GoAround

I agree...so I'm surprised that the WG/CC got selected for Brig Gen this past week in the wake of the C-17 and F-22 mishaps.

Good news for military retirement...for now... https://money.cnn.com/2010/12/03/news/economy/fiscal_commission_vote/index.htm?hpt=T1 A report by a presidential panel commissioned to find ways to pull the United States out its massive debt has failed to win the 14 out of 18 votes required to bring it up for a vote in Congress. But Democratic and Republican members of the panel praised the sweeping plan, which recommends raising the retirement age and cuts in defense spending, saying it has raised awareness that Congress has to take action to reduce the national debt. President Barack Obama called together a bipartisan panel of 18 current and former U.S. lawmakers and top business and labor union leaders to hammer out a plan to drastically cut the spiraling U.S. national deficit. The panel's recommendations prompted a firestorm of criticism from both Democrats and Republicans. Some Democrats objected to proposed cuts in Social Security and Medicare, and plans to raise the retirement age. Some Republicans said they oppose the plan because it does not do enough to cut spending and health care costs. But despite all the misgivings, 11 members of the panel voted for the plan, including progressive Democratic Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois. Durbin said he had been getting a lot of phone calls asking why he voted yes, and this was his explanation. "I believe that politicians on the left and the right, Democrats and Republicans, have to acknowledge the depths of crisis our nation faces," said Durbin. "When we borrow 40 cents out of every dollar we spend, whether it is in the Pentagon or for food stamps, that is unsustainable. And being indebted for generations to China, OPEC and other nations around the world will not allow us to build a fairer and just America." Republican Senator Mike Crapo of Idaho also voted for the plan, and said he believes it has already changed the national debate on the country's deficit. "The fact that we did not hit 14 should not be, and many others have reflected this same sentiment, should not be an indication that there is not powerful support behind this plan, and the need for Congress to engage," said Crapo. Both Democrats and Republicans on the panel said the commission's plan deserves a vote on the floor of the House and the Senate. The plan would reduce deficit spending by nearly $4 trillion by 2020. But Democratic Representative Jan Schakowsky of Illinois said the plan would put an unfair burden on lower income Americans and the elderly, while leaving the wealthiest virtually unscathed. "But there is another grave threat to both our economy and our democracy, and that is the alarming redistribution of wealth that is shrinking the middle class," said Schalowsky. "The top one percent of Americans now own 34 percent of our nation's wealth, more than the entire 90 percent of the rest of Americans combined." The next Congress will likely take up the national debt issue next year. But first, in its remaining weeks in December, this session of Congress still needs to fund the federal government and to deal with the controversial issue of extending Bush-era tax cuts.

Take a chillax pill broseph..."Pork barrel is a derogatory term referring to appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured solely or primarily to bring money to a representative's district."

Pretty cool gig... LeMieux: Tyndall to Gain T-38 Detachment BY: Unattributed , WMBB News 13 11/30/2010 Washington, DC: U.S. Senator George LeMieux (R-FL) today announced the Air Force will be sending a T-38 detachment to Tyndall Air Force Base. The ten T-38s will provide dedicated adversary support to the F-22s currently stationed at the base. “This is fantastic news for Tyndall Air Force Base and the Panama City area,” said LeMieux, a member of the U.S. Senate Armed Service Committee. “This detachment will complement the existing F-22 program operating out of Tyndall. Bringing more planes to the area will also bring more jobs, increasing economic activity throughout North Florida.” The Air Force will station ten T-38s at Tyndall AFB, with the first round of planes arriving on base by the end of September 2011. The remaining five are expected to be in place at Tyndall by the end of March 2012. The T-38 Talon is a twin-engine, high-altitude, supersonic jet trainer used in a variety of roles because of its design, performance and safety record. Air Education and Training Command is the primary user of the T-38 for joint specialized pilot training. https://www.panhandleparade.com/index.php/mbb/article/lemieux_tyndall_to_gain_t-38_detachment/mbb7726974/

An FSU degree is somewhere between a GED and a diploma from ITT.

That has seriously gotta be one the the funniest things I've ever seen.

