Ebony zer

Smokin, I'm not sure where you get your data but if Harris wins Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, along with Omaha 2 she has 270 electoral college votes. Trump almost has to win one of the blue wall states in order to win. As for polling in 2016 vs 2020, in 2020 the polls were the most inaccurate they've been in the last 40 years. They still projected Biden to win, but the margin of error was significant. https://news.vanderbilt.edu/2021/07/19/pre-election-polls-in-2020-had-the-largest-errors-in-40-years/

I would encourage to still vote even if Texas is likely to go to Trump. The last 2 Republican Presidents have won the electoral college but not the popular vote. As long as that continues to happen you're going to hear appeals from the Democrats to abolish the electoral college.

I remember having a conversation with my 70 year old step-mother right before the 2016 election and she was voting for Hillary. I asked her why. Her answer was "I'm a Democrat so I have to vote for her". I inquired more about her stating she "had" to vote for her. Turns out she thought that because she was a registered democrat she was only allowed to vote for democrats. She had been voting democrat for 50 years this whole time because she didn't know she had the option to change parties or vote for other candidates. I wonder what percentage of the population votes that have zero idea of what/why they are voting.

In September of 2022, Lindsey Graham introduced a Federal Abortion Bill. I remember thinking to myself, why would you introduce this bill 6 weeks before the election knowing it will fire up the democrat base way more than the likely republican voters.

I bet a guy in my unit at the beginning of the year that the DNC would wait until after the RNC convention to replace Biden. My logic was that Trump in the polls would lose to any other democrat. If Biden would have said he wasn't running last year, there's a chance that republican voters would have chosen another candidate. With Trump being competitive in the polls against Biden, he easily secured the nomination. I did however also think that the replacement was going to be Michelle Obama, however Harris worked to quickly in securing the nomination and prevented any challengers.

But you can still wear a morale nametag. "Commanders may authorize the wear of morale nametags on Fridays or during special events. AFR and ANG commanders may authorize wear during weekend drills on Friday, Saturday, or Sundays or during special events."

I think I work for the same airline. Not all pilots in support of beards "act like their suffering through extreme persecution". I for one am in favor of neatly groomed beards. I've had a shaving waiver in the AF for 20 years now but have only actually grown a beard once while deployed to AFG training Afghans. Had an instructor in college who after telling me I should get a shaving waiver, come back later to say "I know you have a shaving waiver, but I've never seen an officer with a beard". That statement has stuck with me for my entire career. If I were to shave every day, my neck would end up looking like the backside of a Nestle Crunch Bar. Instead I try and time my shaving schedule based on my work week. I can't shave inside of 36 hours so if I know I'm going to be in the office M-F I just know that on Wednesday I wont shave, have a 5-o-clock shadow at 1100, and look like a dirt bag. When I go back to the Airlines next year, I'll just suck it up. But it would be nice to not cut my neck up repeatedly for the next 20 years.

I concur with everything Lord Ratner said. Getting promoted in the Guard or Reserve is pretty easy as long as you check the boxes and don't have any derogatory information in your record. Hell, you probably could have paperwork and still get promoted. Know of a guy that just made O-5 with a DUI in 2020. Fly as much as possible to get to 1500 hours before you have to separate. If you do go to PIT and instruct at UPT, I would look to join the Guard or Reserve unit at that base as that will be your easiest transition when getting out. If after getting hired at an airline you can always try and go back to your previous MWS.

As a UPT student you probably have 6-9 years to go before this is even an option.

