Danger41

I’ve got a good friend who took a CSO bonus with UPT orders in hand and is still receiving the CSO bonus as a pilot. That was a few years ago but I know it was possible.

After Benjamin Harrison denied South Dakota it’s rightful place ahead of those godless heathens to their north in 1889 with his Dakota Territory statehood stunt (https://time.com/4377423/dakota-north-south-history-two/), we will finally settle it on the gridiron for the National Championship! North Dakota State and South Dakota State play on Sunday for the FCS National Title for the first time ever. The two schools have played each other 113 times in their histories (and have one of the best traveling trophies in college football https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dakota_Marker) but never for all the marbles. Tune in Sunday! I’ll be the drunk one in the Blue.

My $0.02 on this one. I think if you’re an engineer and get a masters in engineering, you should get a boost on your PRF as a result. If you’re an engineer and get a MBA, it shouldn’t matter. If you’re a rated aircrew, a masters degree shouldn’t matter until O-6. I know tons of bros that got one (myself excluded) that have never used the degree directly. HOWEVER, the ability of an officer to be able to write effectively, think critically, and examine complex problems is absolutely vital as one increases rank and responsibility. I understand the idea that a Masters degree would be an indication of those skills, but we’ve demonstrated that most certainly isn’t the case with the degree mills. The real root cause here (IMO) is the Air Force’s confusion that education = leadership. I liken it to a dude that gets a masters in exercise science and nutrition getting put in charge of a bodybuilding academy but has never lifted weights. It’s honestly sad to see those types get put back in charge of a squadron and flail because now their cohort is a bunch of John Q Pilots that just want to fly jets and kill the enemy and DGAF about all the stuff that their new commander just went through to become 1/690*. I’m not against education at all and personally think it’s very important. But the type of education needed to truly lead an effective fighting force doesn’t show up cleanly on a SURF. *This is discussed beautifully in a book called “The Captain Class”. TLDR version is the author looks at dynasty teams from every sport out there and finds the one thing they all had in common is a Captain that led by doing the dirty, challenging, and selfless work instead of getting the glory.

I listen to Breaking Points regularly and this monologue was about NATO contributions to Ukraine. Info from it, we (just us) gave more money to Ukraine in a year than we did to South Vietnam from 1956-1975 and more than we did in all of Afghanistan + and all the way back to 1946. Guess how much NATO is contributing…

Damn, i unintentionally timed that perfectly. Got to the almighty BAC+ as a Captain then AAD was masked, so haven’t touched it after making O-4 and O-5. Unmasked but already have the line number so kiss my uneducated ass!

Agreed. I know the PC-12 portion of U-28 FTU is flown almost exclusively by civilians. Has been for a decade plus.

I didn’t appreciate BTF life until I was teaching at the WIC and we had set up a big exercise with the Ellsworth Bones and Sioux Falls Vipers. Went there on a Monday to do some briefings and then before the first mission they got a BTF tasking to go to the Black Sea. To their credit, they filled that tasking and produced 3 jets for each vul (2 flew). I was seriously impressed with that effort from the entirety of the Ellsworth team.

Ironic that you mention AFSOC because (IMO) that command is in a drastic flail trying to find its way post-GWOT. The command has been given guidance to focus on GPC (sound familiar?) and the direction to “innovate”. The problem is that the command structure (and the AF writ large) isn’t willing to drastically innovate and take risks at the appropriate level. Perfect example is that the PC-12 is flown single pilot by some kid from Embry-Riddle with a couple hundred hours down to minimums but AFSOC won’t entertain that. Or put the decision authority down to the appropriate level (way below O-6). I don’t know if we’ll ever have WW3 with a Great Power, but I guarantee there will be dirty little wars fought by SOF that AFSOC will be a part of. I hope this innovation doesn’t cause the command to lose that skill set.

The part that really bugs me the most about those types is how cheap they are. Look at Facebook marketplace and see all the stuff they’re selling for “like new”. Socialism is great unless you can make some money off the 20 year old single mom looking for a car seat.

Dave Ramsey should use that as a tag line. “Whether you’re trying to blow up the World Trade Center* or chopping your wife up in a wood chipper, pay in cash!” *https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammed_A._Salameh

Fuuuuck that! We need every 5th Gen, top of the line, BAMF we can get to ensure the flow of Tonight Dough doesn’t slow down.

“Or the goat” lmao

Agreed. I hope they embarrass these fools if they’re really trying to scapegoat this crew. And then I hope they get a new airport.

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-air-force/2022/12/22/ac-130j-crews-honored-for-being-eyes-in-the-sky-over-kabul-in-2021/ 2 x AC-130’s awarded Mackay Trophy for Kabul evacuation.

What are the prerequisites for this job? I know an O-5 looking for a retirement job…

Sounds like the good people of Stillwater wanted a new runway and saw Uncle Sugar as a way to get there.

I think obesity is the worst problem facing the citizenry of this country and while a lot of that has to do with personal choice, this country is not set up to make meaningful change to curb it. Subsidies to farmers that are still in effect from the Great Depression to incentivize them to grow crops that exclusively end up making food crazy unhealthy (high fructose corn syrup, soybean oil, etc) will never be repealed thanks to lobbying and big agriculture. What actually made me officially leave the Republican Party to become a registered independent was the furor surrounding Michele Obama’s “Let’s Move” initiative and wanting to make school lunch healthier. The Republican response to that was purely political and proved nobody wants to actually make a difference. I’ll admit that school lunch and breakfast are just a piece of it, but JFC look at the average group of kids and how many are overweight. It’s terrible.

That’s why you gotta have a cover story man! Especially in Canada, FAWG could be Fuckin’ A Wayne Gretzky for his hockey prowess, Find a Way to Gander for his overland navigation skills (bonus points if from Newfoundland), Freely Acquires Wayward Geese for his work on the Canadian Geese migration, or even Fries Always With Gravy for his poutine obsession. Come on Canucks!

I’m glad the whistleblower is anonymous but had zero issues putting names, faces, and locations of several unit members out for all the world to see. WTFO.

*690

Budget passed the senate. We’ll see what HAF decides for ACP offerings…

A couple questions for the F-35 crowd. 1. Someone mentioned auto-eject earlier. Is that a thing in certain flight regimes? What triggers it? 2. Is that a normal descent rate prior to touchdown? @VMFA187mentioned lift fan failure but I don’t have a frame of reference for what a normal VTOL looks like.

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/us/live-news/nuclear-fusion-reaction-us-announcement-12-13-22/index.html First ever successful fusion reaction that produced more energy than it took to make it. Game changing event.

I’ve never been in a community that has had to deal with these types of shenanigans, but has an AC ever just said “fuck this guy. He’s an adult and I’m not responsible for his stupid ass?” Or is it always the military standard of the AC is responsible for everyone on the crew even if they’re shit heads?