Bergman

Well, your class could down as the first one ever to try it! That should probably tell you something. My class had good luck with roof stomping after track select. We drank in the flight room until 2am, stashed all of the empties in the IP's room, then headed to the Flt/CC's house to attempt to steal his car (a very elaborate plan involving pushing it into the road then loading it on a car trailer. We got it into the road, but then the front tires locked (steering wheel lock) and we could push it straight up the trailer. So, we proceeded to Plan B which was roof stomping. After we finished his beer, Jack, and SoCo he threatened us with cheap tequila so we left....and went to our original Flt/CCs house (he left for T-6 training midway thru). By that time it was 0430...he and his wife were good sports about it and we had a good time drinking 'til sunrise.

I would say that times have changed. Take a look around...the only guys who have fighter AND heavy experience are typically Vietnam guys, or fighter guys who were DQd from ejection seats or some similar strange happening. I am sure someone can find plenty of examples to prove me wrong, but in my experience there is little to no crossflow any more. That advice is completely wrong! You need to show progression in your primary MWS, not master ten different airframes. It would look very strange (to a promotion board, or assignment guy, etc) to see someone who had flown 2-3 different MWS' but hadn't been either an AC and IP, or flight lead/IP, in every one. You want to be the best copilot, then upgrade to AC, then upgrade to IP. Once you have climbed that ladder, I would think about switching airframes.

While I agree with you, I believe the official reasoning was that stovepiping people into one type of airframe (heavy, fighter, helo) was to A) reduce the cost of retraining someone into a new MWS every 6-9 years (i.e. training an F-4 guy to fly the B-52 then 6 years later to fly the A-10) and B) in theory to make each pilot more of an expert at his assigned mission (CAS, A/A, airlift, whatever). They at least used to offer the crossflow boards as a carrot on the stick for some heavy guys, but I think even that program has been stopped in recent years.

He was most likely released from AD under the Palace Chase program. Like you mentioned, if approved you serve the remainder of your ADSC with the ANG/AFRES plus any new commitment (UPT). Strangely enough, you have to pay back your 'unearned' tuition assistance when you leave the AD.

He was most likely released from AD under the Palace Chase program. Like you mentioned, if approved you serve the remainder of your ADSC with the ANG/AFRES plus any new commitment (UPT). Strangely enough, you have to pay back your 'unearned' tuition assistance when you leave the AD.

A small point, but I think you have fallen victim to a common myth. The T-1 was NOT modified to have spoilers. It may have been chosen by the AF BECAUSE it had spoilers - to simulate larger aircraft - but its flight controls are the same as the Beech 400A.

Guess that's what I get for not looking it up myself! .69 seconds on Google yielded... Weed sold here And a better deal here...$12.59 All is well...remain calm!

So the big question is...any truth to the rumor that the Jeremiah Weed distillery is OUT OF BUSINESS?! WTF? I've tried, in vain, to find/order it several times and no one can even find it in their catalogs. I've also heard a rumor that the Nellis O'club bought 1000+ cases when they found out that production was stopping. Any truth to this?? Luckily, I scored a bottle at Keflavik last year. On sale even. $4.99. hehe

Kudos! You guys are doing a great job. Been to the Blue Lagoon yet? I highly recommend it!

I wish it wasn't so, but in my experience flying with 5 ANG units in the past 2 years, all of them had squadron bars...but none of them had beer or alcohol - at least in plain site. 3 of them had beer machines stuffed in a locked closet somewhere. It almost feels like high school all over...sneaking around the building trying to find a f_cking beer after a flight. Granted, these are all -135 units so hopefully the fighter guys aren't bringing it that weak yet. Shack on the "Stop the madness!"

BTDT. Particularly effective if 16-19 of your buddies have them as well...all in the club at the same time.

Saw this last month... B.R. Eastman

Possibly. I guess that means the T-1 guys who go to ACC platforms (RC-135, E-8, E-3) are getting screwed.

I was think more of Daniel Simpson Day (pictured, left)

You mention a HUGE point - that these BEE officers go to COT (Commissioned Officer Training) instead of OTS. These officers are NOT LINE OFFICERS...and are therefore not entitled to a lot of things, which I imagine would include UPT and UNT. Perhaps some of our flight docs can speak up on this. I tried google but ran out of patience trying to find a decent description of the limits of Medical Service Officers. AFI 36-2105, Officer Classification, is the AFI that proves the recruiter was right about the trianing length for BEE guys. Here's some more info : Commissioned Officer Training COT is a 4-week course for professionals who have received a direct commission. Typically, these officers have advanced degrees, such as M.Div., M.D. or J.D. in the case of doctors and lawyers, respectively. They often enter at an advanced rank, such as 1st Lt. (02) and sometimes as Captain (O-3) in compensation for their high level of education, and in some cases, experience. Officers can be commissioned at the rank of Colonel (O-6) if they possess the level of experience necessary. Chaplains, lawyers, and medical personnel go through COT. Commissioned Officer Training (COT)is responsible for developing medical, legal, and chaplain personnel into professional officers by instilling character, knowledge, and motivation essential to serve in the United States Air Force. The 23d Training Squadron (23 TRS) provides a 23-training day Commissioned Officer Training course to instill leadership and officership skills in newly commissioned medical officers, judge advocates, and chaplains. The 23 TRS also conducts a 13-training day Reserve Commissioned Officer Training (RCOT) program for hard-to-recruit medical officers in the Air Force