This would be a kick in the nut sac: https://www.armytimes.com/news/2010/11/military-budget-recommendations-retirement-cuts-111710w/ Second task force seeks to cut retired pay By Rick Maze - Staff writer Posted : Wednesday Nov 17, 2010 17:01:47 EST The military retirement system is under attack from another group trying to cut federal spending, and this time they say they would make the changes apply even to current service members who have less than 15 years of service. In a report released Nov. 17, the Debt Reduction Task Force of the Bipartisan Policy Group recommends cutting military retirement costs in half by making three changes: • Instead of drawing a retirement check immediately after completing active duty, checks would not start until age 57. • Instead of calculating retirement benefits on the highest three years of basic pay, the highest five years of consecutive service could be used as the multiplier to set amounts. • A new formula would be adopted for calculating cost-of-living adjustments in military and federal civilian retired pay and Social Security — a formula expected to result in smaller increases by disregarding price increases in some goods and services if people could use a less expensive alternative product or service. The Debt Reduction Task Force was headed by former Senate Budget Committee chairman Pete Domenici, a Republican from New Mexico, and Alice Rivlin, who was the White House budget director during the Clinton administration. The report also talks of either freezing defense spending or rolling back the size of the defense budget to pre-2001 levels. Retirement changes are similar, but slightly less drastic, than recommendations made by co-chairmen of another bipartisan group, the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. That panel also recommended a high-five calculation for military retirement with a revised COLA calculation, but would have made retirees wait until age 60 to draw their first checks. The Domenici-Rivlin task force calculated $131 billion in savings by 2040 from the revised retirement plan, but it noted that by postponing the effect on anyone with 15 or more years in the military, the plan wouldn’t start achieving real savings until 2017. The recommendations from the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform co-chairmen, former Sen. Alan Simpson, R-Wyo., and former Clinton White House chief of staff Erskine Bowles, do not include a specific savings estimate from changing military retired pay, instead lumping cost estimates in with changes in federal civilian retired pay. Additionally, the Simpson-Bowles recommendations do not specifically say whether anyone now in the military would be grandfathered or whether the reduced and delayed retired pay could apply to everyone still in the service. Any change in retirement calculations would require congressional approval, since the formula and timing for payments are set in law. The two reports are expected to get attention from Congress next year when current lawmakers are faced with drawing up a 2012 federal budget plan after the 2010 elections featured a lot of talk about cutting federal spending.

i gotta call bullshnike on briefing 3 days prior...c'mon man you know that ain't legit. how can you brief wx, crews, refueling, etc that many days in advance. that means you've mission planned 4-5 days out. sorry don't believe you. The wg/cv at chs (shout out to "smokey") could fly circles around your nut sac and floss his teeth with your pubes before you'd even know he'd been there. good thing you're not an osa pilot...the gayness there would turn you pink.

A major with a high BAH, flight pay, BAS, base pay, and ACP makes over $130K. My old DO was making over $160K before he retired.

If you want to get out of the cockpit so bad, and pursue a RAS/PAS pgm, then do the following: 1. Do the best at your j-o-b 2. get your SOS and masters knocked out 3. let your cc know your intentions 4. fight for consistently high strats on your opr's 5. get picked up as an IDE select on your o-4 board 6. apply to the ras/pas for IDE ASCS pgm 7. go to school then you'll get the masters you've always wanted and that dreamy job you're itching for post-IDE after the CAF DT gives you a vector. quit your bitching and stop feeling sorry for yourself or the opportunity will pass you by. getting sos by correspondence finished is a means to an end brother. man up.

Functionally speaking, i've worn them a bunch on two non-flying deployments to the AOR. i think it's easier to stay cooler since you can take the top off. other than that, i don't see a real reason why except to maybe "blend" in better with your troops as a CC.

