B52gator

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYj7T9eEQ4U

/thread

Firefighter

Just reading this thread makes me wonder where the time has gone. I've been out for six years (my career was going nowhere...self-induced...but that's another story) and the only thing I miss are the guys and the flying. I don't miss much else and the experiences I had flying and with my fellow crew dogs is what I'm most proud of. As much as I hated sitting on a frozen gel pad on an ejection seat, beating up the pattern for 2 hours, and the smell of fart, puke, stale coffee, and JP8 sitting in the bowels of the Mighty BUFF, I do miss the camaraderie and the shudder the jet makes when the iron is dropped. Fortunately I transitioned into a career where the caliber (hard worker, high speed, mission oriented, drunkard, bullshitter, ball buster, skirt chaser, etc.) of co-worker is pretty much the same. I still have a lot of friends who are in, and from hearing their stories and reading stories here, I wonder had things gone better for me if I would have got out at this point. While I'm sure there are plenty of people who are pretty happy with Big Blue right now, it seems like things have really gone down hill the past couple of years. I don't fault guys either way for getting out or staying in. You have to do what is best for you, you are your own seat commander, when it's time to go it's time to go.

I'll put this here. I know these guys are dorks and tin-foil hat wearers generally, but interesting speculation nonetheless. Anybody know who uses "Sienna"? https://www.foxnews.com/science/2014/03/29/mystery-aircraft-spotted-flying-over-texas-raises-speculation/ It's difficult to determine, but a group of aviation enthusiasts say they caught a glimpse of a mystery aircraft earlier this month flying slowly across the Amarillo, Texas sky. "We looked southwest and there they were," Steve Douglass, a journalist and member of the group, told FoxNews.com. "We thought they were B-2s, but when we studied our pictures, we ruled that out." Douglass and his group, armed with cameras and binoculars, met on March 10 at the Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport. The airport is a perfect venue because it offers expansive views of Texas' big sky and a steady stream of military air traffic. On a good day, the group can see various military jets, and even the elusive F-22 Raptor. It was a clear day, and the group was alerted to three aircrafts flying across the southwest skies. Douglass estimated that the planes got within 20 miles of the group and they started taking pictures with their 300mm zoom cameras. They looked at the photos, and saw that one appeared to be a silver-grey B-2 bomber. The prospects of spotting a B-2 bomber was exciting, and Douglass said he got home to observe his photos when he noticed the aircraft in his picture had a smooth backside. The B-2 bomber has a distinct "W"-shaped back. "The trailing edge is wrong," Douglass shouted, according to his blog. Few items provoke public interest like an unidentified flying object. These stories are often attached to other theories about hidden testing bases or alien life forms. But these images have prompted some interest in the industry. "The photos tell us more about what the mysterious stranger isn't than what it is," Bill Sweetman writes in Aviation Week, which first reported on the story. The report said that Douglass picked up some apparently related voice signals, which would indicate the aircraft had a pilot. Editors at Aviation Week reportedly say the images appear to be "something real." "If I had to guess, I'd say we took a picture of a stealthy transport aircraft," Douglass said. Douglass writes that he reached out to Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, which houses B-2s, to see if it flew any planes over Texas on that day and did not get a response. This is the guy's blog. https://deepbluehorizon.blogspot.com/

Would ya?

He wasn't too happy with "us"…

Interesting idea, won't ever happen…but a lot of what the Air Force does outside of flying related operations could be incorporated/absorbed into other services.

I don't know if this from an actual movie (or maybe the new HBO series), but either way https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXV9w62P2yA I'm all for some two-ended dildo action involving Jennifer Connely and another gal, but that's just f-ing weird.

