How do you feel about your airframe and mission?

[matmacwc]

You want to fly a fighter or a trainer?

[Hopefulflyer389]

8 hours ago, matmacwc said:

You want to fly a fighter or a trainer?

I came across the job listing and decided to post it after reading that question. 

[matmacwc]

Personally I say the square root of fuck that, nothing written into the announcement about moving onto F-22's after a few years.  I know a few of the SME"s and they wouldn't be doing this unless it was an awesome deal but I would feel like I was playing left bench doing this.

[HossHarris]

It’s a great last assignment, or reserve gig. 

Current mgmt is terrible, but that will change before too long. 

Pm for any additional details you’d like. 

[StoleIt]

On 2/14/2018 at 7:33 PM, tx_flyer said:

What kind of quals do you need to get into the C-40? Ops tempo? Thanks in advance.

Not sure exactly what you mean by quals...but IP in your MWS is a must and I'd say the majority of us were EP's as well. Expect a 6 month non-flying deployment as repentance for this good deal. Otherwise 1 local a week (1 hr flying/2 hours other/3 hours total time) and maybe one TDY a month (usually 4-10 days).

[Beaker16]

Anyone around in the HC/MC-J community? I'm a recent UPT grad, HC to Moody with an option to trade for an MC to Cannon. Know a bit about the HC, more so trying to get MC info. Thanks.

[Standby]

2 hours ago, Chef16 said:

Anyone around in the HC/MC-J community? I'm a recent UPT grad, HC to Moody with an option to trade for an MC to Cannon. Know a bit about the HC, more so trying to get MC info. Thanks.

Not in the community but if you don’t mind deploying, I would take the MC. 

[pawnman]

1 hour ago, Standby said:

Not in the community but if you don’t mind deploying, I would take the MC. 

Are you really trying to convince him to trade Moody for Cannon?

[viper154]

3 hours ago, Chef16 said:

Anyone around in the HC/MC-J community? I'm a recent UPT grad, HC to Moody with an option to trade for an MC to Cannon. Know a bit about the HC, more so trying to get MC info. Thanks.

Also not in either, but I have good friends in both. Mission sets are slightly different, but can overlap. AFSOC does a better job of utilizing the jet as a MWS, (just my opinion). AFSOC also has more follow on base options. I’m AFSOC biased though, and Cannon does suck. 

[Standby]

10 hours ago, pawnman said:

Are you really trying to convince him to trade Moody for Cannon?

I would trade a few years at Cannon for the follow-on good deals in a better aircraft. The friends I do have that spent time at Moody flying 130s and the Hawg didn’t particularly care for the place. 

Edited April 6, 2018 by Standby

[bronxbomber252]

I’m and HC-J guy. Here is the basic rundown of my impressions and opinion as:

HC pros:
-More predictable deployment cycle
-No Cannon
-cool mission(when we get to do it)
-platform itself and usage evolving in a very good way
-good deal TDY’s

HC cons
-only have DM, Moody, Kirtland (schoolhouse) so no overseas locations
-rarely get to execute the mission
-don’t rack up hours as fast
-ACC doesn’t really understand us
-in current form our platform is not utilized as well as it could be, things are improving but that is no guarantee

MC pros
-lots of flying in lots of places
-awesome bases(except cannon) including oconus
-better utilized
-awesome mission
-MAJCOM that knows, understands, and cares about the MWS

MC cons
-Cannon
-cannon
-Cannon
-erratic deployment schedule that can be very unpredictable
-if you have a family you won’t see them much

[Fly4five]

Can someone give me a view on the EC-130 life? Family life, Mission, Etc. I’m looking into it based on what I’ve heard but just wanted some more insight around the community. Thanks

[UDEL09]

3 hours ago, Fly4five said:

Can someone give me a view on the EC-130 life? Family life, Mission, Etc. I’m looking into it based on what I’ve heard but just wanted some more insight around the community. Thanks

See post on Page 2, information is relatively the same. Feel free to send me a PM if you have additional questions. 

[FourFans]

On ‎4‎/‎7‎/‎2018 at 2:07 AM, Fly4five said:

Can someone give me a view on the EC-130 life? 

Ride an elephant that's doing left turns for about 10 hours.  That should give you a feel.

I've heard air refueling is cool though.

Edited May 3, 2018 by FourFans130

[AFsock]

On 4/5/2018 at 4:31 PM, Chef16 said:

Anyone around in the HC/MC-J community? I'm a recent UPT grad, HC to Moody with an option to trade for an MC to Cannon. Know a bit about the HC, more so trying to get MC info. Thanks.

MC dude.  Yes, do it.  

Cannon shouldn't stop anyone from entering the community either.  You only spend about half the year home in any MC unit, or if you're a family guy, you do the exact same family stuff you would do at any other base (the beach is nice to, plenty of sand... just a long walk to the water).  The 9th is also the unit you want to be in as far as MCJs go and is a great place to start.

