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Ok so they had one....haha! No Korea, and no remote, sounds like a pretty good deal. Let's not even talk about the cush TDY's they get (pure jealousy, well minus the whole not ever going to combat part). I really have no dog in this fight, it's just funny to see the disparity. Ya, well eventually the government is going to have to say tough $hit. You bought a house near an Air Force base, guess what, it's going to be a little noisy from time to time!!! If your house was there before Luke, then you have a valid argument, in not, Fu@k off! If we shut down every base that had these issues we wouldn't have any left, besides Holloman, Cannon and Creech. Hell doesn't Nellis have that issue. The bigger issue here is losing access to a great training range down in the BMGR. What was even more amazing was that one of the biggest b!tches out there was some retired AF MSgt. He would call up and start off with how he was in the AF for 25 years and he knew how our operations were, and those planes are "hotdogging." Turns out it was just a transient 2 ship, not familiar with the local pattern. They flew over a town there we tried to avoid as part of our pattern procedures. But it's all a pipe dream the military will continue to kiss the locals a$$. Eventually, some politician will decide to take up the issue to further his career and eventually get it closed. Can't even imagine the fallout, if we ever put another jet into a neighborhood again.

I am well aware of d-bags around the base trying to shut it down. Heard about it all the time going through the B-Course, they are not happy about the 35 being based there. I am very glad Luke picked up the F-35 mission, that base would be a terrible loss...great ranges, great airspace and a great town! My comments were more about the fact that it didn't surprise me that the 22 is leaving Holloman, you can't have 22's (of 15s) in a $hitty location. No that is a forward thinker. That's good to hear!

Wow, that didn't take long. Everyone knows you can't put the F-15 or the F-22 in a $hitty location! Sucks for the future 16 bubbas, Phoenix is a great town. Not sure about what kind for ranges they have out at Holloman but it's hard to beat the BMGR.

That bar was terrible. Aside from mandatory fun, I only went there once, for my graduation...

Why does this not surprise me! I had a buddy go to XL for UPT, and was told he HAD to join the club. He promptly told them to no f'ing way....show me the AFI that says I have to be a club member. He didn't make any friends doing that but he didn't give a crap, and still graduated just fine. If they tried to charge him 5 bucks to get in, I have no doubt he would have just left and drank at his house. He was Guard so he already knew his assignment anyway. Wonder what they would do if everyone in the class said we aren't going? My guess is the leadership would cave and threaten the studs with some bull@hit lie about paperwork. What are they going to do, give the whole class a LOR There was a really weak attempt at pushing us to join the club, in UPT. I don't know of anyone who actually joined...that place was a ghost town, aside from assignment nights every 6 weeks. We fought to have our assignment night off base and were shot down by WG/CC. Then we tried to buy our food and beer from a place cheaper than the club, and were shot down again. So we were forced to buy overpriced beer and food from the club.

Of course it's smart, because it's legal and in the FAR's! They wouldn't have put it in there if they didn't want us using it. If the FSDO guys you talked to don't know what the military medical forms are, then they are $hitty at their jobs. If they plan on ramp checking anyone, it's their job to know what military medical forms are! No it will not suck, because I know I am right. If they don't think it's legal, I will reference them to FAR 61.23(b)(9) that I have scanned on the backside of my 1042. It's right there in black and white. If they still don't think it's right, let them look like a dumba$$ as they call back to the office to figure it out. I agree, that the less things out of the norm, the better. But if the FAA is offering this, then I am going to take full advantage of the situation. Why spend that 80-100 bucks if I don't have too? With the already astronomical costs of general aviation, this is money that could be better spent elsewhere. Why not? All the FAA inspectors I have dealt with have been great. I actually learned quite a bit from one particular individual and enjoyed the conversation. These are people just like you and I, who have just as much passion for aviation as the next guy. They just happen to work for the FAA. Beer is reason enough....haha! I think this is a great idea. But is this something he, or his office, just thought up or is that something that has been sent down from the power above?

This is the place to look for changes on that. He stays on top of most of that stuff.