USAF teaching Iraqi's to fly airstrike missions. Iraqi crews ‘ready to go’ on mission Part of slow transition from Air Force reliance By Bruce Rolfsen - Staff writer Posted : Sunday Jul 12, 2009 9:42:57 EDT Airmen deployed to Iraq are teaching their Iraqi counterparts to fly airstrike missions. Today, after fewer than a dozen training flights, two Iraqi aircrews — a pilot and a mission-sensor operator make up an aircrew — are qualified to fire Hellfire missiles from AC-208B Caravans, a military version of the single-engine turboprop Cessna Grand Caravan utility airplane. A third aircrew is in training. “They are ready to go,” said Lt. Col. Christopher Spigelmire, an F-15 Eagle pilot and commander of the 521st Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron at Kirkuk Air Base, Iraq. All that is keeping the Iraqis from flying combat sorties are both Iraqi and U.S. military leaders working out rules of engagement such as how strikes will be coordinated with ground commanders, Spigelmire said. Not unexpectedly, the Iraqi aircrews want to fly and fight — now. “Yes, of course we want to have weapons to stop the terrorists,” said Iraqi Col. Mustafa, commander of Kirkuk’s Squadron 3, the unit flying AC-208Bs. The Iraqi airmen had already flown reconnaissance sorties in C-208Bs equipped with cameras. Qualifying them to fly with Hellfire missiles took eight to 11 training flights, including night sorties and Hellfire launches. The Hellfire training parallels the upgrade instruction U.S. crews go through as new weapons are added. As the strike mission grows and new officers arrive, Iraqi airmen will go directly into the AC-208B, Mustafa said. The Iraqi weapons loading and maintenance aircrews are primarily enlisted airmen overseen by young officers, Mustafa said. All started with no experience. “This is the first time they are dealing with a weapon,” he said. Because of its light weight — 250 pounds — and laser targeting system, the Hellfire is the missile of choice for small aircraft. The Air Force launches Hellfires from MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper UAVs. Army helicopters also fly with Hellfires. The success of the 521st and Squadron 3 is key in determining the Air Force’s long-term role in Iraq. Until the Iraqi military can mount airstrikes on its own, Air Force planes and Army helicopters will get the calls to fly close-air support missions. So far, the primary mission for Iraqi aircrews has been airlift, including C-130 Hercules donated by the U.S. and reconnaissance with no capability to fire on targets when insurgents are spotted. Beyond the AC-208B, the Iraqi government wants to buy F-16 Fighting Falcons, Iraqi officials have said. Working with the Iraqis at Kirkuk are about 25 airmen, including weapons crews, maintainers, rated aircrew members and three pilots, Spigelmire said. All are volunteers on yearlong tours. The squadron’s earlier mission at Kirkuk was to train Iraqi airmen to fly reconnaissance missions. “That part of the advisory mission is over,” he said. The 521st phased itself out of reconnaissance as Iraqi airmen took over the training. Eventually, Iraqi airmen will take over Hellfire training. “My job is to work myself out of a job,” Spigelmire said.

you're right sweaty. it probably doesn't show up b/c it's a made up position.

your base commander was the "special assistant" to 18th AF/CC before she got to WRI. didn't hurt her career.

I wouldn't care if he was the wing king--if I was her husband I'd beat the sh!t out of him.

How do you t bag life support gear? Did the 130 guys actually pull their scrotums out and smear their ball sacs on the 17 guys nvgs and helmets? Another question for tac airlifter...did you know of a 130 chick that was pissed off at the 17 dudes? Did she rub her labia all over their gear? Gross man.

Pope wing commander removed from duty Staff report Posted : Friday Jun 12, 2009 16:29:27 EDT A wing commander lost his job Friday. Col. John W. McDonald, commander of the 43rd Airlift Wing at Pope Air Force Base, N.C., was removed because he no longer had the confidence of his chain of command, according to a spokesman for Air Mobility Command. Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz approved the firing. Taking over the 43rd is Col. James C. Johnson, who had been serving as vice commander of the 19th Airlift Wing at Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark. Both wings fly C-130 Hercules and both officers flew as navigators. McDonald does not face additional disciplinary action, the AMC spokesman said. He is reassigned as a special assistant to the commander of the 18th Air Force at Scott Air Force Base, Ill. An AMC statement did not explain what actions led to McDonald’s dismissal.

Just got back from DOV on one of these missions. Trip was cut short, but got 52 hours in 6 days--almost timed out for 7 day limit. Esp long since the DIPs issue hasn't cleared going into OEF...sucks!

The AMC Phoenix Horizon call for noms just came out. Included is the CONOPS. Your CC or his/her exec should have it. Also, you can get it from the AMC/A1 site via the AF Portal.

I see guys like putznik and flyingrunt in every squadron/unit/organization. "Soldiers" or airmen who put more energy into complaining than getting the job done. These are the same folks who are in a profession they don't even believe in. You don't have to "drink the blue koolaid" and be a yes man at every opportunity, but at some point be proud to wear the uniform and be proud to serve.

Ok putznik, I'm on it brah since your lady said I have some junk to spare. Straight from a CoC script: "The change of command ceremony is rooted in military history dating back to the 18th century during the reign of Frederick the Great of Prussia. At that time, organizational flags were developed with color arrangements and symbols unique to each particular unit. To this flag and its commander, the soldiers of the unit would dedicate their loyalty and trust. When a change of command was to take place, the flag was passed to the individual assuming the command. This gesture was accomplished in front of the unit so that all could see and witness their new leader assuming his dutiful position. He who held the flag also held the soldier’s allegiance. This symbolic tradition has survived throughout military history."

I'm not sure I see it being such a big deal. It honors our heritage and tradition as an armed force to recognize a change in leadership as well as say good bye to the previous commander. His command tour is a 365, not a measly 120 like they used to be. Stop complaining over such small stuff.

He probably wanted fighters but didn't get 38's, so he settled for a prop plane.

Dupe, is the amount in block 12 (with a Q) the amount we are supposed to get back on our tax return?

If you know some bubbas over at the CAOC, head over to the Muff Inn.