KC-46A Info

[12xu2a3x3]

1 hour ago, SurelySerious said:

I mean I assume since most got sucked to staffs, ACC flesh peddlers are sitting like Monty Burns about it.

they took who they could but most aren't gate one complete and are experiencing what i would describe as "life in age of diminishing rated expectations"

[arg]

6 hours ago, Royal said:

Did AMC get a waiver from the FAA to fly in class A airspace for a jet that's type certificated for two pilots?

Do they have to? I don't think so but I'm not sure.

[Scooter14]

Scooter knows me.  He would be the first one to endorse pilot/NFO (WSO/CSO/whatever you want to call them in the USAF) up front like we had in the Navy.  Let's go for a ride Scooter....don't worry...I will get that switch for ya so you don't pull your back muscles reaching over here.  I kid....I kid.  
As we all know, it comes down to money.  Nav's are cheaper and faster to produce than pilots.
I saw someone mention EP's before.  I had to pass the same NATOPS as the pilot, attend the same instrument rating school and had to complete the same boldface as a pilot sitting up front.  I did everything except physically fly the jet while guarding handles, pulling levers and flipping switches just like a rated non-flying co-pilot would do, because the Navy trained us like that.  Dual pitch-channel disconnect 10 seconds from crossing the ramp at night, Single engine fires off and above the boat, dual gen failure off the cat at night off of Korea (that one really was bad), "CLARA" approaches to the boat where we had no HUD or functioning autopilot to assist, nugget pilot going out for his first round-robin flight in Japanese airspace (those were always fun...the pilots were basically an ATIS-activated autopilot [no smart a$$ comments Scooter] on those since they just did what I told them to do). I will give you one sea story.  Black as ink night in the Pacific.  I was standing the duty in the ready room, when my roomy PeeWee (NFO) comes in white as a ghost.  I see the XO (05) come in from the flight...white as a ghost.  Didn't speak a word, very unusual.  I cornered PeeWee in our stateroom and asked WTF.  XO got vertigo off the cat as he raised the gear, wasn't looking at his horizon gyro and the plane leveled off and started rolling left.  PeeWee grabbed the stick and righted the aircraft into correct attitude while telling the crew (XO and the two back seaters he had the jet and what he was doing).  Back at the beach a few years later my best friend and I were flying test in the goo one evening and he got the leans way bad.  I saw it and asked if he was OK....he fessed up right away and I took the jet while giving him a verbal on what the aircraft was doing.  Few minutes later after his grey matter gyro caged...he took the jet back and no issue after that. I know plenty of my NFO buddies that pulled the handle while the pilot continued fighting the jet beyond hard-deck or other not so favorable situation.
We were doing front seat pilot/NFO flying before CRM even became the norm.   It works.  
Standing by for wire brushing/return fire.
ATIS
side note:  "CLARA" means the front seat crew can't see the boat after calling the ball at 3/4 mile, but the LSO's on deck can see the aircraft/lights.  Typically their comeback after I state "CLARA" is "Paddles contact, you are XYZ-low-slow-high, continue, left or right for line up...power Power...POWER"...whatever they need to tell us to keep us tracking to the landing area.  I can count on 4 fingers those approaches, and never want to see those again (three were off of Korea/Japan in the Winter, one in the Arabian Gulf).    

ATIS, you can be my NFO anytime brother!




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[ThreeHoler]

Did AMC get a waiver from the FAA to fly in class A airspace for a jet that's type certificated for two pilots?

Not likely which is why they did it in military controlled airspace.

[StoleIt]

14 hours ago, Royal said:

Did AMC get a waiver from the FAA to fly in class A airspace for a jet that's type certificated for two pilots?

"The mission was executed inside military test airspace..."

So I'm guessing the flights had to be out of Edwards.

[viperdriver1313]

18 minutes ago, StoleIt said:

"The mission was executed inside military test airspace..."

So I'm guessing the flights had to be out of Edwards.

Flew a few circles in the 6-9 clouds that existed in the southwest US and called it good?

Air force nailing it. 

One punch thrown, now taking one:

Stiff boom issues? Hell, 1/3rd of the current b course class can’t hook up to a boom//take 4 rides to be cleared solo with a tanker. I take blame as the instructor, but I also am concerned for the future of the CAF when tanking/general airmanship Is as bad as I’ve seen.

 

cudos to the tanker crews the past month that stayed well past their time commitments as we flailed. 🍺 cough —March  

Edited November 2, 2022 by viperdriver1313

[Guest PeggyDriver46]

8 hours ago, viperdriver1313 said:

Flew a few circles in the 6-9 clouds that existed in the southwest US and called it good?

Air force nailing it. 

