brickhistory

There's the obvious of not cheering when Israel schwacks a terrorist with a Hellfire on TV in the local watering hole. Oh, and no "Jews for Jesus" t-shirts. Other than that, I got nothin'... Sorry, too obvious and no help. Good luck.

Steve, We've gone 'round on this before and will not come to an agreement. Granted, some of the ones sent were dimed out back in the old country to settle old internal scores, earn points with the Americans, etc, etc. Many, many others weren't. I believe the majority of those mistakes were sent back. The ones left aren't criminals. They aren't POWs. They are something new. Therefore the models of the past simply don't work on them. Perhaps you'd prefer a little 5.56mm justice instead of being alive and eating and praying at Uncle Sam's expense? Rhetorical, by the way. Funny, many nations don't want 'em back, we won't send 'em back to places where they could be tortured or killed. Our 'friends' don't want 'em. (Don't blame those friends, I wouldn't want these rabid dogs in my borders either. Hmm, wonder why they're still locked up?) Heard this as one solution; open the gates at Gitmo, let 'em enjoy Cuba. Could be a nice payback for the Mariel boatlift of the 1980s...

Yoda, sometimes the darnedest things you say...

stiffler, you're a giver...

The last time an AC tried the 'goat' business without it being banter. Funny how I always thought sh!t could be flung both ways. Guess not. Lighten up, Francis...

Bearing any OPSEC issues in mind, any superstitions or rituals anyone does for checkride or major league mission prep? Mine, as goofy as it sounds, was to crank up some bagpipe music on the drive in. My German ancestors would be proud...

In the pdf attachment: There is an AF Form for Lt - Col professional standards. There is an AF Form for Amn-TSgt professional standards. There is an AF Form for MSgt - CMSgt professional standards. There wasn't one for GO professional standards. Guess that explains a lot...Metzger...T-bird audio/video contracts...banging the the help in the JAG office...

A magazine hired me some years back to write a short piece on this company and it's centrifuge trainer used for a full motion simulator. The company is the same one who does the Disney "Mission Space" and other motion rides. They branched out into this. They've got some of these with several military's around the world. Impressive technology and engineering. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Turn, Grunt, Learn, Live If you ever become insanely rich enough to buy the ultimate in toys or are a government wanting an air force, consider purchasing a modern jet fighter. If the very real possibility, however, of turning one’s expensive toy into a smoking hole in the ground discourages you, consider one of Environmental Tectonics Corporation’s (ETC) full fidelity advanced tactical flight simulators. ETC has developed a multi-axis centrifuge combined with a high fidelity cockpit simulator that does a remarkable job of reproducing gut-straining, sweat-dripping realistic air combat missions. Using the actual controls of a fighter, in this case an F/A-18 (although any modern fighter could be replicated), a pilot enters the ATFS-400 gondola and straps in. The 110-degree field of view display provides a great window to the “outside” world including providing cues to one’s peripheral vision, important to properly interpreting subconsciously the many sensory inputs that are about to rush at him. The gondola is spun quickly to a starting state of 1.2G, the additional .2 load being imperceptible. Once the machine is spinning, it’s “Fight’s on!” The centrifuge adds (“loads”) or subtracts (“unloads”) G’s in precise responses to the control movements the pilot is making. Roll left, suck the stick into your gut and the resulting 6-7 G’s build and hold just as in a real jet. Based on computer modeling of actual aircraft characteristics, ETC’s system reacts almost flawlessly to provide the correct visual, audible and tactile sensations. The pilot gets direct, accurate feedback on his handling of the “jet.” In the split-second environment of modern jet combat, experience in knowing how your jet “feels” as you crank it around to get a shot saves crucial time. You don’t have to monitor a gauge to know that the hard turn you’re in will run you out of airspeed quickly, rather your brain and body act as an internal gauge to know that you can only hold this much straining “uggh” for a given turn. ETC’s remarkable machine is spinning and tilting in fractions of a second to produce the realistic ride inside. While they haven’t worked all the kinks out yet, transitioning from positive to negative G’s, for example, is one area they are really focusing on, the overall impression is of a well-thought out, highly realistic combat simulator. The device can be linked to other simulators as well, increasing the realism. You can fly with wingmen and/or against adversaries and have real-time reactions and counters to a combat situation and all at a fraction of the cost and without the risk of losing a valuable resource, whether flesh and blood or metal and composites. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- When I went to visit, I got the 'full Monty' press treatment and, frankly, I was digging it. They couldn't kiss my ass enough. Their PR handler got me in to see a fight between two dudes in two 'fuges/trainers. One was a Guard F-16 guy in the F-18 gondola mentioned above. The other guy was the ROK AF attache, also in an F-18 configured set up. He too flew Vipers in his own Air Force. The Guard guy was current, the Korean not as he was doing a staff tour in DC. Besides the cameras viewing each pilot, there was a computer generated program giving a God's eye view of their fight. Talking with the Guard guy afterward, he said it was pretty good at doing positive g stuff, but stuttered/shook when pushing over to negative g and was counter-productive. The ROK guy had to call KIO after he started getting sick. You could see it coming (sts) on his face. No slam intended, the guy just was out of practice. After all the dog and pony was over, they asked if I wanted to try. "Sure!" so they suited me up, including g-suit, stuck me in the F-18, gave me a quick run down on the basic stuff and said I'd be going against one of their retired fighter guys who worked for the company. It was about then that I realized that I could seriously hurt myself by being stupid. As this thing could pull better than 9 g's in a f'in' hurry, I asked them to limit me to 5.5. I sucked, I got sick as a dog (luckily never hurling, but damn close), and the opponent was bored out of his mind at the squashed grape I was.

