nsplayr

Maybe there is. I'm not a doctor, I'm a navigator. However, observation tells me 6 weeks is a nice round number someone probably decided was a decent amount of time to get back into shape/acclimated to your home environment. I think everyone agrees on the waist measurement not being fair and at minimum should be adjusted for height but I think that particular horse is dead. Until we get our heads on straight as a military and go to a functional test that actually measures power output, major muscle endurance, and mimics typical work-related movements then we're stuck only improving at the margins. Having a category that's only purpose is based on not looking fat is dumb and almost everyone will agree here, but unless you are CSAF let's try not to get derailed on bashing the waist measurement once again.

Yea, it is a maximum wait, not a minimum. And 42 days is 6 weeks last time I checked so it is a nice round wag if you think about it in terms of weeks to reacclimate to the local environment and/or get back in shape if you were a fatass out there in the desert.

I recommend the brightest damn headlamp you can find...mine was small, light, and dim as sh*t which didn't help when it was dark for 12 hours out of every day in January with 10% moon illum... Balaclava was the best thing I brought...allows you dial down the temperature by just putting it around your neck but then when you stop moving and it gets cold you can cover your whole face and stay warm off of your breath. Obviously that advice is more important for the winter vs. summer SERE. Have fun man.

No workie, try again. move along...

There are ways around the rules for individuals who are special enough. From what I hear (and have seen) there is a guy who's a gunship legend that's quite rotund yet has managed to stay in the AF. Honestly, if you have a 40+ inch waist, max the rest of the test (or at least run fast), and are an undeniably invaluable asset to the Air Force then get with your boss and your boss' boss.* *This situation applies to 0.01% of people who are currently failing the PFT. I guess I just have little sympathy for people who can't keep up and then wanna make excuses. Is the waist measurement BS and all about looks, yes. But so are lots of other things (powerpoint fonts, hair standards, useless paperwork, etc.) so I guess you either play the game long enough to hopefully outlive the stupidest rules or you take it like a man and at least go down fighting.

Units still have PTLs and UFPMs (unit firness program managers) even though we do not do the testing anymore. WRT desert PT testing, I'm 100% against anything that takes place in the AOR that does not contribute to either the mission, or sustaining people to perform the mission the next day (i.e. eating, working out, church, sleep, etc.) Anything beyond that other than the occasional R&R good deal (NFL cheerleaders performance at BAF? We can only hope...) is BS in my book and that's the fat that should be cut from our overseas operations. If you have dudes there to enforce gay uniform standards, other dudes to administer a useless "fitness" assessment, and a third group of dudes to process paperwork that is a self-licking ice cream cone then you're doing it wrong. Seriously, I'm still new here but I was aghast to see exercises going on in a deployed location in country. Wait, instead of simulated, simulated, simulated shouldn't we all just be doing our no-sh*t jobs out there? No, I'm not going to delay my takeoff for a f*cking change of command ceremony going on across the base! Are you freaking kidding me?!? Also if you're getting fatter on deployment you're also doing it wrong. WTF else do you do there other than work, workout, and sleep? Put the muffin down and do some pullups.

This problem can be solved with a waiver if you have the right leadership. Our boss said "hell no" to us taking more than 2 PT tests per year just because we're out there deploying a lot...that wasn't the intent of the new regs.

Planning laptop -> harddrive -> field laptop. Seen CDs used as well. AFSOC is the same way as far as I know...squadron issued hard drives for our use. YMMV.

From what I've seen everyone just uses external hard drives. They're bigger and you can't exactly wear one around your neck but it gets the job done and allows you to bypass the ban on flash media. And as a bonus they're way more expensive and are unnecessarily big!