One punch thrown, now taking one:

Stiff boom issues? Hell, 1/3rd of the current b course class can’t hook up to a boom//take 4 rides to be cleared solo with a tanker. I take blame as the instructor, but I also am concerned for the future of the CAF when tanking/general airmanship Is as bad as I’ve seen.

 

cudos to the tanker crews the past month that stayed well past their time commitments as we flailed. 🍺 cough —March  

The vast majority of my real world breakaways are from the F-16 FTU students over AR-644. I dread getting that line.  

[Biff_T]

https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2022/11/03/kc-46-tankers-boom-breaks-dents-plane-while-refueling-fighter-jet/

[Standby]

9 hours ago, Biff_T said:

https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2022/11/03/kc-46-tankers-boom-breaks-dents-plane-while-refueling-fighter-jet/

…

[Biff_T]

56 minutes ago, Standby said:

…

The whole crew probably had that same problem.  

 

I wonder if the Boom still gets the same "oh shit" factor through the cameras?  

Seeing the boom strike the tail that hard would have made me shit my pants fo sho.  Lol

[Prozac]

Form 8s for everyone. Obviously crew error and definitely not a design flaw. Nothing to see here. /s

[ThreeHoler]

I’ve never seen that happen to a KC-10. The boom fell off once, I guess, but I heard that was maintenance’s fault anyway.


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[StoleIt]

5 hours ago, ThreeHoler said:

I’ve never seen that happen to a KC-10. The boom fell off once, I guess, but I heard that was maintenance’s fault anyway.


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Same.

Well, at least, I've never seen a fighter even crush the ice shield on the -135. I can't fathom how an F-15 could cause that.

My best guess would be the boom operator applied full up elevation and violently flew it up into the ass of the jet. Can't wait to read the AIB/SIB from this.

[ThreeHoler]

https://theaviationist.com/2022/11/03/italy-will-buy-six-kc-46-tankers/amp/

Guess there might be a good exchange tour in 6-9 years.


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[Prosuper]

On 11/2/2022 at 11:46 AM, LoveDumpster said:

The vast majority of my real world breakaways are from the F-16 FTU students over AR-644. I dread getting that line.  

Refueling Danish F-16's and over azimuth the boom and snaps the cable, it bull whips the elevators and ruddervators. Down for two weeks.

[Sua Sponte]

On 11/4/2022 at 10:49 AM, ThreeHoler said:

I’ve never seen that happen to a KC-10. The boom fell off once, I guess, but I heard that was maintenance’s fault anyway.


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Partially

[Biff_T]

On my first deployment (>20 years ago, OSW, KC-10, BO), I was getting ready to refuel some Vipers.  Pretty standard OSW cake walk sortie.   I'm in the back feeling proud to be hacking the mission like a big boy.   When the fighters get closer, Flight lead lets me know that we have a long cable trailing out of our tail.  My mind immediately thought about a caution I had made fun of in the -33.   Basically, recovery procedures if you're a dumbass BO and lower the boom without the hydraulics on.  The FE was a SMSgt with tons of hours.  He asked if he needed to come back there and I told him no, I figured it out.   Humbled, but I at least I know why that caution was written.  There was another dumbass BO like me who did the same thing.   BO was a great job to have in my early 20s.  It was like being a rock star.   Traveling the world, forgetting checklists items and chasing fat chicks.  Back when Anna Kournikova was hot. 

[Arkbird]

A certain meme page was saying there was a recent incident that could be a class A between a 46 and F-22. Hope it ain't true. 

[FourFans]

6 hours ago, Arkbird said:

A certain meme page was saying there was a recent incident that could be a class A between a 46 and F-22. Hope it ain't true. 

Imma need pics

[Arkbird]

They haven't posted any so I'm hoping it's not true but someone in the 46 community would know more than I would. 

[Sua Sponte]

On 11/9/2022 at 10:30 PM, Arkbird said:

A certain meme page was saying there was a recent incident that could be a class A between a 46 and F-22. Hope it ain't true. 

It is.

[LookieRookie]

6 hours ago, Sua Sponte said:

It is.

share plz if not gooey CUI

[ThreeHoler]

Some Pease dudes just flew a 36-hour super sortie. Makes McConnell’s 24-hour sortie a distant second place. So, how long until these “tanker” guys do a48-hour sortie and destroy a jet?


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[brabus]

That sounds incredibly awful. Why is that relevant (future capes is not a rational answer). 

[Best-22]

17 hours ago, ThreeHoler said:

Some Pease dudes just flew a 36-hour super sortie. Makes McConnell’s 24-hour sortie a distant second place. So, how long until these “tanker” guys do a48-hour sortie and destroy a jet?


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Is there any place I can read more about this? Sounds Interesting.