Imagine if the AD did take the ARC Iron...they would have no reserve to break up the deployments. AD would have to TDY to their homes and would live in the desert. The iron would be reaching their useful shelf life at a staggering rate and we would be sending our jets to the boneyard at the same rate. I wouldn't even want to guess what would happen to the retention rate! But I do agree with you it seems more and more that TFI is the way of the future... Ya, give another F-ed up program to the guard. Guard gets the program on track thanks the vast experience level and significantly less red tape in the acquisition process. Subsequently the AD says, thanks...we'll go ahead and take those back! Proof positive that the Iron is owned by the AD...and they can do as they please anytime they want. Great post!

I'm guessing the guy yelling got UAVs out of pilot training, and knows exactly how this dude feels... I really don't blame the dude, although I would have just left and not made an ass out of myself by staying there. Why does everyone think that these dudes have to be all rays of sunshine when they get a UAV? I can see giving the dude $hit if he was pouting about not getting the MANNED aircraft of his choice. But for a dude that just got handed 10 years (I hope the AF isn't still feeding them BS about a follow on manned a/c, we all know that's a lie) in preds. I wouldn't look down on him if he just walked out for the night. What matters is that tomorrow he dusts himself off and moves on. Save the "he should just be happy to be in the AF...blah blah" I get it it....still doesn't mean he has to be happy about the assignment. When dudes got Tami'ed to UAV's everyone was like damn dude, feel bad for you....sorry to hear that. Noone was yelling at them, telling them they should just be happy they even got xx assignment. I even remember reading about how, one of our very own on this forum, was pissed when he got FORCED into A-10s from helicopters...but like any good officer he shook it off and moved on, as i'm sure this kid will. On a totally unrelated note....WTF is up with them calling the RPA? First if was UAV, then UAS now RPA....seriously why the changes?

SOS in correspndance AND in residence...really, WTF is the point! Masters to make Major - sure I'll sign up for a class on the weekend or the few hours a night I have to myself, I hate seeing my family anyway... Praying for a good VML. Hoping a UAV doesn't get sent your way. Uprooting the family every three years to who knows where. Worrying about TAMI 22 (AF doesn't care if you were DG in every course and are being groomed for WIC, if you don't have xx amount of hours on x date....UAV it is for you!) Being gone over half the year. As far as the hoping your unit doesn't get UAV's....if this does happen you can go find work with another guard/reserve squadron. The ARC isn't all the end all be all by stretch of the imagination. There tends to be fewer AGR jobs and more Technicians, these days, which is more pay but no 20 and out. The full time jobs can be hard to come by at times, but sometimes they are there for the taking. You really won't get the diversity of flying in lots of different places (provided you are lucky enough to get more than one assignment in your airframe on AD). If there is bad leadership....your stuck with them until they move on, which can take forever. Being part time, it's hard to stay proficient...even if you want to, sometimes the days and dollars just aren't there. The next BRAC is always around the corner....but again, you can go find work elsewhere. ARC Pros Choosing where you live. Flying the same if not more than your active duty bros...even as a part timer. Ability to move to another location/airframe (of YOUR choosing). The ability to go part time, and just fly in the military. The ability to sit out a deployment....have to keep those civilian employers happy as well. This one can not be emphasized enough.......4 day work weeks!

Looking for some info on Brush guns. I want to pick up a good gun to carry (fishing, possible hunting) in AK that is NOT a handgun. I was thinking of the Marlin 1895SBL 45-70, have also read about .44/.35/.458 etc...anyone have experience with these types of guns?