That’s not the entire post nor does it accurately represent what he was saying entirely. It’s a long Twitter post so here you go. Who am I? I am a Black man who happens to be the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force. I am George Floyd…I am Philando Castile, I am Michael Brown, I am Alton Sterling, I am Tamir Rice. Just like most of the Black Airmen and so many others in our ranks…I am outraged at watching another Black man die on television before our very eyes. What happens all too often in this country to Black men who are subjected to police brutality that ends in death…could happen to me. As shocking as that may sound to some of you… I hope you realize that racism/discrimination/exclusion does not care much about position, titles or stature…. so yes, it could happen to you, or one of your friends, or your Airmen, or your NCOIC, your Flight Chief, your Squadron Commander or even your Wing Commander. This, my friends, is my greatest fear, not that I will be killed by a white police officer (believe me my heart starts racing like most other Black men in America when I see those blue lights behind me)… But that I will wake up to a report that one of our Black Airmen has died at the hands of a white police officer. As I struggle with the Air Force’s own demons that include the racial disparities in military justice and discipline among our youngest Black male Airmen and the clear lack of diversity in our senior officer ranks…I can only look in the mirror for the solution. I, the CMSAF, must do better in ensuring every Airmen in our ranks has a fair chance at becoming the best version of themselves. While this is a complicated issue…I, along with every other leader across the force, am responsible for making sure it becomes a reality. What have I been doing? Not enough…I have done my share of community service work, been in involved in mentor programs, voted in local, state and national elections, but I’ve come to the conclusion that whatever I have done in the past is just not enough. So, I spent the last week, “plotting, planning, strategizing, organizing and mobilizing” just as Killer Mike, the popular Atlanta rapper and activist encouraged us to do. Twenty-five of my closest friends (White, Black, Asian, enlisted, officer and civilian) and I have an ongoing dialogue where we began by acknowledging our right to be angry about what is happening. We eventually moved beyond the rage and began to think about what’s next? What could or should we be doing as a group and as individuals to stop this from happening in our communities across these United States? We don’t have all the answers, but we do have some of the most brilliant minds, many, who have first hand experience with this topic and we will continue working towards a solution. While we can’t change the world, we can change the communities we live in and more importantly, those where our Airmen strive to be seen, heard, and treated as human beings. I have also not done enough as your most senior enlisted leader… While we have made progress in many of the areas that impact our Airmen and families; I believe that we have not made much progress in this area of racial injustice and diversity among our ranks. This is why I’m working with @GenDaveGoldfein, first and foremost to have a full and thorough independent review of our military justice system. We will look to uncover where the problem lies, and how we can fix it. We are also working to improve the diversity of our force, especially within the senior ranks. I hope this message triggers responses and ideas from each of you on things we can do better. Like me, acknowledge your right to be upset about what’s happening to our nation. But you must then find a way to move beyond the rage and do what you think is right for the country, for your community, for your sons, daughters, friends and colleagues…for every Black man in this country who could end up like George Floyd. Part of my group’s solution involves helping to bridge the communication & understanding gap between law enforcement and young Black men. You decide what works best for you, where you can have the most meaningful impact and most importantly, what you can stay committed to… We didn’t get here overnight so don’t expect things to change tomorrow…we are in this for the long haul. Vote, protest peacefully, reach out to your local and state officials, to your Air Force leadership and become active in your communities… We need all hands on deck. If you don’t do anything else, I encourage everyone to fight, not just for freedom, justice and equality, but to fight for understanding. You might think you know what it’s like to grow up, exist, survive & even thrive in this country as a Black person, but let me tell you, regardless of how many Black friends you have, how Black your neighborhood was, or if your spouse or in-laws are Black… You don’t know. You don’t know the anxiety, the despair, the heartache, the fear, the rage and the disappointment that comes with living in this country, OUR country every single day. So, take the time to talk to someone – your brand new Airmen, your NCOIC or your Flight Commander - about their experiences so that you have a better understanding of who they are, where they come from and what drives them. Frankly, you owe this to every Airmen, but I’m asking you specifically to pay attention to the Black Airmen in your ranks during this trying time. Don’t misunderstand me, they don’t need, nor do they want any special treatment…but they deserve to be treated fairly & equally, both by our United States Air Force & these United States of America…this begins with you, & I am asking, no fighting, for your understanding. Like you, I don’t have all of the answers, but I'm committed to seeing a better future for this nation. A future where Black men no longer suffer needlessly at the hands of White police officers, & Black Airmen have the same chance to succeed as their White counterparts. Trust me, I understand this is a difficult topic to talk about… Difficult…not impossible… Difficult…but necessary. I am Kaleth. I am a Black Man who happens to be the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force and I am committed to making this better.

Viperstud your 100% correct and no matter how much I try to tell dudes that not only is the grass greener in the guard and reserve it's lush and soft, they're skeptical. AD does a great job brainwashing folks that 1. They can't make it in the civilian sector. And 2. If they join the guard/reserves they can never get an AD retirement. Both are patently false.