Always open to PMs.

[AFsock]

1 hour ago, FlyingWolf said:

I'm not an MC bro, but I will say: Don't overly water-down the negative effect of Cannon on families. You certainly will not have access to the exact same family stuff. Sure, it's survivable.

Single? Have fun.

My statement stands - Cannon is not a reason to avoid the MCJ as a primary MDS.

Exception I should have posted: EFMP or a spouse who has concerns about professional employment.  If those are the case, Kadena and Mildenhall probably won't work out either, so avoid the MCJ.

IMHO there are more horror stories about Cannon than people who have ever been stationed here.  My experience has been a great assignment and the 9th has been an excellent unit with incredible opportunities on a good trajectory.  My family has not suffered as a result of our assignment, we've had/raised kids here, and CINCHOUSE was working in her field in multiple schools.  It's not perfect but annoyances like the environment (wind, heat/cold, and hail) and the miles you will put on your vehicle haven't been deal breakers.  I wouldn't put it at the top of my dream sheet, but had I ended up here out of UPT I think it would have worked out alright.

@FlyingWolf what family stuff was missing for your time down here?

Edit/Add- Geographically dislocated spouses/families may be more common down here but it was also a reality at previous duty stations.  Divorce rates and lack of employment opportunities plague the other two MCJ Ops bases as well... So maybe what has been normal to me was a shock to those who stood things up around here?

 

 

Edited June 5, 2018 by AFsock
Truth

[Sprkt69]

Been there, done that and will never go back to Cannon. Was TDY/deployed half the time and still managed to put 20,000 miles on my car. And when the wind were from the east, the strong aroma of cows was ever present in the vault.

Is there still a war zone south of 9th? And do they still have 10% of the town as registered gang members?

[AFsock]

5 minutes ago, Sprkt69 said:

Been there, done that and will never go back to Cannon. Was TDY/deployed half the time and still managed to put 20,000 miles on my car. And when the wind were from the east, the strong aroma of cows was ever present in the vault.

Is there still a war zone south of 9th? And do they still have 10% of the town as registered gang members?

😂 I probably wouldn't roll through there at night ... But OSI generally just reminds folks not to stay in the drug runner hotels on 60/84 and not leave stuff open in the nicer neighborhoods.

We've had one dude lose a storage shed of household goods while deployed (they caught them) and another lose an EFB out of his car in an open garage (he got away) but that's the only drama with locals I know.

Another plus I haven't heard of any stabbings at Kelly's in a while either so things are going pretty well in that regard as well.

[AFsock]

On 11/11/2017 at 1:28 PM, Woody11 said:

Any MC-130J folks here? 

Happy Veterans Day 

Late response but my .02 from an MC-130 baby/MC-130J pilot:

TL/DR: Flying the MC-130J involves a varied mission set that many folks find awesome.  It comes at a cost with regard to the drawbacks of the potential bases and their respective commitments.  AFSOC is a demanding command and you will work hard/get good enough to progress or find yourself doing something else.  It will be both an amazing time for families/an awful time and those can be in the same day.  Change is constant, both socially and in the airframe and units.  I've enjoyed it, many haven't.

 

      1.  Ops Tempo/Deployment

Dwell average: 50% not just true deployments but with TDYs for training, JCETS/JCS ex, MLATS, aircraft moves/mods, WIC support etc your head will be on a homestation pillow half the time (overseas replace deployments with 2-3 week TDYs).  This doesn't really let up because advancement means more schools, mission commands, and ground deployments.

Deployments can change based on time of year/involvement of the overseas units but expect 3-4 months gone for flying (including transit time) and 6 month ground.  QOL deployed is solid with good connectivity and flying ranges from SOF trash hauling to more specialized mission sets.  True super secret squirrel things can happen, but don't sign your life away in the hopes you will be the one crew that did the one cool thing if that's all you want to do.

 

      2.  Lifestyle/ Family Stability

There's a social group for every stage of life but not cliquey.  Young single guys can live it up and family dudes can throttle back or jump in to the fray.  The crew is 5 and generally you end up with them and a few stragglers as you travel.  If you want to be a dirty tac airlifted you can, if you want to observe and not drink, that's cool to.  If you stay home and read the Bible, you'll still be welcome in the crew bus the next day. Es and Os have great working, flying, and unit relationships.

Opportunities for leave vary greatly depending on time of year but there are times when you will miss time off.  We are trying hard not to lose use/lose leave, but dudes do as well.  Single guys do get looked at the most for opportune trips/pop up taskings as well as being the ones who hold the fort during holidays.

Leadership as a whole attempts to accommodate life and responds to your desires when able.  Needs of the AF and AFSOC will sometimes outweigh this but talent management and assignments are pretty well tailored to the individual.  Not many toxic leaders, but they exist and some flourish.