Because, as we have mentioned, an ART is a FEDERAL employee, NOT active duty. Therefore, they fall under the same federal retirement system as all other federal employees (postal service, FBI, CIA, etc) YES

What I said initially is a little over-simplified (i.e. certain types of days - IDT and membership, for example, don't count), but from what I've been told from our retirement/retention NCOIC it IS possible (she is doing it...retires next week). I've been trying to find an AFI/NGI reference but haven't come up with anything.

Haha...understanding the Guard pay system is like unraveling the Goridan Knot. I think PlanePhyler got off to a good start...here's my attempt: To fly for the airlines, you will be a traditional = "one weekend a month" guy. You'll get 96 drill periods (4 hour work blocks) and FTPs (flying training periods - same pay as drill, but MUST fly to "burn" one). For a Major over 10 (me) it's $182.74 base plus $21.67 flight pay (pro rated for 1 day...$650/30) =$204.41 per drill ("UTA" is what you might have heard...the actual name for a drill.."Unit Training Activity"). Then you'll get 2 weeks of AD pay (pay, flight pay, BAH) for "annual training". That's the minimum. Anything you do as a traditional beyond that will be extra pay. Most units are pretty flexible with their part timers' schedule...because the ANG, IMHO, was basically designed for airline pilots. My only recommendation here would be to live within an easy commuting distance of your ANG unit...double commutes (airline and ANG) suck. There is no "pilot bonus" for traditionals or AGR (full time active duty guard), but Technicians (civilian full-timers on the GS pay scale) are getting a 10% pilot bonus right now, IIRC. For a Traditional...you get 1 retirement point for each day of active duty, drill period, or FTP. If (total number of points)/(365)=20 then you will get an active duty retirement. So even if it takes you 28 years to earn 20 years worth of points, you can still get an AGR (AD) retirement. All of your days (points) from active duty will transfer to the ANG and count toward that retirement. If you retire as a part-timer (traditional), there is ANOTHER pay scale that tells you how much your retirement will be. I.E. If I make Lt Col with 24+ years, my point multiplier will be .501. So if I were to "retire" at 24 years from date of commissioning and have 5000 points, I will get 5000 x .501=$2505/month once I reach age 60, which is the big gotcha...because I could "retire" from the ANG with 24 years of service at only 46 years old...and not get a check (or medical benefits) for 14 more years. Good Lord...does any of that make sense? I just went back to proofread and I think I confused myself. ;) It seems there's always more to learn about the ANG pay system so hopefully someone with more than my 4 years in can speak up.

I think you are correct, unless something has changed in the last year or two. AD Navs only compete with other navs/abms for UPT. The non-rated (it really chaps my ass to have call ABMs "rated"..but I digress) folks compete against each other for a different pile of slots. Navs typically had a 15-20% chance of being picked up, while the less qualified (AFOQT, PCSM, and flying hour wise, at least) non-rated folks had a 40-50% select rate, IIRC. While it isn't impossible to get the 5 year TAFCS waiver, I would say it is VERY difficult to get. There are always exceptions, but I have never met anyone who got the waiver on Active Duty. Everyone I know who was turned down on AD ended up getting the waiver via the ANG. A loss for AD, IMHO.

I think you are correct, unless something has changed in the last year or two. AD Navs only compete with other navs/abms for UPT. The non-rated (it really chaps my ass to have call ABMs "rated"..but I digress) folks compete against each other for a different pile of slots. Navs typically had a 15-20% chance of being picked up, while the less qualified (AFOQT, PCSM, and flying hour wise, at least) non-rated folks had a 40-50% select rate, IIRC. While it isn't impossible to get the 5 year TAFCS waiver, I would say it is VERY difficult to get. There are always exceptions, but I have never met anyone who got the waiver on Active Duty. Everyone I know who was turned down on AD ended up getting the waiver via the ANG. A loss for AD, IMHO.

As the tanker saying goes..."An LC AC in the KC" Not a bad life!

Am I a bad person because I thought that was hilarious? I have fond memories of sitting in a lawn chair, drinking beer, and watching the RV plane guys crash and burn behind our dorm (we had a 3500' grass strip about 500' behind my building). I appreciate the effort and enjoyment from building them, but don't see the appeal of "flying" them instead of the real thing.

FWIW, I made Maj fairly recently, with a DP, and no hint of a Masters anywhere on my resume.