The end of a fighter pilot era

[Batman]

Cockpit. There, I said it.

Batman

[Guest blkafnav]

My wife is one of those stuck in a cubicle and used to talk about me and the other flyboys in my old squadron (45RS). She couldn't see why we walked/talked the way we did. She changed her attitude once she saw how it was a "cut throat" business in the Manpower/Personnal side of the house and when she deployed to Balad AB last year.

She interacted with guys like Hoser and Toro on a daily basis. She watched as doctors performed many operations on Iraqi citizens. She watched an Army guy kill himself in the chowhall. She so too many of our fallen brothers come through the terminal paying the ultimate price. She would email me and I could see her tears through the words she wrote. She would tell me to be careful while I was in pilot training and she was sorry for talking about flyers in such a negative way.

She has seen how bad it can be, not just for AF flyers, but for all of us who stick our necks out everyday. She saw that we have a love for our jobs. She sees now that we do it for the love of our fellow man and country. She sees that we're not in it for the rank like her side of the house. She has nothing but love for all those who have, are, and will be in harms way. There are still some things she will not talk about. There are times when she cries b/c she reads that one of our own has fallen.

My change would be to put these wannabe war fighters into the fight. Let them see first hand the stresses and sacrifices many of our military members are making. Let them see that being deployed is not always a tax break. Let them see mortars fly over head. Let them see their coworker on a stetcher. Let them see people come from the front lines as if they were zombies. Let them sleep to the sounds of gunfire and helo gunships. Let them experience all of this and I'll bet they will be in the club singing the songs and making the jokes.

My wife is now on our side. She isn't liked by her fellow 36/37/38 AFSC's. She is seen as a traitor but loved by most of the flyers here at Offutt AFB. She knows now that we, along with cops and a selected few in the AF, put oourselves out there everyday. She now sees why we sing our songs, play disgusting pranks, and tell awful jokes. She may not agree with all of it, but she knows and UNDERSTANDS why we do it all. My wife doesn't drink, smoke, our use foul language, but she loves being around us who do. She cannot wait until she gets orders to AFSOC. She hears that even the cubicle flyers look out for one another.

I know this didn't really go with the theme of this thread, but I felt like some of the "paper-pushers" needed to see that one of there own saw the light. Ok, I'm done venting my frustration. I just wanted all to know that these people can change, my wife is proof. God Bless all of you and my he bring those who are deployed back to their loved ones.

[Guest jmac2222]

Originally posted by Toro:

It is a sad day in the Air Force - chalk one up for the shoe clerks and everything that is wrong with the military.

I agree with your post whole heartedly, but shoe clerks dont run the AF. Non-rated officers are WG/CCs how often? Look at who signs these Memos, they're not (usually) Maj. Joe from finance.

[ClearedHot]

Originally posted by jmac2222:

I agree with your post whole heartedly, but shoe clerks dont run the AF. Non-rated officers are WG/CCs how often? Look at who signs these Memos, they're not (usually) Maj. Joe from finance.

I disagree...shoe clerks are increasingly running the USAF. While some of our senior leaders are warriors, a large number have a number of Exceutive Officer or Aide de Camp assignments to match their operational tours. We just had a four star retire who had ZERO combat experiance.

Additionally, if you look at the latest O-5 Promotion Board Results you will see a disturbing trend;

High selection rate = Shoe Clerk Support Officers

Next to lowest selection rate = Pilots

Despite the fact that the C-Model Mafia is and has been running the USAF for a while, changes are on the way.

[Champ Kind]

Apparantly girls are not the only thing being a pilot won't get you anymore....

[Guest SuperStallionIP]

Originally posted by Batman:

Cockpit. There, I said it.

Batman

I'm gonna have to one-up ya and say...BOX OFFICE!!! Take that, PC bizatches!!! Yeah that's right. I said BOX.

[Eeyore]

As we know carnivores seek out to kill their prey and conversely the herbivores just graze into carnivores domain leaving just their stool. Carnivores by nature strike back and inflict limited pain on the herbivores. However, lose the fight for lack of numbers. Yes, the grazing herd of herbivores has forced the large carnivores into the tar pit.

[Guest Ghost63]

CH is right on. About 90% of deployment AND day-to-day @sspain is thanks to the loggies - because they run the Air Force. Our location for OEF (most of it, anyway) went from an isolated, low key place (as it should have been) to an out of control summer camp for 19 year olds. For every operator there, they probably had about 5-8 support folks. It probably took 2 years before all of them had completely lost touch with why anyone was there, and the only concerns were hip-hop night and the mardi gras parade. (Ever tried to get crew rest with a firetruck in your livingroom?) OIF location took even less time, and is progressively getting worse.

Self-licking lollipops.

[Guest Hoser]

blkafnav,

Nice post. I wish more of the cubicle ants could be exposed to the same situations that your wife experienced.

It's nice to know that there are non-aviators out there like your wife.

Hoser

[Hacker]

Originally posted by Hoser:

It's nice to know that there are non-aviators out there like your wife.

Da da, da da da da...TITS!

I love blkafnav's wife, yes I do, yes I do.....

[Guest Hoser]

Originally posted by Hacker:

Da da, da da da da...TITS!

I love blkafnav's wife, yes I do, yes I do.....

[Guest SnakeT38]

It is post like this that remind me of why I'm glad I did what I did, usually got caught, did

skate on a few but in the end I just "hung them up" and moved on to something else.

I saw the new USAF when I went back to the AD in the assoc T-38 program............we just bent the rules as we needed and ALWAYS had our own interpretation that never coincided with AD.

[HuggyU2]

Someone has to be willing to step up and take a bullet. If the SQ/CC doesn't, then how about The Mayor? Start singing the songs and call the potential bluff. Don't like that?: make a HUGE announcement that he's received notice that the Wing CC is offended, and that these songs are off-limits. Very embarrassing for said-WingCC. The Mayor won't do it? Then YOU stir things up. And it sometimes means taking a bullet. You've got to decide if it's worth it. For me, it's fun, I've got little to lose, and "they" usually back off.

Guys, I'm with you. It's getting ridiculous everywhere. But the most shocking post is the one about the ANG shutting pilot bars. Tell me that's just one ANG unit, not all of them. It's got to be a mistake. STOP THE MADNESS!!

[ 25. January 2006, 09:43: Message edited by: Huggyu2 ]

[Bergman]

Originally posted by Huggyu2:

But the most shocking post is the one about the ANG shutting pilot bars. Tell me that's just one ANG unit, not all of them. It's got to be a mistake. STOP THE MADNESS!!

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!"

[Chuck17]

Wow, you may have to be in the Guard to say "Fnck!" but at least I can get a beer from the KEG in the BAR and drink it in a mug with my friggin name on it in my AD squadron!

Chuck

[war007afa]

I'm just gonna start every song or story with "EARMUFFS"...then you can say whatever you want...(I'm proving a point, you don't have to celebrate it)

[Guest GIMMIE9]

I know of a few guard viper units that dont allow much drinkin in the SQ bar

I think I could write five pages on how F'd up the AF (not to mention society as a whole) has become. People have become way to frickn over sensitive to everything. Ridiculous!

I guess I need to think of some reasons to get offended, I don’t fit in anymore.......

[ 25. January 2006, 21:13: Message edited by: GIMMIE9 ]