Tag Archives: Fighter Pilot

The Dear Boss Letter, 2009 Version

Many people are familiar with the “Dear Boss” letter from a fighter pilot in the Air Force to his “leaders,” decrying the loss of focus (or downfall) of the traditional Air Force.  It was a response to a survey on fighter pilot retention in the late 1970s.  The letter has circulated so long because it resounded with so many people.  (It was also published in the October 1978 Armed Forces Journal.)

Apparently the letter was “updated” in 2009.  Though some of the terminology changed, the concepts behind it remain essentially the same.  The letter is at times cynical and negative, at others pensive and truthful.  It is certainly a perspective on life in the Air Force (as a fighter pilot).  One worth joining?  That’s another debate.

This letter was actually revived by the Air Force itself.  It was sent out in an email from the USAFE Commander in a plea for feedback as to why fighter pilots aren’t staying in the Air Force (even in a down economy, including turning down the bonus).

The full text of “the letter” is below.  Read more

The Language of the Fighter Pilot: YGBSM

Much of the fighter pilot lexicon is not suitable for the ears of Mom or the kids.  When translated, this is one of those terms.

YGBSM is short for “You Gotta Be Sh-tting Me,” which is obviously a term of shock, disbelief, or resignation at a realization of institutional stupidity.  Where did it come from, and why is it so popular in the fighter pilot community?

Lt Col Allen Lamb, USAF (ret.), wrote a first person account about being one of the Air Force’s (the world’s) first SAM-killers, otherwise known as “Wild Weasels:”   Read more

Commercial Pilot Jobs to Takeoff?

The US military pays certain career fields “bonuses” and other incentive pays for a fairly simple reason:  to keep people in the military who would otherwise make far more money outside of it.  Some have complained, then, when the economy turns:  For example, when the airline industry took a dive, some questioned what reason there could be for giving military pilots incentive pay.

The Air Force Times claims the “commercial pilot job market” is now set “for a boom,” however.

After nearly a four-year drought of openings, airlines are predicting they will hire more pilots in the next decade than they ever have. Aircraft maker Boeing forecasts a need for 466,650 more commercial pilots by 2029 — an average of 23,300 a year.

They also noted that changes in the Air Force culture may affect Read more

Fired Enterprise Captain Gets to Stay in Navy

According to the Navy Times, the “show cause” board reviewing the case of former commanding officer of the carrier USS Enterprise, CAPT Owen Honors, has recommended he be allowed to remain in the Navy.

The three-admiral board unanimously agreed Honors committed misconduct, failed to demonstrate acceptable qualities of leadership required of an officer in his grade and failed to conform to prescribed standards of military deportment. But it also voted 3-0 that Honors “be retained in the naval service.”

Honors’ attorney, Charles Gittins, said “O.P. is pleased” that he gets to stay in the Navy.

The article notes that Honors has highlighted himself in the face of upcoming force reduction boards, so he may eventually be forced to retire anyway.

Report: F/A-18s Collided After Wrong Turn

According to the Military Times, the midair collision of two F/A-18s from Naval Air Station Fallon last year was the result of a very simple pilot error:

Shortly after takeoff, they moved into a “wall formation” with the Super Hornets four abreast, putting 1.2 nautical miles between the two planes that eventually would collide. The lieutenant commander was flying one of the two inside planes.

“90-right, go,” the lieutenant commander announced, signaling everyone to turn.

While the three other planes turned right, for some reason the lieutenant commander turned left. Read more

General Robin Olds: Fighter Pilot, “Hero, Legacy”

The 7th Air Force historian, Howard Halvorsen, wrote an interesting article on Robin Olds, perhaps America’s most famous fighter pilot and eventual commander of the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing, heritage of the current wing at Kunsan Air Base, South Korea.

This historian is hardly the first to declare Robin Olds as the greatest aerial warrior and leader in American history.

When learning about his life, it is as if our creator was making the perfect Airman. He was a triple ace who had ideas about tactical air power that were as big as his physique. He was a missionary constantly arguing – not always tactfully – for better fighters, better pilot training, new tactics and the like.

Many people — even the historian author of the article — consider Robin Olds to be the consummate, if not the “first,” fighter pilot.  Halvorsen notes, though, that Read more

Top 10 Missionary Aviation Tips

Missionary aviation is a unique environment in which to operate, leading to the Top 10 Aviation Tips, brought to you by Mission Aviation Fellowship:

10: Always let your ducks go to the restroom before boarding.
…I ended up loading my Cessna 206 with 60 ducks that were in several cages. As I was closing up the cargo doors, one of the ducks relieved himself through the slats in the cage, dousing my pants. The flight was only 24 minutes long, but that was the smelliest 24 minutes of flight time I can remember. I flew with my head up in the air vent the whole time. – Mike Brown

9: Make sure your pig Read more

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