Tag Archives: Military

UAV Operators Get Wings, Flight Pay

A previous post noted that the Air Force graduated UAV pilots who had no prior flight experience.  More recently, the Air Force announced [updated link] that those pilots will wear the following wings, designed by public affairs Staff Sergeant Austin May in the UK:

(By comparison, you can see traditional Air Force pilot wings in the ChristianFighterPilot logo.)  The wings were awarded to the first class that just graduated.  This is not an insignificant step for the Air Force, which is characterized by a culture that closely guards those who it permits to wear wings.  The Air Force also announced that the UAS pilots Read more

Chaplain Serves in Dirty Jobs

An Air Force Chaplain in Iraq has drawn the attention of his fellow servicemembers for his willingness to struggle, strain, and sweat right alongside them.

In the Air Force news release (“Chaplain Veers From Straight, Narrow Care”), Chaplain (Capt.) Chad Montgomery has worked under Humvees, helped mix cement with civil engineers, and has even been the “criminal” attack dummy for military working dogs.

He notes that some people (both in and out of the military) may have the wrong perception about what a Chaplain does: 

“I don’t think people realize or know what your job is unless they do it,” the chaplain said. “I think people just think chaplains play with flannel graphs or something, just tell Sunday school stories.  Read more

Possible Changes in Air Force Pilot Training

Gen. Stephen Lorenz, commander of Air Education and Training Command (AETC), which is the major command under which pilot training falls, recently indicated the potential for changes in Air Force pilot training.

His proposals included delaying the “specialization” of pilot training students until they were closer to, or already had earned, their wings.  Currently, pilot training students “track” into specifically-geared training programs six months into their 12-month program.  Read more

US Navy: A Global Force for Good

Over the years, the military services have tried a variety of public relations campaigns and recruiting slogans to draw attention and volunteers.  Some have withstood the test of time (“Be all you can be.”), and others were barely acknowledged (“Be part of the action,” which, ironically enough, was a recruiting slogan for the Coast Guard).

The person at the Pentagon responsible for hitting send on a service’s new slogan is almost deserving of pity; he will never please everyone, and there will always be staunch and cynical critics.  Even the most recent Air Force slogan change (“Above all.”) was vilified by some for its similarity to the German Uber Alles.

With that background, the US Navy is no longer “Accelerate your life.”  It is now  Read more

Weinstein Sues Chaplain over Prayers

According to a court filing, Michael Weinstein, president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, and his wife Bonnie are suing Jim Ammerman and Gordon James Klingenschmitt.  Ammerman is the head of the Chaplaincy of Full Gospel Churches, which is also named in the suit.  The CFGC was one of Klingenschmitt’s endorsing agencies.  Klingenschmitt is a former US Navy Chaplain who was court-martialed and discharged after he disobeyed orders not to appear in uniform at a protest event.

Weinstein filed the suit due to the allegedly threatening remarks from the defendants.  The accusations against Ammerman in the lawsuit are somewhat vague:

[Ammerman] made speeches and statements attacking Mikey and his family and containing virulent anti-Semitic comments.  He described Mikey as a madman…and said other hurtful and despicable things.

Weinstein seems to say that Ammerman’s comments were offensive, but does not say that they were threatening.  In response to Ammerman’s speeches, Weinstein said he was “undeterred.”  His main concern was that Klingenschmitt was “Ammerman’s…henchman.”

Klingenschmitt publicized an “imprecatory prayer” quoting the Psalms asking God to, among other things, make Weinstein’s “days be few:” Read more

Fighter Pilot Divorce Rate Lower than Average

In an apparent reversal of popular stereotype, the Air Force Times analysis of Air Force marriage statistics claims that fighter pilots actually have a divorce rate lower than the rest of the force:

Airmen in career fields with the highest deployment tempos don’t get divorced more than those who spend most of their time at home station. Fighter jocks, supposed playboys, actually get divorced less than the force as a whole.

Read more

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