watching a bunch of grown ass men weep about a vaccine that both my elderly step dad and my teenager took without bitching...well, that's what makes me upset. Hope your guys get the counseling they need to get through this.

I don’t have enough words to describe the amount of disgust I feel for you if you look at your fellow squadron members who are making the hardest decision of their life as a promotion opportunity for yourself. Your brain is broken for even thinking that way. As a senior leader, I have had grown men come to my office and completely break down. It’s heartbreaking to watch some of the most competent and loved informal leaders describe their position on these mandates. They have legitimate concerns based on personal factors.

Whose name did you check on the box? Don't excuse yourself from your decision. Energy independence is a bad thing? The media dismantled our credibility with its incessant "Trump-this" and "Trump-that." The constant falsehoods were laughable. Thoughts on the $3.5T spending plan which is actually going to cost closer to $5-5.5T? Oh wait, disregard, President Biden says it won't cost anything. My mistake. What do you mean is it worse now? I am being threatened with a dishonorable or other than honorable discharge from the Reserves after 15 sat years, 3 deployments, one to combat where I employed multiple times. I have multiple decorations but because I am hesitant to receive a vaccine that has been known to cause increased and more severe seizure activity in those diagnosed with epilepsy, like myself, I am going to get discharged adversely? That's interesting because it doesn't seem like it. MANDATED VACCINATIONS are being required or you will lose your job and ability to provide for you family - I also stand to lose my job as an fighter pilot instructor as a civilian if I don't get the vaccine. But sure, if that's how you feel... Feelings are what matter most, after all - Right? The path forward is recognizing that people who didn't take care of this caused this "pandemic." Now all the healthy people who make proper choices are being asked to subsidize their poor decisions. I'm sensing a theme with the party you voted for here... What happens when the trillionaires President Biden wanted to tax heavily, yes he said "trillionaires," and not billionaires like he, I assume he meant, become millionaires? What then defines millionaires? Is it net worth? Then when that old couple across the street who bought a house in San Diego in the '90s for $350k which is worth $7.5m in 2028 and have retired long ago on social security... Are they included too? Lines are easy to move once they're drawn... Is that right? From the side of the aisle that supports "science" but says a man can be a woman and vice versa or a million other things, simply based upon how that person feels? What if I And what you are referring to was blown massively out of proportion by the MSM. Or perhaps I'm a racist too because I don't believe in critical race theory even after having read the garbage put of by DiAngelo, White Fragility. We'll disagree on that, at least the part regarding our allegiances. We've hung ourselves with making what has always been good, now bad and vice versa and probably won't be able to come out of that unless we have a great Presidential prospect come 2024. But I agree, the left has accomplished their mission and has ended American Exceptionalism. Yeah, making everything that has made America great and making it wrong has worked really well - That makes for a brighter future. What 10-20 year plan? That statement sums it up perfectly - Lack of personal accountability. Thank you for that. What you don't seem to understand, or simply don't care about, is that the water in the pot is heating up...

I’d like to see us move away from a Q-3 risk adverse flying culture. Better way to teach lessons than just slap Q-3’s on aircrew for every incorrect decision. It builds a mindset and culture that is afraid of failure and afraid to take risks in combat.

Actually firing the Sq/CC seems even more over the top. It's not that unusual for a next level CC to disagree or even step in. Firing a CC because of it is pretty questionable. I can attest that as a Sq/CC I was a little close the bros and may not have always had the full objectivity. My OG never stepped in, but then I probably never had that crisis moment where one of my buds stepped in a really, really big pile. As an OG I did have to step in and direct a court martial when the Sq/CC had trouble pulling the trigger. I treated it more as a mentoring moment than a firing offense. After it was all over the Sq/CC admitted the charge was clearly warranted (absolute felony), but he just had a hard time because it was one of his own. I sat him down with a scotch and cigar and lamented that this was the hard part about command, and eventually he'd grow into his big boy pants. That said, I usually just stayed out of Sq business -- their time to lead.

I just landed in a grass field today, without a radio…and….nothing bad happened. Leave it to the AF (or I guess GAF in this case) to find every way to make aviation suck. Go to the IG, and get a line number if he doesn’t already have one. Unbelievable.

My grandfather fought the Krauts and all he gets to show for it is some d bag German coming over to our UPT base and Q-3ing one of our guys? fuck that.

#3...offset dollar for dollar if you get LESS than 50%... if 50% or more then you get full retirement pay AND the VA disability payment

Yeah we can tell by your non stop virtue signalling. Is there not a Nav board for you to do that on?

Well, for starters, the first line is nonsense. If we want to arrest the pandemic, we need to reduce the spread. Which means getting fewer people infected, so that they in turn infect fewer people. From a "spreading Covid" standpoint, it's almost better if they end up in the hospital, because then they aren't out in grocery stores, at football games, in bars and restaurants... I have no idea why the CDC is revoking PCR testing...but I do know that the same testing methodology was used before the study as during the study, so you're getting an apples-to-apples comparison. If they had used a different test, Glockenspiel would have had a long rant about how the different test methods were what threw off the results. I mean...if natural immunity is THAT good, surely there's a study somewhere that shows it?