Sadly, that culture has become a casualty to being risk adverse in all professional facets, though it still exists in small pockets. I guess it's the job of those of us who grew up in that culture to pass it on. I don't want the CG to be the USN by any means, but think we should bring along the good traditions/camaraderie that we had there. BTW, I am extremely envious of your orders.

PS- what's DB stand for?? Dedicated Brother right???

 

I have a USCG family member who is also ex-navy...she complains about the same stuff constantly is probably only sticking it out for retirement.

 

Yes it has.
Have you considered the U-2 program?

 

Awesome question Huggy. PM sent.

I was hoping for "Downer Bird" but I might be going to a different Flying Club. Don't be jealous of me my friend, you lived the VT Screw high life via Weenies.....The daggum Texan ain't as loosy goosy, happy go lucky. You never heard, "Uhhhh Sir, I'm sitting on my ejection seat handle" halfway through a night INAV.

You know I don't miss that VP "Shoe Air"back stabbing political horseshoe!t, but there was a hell of a lot more jocular levity back then. And yes I'm trying to pass on the JOPA vibe (NO dude....the JO Banglist IS NOT for serious "I need a volunteer" or "Awesome OER bullet opportunity" emails. JO antics only please).

Speaking of OER bullets, you got any for me? "Flew airplane good" in my professional competency block got lined out, and there is a lot of blank space left to fill.

I swear Bug, what I see folks put up with just to lock in a retirement. And you know what, it ain't just senior O-3s reaching for gold oak leaves so they can make 20. It's pervasive throughout the whole military. I get it, usually folks are trying to guarantee benefits for their family. Good guys toting the party line and maintaining status quo so strictly, that common sense, creativity, and fun are abandoned.

I'm not active duty USAF, "Dear Boss, I quit" angry. Just weirded out that I'm now the "Old guy" on the periphery of acceptable behavior as the bell curved has shifted towards a more corporate model. Is this what my IP's in the late nineties felt like after they experienced a massive culture change?

 

"Tell us about yourself...."

 

Can't speak for any of the other services, but so many of those traditions are dying on the vine in the AF, too.

Agree with everything @propfails2FX says about us not changing, but the culture shifting around us at a rapid pace.

 

Sad to hear this. I was active from 84 to 91, and the "buddy" culture was still very strong. Combat Crud (with actual fist fights) in the old Nellis bar, the one with Vietnam Aces sigs scratched into the wood, driving blue steelies across West Germany, getting stupid, TDY name tags, all the goofy bar rules. Any time someone stood up for any sort of massed briefing or announcement, calls of "Faster and funnier" rained down upon him while he tried to speak.

The squadron tap opened after last step, and we'd have pigs and high-stakes dice well into the night.

I wonder if it slowly ground to a halt when women were given full access to these male-only positions?

 

I read about the Combat Crud and it brought back great memories of a TDY trip my unit made to OSAN AFB in '99. We learned the game from some USAF folks in the O'Club there and started playing. We had too much fun and ended up putting one of our guys elbows in the wall and cracking another ones ribs. Great times, especially since my ribs were intact.

 

I laughed my ass off thinking about this. I told the guys at the squadron today and we laughed. Times are changing, and not for the good. I will retire as soon as I hit 20 in the reserves. Too much PC for me.

 

Just guessin' but, if at Westover on a late afternoon ask the Base Ops folks if "The Cage" at the 337th is open. If it is, you'll learn more than you want about C-5s, getting paid in the Reserves and what they don't like about the commanders, the HQ and the AF, in general. And have a draft beer?

When I was at F-100 RTU (!), the IPs had recently returned from Vietnam (several were former Misty FACs). They were aghast when the dearm crew couldn't give the pilots a can a Bud while waiting to dearm and park, after all, the Book didn't say you couldn't taxi with a beer. Then, the AD said NO beer on the ramp when the MX debrief truck had a cooler. I diverted into Torrejon (LETO) in the early '80s and one of the squadrons came out with a cooler of beer and apologized for asking us to "hide" the beers so they wouldn't get in trouble. "We knew you were ANG and couldn't greet you without beer. We all had a great time in the debrief room.

Those were the days.

GF