Originally Posted by
Ftrooppilot
Neither of these prove "higher pilot skills" although I would favor the F16 pilot.
Modern airplanes and navaid technology do not develop "seat of the pants" pilot skills. After pilot training (T-37 / T-38) and C-141 flying I was an excellent " by the book " pilot. It wasn't until I flew UC-123s cross controlled up and down mountain sides in Vietnam (spraying at 100 feet ) that I really learned to fly airplanes.
FYI The Air Force Academy tracks graduate UPT/SUPT performance. The top performers are Cadet CFIGs from the academy soaring program.
Actually, no. Here is the military academy chart:
As you can see, the best Academy pilots are the ones with a small moustache and are Maverick look-alikes. The bigger the moustache and Goose look-alikes, the lower their flying skills. It's all right there in the chart.