You will miss holidays, birthdays, sporting events.  Planning more than two weeks out is hard.  Change is constant.

If you pull your weight you'll work 50 hour weeks.  This includes a 12 or two of flying once or twice a week and holding down undermanned office jobs.

I'd love to say the spouses are tight and rank doesn't impact their relationships but that doesn't seem to be the case as a group.  However, on the individual level the wives seem to feel comfortable making friendships without regard, even if cliques do exist.

MC folks (male and female) have high divorce rates.  Not sure how it compares to the AF as a whole or what factors influence it, but marriages take plenty of hits.

Every base I've seen geographically separated spouses/kids.

Employing spouses at every base is tough, especially specialists/professional jobs.

Medical support for families varies, EFMP folks should look at other airframes.

 

      3. Community morale

Ebbs and flows. 

Units are generally tight, with the overseas units usually leading the charge with strong organizational identity and camaraderie.  The 17th is the smallest but may get a bit more strained as they grow.

MCJ enterprise has an identity issue.  Especially as the ACJ comes online saying that you're a "J guy" won't mean much.  Symbols, unit identifications, and even the aircraft's name keep changing.  None of this helps.

Still guys take a lot of pride in what they do and we stay on the positive side of morale to excellent (especially when away from the office).

 

      4. Advancements & Future of the airframe

The MC-130J is here to stay.  Mods keep happening faster than we can train crews.  The airframe is new and even our oldest tails will outlive our careers.  Tons of cool stuff coming online.

No issues with career advancement within the MC-130.  Schools on time, good ratio of leadership opportunities to organization size, staff jobs go to the right folks.  Just be advised in high performing organizations like AFSOC the talent pool is larger with bigger fish than you may be used to and it does take a lot of work to be a shiny penny.

If your goal is to fly another airframe good luck.  Generally, don't expect to ever leave.  Only the shiniest of pennies go to another aircraft for good reason or you have no future flying the MC-130 and are politely shown the door.

 

      5. Preferred PCS locations (note: my best guess)

1. Mildenhall - 67 SOS

2. Kadena - 17 SOS

3. Hurlburt - Staff/Test/WIC (potential TF schoolhouse+ops unit)

4. Albuquerque - 415 - Schoolhouse Instructor

5. Cannon - 9 SOS (Potential Top Off Schoolhouse at - 551)

 

 

Edited June 5, 2018 by AFsock
Typos

[viper154]

20 hours ago, AFsock said:

😂 I probably wouldn't roll through there at night ... But OSI generally just reminds folks not to stay in the drug runner hotels on 60/84 and not leave stuff open in the nicer neighborhoods.

We've had one dude lose a storage shed of household goods while deployed (they caught them) and another lose an EFB out of his car in an open garage (he got away) but that's the only drama with locals I know.

Another plus I haven't heard of any stabbings at Kelly's in a while either so things are going pretty well in that regard as well.

Mainly property crimes, several bros have had there cars/houses broken into. There was a rash of spouses being harassed in town last year (creepy dude/s asking them to get into cars). The new on base housing is a good option if you are worried about crime, that also has it’s downfalls IE the company running it are sticklers when you move out. Wife did the stay at home thing with the kids, which was good. The area is deff not the best, but like anything else, if you try to do things and make the best of the situation it’s not horrible. That being said I’m looking forward to my up coming PCS. I wouldn’t let location turn you away from a MDS. Only caveat is for AC-W Navs/CSOs. They seem to be stuck much longer than other aircrew. 

[GaSav44]

Any EC-130 or RC-135 EWO’s that could answer topic question? I know we’ve already heard from drivers from each airframe just hoping to hear from an EWO

[Thor]

On 7/17/2016 at 10:29 PM, propflux said:

*Edited because I didn't RTFQ*

C-12s weren't on your list, but there's nothing bad about them.

1/2 -- deployments are rare (and usually voluntary).  Banker's hours most other times and even RONs are pretty unusual.

3.  Morale is great because it's a good deal in a good spot and most people asked for it

4.  The plane isn't going anywhere soon

5.  Elmendorf/Yokota, unless you're with DIA or AFMC.

 

And if you hate it, you only have to deal with it for 3 years.

I was wondering if there was anything to update about the C-12. How is the ops tempo, fam life, morale, etc looking now for new copilots? Thanks a ton in advance!

[Hopefulflyer389]

On 2/23/2018 at 7:15 PM, HossHarris said:

It’s a great last assignment, or reserve gig. 

Current mgmt is terrible, but that will change before too long. 

Pm for any additional details you’d like. 

Random, but PM Sent

[gorams5]

Any chance we could get updated info on this topic? Really helps all the young guys 

[Danger41]

On what airframe? I’d say what you see is pretty accurate.