God and Country

As previously noted, a lower-than-planned incident at a Blue Angel’s event caused the team to end that show early and cancel multiple other shows — including those associated with the US Naval Academy graduation.

The commander of the Blue Angels, who was the lead aircraft in the “incident,” requested he be relieved.

Cmdr. Dave Koss requested that Rear Adm. Bill Sizemore relieve him of his command following a lower-than-normal maneuver during the team’s last performance at the Lynchburg Regional Air Show May 22.

Koss indicated there may have been other “instances” of note:  Read more…

The US Air Force and Navy appear to have been in an unspoken competition over their use of “green” or synthetic alternative fuels in their fighters — each vying for “firsts.”

It appears the Air Force Thunderbirds beat the Navy Blue Angels to be the first to use it in their demonstration team:

The Thunderbirds will use alternative fuel, unprecedented for any Department of Defense aerial team, at the [airshow] here May 20 and 21, officials said.

The team will fly with Camelina-based hydrotreated renewable jet fuel as part of the nation’s overall strategy to reduce reliance on foreign energy and establish greater energy security through conservation and use of “home grown” alternative energy sources, said Terry Yonkers, the assistant secretary of the Air Force for installations, environment and logistics.

On a related noted, the Blue Angels apparently had an ‘incident’ Read more…

The Air Force Times obtained the investigation report of the T-38 fly-by of the Iowa-Ohio State football game that was deemed too low to be legal.  The report is not flattering of the pilots, but does reveal there was at least one mitigating factor:

An Air Force pilot who led a dangerously low flyover before an Iowa football game told investigators he descended to avoid other air traffic and then lost track of his altitude because he was busy with other tasks, according to a report documenting missteps in the flight’s planning and execution…

Two small planes had taken off without clearance Read more…

A variety of sources report that six US Air Force pilots were punished over the 20 November 2010 flyby of the Iowa-Ohio State football game.  (Four flew the aircraft, two acted as ground coordinators.)  Soon after the event, it emerged the pilots may have been below required minimum altitudes.

The flight lead of the four-ship of T-38s, Maj Chris Kopacek, reportedly agreed to a deal including a reprimand and a voluntary removal from flight status to avoid a court martial.  He also signed a waiver of his privacy rights, allowing the Air Force to publicize its response to his actions.  From the Associated Press:  Read more…

According to the Air Force Times, the US Air Force determined that the November 2010 flyby of a University of Iowa football game was below the minimum altitude required by regulation.

The pilots involved may face some form of disciplinary action.

The Air Force Times revisits the T-38 flyby of the Iowa-Ohio State game, citing architectural dimensions to try to analyze the videos and claim the jets were “flying at a fraction of the minimum altitude required.”  (See prior article.)

Despite the CSI-like efforts of the Air Force Times, the Air Force (which has no connection with the paper) will conduct its own investigation and act based on those conclusions.

For its part, the University of Iowa Read more…

Four Air Force T-38 pilots are reportedly being investigated after executing a fly-by following the national anthem at the 20 November Iowa-Ohio State football game.  Reports indicate they may have been below the required minimum altitude.

A variety of YouTube angles of the flyby are available, but even video is sometimes disputable.  Quotes, on the other hand…

Maj. Chris Kopacek, one of the pilots, told The Des Moines Register Read more…

In 2008 the NFL did a short special on the inspiration of the military fly-by at the end of the pre-game National Anthem.

For those that sometimes don’t understand the impact a simple act might have, the video is moving.

The video can be seen at the NFL.  For a point of comparison, previously, a conspiracy theory group has complained that US military flyovers of NASCAR are endorsing a world takeover.

Originally noted at FighterPilotUniversity.

Several sources report that the Nampa, Idaho, God and Country Festival that occurs annually during the Independence Day holiday was again denied a flyby by US military aircraft because of the religious content of its festivities.  The festival was denied the flyover for the first time in over four decades just last year.  The policies relating to the decision-making process can be seen in the discussion on the original controversy.

Interestingly, the organizers have pointed out that they probably could have gotten a flyover if they’d minimized religion within their event.  Still, they note the military is supporting the event with other means, including administering the oath of enlistment, and the theme of this year’s event is “honoring our nation’s WWII veterans,” a decidedly patriotic purpose.

Robin Olds
St Martin’s Press, 2010

Robin Olds is a legend in the fighter pilot community, though he may not be recognized outside of it.  Many people may remember, for example, the famous Operation BOLO during Vietnam, which used F-4s to impersonate F-105s and succeeded in destroying a third of the North Vietnamese MiG-21s in a single mission – but few know then-Col Robin Olds was responsible for it.  Fighter Pilot is his story, and it is explicitly delivered as a memoir, rather than an autobiography.  Thus, it is not a detailed birth-to-death retelling of his life, but a first-hand recounting of the things he wishes to convey.  (The book was completed after his 2007 death by his daughter, Christina Olds, and Ed Rasimus, himself a retired fighter pilot.)

The book starts off somewhat slowly, almost as if (despite its status as a “memoir”), Olds (or his co-authors) felt obligated to include some stories from the early parts of his life.  He mentions his early pilot training days and a few significant events briefly, but provides little detail or introspective.  For example, he casually mentions, without further insight, that he attended the Air Corps Tactical School, which would ultimately form the basis for all air doctrine in the Army Air Forces and eventually the independent Air Force.  He also covers his entire training, from his early wartime graduation from West Point through becoming a pilot, in a scant 20 pages.  Some of the lack of detail may be for a very understandable cause: he simply didn’t remember much from those early days.  Another may be more pragmatic: Olds is known for his time in Vietnam, not pilot training.

Unlike some other fighter pilot books, Read more…

A recent US Air Force news article on the USAF Academy graduation contained a photo encapsulating a veritable cornucopia of USAFA and military traditions.  Here’s the photo:

Traditions displayed in the photo:  Read more…

Much to the chagrin of the general public, you pretty much have to be famous or have a friend in the right place to score a ride in an Air Force fighter.  Recently, Super Bowl XLIV champions Drew Brees and Jabari Greer had that experience, even flying with the US Air Force demonstration team, the Thunderbirds, during the Defenders of Liberty airshow at Barksdale AFB, Louisiana.

Generally, the flights serve as an act of goodwill between organizations with Read more…

Since the demise of its last lawsuit seeking an end to public religious expression in the military, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation has been searching for a cause.  (Michael Weinstein promised to file an appeal, though it appears he has not done so.)  After the Trijicon scandal was quickly defused, Weinstein made a furtive effort to revive it a few months later–with little public reaction.  He also tried to attach his organization to the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” media frenzy without much success.  Weinstein is struggling for relevancy even among his own supporters; a recent fundraiser garnered few contributors.

In his latest bid for publicity, Weinstein demanded Read more…

Like its recent support of the Super Bowl, the US Air Force also performed a flyby of the “super bowl of NASCAR,” the Daytona 500.  As with many similar events, the flyby is timed to coincide with the end of the singing of the national anthem.  The roar of jet fighters passing by as the anthem ends is a moving experience for many.  As cool as it is, it is poor form to start cheering for the fighters before the anthem is complete, as many in the crowds tend to do.

Interestingly, a comment left on the official Air Force article on this story took issue with the altitude of the flyby.  While the writer displays a bit of the fighter vs heavy antagonism (she said a tanker crew had gotten in trouble for doing “the exact same thing” and therefore the fighters should also), her complaint may have some validity.  The YouTube videos of the flyby (there are two decent ones here and here) do seem to show the fighters Read more…