afnav

Everyone can disregard my previous post. My friend was on that jet. I can only hope that none of you out there reading this have to go through losing a friend in a crash. KEEP IN TOUCH WITH YOUR CLASSMATES AND FELLOW FLIERS! You'll never know when you might lose them.

If anyone here is at Columbus, please PM me with what squadron they were in. One of my oldest friends is in the 43rd. Thanks.

I don't want to hijack the thread, but does anyone have any experience with their career services? I just finished a MAS in Aviation Management/Aviation Safety. I didn't go to FSO school, but wish I had.

That was the beauty of it all. I had a chance to share a beer with the female that "stressed my carcass" when it was over. Use the icebreaker that is handed to you and go with it.

Don't worry. Chances are there will be plenty of enlisted females to torture instead of you. I think those guys really enjoy beating up girls. I went to ejection water survival after changing planes and it had been five years since I had been to Fairchild. The guy in front sounded really familiar. I closed my eyes and listened to him talk for awhile. He stopped talking for a minute, and I pointed to him, eyes still closed, and said "Bearclaw". You could have heard a pin drop in that room. He said that he hoped I didn't take it personally.

Hell, the BUFF dropped pieces off of it during and after its development, and still flew. I'm not sure there are any airplanes around that could top that. -------- There are some interesting theories on another site, to include wake turbulence and flight computer failure.

They almost always plan flyovers with a normal training sortie, which is what we did when I was a scheduler. This is not a big waste of money like some would lead you to believe.

They won't be able to "pad" this test like they did many others checking out the missile defense system. They screw this one up, and the whole world will know.

I have an ex-sniper M91/30, and it is a high quality firearm. I put a modern manufacture PU 3.5x siderail scope on it, and it is super accurate. The whole thing cost me around $250 to do. Make sure you buy from a reputable seller, as there are some shifty ones out there. Some of these rifles were imported from countries that don't have the same standards of weapons care that we do. I would not recommend buying a "normal" 91/30. Stick to an ex-sniper, but check the barrel to see if it's been shot out. The Russians hand-picked rifles off the line and tested them for accuracy before they were turned into snipers. Quite a few of them were modified but never used before the end of the war, mine being one of them. They were then de-modified back to line rifle configuration and put into long-term storage. There are websites out there that can help you find the proper markings on the receiver for an ex-sniper. I have a scoped K98k also, and it shoots really well, too. It uses a siderail mount with an Oigee 4x scope. The ammo is a little more pricey than the standard hunting calibers, but these rifles are practically indestructable. Both were made in 1940, and probably have at least 50 more years of shooting life in them if cared for.

This post reminds me of one of my times at PSAB (pre-hard billets). We were wandering through the BS (small BX) and found ten copies of Celebrity Sleuth on the shelf. I pointed it out to my comrade, and he proceeded to grab three immediately. We got back to our tent and quickly spread the word. Those mags were gone inside of 30 minutes. Proof positive that incompetent AAFES employees can sometimes be inadvertent friends. The same trip our 50-year old AWACS back-end boss did a twice-daily trip to check on the supply of condoms. It was consistently three or four boxes short by the end of the day. "Boys, they're some ######in' goin' on out here." We heard a rumor that the cops used the camera on the huge mast in the middle of base to spot people screwing instead of watching the perimeter.

God, is it just me or do those "things" look like living "Bratz" dolls?

I agree with the previous post on Garland. Highland Park is probably worse. Dallas honestly thinks its shit doesn't stink. Can you tell that I'm a Fort Worth native? I the post subject, I think this is further evidence of the growing chasm between the "civilians" and the "military family". These people think that putting those Chinese-made yellow magnet things on their cars really mean something, kind of like those 'pee on the auto logo' things that were popular a few years back. They have no idea what it's like to even serve their country, much less deploy, much less be injured, much less die overseas. It certainly doesn't help that there's plenty of politicians that have no problem getting someone else's family member killed for their next election win or photo op. Kind of reminds me of a movie I saw a few years ago: RASCZAK You. Tell me the moral difference, if any, between the citizen and the civilian ? JOHNNY The difference lies in the field of civic virtue. A citizen accepts personal responsibility for the safety of the body politic, of which he is a member, defending it, if need be, with his life. The civilian does not. RASCZAK The exact words of the text. But do you understand it ? Do you believe it ? JOHNNY Uh, I don't know. RASCZAK Of course you don't. I doubt if any of you here would recognize 'civic virtue' if it bit you in the ass.

My personal experience with the USO has been fantastic. Here are a few of my examples: - USO at Chicago Midway: The Chicago PD has an office next door, and hangs out in there all the time. One started talking to me, and we had a good conversation. I told him that I wished I could have caught a game at old Comiskey before they tore it down. He gave me his business card, and told me that when I ever get into town, give the number on the back a call. It was a friend who could get me in a back gate to Comiskey to catch a game - free. - USO at DFW: This used to be the TWA Admiral's Club, which explains why it is immaculate. It has the typical great service. - USO at Hickam: A female contractor and I get off a -135 heading to Grissom from Diego in '03 on our way back to Barkatraz. The tanker crew said that we could come with them, but we would be SOL once we got to Grissom, since it's in the middle of nowhere. I call billeting to try to get us a room(s), and they say since we don't have Hickam on our orders, they won't give us anything (including a non-availability form). Out of ideas, I go to the USO to ask a local if they know where we could find a cheap motel. The lady at the desk tells me that she isn't sure, but she'll ask her husband. He comes over, and asks where we are coming from. I explain that we are trying to make our way home from the war, and not having much luck. He asks his wife for the number to billeting and dials it up. "Hello? Is this billeting? This is Col Avella, the XX Group Commander. I have a Maj BXXX and a friend here, and they are trying to get home from the war, and I'd like to know what you are going to do to help them. Yes, you're going to help them, right? Good. They're on their way." Needless to say, we got our non-availability slip to anywhere we wanted, and since T had been stationed there for eight years, she picked the Outrigger Waikiki. A FRED eventually showed up, but broke for three days. After a three-day vacation in Hawaii, we made it back to LA. You never know what kind of help you'll get at a USO. If I have the time, I always stop at the USO when I'm flying. They are wonderful people. As was said earlier, slip them a few bucks when you visit (especially officers).

