James, if you are still lurking, I have a question. You claim to have been a Nav in the AF in this thread and then in another say you haven't flown since getting your PPL at 18 - which one is it?
When you say this kind of stuff people start to question you intentions! If you truly are just an aviation geek looking for information to satisfy your curiosity - you need to keep your story straight. Now that your cover is blown
don't expect any more answers to your generic questions