Hoss, Here's my summary of other people's points on here: 1. OIF/OEF is serious business and no platform is perfect but we're all doing our best to win the wars 2. Missions in OEF are much less of a threat to aircrew than many missions during Vietnam and other previous wars 3. Missions in OEF are also sometimes monotonous (NTISR) and lacking in the inherent valor of old-school fighter wars 4. A "100 OEF Missions" patch is simultaneously (A) a throwback to AF heritage, back to a time when such a claim implied that you had gone through some serious sh*t and managed to live and (B) an ironic jab at the monotony of today's missions and the irony that living through 100 missions is still some kind of accomplishment. The proportion of A to B probably depends on the dude wearing the patch. I can understand the frustration when you think other people in a war zone aren't taking important stuff seriously, but it seems like everyone here agrees you need to breathe and count to 10. Did it bother you enough to confront this guy? Have you personally seen him or his crew screw the pooch? If not I think your frustrations are noted and possibly should be vectored toward some of the shoeclerkery going on over there. We should all probably move along before this becomes an unnecessary mud sling between CAS platforms. Bottom line if you are out there flying the line you are head and shoulders above most Americans who only bitch and complain about the war when things aren't going well. Sorry if that comes off like I'm a dick but just wanted to lay it out there.

OMFG...I looked at this yesterday when I submitted my idea and the Army was slightly ahead with like 500-some submissions with us a respectable second. What a difference a day makes...

Or if you paid attention...they taught CEP at nav school when we were doing airdrops; not sure what you plane drivers learn. May have been because my flt/cc was a buff dude, YMMV. Bring back: lingerie parties at the O-Club. So far before my time that it seems mythical and awesome. Also John Boyd jabbing generals in the chest with his finger in the Pentagon (great bio).

I put untold millions, was that appropriate?

Done...let's make this a reflective-belt type grass-roots campaign but let's actually win this time instead of just offering mild resistance. Down with TIB!!

This thread. /irony For realz: Buckley AFB, freaking sweet location between Denver and C-Springs. How about some UAVs to that place?

People have all kinds of patches...I vote if it was trying to throwback to actual AF combat heritage then all the better.

For your third option there I can answer questions if you have them. For pilots expect 6-9 months to get through training (the length of wait is getting better), then deploy probably 2-3 months after checkride. 2 on 2-3 off for the forseable future. Upgrade to AC after 3-5 trips depending on how much you suck and what kind of hours you get. Ok flying at home, will fly the sh*t out of you deployed. For me (I'm a CSO so YMMV) 2 trips = 500 hours. Small crew, great mission, good dudes at squadron PM if you have specifics.

Ancient Chinese proverb: A shoe with no sole hurt feet.

Agreed. JTACs are good at what they do but they're not super men. I can see it now... "Oh, so you not only want me to insert by helo at night in the mountains, hump it in for several km, run the stack, give weapons clearances, dodge bullets, and return fire, now I have to strap on this HUD, control a ball/pod, push the fire button, and sit there and lase the weapon on target? YGBSM." I can see in some situations where there would be a JTAC on the ground in a relatively calm infil and a UAV overhead loaded out with tons of weapons and you just have him do the target designating instead of having to talk on to coords over sh*tty satcom to some guy back in Vegas, but CAS isn't exactly a walk in the park and to lump in sensor work and weapons release/lasing from the air into the skill set of a dude who's already got a lot going on doesn't make sense to me.

Freaking hilarious...loved the "Jail or Deid?" section in the Feb. issue.

I totally agree...to me anything that cannot be covered by a t-shirt is not gonna be a good idea b/c it will be very obvious later in life when you're trying to land that big interview.

Really don't like tats huh? I think it's generational and a ton of younger people have them. Its like earings for generations past...it was taboo at the beginning, then more people got them, now it's NBD.

It's too bad all my VA people wanna play politics but then again, they're politicians. This is up to the minute proof why big defense contractors source parts and build equipment across 48 states in order to maintain Congressional support. Yea, jobs will be lost and that's tough in this type of economy, but I've always maintained that the DoD shouldn't be a federal jobs program, it should be about giving the forward-deployed commander the right tools, the right strategic guidance, and the right amount of troops and capabilities in reserve back home in order to carry out our national objectives. Screw jobs, being fair, everyone feeling important, etc.

Not the UPT expert here but they should be available from any track (T-38, T-1, T-44). Whether that's current policy or not IDK. And they are not the same as NSA so make your preference known if you want one or the other. Technique only, one has a much more desirable location than the other...

Along these lines, can someone explain to a young, naive guy why we still have numbered air forces??