Bergman

HA! I love that place. Used to have $2 cover/$2 pitchers on SUNDAY. Gotta love it.

I bought a high dollar pubs bag for T-1s. It was nice then, but I used it even less at Altus, and haven't used it since then. I don't know how the AD rolls, but every ANG -135 unit I've flown with has the pubs pre-positioned on the jet, so there is no need for a pubs bag. Now, a cooler on wheels I could see...but a pubs bag is a waste of money IMHO.

I would issue you the fence walking "It depends" answer. If a LOR is from your flight instructor, and talks about your aviation ability and how you ble through the PPL program...then I don't think a year-old LOR would be a problem. Same thing for a general character reference letter. If it was from a "current supervisor" or something of that nature...probably not the best idea to use one that old. In general, I would value quality over recency.

I remembered hearing something similar, so a little google action yielded this: The source site wasn't exactly what I was looking for, but appears to be legit.

I would say they're very important. Both of my ANG units actually contacted all of my references and former supervisors via phone and talked to them at length. Other units may vary but I imagine with BRAC looming, unit will be getting more selective not less.

I have my mortgage with them. My experience has been OUTSTANDING. When we closed, their rate was the best I could find, the process was very painless, and the service since then has been truly exceptional. On our first house, we went with a local bank. In a matter of a year, our mortgage was sold 3 times...each time causing billing problems and each time the customer service got worse. USAA typically does not sell loans, and even if they do, USAA still services all of the loans...so it's completely transparent to the customer. I know it sounds like I've drank too much USAA Kool-Aid, but after spending 6+ months fixing billing errors (and subsequent credit report problems) due to a mortgage company's screw up, there is no way I'd give up USAA's customer service...even if it meant a slightly higher rate. Lastly...Mover's Advantage is a wonderful program as well. Highly recommend.

No A/C on the mighty KC-135. It has an air cycle machine, but it takes 2 ground air carts to run it and even then it doesn't work properly. Ground ops and pattern work are miserable when it's warm out.

Ok...I understand what you were getting at now ...I originally thought you were trying to compare the two (fighters vs. heavies) and, of course, had to stand up for my bro's. :D Now that I know what you were saying, I agree. I can definitely see how a BFM hop would be much better than a 6.9 to Lakenheath, just like we'd get more from a 2.5 hour pattern-only sortie (like mine tonight, for instance!) than a 6.9 to EGUN. That's not to say we (herbs) can't learn a lot on pond crossings...they're somewhat boring, but it seems there always something new/different to learn even on the simple ones.

Just because the heavy guys make flying across the pond look easy, doesn't mean it is. While I agree with your core argument of quality vs. quantity (I've known several 3000 hour pilots who were complete fools in the jet), I think there are a lot of things heavies do on a daily basis that fighter guys underestimate. Having flown with 30+ former A-7/F-16 guys for years now, I've heard the phrase, "This shit is a lot tougher than it looks" many, many times during our simpleton tanker debriefs.

Does anyone have info on the new block 40/42? Is this an ANG-only mod or is the AD getting them as well? What sort of new features (i.e. does it work the way Pacer CRAG should have in the first place). Google wasn't much help, so thought I'd see if anyone on here has the scoop.

The Royal Sun Hotel. Souda Bay, Crete. For a month at a time. Who said RC-135s were bad??

You are correct, sir. The pic I posted earlier (white/blue -135) was "Casey 01" which the article also referred to. Here is the Speckled Trout: The pod in the back contains antennas. As Scooter mentioned, that particular -135 never had a boom. You can also see the fuel dump line running from the pod up the underside of the tail right to the very ass end of the jet. Scooter...I don't think 2589 is receiver A/R capable. To my knowledge, all of the receiver-capable -135s are now R-models. [ 19. February 2006, 23:00: Message edited by: Bergman ]

yes. Above yours.

So, how low is low? This low....?

It just makes the popcorn soggy. Follow LawnDart Driver's recipe and you'll be golden.

As long as you pass the 88 or 89 ride after each hook, you stay in training. Repeat 7 times. DoH! Definitely not the smartest way to build flight time.

Who pissed in your corn flakes? I agree with RAIM. I know of 2 guys who hooked all 7 checkrides in UPT and still got their wings. WTF! That shit ain't right.

Sure does!

Medik just reminded me of something... Use the USAA Mover's Advantage program! They recommend a real estate agent and if you buy a house using that agent, USAA will pay you $200-$1000 based on the price paid for the house ($100k-$250k+). It's just a kickback for using a certain agent, but who really cares...unless you have an aunt who's an agent or something, I could care less who's my agent. They all suck equally (sts), IMHO.

I got a chance to tour the Trout a few years ago at Offutt. Sweet airplane! Very nice DV accomodations and a few gee-whiz trinkets being tested (comm stuff from what I remember). The "KC-01" they referenced in the article is actually "Casey 01", tail #57-2589, which is the old CINC-SAC's DV aircraft. It was moved from Offutt to Hickam (PACAF) in the late 90's. It is basically the same quality/condition of the old 89 AW 707s...probably the nicest E-Model!

A good bud of mine owns a house near D-M...paid $240,000 for it and it has gone up $80,000 in 6 months. The housing market is going ape shit right now. If you can afford it, there are some great neighborhoods (and some pretty bad ones) and you could potentially make some decent money over a 3-4 year tour. That having been said...there are merits to your argument for living on base...less hassle, safer. The usual on vs. off base arguments apply as well...housing nazis, can't upgrade/modify, etc.

I am not a financial analyst, nor did I stay at a Holiday Inn last night, so...I wouldn't panic if you're not doing TSP right now. I'm sure your T Rowe accounts are decent, but I'd make sure you're not paying a lot of up front or 12B-1 fees which end up reducing the net gain significantly (been bit on this one myself as a 2Lt). As for "most of your income being non-taxable", you are right...as a LT you will probably have 6-9 months a year tax free (although even that's getting more scarce these days...until be bomb Iran)...but EVENTUALLY you will take the dreaded squadron/staff job (right M2, ClearedHot, et al?!) and those tax breaks will be gone. Then TSP starts looking pretty good again. Nothing is set in stone...so you can do what fits now and in 4-5 years switch your investng strategy to what makes sense then.

Buy a house. If you purchase wisely, as the others have mentioned, you can make some good money over the years. Plus, owning your own house is at least 69 times more enjoyable than renting (if you're into landscaping, working around the house, back yard BBQs, etc). After that, max out your TSP and fully fund a Roth IRA. If you do those 3 things, you'll be well on your way to a comfortable retirement.

C'mon now...we all know that 2 Raptors could kick 48 B-52's asses. Especially in a JDAM carrying competition.

Normally, if you have to preface your post with "I don't know anything" it is probably a good idea to just sit quietly. Technique only. The Radar Nav on a BUFF is an in-house upgrade from the Nav...I.E. there is no way to get "B-52 radar nav" as a drop from UNT.