I'm going to try this going from AD to ANG at Ft Lewis. The Guard has an easier waiver process than the Reserves. After three years in the ASOS/ASOG, going a half-mile away shouldn't be too hard, since they already know who I am. AGR positions aren't easy to find, but they are standing up ASOS units all over the country, and quite a few of them are in decent locations. The key is to "get known" by the embryonic squadron commanders of these units standing up. Another option that may be abhorrent to most is the Army National Guard. I was talking to a recruiter the other day that said I'd be one of the "young" ones (I'm 39) coming over, and would be able to stay in until 60 (all active duty time would count). There is a restriction from retiring from AF AD going to the ANG, but they are taking everyone else.

With Pop's, go with the zip-in fur liner, both sets of inside pockets, the modified outer pockets, and the blood chit if you were ever "over there". Otherwise it looks a little strange. Mine has the tough, thick leather, but I'm not sure what it's called. It has managed to fend off all the sharp edges in both planes I've flown. I had mine made for me to my measurements at Pop's when I was at Incirlik in the OPC/ONW days. He has a really classy setup, and will take good care of you. There are a lot of space guys wearing leather here at STRAT, but I've always worn my leather when I fly, giving it the weathered look. Theirs look like they just came off the rack and are unmodified. The difference is readily apparent. There are also a lot of them wearing nomex jackets, too, so that isn't much of a discriminator anymore.

For polygraphs, straight SCI probably won't get you hooked up unless you are investigated. If you are "read in" to anything, you will sign a consent form. If you don't know what that means, don't worry about it.

I'm 78". ABMs only have the Flying Class III requirement, which is the Air Force height requirement. I think it's 6'9. Pilots and navs have the requirement for ejection seats, the T-37 in particular. All I know is that my head would have acted as the canopy piercer. I only had 7 or 8 rides, so it didn't matter much. The BUFF has a minimum and maximum weight requirement, but I've never heard of a height requirement. I would have ejected down, so I would probably have been 78 1/2" by the time the process ended.

These are some pretty good stories. I was doing an FTU sortie in the BUFF. The student nav didn't have a radar, so I was sitting in the seat instead of back next to the pisser. He did pretty good until we got back to the pattern. We had just made our first TNG, and were climbing out. He called the downwind speed, but then went quiet. I looked over, and he had puked ALL OVER his panel and himself. We are talking at least three to four square feet of puke. I asked the pilots to extend, and immediately sent him upstairs to sit in the IP seat. Better them than me... I rode down there with his puke for another 30 minutes, mask up. With them not doing low level anymore, pattern projectile vomit is about as exciting as it gets now.

The word I'm getting at Barkatraz is that if you are an instructor, you are guaranteed to be RECLAMA'd until Armageddon. If you are inexperienced, you are UAV or ALO bait. The experienced/inexperienced imbalance is probably not something the staff guys are thinking about. It was a constant accordion act the entire time I've been flying. I just managed to escape AWACS during a scheduled purge directed by the HQ. I don't know the idiosyncrasies of the BONE society, but if you want to stay, I'd upgrade to IWSO and get into the FTU.

I had assignment notification for an ALO command billet in Germany, and it was hijacked away from me by USAFE nazis. Unfortunately, STRAT was all that was left, and it's killed me. The ANG is opening ASOS units in a lot of different locations. If your flying days are done, they might hire you into a AGR position. You can coast out your remaining active duty time, and then go traditional after you retire. That's my plan now. In the meantime, I think Red Cloud is definitely in my future in '09. Anything to keep me out of another non-flying staff tour...

My wife and I had orders to Germany when she was very pregnant. She would have had to stay behind to have the kid by herself. Turns out my orders were switched to Omaha and we came up here three months early to take advantage of "modern medicine". If they can spot any problems with the kid in utero, it could kill your orders if they won't have treatment available for your child. It could also turn your 2-year long into a short tour. I'm sure you can probably get an extension, but the sympathy vote has dramatically declined in value since OIF. A lot of guys are not around to see their kids born anymore. Good advice from the above posts.

You're right on non-ejection aircraft. When I was in AWACS, they just wanted the girls to remove their ear (and nipple and "other") piercings prior to flight. On ejection seat aircraft, loose dogtags can be self-critiquing. Since I ejected down in my last plane, I'd turn into the modern headless horseman.

I've worn mine since I was issued them in BMT (20 yrs ago this month). I DON'T wear my wall locker key anymore. I'm glad I've moved beyond that. When we took ours off to fly (rings, rags, and tags), I put mine in my Afrin pocket. We were all foot-printed at nav school. It was hell getting the ink off.