Originally Posted by
bunk22
USMCFLYR and I discussed this...it's that old fish story, the fish gets larger each and every time the story is told

Agreed, still makes for good reading.
Perhaps a bit, but Miramar had strippers show and perform into the mid to late 80's when I was there, just like Trader Jons did in Pensacola.
WestCoast Nav different than East Coast Navy. We have all been bred to be very PC now, but back then, had several IP's who had Vietnam experience. They were definitely very rough around the edges many of 'em regarding todays PC environment. Doesn't make them better or worse. Just a reflection of our history that produced fine combat aviators in our Navy/USMC and USAF brothers. The facts are: the skillsets and abilities that made a good combat aviator applied to F-8/F-4 and everything else; Scooters, Turkeys, Eagles,Lightnings, etc. It was a grand time to be a military aviator flying anything because it was a different era. This was a time that the airplane did not download and tell everyone exactly every thing that you did and at what time you did it and be on a screen beamed all around the world live. It wasn't a simpler or harder time, just different. 20 years from now, the youngsters will marvel at the stories of today, though for the life of me cannot conceive that I will be mightily impressed with the non combat stories.<bg>
Myself: Glad to be an 'average jet pilot' as I placed under my call sign, taken from one of my RAG IP's nametag on the green bag "Rude-Average Jet Pilot" it still makes me laugh.