Hacker15e

...in the fighter community, the heavy community...

About the only military place I was that had a lot (or, more correctly, more than the complete dearth) of enthusiastic GA pilots was the U-2, and that probably had a lot to do with the fact that they hired pilots individually, rather than getting what the assignment system randomly gave them. So, there may have been some selection bias in who they hired and what they were into in their spare time.

During my small peek into the 121 airline world, it doesn't seem that there are huge numbers of GA enthusiasts there, either.

Adlerdriver

I'm with Hacker on this one. Frankly, I'm amazed you were amazed.

A bunch of guys raging around in machines found in the average pilot's wet dream aren't hopped up to jump in a Cessna? I think many (myself included) had little to no GA experience prior to the military and understood the two really don't translate. I think the guys who did have a GA interest probably already had it before they joined. In my community, the majority were guys that came into it at close to zero time and probably wouldn't know or appreciate a Lancair from a Lear.

Not to say some can't or didn't develop an interest, but when you're a front line fighter pilot doing the J.O.B every day, sometimes that's enough.

Hacker15e

I was more surprised that more of my squadronmates (fighter, trainer, ISR communities) didn't have an interest in aviation in general.

I remember hurevac'ing into Offutt back in the early 00s with my F-15E squadron, and I really wanted to go to the SAC museum to see their B-58 and B-36 -- both pretty rare airplanes to have on display.

The guys in my squadron looked at me like I had a third eye for not wanting to instead go to my second straight day of boozing with the boys in downtown Omaha. Most of them had no idea what either airplane was, nor why they were in Nebraska, or why I'd care to spend any effort to go see them.

Adlerdriver

Well, now you're talking aviation history which is a totally different thing. I'd easily give up boozing and a few other vices to crawl around in either of those two birds. I've been to Duxford twice on STN layovers and I'd go again anytime. I'm pretty sure I qualify as a junkie in that particular subject.

UAL T38 Phlyer

I think Hacker's implied point is valid: usually guys who are interested in aviation history are interested in aviation. This often translates into an interest in flying GA.

I took many students cross-country in the T-38 to Wright-Patt. We'd go through the museum as time permitted, and I'd give a walking tour.

One time another IP asked "How do you know all this stuff???"

I said "Well, I'm an airplane geek....but a lot of this stuff was still in the inventory when I was a Lt!"

(I have time in two of the tail-numbers in the museum).

Adlerdriver

That's very cool. In the immortal words of Lt. Archie Hicox..." I must say, damn good stuff, Sir."

nsavandal09

It's amazing how you could substitute "flying with the aero club" with "drinking and hanging out at the O club" and the comments are virtually the same.

Hacker15e

Yes, that more directly crystallizes where I was going with that thought, thanks.

Hacker15e

Except that drinking and hanging out at the O-club has been on the receiving end of a very direct campaign over the last two decades to vilify alcohol and "pilot hijinx" in the name of creating "warrior monks".

Albief15

Fantastic museum. A few years ago we had a Navion fly-in near Dayton. Another Navioneer and I went to the museum, but split up to view at our own pace. It was the 4th of July. We showed up around 9 that morning. I wandered from exhibit to exhibit, and like you saw airframes that I once flew like the OV-10. I found myself especially captivated by the Vietnam era exhibits as these were the planes I watch as a kid that inspired me to want to join. What I thought was wild was when they announced the museum was closing in one hour. I figured they must be closing early since it was a holiday. I looked at my watch and was stunned to see it was late afternoon. I had literally lost myself and had no concept of what time it was as I moved around. I cannot recall another time that has happened to me, but I never even got lunch that day...I was completely engrossed in the exhibits.

So--when guys ask me about being an airline pilot, I always tell them that I love it, but I am still a 5 year old plane geek at heart. Its the perfect profession for me, but may not be right for everyone. Substitute "Guam battlefields" for "SAC Museum" and I also have a TDY story like Hacker's.

Interesting to me but one of my frequent layovers is Ho Chi Mihn City (Saigon) which of course has a ton of war museums. I love laying over there, with great food and nice people...but I haven't been able to force myself to go look at them. I'm not quite ready for the overwhelming download of propaganda, and even though I was too young to have flown in that war many of my mentors in my first squadron did, including one that was a POW. At some point, I'll steel myself and go look, and make a trip to Hanoi as well. But for now--that can wait. I'm not quite ready yet...