The squadron “Doofer Book” is a fighter pilot tradition that has spread to many other services and career fields in one form or another.  It is generally a handwritten, running compilation of the missteps of the various members of the squadron that may be updated daily, or at weekly or monthly pilot events.  While entertaining as a day-to-day squadron chronicle, they are most interesting when kept during deployments—they serve as a unique collection of history (and often humor) for a unit.

Generally, there are but a few rules: most often the entries have to be signed, and pilots often have to be “named” members of the unit prior to contributing.  Other than that, there are generally no restrictions on content or language—the only criterion is that the story must be at least 10% true (and even that may be waiverable).

Doofer books have fallen out of favor because they have found their way to CNN, complete with their seedier details; ranking officers have lost their jobs over the books’ often illicit content.  Predominantly “politically correct” versions still exist, and “true” doofer books—complete with racier entries—nevertheless continue to survive.

Read about other Fighter Pilot Traditions.