FUSEPLUG

I have to wonder if Mattis would have even really cared. I flew him into the desert last summer and had to WX divert and wait out a sandstorm at his planned location. Of course his handlers were pinging the whole time, but he was nothing but chill. He spent the 2 hours so so wandering around the cargo compartment chewing the fat with everyone on board. We ended up getting him to where he needed to be and he came upstairs and thanked us for the hard work. I have to imagine he chuckled a little as he got into his vehicle for the 20 minute ride back to MacDill.

Uncontrolled field, no clearance required. As for the weight bearing issue, the original post said 20K was for a single wheel figure. The C-17 falls under the TRT (Triple Tandem) category. IF O. Knight even had a pavement evaluation for a TRT configured aircraft the number would be somewhat higher, though probably nowhere near the basic empty weight of a 17.

A few of the news reports listed 19 crewmembers. Pretty ridiculous, I know. Based on who they are saying was onboard, I assume there were a lot of Mission Essential Personnel, but still...

I pray they release the CVR tapes after the investigation. We've seen some serious collapses in CRM in the 17 over the last year that have led to some very close calls. I think this could be classified as a close call. AMC really needs to look at the number of highly experienced guys they are shoving out the door to go fly other MWS's. The community as a whole is hemorrhaging experience and backfilling with guys fresh out of Altus. Additionally, we see a lot of guys who are slammed into upgrades (especially IP school) primarily for career progression when he or she may not otherwise be sent. This mix is obviously not working out too well for us. I know nothing bout the experience level of this crew (all 19 of them), but perhaps this, and a few of the other recent mishaps, could have been mitigated though a slightly more seasoned pool from which we are building crews. It's only going to get worse.

They have a mission, vision, and values. Sign me up!

Charleston is in the process of issuing iPads to individual pilots. So far, the briefing required before receiving said iPad involves the many ways you will be Q-3'd if you _______ [fill in the blank]... up to and including changing the background screen. No FLIP on it (for now), simply an e-pubs reader that doesn't eliminate the need for us to still carry the Panasonic ToughBook and the 50+ lbs of worldwide paper FLIP. To sum it up, we get this expensive limited-use new toy which turns out to be just another burden on those of us trying to keep our noses clean in this ever-growing minefield. Sorry I can't answer for The Rock, but expect to see something similar in the near future.

Head. Box.

I'm two classes away from getting that barely-accredited POS degree and am seriously thinking about quitting. Just the principle of paying those assholes out-of-pocket to take their "classes" makes me ill. Transferring will probably just result in more coursework at another crappy online school which would take me past my PRF next summer. I just need to keep telling myself that the $400 I shell out now will pay for itself with that first O-4 paycheck. F-you TUI (or whatever you're calling yourself this month)!

Is that a can of dip in her leg pocket?!

Is she hot?

Agreed. One hull loss and another near loss. Pretty impressive for over 20 years of rugged service. Prost!

The dead horse has been thoroughly beat. In over five years in my current squadron, I've been summoned to the auditorium to hear the sitting CC's take on an in-house alcohol related incident no fewer than 7 times. If additional guidelines are needed by certain individuals in the organization, they need to be removed immediately. The responsibilities placed upon us on a daily basis in our duties suggests to me that those unable to make correct decisions with alcohol have no place operating a 500K lb aircraft or dropping bombs or guarding the wire etc.... Despite the weight Big Blue thrusts upon us in our mission, we are continually treated like small children because of the actions of a few people who do not understand how to responsibly function in this system. This contract is another disgusting attempt to cover the asses of the leadership who would rather try to protect these "bad apples" rather than booting them out the door upon due process.

No way in HELL I would sign something like that. If it looks/sounds/smells like a binding contract, there better be a damn good reason why I am signing it. Your leadership is really grasping at straws with this one. As a Flt/CC, all of my dudes know they can call anytime if they need a ride. When one of them decides not to (God forbid), I will have no part in the consequences they face outside of meeting with the boss about it and the sh!tty OPR I'll have to slap together. This contract seems to further tie you (and/or me) in to the idiot decisions other people make outside of the workplace. I want no part of that. We are adults. When we decide to make stupid decisions, we alone should face the consequences. Unfortunately, the AF sees otherwise. So how does this work? When a signer gets a DUI does the Wing CC pull this "contract" out and try to spread the responsibility to the accused supervisor? This sh!t makes me furious.

Well if that's the case then good for him. (The speech still sucked IMHO).

He did speak in January. I really want to know what his going rate is. Glad to see the DOD is slashing the budget but somehow SOC can continue to justify flying his ass into MGM 4 times a year.

Unfortunate. He obviously doesn't do this engagement for free. His speech is a giant insult to those who have served in combat, and is a tremendous waste of Air Force funds. I sat for an hour and a half with my ears plugged as he yelled a bunch of loosely related stories into the microphone. The worst part was when he received a standing ovation. I understand he has seen some hardships, but do a bunch of wartime CGO's need a Matt Foley-esque speech to "motivate" them at Shoe Flag? Apparently my extensive feedback to the leadership had zero impact (edit... not that I thought my feedback meant sh!t anyways).

Did they bring back the motivational speaker for this class? I believe his name is Dan Clarke.

Saw an interview with a retired "rescue" guy on Fox News this afternoon. He described helping one of the pilots to safety from his ejection seat. Now I haven't flown anything with an ejection seat since the Tweet, but doesn't the seat-man separation happen in a matter of seconds for most of these things? Correct me if I'm wrong, but if you don't leave the seat for some reason aren't you pretty much toast?

Hearing rumors of a "strongly-worded letter" from a student in the most recent SOS class to the leadership that is making its rounds. No details as to what it's about, other than it's a doosey. Anyone see this yet?

It surprises me you are just learning of this...

This bio is making its rounds to the 800+ at SOS. Good luck un######ing yourself, bro.

JESUS CHRIST! Oh... sorry, Tim.

Looks legit. E-mail from Sq/CC today indicates this affects "several of us." By my count... 4.

Yeah, I'll get right on that... More "work for the sake of work."

I'm glad to see that keying the mic and passing 6 digits is the biggest problem we face in today's Air Force. Welp, back to updating my RRF for the next RIF coming down in '12.