HuggyU2

I think that's the new administration's plan.

RND indeed. I worked across the street from you in the sim building (I was OSS). Guy was 559th, IIRC. We were FAIPs at DLF together... and roommates on a U-2 deployment in 1999.

Vito is spot on: it was a "different time". In my opinion, a lot of the folks that washed out in my class (DLF 86-05) would have graduated UPT just a few years later. We started with 63, and graduated 42... exactly 33% washout rate. And that was not uncharacteristic. Having been a FAIP during the 86-89 timeframe, I saw the worst of it, and then it began to trail off a little before I left. We saw a few losses in the T-38, but that burden fell mainly on the T-37 IP's. As a PIT IP from 93-96, I didn't have first hand knowledge, but it was generally well known that the washout rate was quite low. I can't recall specifics anymore, but I remember "leadership" mandating that pilots make it through training. Like I stated... a lot of students that washed out would have become USAF pilots had they gone through UPT just a few years later.

Is it boldface in the E-11? In my brief scan of the document, the wording implies it isn't boldface.

I just did a Qwant search on "USAF Civilian Path to Wings Program" and nothing came up that helped. Never heard of it. Can you provide any details?

How was the experience?

Well damn. All this time I thought it was the March guys. I guess if I actually paid attention to the first 10" I would have figured it out. Thanks. As for Guns, that was a shame. He was on the fast-track to four stars.

No beer/booze allowed on California ANG bases.

It's a parody of the Cal Worthington used car commercials in the 1960's and 1970's in the Los Angeles area. I lived in SoCal for 3 years as a kid, and those commercials were ubiquitous. That video was from the old March AFB F-4 Guard unit, and they were right in the middle of "Worthington Country". Do a Youtube search, watch a "Cal Worthington and his dog Spot" commericial, and you'll see what I'm talking about. After you watch a couple, you'll realize the pilot that did that parody was pretty spot on! Here's one: What I never knew until about 10 years ago was that Cal Worthington was a B-17 pilot in WWII. After the war, he wanted to be a professional pilot but couldn't make it happen. He died about 7 years ago in a town not far from Beale AFB. He owned a gorgeous old Learjet, and when it was sold, I almost took a job flying it. The inside had pretty much zero avionics upgrades but it was immaculate. I saw it on the ramp at my local non-towered airport (KLHM) 3 months ago. Cal was apparently quite a nice guy, and a great American.

I wrote them and got a draft of the proposed new emblem. Not approved yet but in coordination. CD64EF33-660B-45F2-99B4-8039C994B068.pdf

Rule of Thumb: If you cannot drink the tap water in a country, don’t fly their nation’s airlines.

Yes, there was a significant backlog, however that logjam is getting much better. That said, I've seen a number of solid applications floating around, so I think you better get yours in the moment the Chief of Recruiting says to do it. It used to be you submitted the app no earlier than 12-14 months from a potential PCS, but you'll need to call and see what the latest is. DSN 368.4447 and speak to Maj Lang. I recommend emailing him also if your call goes to voicemail. He has been in that seat a while and is moving on very shortly. Not sure who will replace him, but the phone number is good. Moose is right: the "advice" and "perceptions" I've heard from outsiders on the U-2 Program has often been inaccurate... to say the least. The U-2 is definitely not for everyone.

Well, there really is enough airline stuff going on in the squadron already. There's nothing else anyone in the unit can come up with to put on the tab that's better?

I'm sure someone has tried it with avocado oil. How did it turn out? BTW, PilotCandidate, I appreciate your passion on that. We will try that next.

Ah... don't try to fool me again, M2.

There are many great truths to be extracted from the original "Star Wars". One of those truths is that the orange flight suit will return in its full glory.

Not yet. More to follow, though.

I’d say more of 2/10ths of 1% thing.

Ultralord flies his 1,000th U-2 sortie. Old guys rule.

Yes, I was aware of his numerous hours. Other than that, I know nothing about this pilot. And as such, I'm unable to judge his "experience" level (hence my "correction" to your quote). That will have to be explained by those that flew with him. My opinion is that "hours" tells me very little as to how hard the pilot worked to become better after each flight. I know pilots with 500 hours in type that are superior to others with 1500 hours in the same type. It goes back to what I stated previously: do you have 5000 hours? Or 1 hour, 5000 times? I'm speaking in generalities and not about this pilot or incident, since the accident report doesn't really shed enough light on how much quality proficiency training he had accomplished in the previous year. A good example I know of is Lee Lauderback. Lee has logged more P-51 time than anyone in history. And Lee works very hard at his craft.... which is why most P-51 pilots go to Lee to learn the Mustang, or go through a recurrency course. I'm told he makes you a much better pilot after every 1.0 hours in the aircraft. The fact that he's also a great guy is just icing on the cake.

Oh, there's been plenty of that for some time. The whole thing amazes me. When I knew some of the Collings folks, it seemed like they had a ton of money and a lot of good talent. If corners were cut, how does this happen in an organization with the cash resources, and talent to avoid it? And finally: training. I have no idea the quality of training that many warbird pilots accomplish. Actually, that goes for any pilot of any type of aircraft. Do they have 5000 hours in type? or 1 hour, 5000 times? "Deliberate practice". I've seen a lack of it in the military, and a lack of it in the GA world. I have no idea if that was a problem at Collings, but a failure to constantly train will rear its ugly head many more times over the course of our aviation adventure. Fortunately, I've seen some great examples of how to continually step up your game in aviation, and I've learned a lot from those people. Some of them are on this forum. They have done everything in their power to avoid ending up as a debrief on Kathryn's Report.

I have no idea what is done today, but years ago that is how it was done... minus the additional 3 year thing.

Well that's the problem, now isn't it?

This is NOT the case in the U-2.

I've posted this before but my last PT test was a month before I turned 49 or 50. One of my best friends was in the group and he was 47. There was a Captain around 31 and 6 enlisted from around 20-28. I figured I'd get crushed since I'm not Joe Workout. As it turns out, I ran the 1.5 in about 10:20, with my bud about a 10:40. The last 2-3 were simply pathetic. Of course, being the sensitive guys we are (you U-2 guys know the other person... Dingle), we heckled everyone with jeers of "Old guys rule!!". Frankly, though, it was sad to see. Our youth are not in really good shape. (epilogue: after we were done, we went to the bar and drank. Old guys do rule...)