I say, oh bus driver, be a good fellow and take us over there so we can carry out the mission. It's gotta suck being mission support for the payload...

Never, ever mention that you are a 13, regardless of what flavor. Are you a space guy (patooie!) or a weapons controller, er, ABM the kids call it today? As you have Robins as your location, I'm assuming E-8s? Welcome. My advice; sit down, shut up, and drink heavily. Brickhistory, retired 13B (including the warpig E-8) but don't tell anybody...

Not qualified to comment so sorry for the waste of time/electrons, but I can't help but think that showing that you can successfully work your ass off and improve yourself is a good thing for any board. Good luck!

Steve, I would imagine it was under a previous regime as the same thing happened when I was at Robins AFB in the late 1990s. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To the comment about getting rid of HO, I disagree. First, it truly is a tiny portion of the budget. Second, to the best of my knowledge there are no more active duty HO guys (and the ones that were were 99% enlisted TSgt - Chief), they all were converted to civilian under "he who shall not be named's" regime. There are Reserve uniformed HO dudes, a handful in DC and at Maxwell. Second, the stated intent of the HO program is to serve as a lessons learned bank for USAF leadership. Whether they serve that function or not is a different conversation. As the Air Staff stood up A8 (I think) that has as one of its missions to prepare/present lessons learned, I have my own opinion. Third, there is a need to have some way of capturing the history and heritage of our service. Would you have that just tossed away? Guess we don't need the National Museum of the USAF, the gate guard airplanes, the Museum of Aviation at Robins, the Flight Test Museum at Edwards, the Armament Museum at Eglin, etc, etc. All those records from WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, ONW/OSW, OEF, OIF, etc, etc, should be sh1tcanned. After all, who cares? Same for those photos. Qweep over some stuff? Sure. Directed, usually, by the CSAF or MAJCOM/CC? Yep. Remember, again, "he whose name shall not be mentioned's" heritage drive to save the first 18 or so wings lineage during the drawdown of the post-Cold War 1990s? Mr. DUI himself directed that, USAF/HO was just the tool (sts) to carry it out. From that, I believe the 'standardized' patches purge originated.

Please don't confuse me supporting the policy vs. stating what the AFI says. That patch could be an exception to the AFR (back in the day). More likely the patch either never caught the eye of an HO dweeb with a hard-on to banish such things as in cleared hot's example. Not all historians go out of their way to be the no-fun police.

Oh, you naughty boy...

Dated, but one of the best descriptions I've ever heard in busting on WIC (FWIC back in the day): "Patch Davidians." Any others?* Meant as banter. I wasn't a patch wearer, have no problem with patch wearers (except a couple of tools who would be tools with or without the patch), and fully support the concept and need for the school.

By the way, an "official" USAF patch cannot have a depiction of any airframe (or space vehicle). I forget the History and Lineage AFI, but it specifically states such. Gotta use the triangle-thing to represent an aircraft. Somebody'd have to be willing to take on this windmill, but you do have backing as waivers have to take a 4 star signature, I believe.

Oh my !