What's not true? Length may differ but it's still $35k per year. To be honest I think a 3 year $35K per year bonus is better because you can still curtail your orders if you choose. Plus in 3 years if it goes up you can sign up for more. I don't think the bonus is going down or away anytime soon. Good luck getting out of the AD ADSC if you happen to be offered a dream job.

BTW guard and reserves have the same pilot bonus if your AGR.

Klepto, best option get out, go airlines, get off probation, drop mil leave with the guard or reserves, bypass crap seniority, collect AD retirement, then truley start airline career with up to 8 years of seniority.

Nsplayr, Maybe I'm reading that article wrong or have bad info but I wouldn't bank my retirement on having inactive points count towards an AD retirement. To get an AD retirement you must have 20 years of service and 7300 Active duty points, you can't have 7000 active and 300 inactive and draw an immediate pension. Otherwise why do we differentiate between active and inactive retirement points?

I opted to do it while still on AD. I figured my last OPR out the door wasn't going to be as good as previous years and I knew a strat was now out of the question. I know a couple of wing #1 strat guys who's last report before separation basically said "Good dude, best of luck" no strat with the same rater/additional rater from the previous year. So I completed ACSC on Big Blue's time and I'm glad I did (one less thing to worry about). If you're going to be AGR and working towards an AD retirement then definitely complete it because you'll have about 0.69% chance of making O5 without it. The difference in overall pay and retirement will be significant over a lifetime. My 2 cents. Also, the additional points are inactive points which are not counted towards your 7300 if you're looking for a full AD retirement.

I just saw an article that the RPA bonus was going up to $35k per year! Here's the catch, it's for only 5 years ($175k) and the previous 9 year $225k is no longer available. Finally, you can't take half up front. I'm pretty sure this will solve all of the retention problems!

Ha, I initially thought Big Butch Girl to cover both genders before continuing to read.

Moto, What about a guy going from a MWS to UPT and then back to their previous MWS? Do they still incur a 3 year ADSC for the requal? How do you fight the ADSC? Do you call AFPC or just open a incident case in MyPers?

I got to fill out my seperation questionnaire this week and the bonus was one of the topics. I didn't put my thoughts into the survey because they may actually implement it (although Chang will probably push this idea) but the AF should look at pilots the way NFL teams look at players. You have players under contract, restricted free agents, and unrestricted free agents. As you approach the end of your UPT commitment you fall into the restricted and the unrestricted free agent class. For me, when my UPT commitment was in sight I was able to realistically start applying for jobs. I really didn't plan on leaving until a job opportunity became available and I started to realize it would be WAY better for my family and I to leave AD. Now two years ago if the AF would have offered me the bonus then and started paying immediate (while I was under contract) I would have signed up happily. This would have also let the AF know ahead of time their potential pilot manning numbers two years ahead of schedule. There would be a few exceptions of people who wouldn't take the bonus and still stay in but it wouldn't be many.

Did anyone read the AF Times article on the RPA bonus? $15K per year for 5 or 9 years (but we'll cut your flight pay by $10,200 annually). That has got to be the dumbest thing I've ever read! If you sign up for an additional 5-9 years of ADSC's for $4,800 you're an idiot! Even if you love your job, giving up the ability to be a free agent for $4,800 is dumb in my opinion.

Sent you a PM

No but there are opportunities out there flying helos. I'm one of those Huey guys at Fairchild that hasn't taken the bonus. The problem is after Spokane there's not really any good assignments and you'll eventually end up in global strike.

I like viperstud's answer. I'm on the fence about staying or leaving. With the current "pilot retention" problem, if AFPC still can't make an assignment happen consistent with my APD when I'm a free agent then I'll walk away with 11 good years of memories. I know that civilian companies are not likely to hold a job for several months while I try to separate, so I would like to be able to punch quickly.

Is there a minimum amount of time you must give the AF prior to seperating? For example an ADSC that expires on 1 Sep and you have 60+ days of leave. Could you in theory apply for a seperation date of 1 September on 1 June, out process in 1 month, go on terminal around 1 July, and just burn your remaining leave until 1 September? Further, do you still get the 20 days PTDY (with cc approval) for relocation for a voluntary seperation?