MD

Thanks for the info! Am also in the post-election buy up of guns while we still can, and want an M1911 for the classic that it is, as well as to shoot. Saw in a few stores 1911 look-alikes that were marked as M1991s, hence the question. If they're pretty much the same, I'm just might consider them too in the M1911 purchase decision. Wish I could carry my own selected sidearm (like an M1911/M1991) in my LE employment, but like any governmental agency, contracts change every few years. We're now with H&K with the P2000 pistol (USP-like), which is an OK firearm, but nothing special.

Thread Revival, after UTFSF. Just got selected for HH-60s with the Reserves as a traditional. After 12 years of fixed wing, I'll be making the changeover to helos. Additionally, I get to get the heck out of the MQ-1, finally; transferring from the ANG to the AFRES. As this will be my 4th FTU I've attended in my combined AD/ARC career (A-10/F-117/MQ-1), I've got a few questions for those in the know. Normally, I'm fairly familiar with how FTUs work for most airframes, but this is kind of a unique situation: Regards Rucker, there's still an unanswered question with my training shop guy about what and how a fixed-wing to rotary-wing guy will train. Thought it'd be with the 23rd in the H-1, but word is coming back that RWQC for a fixed-wing guy is actually with the Army side of Rucker in the TH-67, and is 89 training days. I hadn't heard the AF training with the Army...as I thought ALL the AF guys went with the 23rd there, but what's the true deal? After completing the RWQC, is one then able to mil-comp a Comm-Rotorcraft, Helicopter and Instrument-Helicopter to their existing FAA ATP/Instrument ticket, or does one have to complete their specific FTU first? I ask, because the training I get from the AF will have a direct effect on also crossing over from fixed-wing to rotary-wing permanently in my civil employment with CBP. Having already completed water survival as a fixed-wing guy, will I be sent to somewhere to get the helo-dunker portion, or do I have to repeat SV-86(?) at P-Cola? If only the dunker, will that be at P-Cola, or at other places with dunkers (Miramar, Fairchild, etc)? Gonna be interesting, going from being a former SANDY to now the JOLLYs I used to cover.....it's a very unique opportunity; just as unique as checking out of the roach motel of the UAV world. I've got a few Qs about the H-60 FTU which I'll post later due to time purposes. Thanks in advance for helpful info.

Very full-up......with MAC patch and all.

On a related note, anyone have or had an M1991 version of the 1911? Opinions one way or the other on them?

I hope so too. I'm just counting on the fact that since we have this ruling now that we didn't have before, we may have a more shored-up position to defend against the anti-gun, anti-2nd Amendment folks and the crap they'll try to come up with. Still, it's going to be a tough fight that we can never let our guard down over, IMHO.

I think one thing we have going in our favor is the recent Supreme Court ruling (now Case Law) on the 2nd Amendment as it relates to the D.C. gun ban.

Boisterous discussion is good; and IMHO a discussion or remark would have to be something pretty darn serious (ie- threat against an officia's life, etc) to even garner any level of "response" from law enforcement....or the AF (who's to busy with reflective belts, new uniforms etc anyway). I kid, but you know what I mean. Your next paragraphs below.... ....cover it well. Bash the issues of the individual if you like, and even criticize the individual as any taxpayer would, keeping in mind the "contempt" line that one would have to follow, if so restricted, and which is defined below: ".....down to the Governor or legislature....." So County Supervisors, city Mayors, and city/town councils are fair game?

See it often at, for example, auto races. Some people stand with their hand over their heart, but still have their hat on. So long as someone makes the effort to stand, be quiet, and at least try to do the right thing, I too have no real heartache with it. Agree, a reminder from the announcer would do well.