Just so many "Wows" it's hard to believe. Guess the march of time has stepped right on by me... With very few exceptions, Chiefs were admirable folks and I paid them the respect I felt they earned for having reached the top of their rank structure. And, for the vast majority, they didn't get there by being tools. They were/are smart and experienced folks who got things done, both by the book and around it when extreme circumstances required it. Anyone in uniform should be able to point out gross buffoonery to anyone else, but in a very tactful way. Just as I never had one-way conversations with junior enlisted folks unless it was A) for effect or B) the addressee had been a deliberate tool in public, I never expected an NCO to berate me in public. If he/she did, it was cut off at the knees. If it was a "Hey, sir, you might want to check your hat..." or the like, then I was appreciative of the professionalism and grown-up way the incident was handled. I cannot believe that officers are putting up with the buffoonery being written about in this thread. Ok, 2Lt or 1Lt just out of training, I get. You're still new. That is when I expect the SNCO to step up and mentor, not be a tool. The reverse of that is I would expect the new Lt to STFU in most cases, listen, and learn. Again, situation dependent. Captains and above taking such sh1t? You're kidding me, right?! Commanders accepting/encouraging such behavior? Hello, Mr. IG/Congressman/CSAF. Unsat and a FAIL by leadership (which, of course, is the point of the thread.) Chiefs letting other chiefs get away with such buffoonery?! Again, YGBSM! I guess the signs are on the wall when you gave he who shall not be named, Dic Foglesong, et al, the Order of the Sword. Deeply disappointing. I have buds who wore stripes from back in the day. I have buds who outranked back in the day. We're grown ups. Yeah, I get it, I'm old and outta touch... One more thing: You kids get outta my yard!

To the best of my admittedly limited knowledge, Kwanzaa (Gesundheit!) did not originate in the same place as Judaism, Christianity, or Islam.

Judaism, Christianity, Islam all started in the same place. WTF happened?

nsplayer, my use of the word "shrieks" is correct. shrieks: a noun; loud, emotionally charged, usually, but not always of fear or outrage, outpourings of emotion. a verb; to shriek, to produce such a sound. To your point of those two papers' locations, yes. Which is why I don't understand them. Other than it is auto-anti-Bush. I agree with Gitmo being an open-ended problem. But those who cry against it are/will be the same ones who want skulls to blame if/when another mass casualty event occurs in the US. You can't have it both ways. But they want it. Let's see what the incoming Administration decides about some of these characters. It's very easy to criticise, not so much to have to be the one taking action. Bet they don't wind up in the US prison system. Nor should they. They are not criminals.

The whole thing is another area where there is no correct answer and the current Administration had to do something. First, those detained are not POWs. They were not part of a nation's uniformed military. In fact, by not being in uniform (never mind the non-state actor part), they could be considered spies. With the legally and historically accepted ending for spies. With the exception of Germany in WWII, when is the last time any foe of the US followed the Geneva Conventions? Japan, a signatory, I believe, sure didn't. Korea, North Vietnam, China (held a couple of off-course USAF/USN pilots for 7 years) didn't. No tears or outrage for the dudes held by the Soviets in the gulag and have disappeared? The guys in OIF/OEF who've been captured weren't accorded very good treatment. Oh, sorry, I guess getting your throat cut is humane compared to being kept awake. No, it's just the US who has to play nice. I'm fine with a changing world reputation. Wanna be the leader? Then man up and do it yourself. Can't/won't? STFU. They aren't criminals because they were captured/turned in in foreign lands. Did they break US law by doing something in a 'stan? Don't think so. Are most of them probably really, really evil things that don't belong above ground? Yeah, I think so. The fact that they weren't administered 5.56mm justice at the time of capture says a LOT about the US. Don't give me any bullshit about the high moral ground. I personally could care less. That big pit in NYC and getting chased out of the Pentagon was enough for me. I don't really care if I draw the aprobation of the left or of Europe. These guys want to kill Westerners. And any of their own who don't immediately agree with them. There is no negotiation. There is no compromise. There is no middle ground. Funny how many of the countries that these guys nominally belong to don't want 'em. Or we can't send 'em back because they'll be tortured. Finally, for all the angst about waterboarding and the like, I A) think it's been blown all out of proportion, the actual numbers involved are a handful and B) if stressing KSM stops another mass casualty event in the US, I can live with the self-rightious (sp?) shrieks of the NY Times or the Washington Post. It's all fun and games until your city center goes up with a bang and a mushroom cloud.

Ummm, is there a difference between a "Global Strike Command" and "Air Combat Command?" Just askin'...

on a web address of "centaf.mil" Priceless!

50 mission 'crush hats' are cool. Thanks for posting these.