Disregard

111 years ago today. Also, 16 Dec marked 70 years from the start of the Battle of the Bulge.

You can contribute up to $53,000 in 2015 to TSP with your tax exempt pay, but I think that the money beyond the normal cap of $18,000 has to go to the traditional TSP (18K to Roth, 35K to Traditional). You can move your traditional TSP tax exempt contributions to a Roth account after you leave the service so that the earnings are also tax exempt when you withdraw instead of only the contributions (Earnings on tax exempt contributions in TSP are taxable.). Put the rest in Vanguard or 529? TL;DR: Max out TSP

The Pax Terminal long term parking lot might work. Just display the proper paperwork on the dash and you should be fine for probably up to 30 days.

Any talk of ANG or Reserve C-130 units switching to C-17s? Should be some extra floating around if Charleston and McChord park a few.

Get ready for more of this: https://archive.airforcetimes.com/article/20131205/NEWS/312050023/Crew-inexperience-fatigue-led-C-17-runway-mishap Crew inexperience, fatigue led to C-17 runway mishap "Crew inexperience and fatigue helped cause a May 9 incident in which a C-17 landed 1,000 feet short of the runway at Dover Air Force Base, Del., an investigation has determined. ... Things started to go wrong when the pilot became confused flying an instrument approach with a nonstandard glide path angle, the investigation found. The pilot tried to land at a standard 3-degree glidescope, but the glidescope for the runway at Dover is 2.5 degrees. At an altitude of approximately 300 feet, the pilot made a series of corrections, pulling the nose up to “an unusual attitude” to correct his approach and bringing the engines to idle. Neither the pilot nor co-pilot realized the plane was slowing to an unsafe speed. The pilot began making positive corrections at 175 feet. He initiated a go-around when he received a stall warning at 75 feet, but it was too late. The plane landed short of the runway, blowing out tires and damaging the landing gear and fuselage. The entire incident lasted about 22 seconds — from the time the pilot came in at the wrong angle to when the plane hit the ground. An experienced pilot would have realized the plane was coming in at a wrong angle and made the appropriate correction or aborted the landing, but neither the pilot nor the co-pilot had landed at the shallower angle required for Dover, the report found. The investigation found that the experience level at Charleston has been “steadily decreasing,” and that the 17th Airlift Squadron is undermanned in terms of both pilots and co-pilots. Missionplanners failed to take into account the crew’s lack of experience, the investigation found."

https://youtu.be/f1kISDyZNFc

Does anyone have any input or stories about the Smith and Wesson .38s that were Air Force standard before the M9? Is there any value in buying one for the sake of heritage/nostalgia/collecting/shooting? I've read good things so far about the M15 online, just want to see if this a worthwhile addition or to look elsewhere. I already have a couple handguns, but one more...

Philadelphia Is Looking for a Few Good Gentlemen Deployments Thin Ranks of Unit That Has Lured Blue Bloods Since 1774 By Michael M. Phillips Updated Oct. 15, 2014 6:31 p.m. ET PHILADELPHIA— Gregg Connell ’s enlistment into his National Guard cavalry unit went like this: Already well-lubricated at the armory bar, members of the troop passed around a wooden box. Those who wanted to accept Spc. Connell dropped in white marbles. Those opposed, black marbles. White marbles outnumbering black, Spc. Connell was summoned into the armory’s mess hall, where, beneath oil paintings of bewhiskered men in silver-buttoned tunics and helmets topped with bearskin crests, the captain pinned a fabric rosette to his blue blazer. Spc. Connell saluted and signed a muster roll with names dating back to 1774. Then he stood on a chair and sang a selection from the troop’s big book of bawdy songs: “Take It Out at the Ballgame.” So it was that the 24-year-old aspiring architect joined what is probably the most idiosyncratic unit in the U.S. military: First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry. Part blue-blooded fraternity, part olive-drab fighting force, First Troop is a throwback to a time when militias were democratic entities raised by local luminaries, and it still operates under rules that would make most Army commanders splutter with disapproval. ... By law, First Troop retains certain rights and distinctions because its existence predates the Militia Act of 1792, including its democratic approach to rank.

https://youtu.be/UfWW8kjmlv0

If you separate on 31 Dec, you'll likely get your VSP check after the new year, which would probably help you with your 2014 tax bill (...if I understand this correctly).

The Hajj Airlift You’ve Probably Never Heard Of In 1952, "U.S. airmen were suddenly alerted for special duty. Three days later, the first of 13 huge U.S. C-54s landed at Beirut’s airport. Next morning Operation Hajj was under way… Five days later the last of 3,763 stranded pilgrims was loaded aboard the last flight. The airlift had traveled a total of 121,800 miles. Some of the U.S. airmen had spent 27 out of 40 hours in the air, but the trips had been more than worth it." https://time.com/3457216/hajj-airlift/

Before you buy a new computer, make sure that your current computer has the maximum RAM possible--this makes a huge difference and it's easy to swap. Amazon, Other World Computing, and newegg are good places to buy memory. You can confirm if your computer needs more RAM by checking the Activity Monitor on your Mac.

Melanoma risk is higher for flight crews that work at 40,000 feet "...a new study in JAMA Dermatology says that pilots are 2.22 times more likely than folks in the general population at large to be diagnosed with melanoma. For members of the cabin crew, the risk was 2.09 times greater."

