Category Archives: Fighter Pilot

Air Force Looking for Motto, not Slogan

Contrary to the prior assertions of the Air Force Times, the US Air Force says it is not looking for a recruiting slogan; instead, it is in search of a “motto” that is “meant to endure.”

Colonel Groves made the distinction between temporary recruiting slogans and an official motto, which will be the service’s first.

“People may recall slogans such as ‘Aim High,’ ‘No One Comes Close,’ and ‘Cross Into the Blue’ seen in ad campaigns supporting recruiting efforts,” Colonel Groves said. “The Air Force motto, in contrast, is focused on building esprit-de-corps, and is meant to endure to future generations of Airmen.”

The goal is reportedly to have an Air Force motto within the year.

Airman: How I Learned to Live

An Air Force Senior Airman, Emerald Ralston, writes a moving commentary that begins with her deployment to Afghanistan.

After a couple of weeks, I was preparing to convoy to an even more remote area for the next five months.

Before we left, I made the usual call home. I’d ask my parents to pray for me before I went on convoys so they knew what I was up to and, God forbid, in case anything happened, they would be prepared.

This particular time, I didn’t get the “Okay, Honey, be safe,” I was used to.

She learns that her brother, US Army Sgt Ian Ralston, had been wounded in Iraq.

Her story is worth the read.

The Next UCAV: The A-10 Warthog

According to a report at the Air Force Times, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is working on a project that will enable ground forces to control the weapons systems on an A-10 — or even control the A-10 itself as an “unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV).”

The A-10 could be manned or unmanned; an unmanned plane would loiter autonomously but would be under the control of an A-10 pilot at a ground control station when responding to an attack and for all takeoffs and landings.

The pilot would give “coordinated consent” for the launch of weapons; the JTAC would fire the weapons using a portable computer. With the computer, the JTAC would access the A-10’s sensors, punch in coordinates for its targeting pods and determine the predicted blast radius and effectiveness of the weapons.

While the concept is intriguing, it masks the true improvement to air support Read more

USAF “Above All” to be Retired

The Air Force Times notes that the US Air Force is looking for a new slogan to replace the “Above All” it came up with in 2008 (which was not without controversy, apparently).

All of the services spend a fair amount of time on marketing and recruiting (though the Marines are unique, saying you ask to join them).  Just last fall the Navy created its new “A Global Force for Good” tagline.  Each iteration from each service gets both praise and scorn, and a few years later it, too, gets replaced…

Wikileaks “Morally Guilty,” Alleged Source Outspoken, Lonely

Army PFC Bradley Manning has been highlighted by a variety of papers from around the world and even his hometown.  Manning is the alleged “leaker” of the “collateral murder” video, and has apparently been implicated in the latest “WikiLeaks” releases as well.

Interestingly, news reports continue to focus on his personality as non-religious, withdrawn, and needy:

Those who went to school with him say he was often frustrated that others didn’t listen to his views on politics or religion; those views often differed from those of his peers…

In a series of online conversations with a stranger, a fellow computer enthusiast, Manning wrote about feelings of isolation.

He said the feelings stem from growing up without religious views in a very church-based town.  Read more

C-17 Crash Claims Four Air Force Lives

Updated with names of crew.

The Air Force announced that a C-17 Globemaster III crashed shortly after takeoff from Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, on Wednesday, killing the four crewmembers.  There are indications the crew was practicing for the upcoming Arctic Thunder airshow this weekend.  While large aircraft occasionally have incidents on landing or on the ground, the catastrophic loss of a military cargo aircraft from a flight mishap is a relatively rare event.

Elmendorf leaders have announced the 2010 Arctic Thunder airshow will proceed as planned.

As is the common practice, the Air Force did not speculate and will conduct a month-long investigation to determine the cause.

UPDATE: The Air Force released the names of those killed on the C-17:

Maj. Michael Freyholtz
Maj. Aaron Malone
Capt. Jeffrey Hill
Master Sgt. Thomas Cicardo

Marines, Boeing Sued over 2008 Hornet Crash

Dong Yun Yoon, whose family was killed when a crippled F/A-18 Hornet crashed into their home, has reportedly filed a lawsuit against the federal government and Boeing for negligence.  The Navy has reportedly settled 24 claims totaling more than $800,000 over the crash, with 10 claims totaling $14.4 million outstanding.

Yoon’s lawyers received a letter Monday from the Navy Office of the Judge Advocate General, which had been negotiating with the crash victims, rejecting the last of the Yoon family’s administrative claims for wrongful death and personal injury…

Yoon’s reaction to the crash was notable, as he called on people to pray for the pilot rather than blame him.

There is no indication the pilot is individually liable or party to the lawsuit.

Pilot Ejects from CF-18 Moments Before Crash

Canadian Capt. Brian Bews ejected from his CF-18 just moments before it impacted the ground at the Lethbridge County Airport in Alberta, Canada. CNN.com carries a professional video of the crash captured from the reviewing stand.  In an interesting irony, the music playing from the flight line speakers is “Stayin’ Alive.”

High resolution photos of the incident taken by Ian Martens of the Lethbridge Herald show the ejection sequence in amazingly precise detail.

The first picture shows the seat leaving the aircraft:  Read more

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