Have you referenced the designs the last Tweet classes at XL/VN/CB made up? Might be some ideas there? Just my 2 cents: How about a patch incorporating 3 Tweets in formation....one in the original unpainted natural metal as lead-ship, dash-2 being painted in the all-white color common to ATC from the early-mid '70s until the early '90s, then dash-3 being the white over blue color the Tweets are today. Sunset background of some type would be cool as previously mentioned. Idea comes from looking at some of the class graduation books I have stored away from Willie. When Willie closed in '93, I went on base to the then-BRAC office in the former 82nd Wing building. I asked the retired E-9 working there if there were any non-accountable items stored anywhere that were going to be junked. He showed me to a small storage area where there were a good amount of items from various times in Willie's history...old pubs & In-flight guides from both the T-37/38 side, as well as the 425th from Luke that was flying the F-5 in the FMS role there as a GSU. Patches and plaques from the named Willie flights (unlike the rest of the UPT bases, Willie had named flights, not just "A", "B" or named flights after the phonetic alplabet; their flights were names such as Raindance, John Black, Skitter, Hacker, etc.). The top find were class graduation books from about 1962 until early 1980s....about 30 of them. Excellent references into history of various classes/flights, the associated IPs, and the general life in UPT during those times. Real neat stuff to have, especially as the airport eases further and further away from it's military past....deliberately. Once known as Williams Gateway Airport....it's name was recently changed to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport....it's past as an Air Force base being preserved very little, apart from the airport gift shop and the T-38 on a stick.

This is exactly what the AF did in the mid-90s. Back then, you had three choices in UPT: 1. Drop out, with no remaining committment to the AF. 2. Complete UPT, resign your commission, with no remaining committment to the AF. 3. If you could find a Guard/Reserve unit that wanted you (assuming you were AD), you could complete UPT, leave AD and transfer directly to the Guard/Reserve. These were the programs in effect on the "front side" to get rid of the pipeline O-1s. This was before the banking of pilots, and even further before the infamous 3rd pilot program.

Anybody want to open a Vegas sports book line of what hits the flightline first? The CSAR-X or the new KC-X tanker?

Good pistol. It's unfortunate that 10mm never caught on like was intended. I personally like the round.

On a sidenote, it's impressive to see what depot can do. When 90-26228 crashed in Hell's Hole, AZ in 1994, it was pretty well destroyed. Still, it was airlifted out of the canyon it went into, shipped to Corpus, and they rebuilt it from darn near scratch, IIRC. I believe it's still flying the line in Tucson.

Now that we've covered run times here, maybe we can have a separate thread for waist measurements and sit-and-reach distances?

Only other helo with an unofficial nickname/designation I remember was the MH-3E Pave PIG helos of the AFRES 71st SOS.

Yes siree, still do. Originally from here, been based here, and still living here...fly for US Customs nowadays after AD, traditional Guard on the side for my mil stuff. I live on the NW side, but used to live on the NE side. Pros and Cons to everywhere..just depends on what you're looking for. Feel free to PM....

Welcome to the new suck......

Excellent point. I went to UPT with @4,200 hrs TT and an ATP, but when at UPT, I was just another UPT stud, there to learn. The biggest asset my previous time and experience gave me was being able to help my buds understand things like RMIs, airways, rules/regs, basic things new to them.....ie- try to help set everyone up for success. The flying itself wasn't too difficult, nor was most of UPT due to this, but everyone in our class was able to contribute individual strengths to the class in order to make everyone's life easier. In that respect, we had a good class. Even so, we started with 33 and graduated 15 (17 if you include the 1-each Corpus and Rucker guys, IIRC). BL is, as TacAirDrvr makes an excellent point of, that prior time is what the individual makes of it....it can help you or can hurt you.

They're taxed. For example, the 1 year/ $15K bonus will net you about $12.5k.

2 questions: 1. Yes, our Guard guys were told that they had to have 10 years of aviation service, event though they only had an 8 year UPT ADSC, which makes no sense. Where is this written that its supposed to be this way, and why the difference? Is it because they assume that everyone now is under an 10 yr ADSC? 2. Do the years of aviation service truly start from Day 1 of UPT, or is it the month of graduation.......our local CBPO seems to be going by the latter.

Should have caveated "during my time there, we had....."

Almost. We had one prior U-2 / KC-10 guy, and a couple of B-1 background guys. But the above is true for the balance.

Figured he meant apart from the two B-model N/AW Hogs....lol

Neither did the 117.

Heck, at SAC bases (Wurtsmith comes to mind), even responding to a ground emergency as fire department, if you weren't met at the flightline-side ECP for the bomber alert pad, and escorted in to where the emergency was, we'd as Fire Dept get jacked up. Better deal than taking it to the local Fotomat booth [/blast from '80s].