People shit all over CGOC meetings here. I'm just saying that they can be a good way to network (and sometimes the only way to meet non-flyer Os). Not much of a trick--just take a long lunch and get on a first name basis with the guys who can make your life easier. Same thing that the CCs do, just at a lower level.

My (highly controversial) trick: go to a CGOC meeting every now and then and meet the OICs of the different shops. It's nice being able to call a fellow CGO directly at Finance or MPF if you're having trouble.

Bonds. Burrito Bonds. London high street fast food outlet Chilango, favored by City types with elastic waistbands, is offering an 8% coupon on a four-year corporate bond that gives some buyers a free burrito* every week for the lifetime of the debt. All you have to do is cough up £10,000 pounds ($16,800) and trust that it is as good at servicing its debt as it is at serving bankers their lunch. ... Burrito fans from across the U.K. have two months to invest money in the seven-year-old company. (Further details are here.) The minimum investment is £500, but for £10,000 the investor gets free lunch once a week. Coupons will be paid semi-annually and the principal amount will be reimbursed after four years. As a small token of appreciation, every investor gets a voucher for two free burritos upon subscribing. The first 100 also get invited to a Burrito launch party. There will be no secondary market trading.

From what I've seen, 529 contributions are not deductible for federal income tax, but may be deductible for state income tax. 529s seem to operate similar to the Roth concept of paying the tax upfront and having tax-free earnings.

I recharacterized this year's Roth IRA contribution to a Traditional IRA. Vanguard made it very easy to start a Traditional IRA. They have to move the funds on their side, but a quick phone call was all it took. However, Roth TSP contributions that have already been made this year cannot be converted to Traditional TSP. I highly recommend to switch to Traditional retirement plans instead of Roth for the rest of the year if you're expecting a windfall payment this year. If you can max both Traditional IRA and TSP, that's up to 23K that you can deduct which can save 5 or 6K in taxes, or even more if you also contribute to a spouse's plan.

U.S. Setting Up Emergency Shelter in Texas as Youths Cross Border Alone With border authorities in South Texas overwhelmed by a surge of young illegal migrants traveling by themselves, the Department of Homeland Security declared a crisis this week and moved to set up an emergency shelter ... for up to 1,000 minors at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, authorities said, and will begin transferring youths there by land and air.

How should we properly manage a lump sum check this sumer/fall? I'm expecting my CY14 AGI to be through the roof, so I'm switching the rest of this year's TSP contributions from Roth to Traditional. This should lower my taxable income by about 10K ($17,500 total max allowable Roth and Traditional TSP allowed this year, not counting combat pay contributions). What are some other moves to lower taxable income when expecting a lump sum? Also, where are some of the better places to park the separation payment, besides hookers and blow? Does anyone recommend a particular Vanguard fund or something similar?

"Mid May" is 11-21 May. My money is on 21 May.

Spy Plane Fries Air Traffic Control Computers, Shuts Down LAX https://www.nbcnews.com/news/investigations/spy-plane-fries-air-traffic-control-computers-shuts-down-lax-n95886 A relic from the Cold War appears to have triggered a software glitch at a major air traffic control center in California Wednesday that led to delays and cancellations of hundreds of flights across the country, sources familiar with the incident told NBC News.

Yeager, wife revving up for the legal fight of their lives On the steps of a Fresno courthouse, legendary Gen. Charles “Chuck” Yeager talked about shooting down Nazi German planes during World War II, breaking the sound barrier in an experimental aircraft in 1947 and parachuting out of a free-falling supersonic jet after his pressurized suit caught fire. He also talked about his latest enemy – a Fresno law firm that has sued him for breach of contract. “I would rather be fighting them in the air than stuck in this ... courtroom,” the 91-year-old said last week with a wry grin. “Nothing but a bunch of baloney going on in there.” The American war hero who trained astronauts for NASA and still believes he can fly fighter jets finds himself as a defendant in a 5-year-old lawsuit filed by the oldest law firm in Fresno. Wild, Carter & Tipton, founded in 1893, contends Yeager and his wife, Victoria Scott Yeager, never paid for its services in a number of civil cases and have an unpaid bill of nearly $270,000. The Yeagers say the firm was doing the work for free and have countersued Wild, Carter & Tipton for legal malpractice and breach of fiduciary duty.

You should be good once the Asian Bride commission checks start rolling in. I'm doing my part to help.

https://www.dallasnews.com/entertainment/columnists/alan-peppard/20140119-dr.-strangeloves-deleted-dallas-reference-and-other-texas-ties.ece There is a little-known reference to Dallas in Strangelove that was removed in looping, though you can clearly read Slim Pickens lips and see what hes saying. As the commander of a nuclear-loaded B-52, he goes through the contents of the crews survival kits: One .45 caliber automatic, two boxes of ammunition pep pills, sleeping pills tranquilizer pills $100 in rubles, $100 in gold, nine packs of chewing gum, one issue of prophylactics, three lipsticks, three pair of nylon stockings. Then he gives the punch line, Shoot a fella could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas with all that stuff. If you read his lips, you see he is saying, A fella could have a pretty good weekend in Dallas with all that stuff. After the scene was shot, but before the film was released, President John F. Kennedy was gunned down in Dallas. In post-production, Pickens looped in Vegas, over Dallas.