Touché

At least you guys aren't sitting in a 50 year old ejection seat that ejects you downward.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/11/21/boeing-747-mistakenly-lands-at-small-kansas-airport/?intcmp=latestnews "A Boeing 747 jumbo jet mistakenly landed a tiny airport in Kansas late Wednesday, raising questions about how the pilots got off course. The jet landed at Col. James Jabara Airport, about 8 miles north of its intended target, the McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita. Jabara's runway is just 6,101 feet long, much shorter than is ideal for an aircraft of that size. Roger Xanders, chief of the Wichita Airport Authority's police and fire department, told KMBC-TV that nonetheless the plane should be able to take off around noon Thursday. The plane, operated by Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, has been turned around by a tug to prepare for departure, said Brad Christopher of the Wichita Airport Authority. "We've been in contact with Atlas company headquarters in New York. They've assured us they've run all the engineering calculation and performance and the aircraft is very safe for a normal departure at its current weight and conditions here," Christopher said. Atlas Air spokeswoman Bonnie Rodney did not immediately return early Thursday calls and an email from The Associated Press seeking comment. Boeing spokesman Marc Birtel said he could not immediately provide any information on how or why the jumbo jet landed at Jabara. The two-person crew was not injured and the airplane and airport property were not damaged, Christopher said. The modified 747, one of a fleet of four that hauls parts around the world for the production of the Dreamliner, was bound for McConnell because it is adjacent to Boeing supplier Spirit AeroSystems, Birtel said. Spirit makes the forward section or nose area of the Dreamliner's fuselage. These jets, which the company refers to as Dreamlifters, are crucial to the Dreamliner's construction. Boeing is using a global network of suppliers to develop and build most of the new plane's parts in locations as far away as Germany, Japan and Sweden. Boeing says the Dreamlifter cuts delivery time down to one day from as many as 30 days. The final aircraft is assembled at plants outside Seattle and in North Charleston, S.C. It is not the first incident of a large aircraft landing at an airport ill equipped to accommodate a plane of that size. In July last year, a cargo plane bound for MacDill Air Force base in Tampa, Fla., landed without incident at the small Peter O. Knight Airport nearby. An investigation blamed confusion identifying airports in the area and base officials introduced an updated landing procedure to mitigate future problems."

Long, but good article. F’d: How the U.S. and Its Allies Got Stuck with the World’s Worst New Warplane The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter was meant to improve the U.S. air arsenal but has made it more vulnerable instead https://medium.com/war-is-boring/5c95d45f86a5

This is pretty cool... https://www.startribune.com/local/230375891.html SUPERIOR, Wis. — Two planes carrying skydivers collided in midair Saturday evening in far northwest Wisconsin, but no major injuries were reported. Mike Robinson, an instructor and safety adviser for Skydive Superior, said he and 10 others escaped relatively unharmed after one plane crashed into the other during what he said was a common tandem formation. Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Roland Herwig said the collision occurred about 6 p.m. at about 12,000 feet. Robinson said he and four others were preparing to jump from the lead plane with the trailing plane hit their craft. He said the impact caused a fireball and sheared off the craft's right wing. Robinson said all five skydivers on his plane and four on the trailing plane were able to jump free. "The pilot of our plane was very lucky to get out," he said, adding that he managed to escape using an emergency parachute. Robinson said the pilot of the other plane was able to land the damaged craft back at Richard I. Bong Airport, where it took off. He said the pilot who escaped the destroyed plane was taken to an area hospital with minor injuries. Herwig said the lead plane broke into three parts, with debris landing on the airport property and an adjacent retail area. Superior Police Department Deputy Chief Matt Markon said in a statement Saturday night that the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were expected to arrive in the area on Sunday. "We do this all the time," Robinson said. "We just don't know what happened for sure that caused this."

Ha...no. That'd be "down" in God's country for me. "Up" is the Boundary Waters. Leage has been set up. If you played last year, I just rolled the league over, so your team info should still be good to go from last year. For new guys, you should get the invite shortly. Again, PM me with your email so I can get an invite sent.

I'm gonna work on that tonight...was up in God's country this weekend a long way from WIFI.

Slight side track, my dad brought up an interesting point that I never really considered before. We've been at war for roughly 12 years. How much intel do you think our "enemies" have collected on us? Granted, the way we are currently fighting in Afghanistan and to a certain extent were fighting in Iraq are not the way we are going to fight say China, Russia, N.Korea, etc...but they have probably picked up a lot of info on the way we do business.

My brother and I are going out there for the Vikes game. We'll be out there for a few days so we'll be looking for stuff to do. We don't like the normal touristy crap, unless there are some must sees. Anybody have any ideas for cool stuff to do/check out?

For all those who are "in" PM your email addresses...we'll get this show on the road.

Anybody else????

9 so far. Yes to ESPN Need 3 more.

I knew that would happen and it's my own fault for not clarifying that it was a jab at current BUFF ops. No disrespect to your dad and his crew. Those guys did have big brass ones. 11 Days of Christmas gets read at least once a year and that audio of a BUFF run in Vietnam that somebody posted not too long ago is a testament to what those guys went through. BUFF (myself included) guys are well aware and proud of their heritage, those who came before, sacrifices from other crew dogs etc. No intent to offend.

Looking to get another league going this year. Twelve teams. $25 a piece. Who's in?

One of those deals where we will never truly know what went on. The movie has potential and hopefully it is done right...then again, it could be one of those that completely misses the mark. Not a big Wahlberg fan, but I'll give it shot. Slight tangent: It's movies/books like this that make me feel just a little inferior to those dudes. Flying around safe and cozy (as cozy as you can be in the BUFF) at 32k eating chicken wings isn't exactly big brass balls kinda stuff.

In Soviet Russia, gear stays up! Ah, ah, ah!