HuggyU2

SFO and EWR are givens as they are very junior, and are in every class drop. I've never heard of CLE going to a new hire. Next month will see the first 777 and 787 new hires. Unprecedented at UAL.

I'm just curious... When I went to UPT, we did a winging ceremony on Friday in the base theater with family, and a mess dress dinner at the Club. It was a large time. I've heard that has changed quite a bit. What is being done now for UPT graduation? And how did it look 2 years ago before the Wu-Flu changed things? (I asked this elsewhere but no reply.)

I'm just curious... When I went to UPT, we did a winging ceremony on Friday in the base theater with family, and a mess dress dinner at the Club. It was a large time. I've heard that has changed quite a bit. What is being done now for UPT graduation? And how did it look 2 years ago before the Wu-Flu changed things?

R.I.P, Hannes. 🍻

Tatertots, Your question is simply too vague WRT UAL IAH movement. Do you want to know how quick you can get off of reserve on a NB? Or how quick you can get to 25% or better on a NB fleet? Or how quick you can get to WB reserve? Or how quick to get to NB Captain? I know I'm not answering your question. But it really depends on what you're trying to do. Also... based on my amazingly messed up airline career... whatever answers you get will likely change dramatically within the next 24 months. Good luck!!

Bud of mine (who used to be on here) went to fly the T-45 as a Navy Reservist and really enjoyed it.

Haha! As the card carrying "Boomer" that I am, you'd be proud to know that I'm on Mattermost... and have embraced it!... along with the rest of my squadron.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Nah... I have ram dumped that portion of my life and strive to never remember it, save for a few people I got to know.

Stating or writing the name of that MWS should be penalized with a keg to the bar or a head-shave.

At least the pilot retention problem will be offset by the massive increase in military readiness we will obtain, thanks to the vaccine mandate/purge along with mandatory mask wear.

I'd say there's a strong chance of it. If I do, most likely static display of a rare airplane.

Shaft, If allowed, you should post some more pics... assuming you have them.

Shaft is the only person I know that got to "real world drop live" on his old AFB. Pretty cool. I tee'd it up for Beale Public Affairs to run a good story on it... but nothing was ever done.

Thunderbirds 2023 schedule was released at ICAS this week. https://www.newsairshow.com/headlines/2021/12/6/thunderbirds-announce-preliminary-2023-schedule

As the guy who was the U-2 recruiter for a number of years, it was commander specific. I had pilots call me and we would run the application wickets quietly until the very last minute when they had to come clean with their boss. Then, there were CC's on the opposite end of the spectrum that were very supportive of their pilot applying to the U-2. In a few cases, they sought me out. It just depends.

Somewhat true when considering moving to other AF platforms, at least in the last few years. We have had the occasional pilot go to a "special" flying assignment but that was a good career move. I can't think of too many in the past few years that have gone to other flying assignments without intending to return. One thing to consider about the U-2: if you decide to do it and get accepted, you better be sure you want to be there. No one forced you to go... and you won't get much sympathy if you get there and decide you don't like it. It's a self-inflicted wound. We offer you a lot of chances to take a hard look at the good, the bad, and the ugly about U-2 Life. So get leave, buy an airline ticket, and go spend a couple of days at Beale to check it out before you apply. p.s. Keep in mind, the U-2 Program is overmanned. Obviously. As evidenced by the fact that some genius at AFPC decided they didn't qualify for a pilot bonus. So don't come to the U-2 "for the money". And don't come there because we have the T-38A. Come there because you want to be a high-altitude Recce Pilot in the cockpit of a U-2. In a pressure suit. By yourself. If that isn't your primary reason for going, then save everyone a lot of hassle and look elsewhere.

Would you tell us more about what is happening? Many of us have no clue about this subject.

How long is that HC-J course?

A good article by the late Robert Dorr on "light attack" in the early turbine-powered years. https://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/the-a-37-dragonfly-in-vietnam/ Although based on the Tweet, it is quite a bit different despite what many believe. One of the guys in my UPT class did his 2nd assignment in the Dragonfly at Howard AFB, and was there when Operation Just Cause went down. Pretty cool that he got about 20 combat sorties shooting Willy Pete rockets at the Panamanian Guard. There is currently only one A-37B flying in North America.

I would say that I'm of the opinion that your comment is misplaced, not well thought out, unprofessional and poorly timed. But we can discuss it in the future when we actually have some facts about what happened, rather than hashing out opinions and speculation before we even know the names of those involved... people we share the uniform with... in this tragic and unfortunate mishap.

It was just before Stone, IIRC. I recall it was a fighter guy who was the T-1 SQ/CC... but it's been a while. I've seen different AETC leaders push back at various times. Anecdotally, Vance seemed to do it the most. Ironically, we got a lot of good U-2 pilots from Vance. Side note: next time I run in to you, remind me to tell you the story of Stone being a German spy who infiltrated DoD and became the first foreign spy to fly the U-2.

He believed it was a dead-end career move. I asked him if he knew any U-2 pilots personally. Surprisingly, the answer was no. I also asked him if he'd ever seen a U-2 in person (not that it really mattered). Again, no. I'm guessing he believed in his strong gut feeling. Maybe because the last jet would be parked in the boneyard in 2011. Hold that thought...

Is there any truth to the rumors that Vance leadership is strongly discouraging their IP's to apply to the U-2? Feel free to drop me a pm, which will remain in total confidentiality. A few years ago, when I ran the U-2 Recruiting shop, I met with a Vance SQ/CC who did not want his IP's coming to the U-2. Interesting conversation and perspective.

Play by the rules of the USERRA law and tell Delta Airlines to kiss your ass. https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/VETS/legacy/files/USERRA_Private.pdf In other news... I'll have 28+ years at United when I retire, and I will not be able to hold a widebody leftseat based on current projections. When I was hired, we had 5 year Captains on narrowbody. But after bankruptcies, mergers, 9/11, 2008 economy down-turn, china-virus, and a plethora of other events... I've learned that the question of "when can I upgrade..." is an unanswerable question. Who knows? The variables are entirely unpredictable. A bud of mine was in the first UAL class after things shut down for a year (May 2021). Pilots hired a year later will be 2000 numbers junior to him. To put that in perspective, those pilots currently 2000 numbers junior to me were hired 15 years after I was. And I'm not even going to discuss the ramifications of those who were Continental pilots during the merger. If you do not understand the significance of my statistic, then you need to talk to someone who does. The whole "where will I be?" is a stupid question. If you want to dress up and play airline pilot, then get ready for a fucked up career.