Therein lies the problem. Just handing out medals because other people are getting them isn't the answer. Same reason OPR's don't mean squat, it's more about how well someone can make their accomplishments sound rather than what they actually did. I would be willing to bet that, none of those Medal of Honor recipients set out to do something to receive that medal. They were just ordinary dudes put in an extraordinary situation and they rose to the occasion. Most would probably say they were scared death and fighting to live another day. They wear it as a sign of respect to all his bros who did not make it home. The dudes who put in for their own medals are trying to further their own careers. "Tiger, one day you will come to a fork in the road and you’re going to have to make a decision about which direction you want to go. If you go that way you can be somebody. You will have to make compromises and you will have to turn your back on your friends. But you will be a member of the club and you will get promoted and you will get good assignments. Or you can go that way and you can do something- something for your country and for your Air Force and for yourself. If you decide you want to do something, you may not get promoted and you may not get the good assignments and you certainly will not be a favorite of your superiors. But you won’t have to compromise yourself. You will be true to your friends and to yourself. And your work might make a difference. To be somebody or to do something. In life there is often a roll call. That’s when you will have to make a decision. To be or to do? Which way will you go? " — John Boyd

This doesn't help things!

Bring it back!

Youtube landings at St. Barths, there are tons of video of plane landing there. It's not uncommon for people to be taking video of approaches to this airport. Start watching around 1:05

Big deal...yes, more meaningful...no! I was perfectly happy with my AMS FA swearing me in...but then again I also skipped my college graduation. Never have been a big fan or making things a big deal. Danger, it's like the way SPS IFF does their graduation....I think that's how UPT grad should go! OTS.....way to long!

Don't really see the big deal. I could care less who swore me in, the oath means the same no matter what.

Again, its like the old timer at the airport I learned to fly. Flew mustangs in WWII/later the F-86, 747s for the airline, and still says his Piper cub is his favorite airplane. Come on now....I'm not that much of a hippie! Not an attack, but I don't see the justification of buying an expensive sports car that goes fast only to drive around at the speed limit (or 9 over, if your in Phoenix). It's just like putting a motor, that produces 29k lbs of thrust, in a viper and saying but you can only fly 250 kts. But then again, I'm not a car guy.....if it gets me from A to B safely and gets decent gas mileage, I'm happy. Not to mention the utility of it all. Just as you don't see the justification of spending money on flying on your spare time. Never questioned your love of aviation. But saying it's not worth it because we fly cool jets at work is just ignorant. It's just differing views, I can justify spending money to fly on my personal time, even if I get paid great money to fly the viper. As you said before, different strokes for different folks.

WOW.....180 hours, you've seen it all! You sound like the standard ROTC/Academy/whatever dude that goes to pilot training with very little civilian time. I don't mean this in a bad way, just different views on GA. I'm going to have to go with ASDF on this one. Some people buy fast cars, I think this is dumb. I can spend half the money and drive the speed limit as well, most likely at better fuel economy. They just love the feeling of power and acceleration, which pales in comparison the a burner takeoff in the viper. Whatever, that's what they want to spend their money on. Some people, myself included, just love flying (military or GA). Sure flying the viper is awesome, but so is flying GA aircraft. When I was in UPT, I managed to get a ride in a luscombe and a RV-4, would have flown every weekend if I had the chance. Flying GA, especially tailwheel, while different, is just as much fun as flying 38s. I have dreamed of flying the Viper since I can remember....now that I do, while I still love it, I still find myself wanting to go crawl into a Super cub or a Husky and go find some grass strips. Same reason my old D.O. (3k hours viper driver) loves to go fly his Cub on the weekends. You said it best....different strokes for different folks. To the OP, fly all you want, on the weekends. You'll just have to fill out the standard, I'm in AETC so I have to wear a diaper, paperwork. Just don't try to pursue a certificate or rating w/o the proper paperwork.

Flying Block 30's in the Guard....what more could you want!

This is crazy rampant at UPT bases, well at least one. As a former NCO, I would have never considered treating an LT the way we got treated by some of the NCO's or even junior enlisted. I should have been able to correct them, but I'm just a lowly LT who doesn't know any better. More like we would have gotten our balls crushed because we are "student pilots!" So push it up the chain and see what happens...which is not much because the IP's are treated much different than students. As far as experience.....most of the people I commissioned with were E-5 and above, one was an E-9 and multiple E-8/7's.

I'm an LT where can I get in on that (only hot chicks please)?