Category Archives: USAF

Quietly Acknowledging Gratitude…

Posted on 24/03/2021 by Cheeta17

I grew up as an Air Force “Brat;” a child of the Air Force. I don’t know when or what it was that I was captured with the “spirit” of flying for the Air Force but it was early on. … Continue reading →

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“Judgement”

Posted on 07/01/2020 by Cheeta17

When we graded UPT (Undergraduate Pilot Training) students after a ride there was always a block called “Judgement” on the grade sheet ‘Judgement’ was a graded item in all the different phases of training: contact, formation, nav and instruments. The … Continue reading →

Posted in E'spirit de Corps, UPT | Leave a comment

The ‘Mexican Standoff’ in New Hampshire

Posted on 31/12/2019 by Cheeta17

In 1977 Col. Wilson C. Cooney was assigned to Vance AFB, OK as our Director of Operations (DO). As he was settling in to the operations he wanted to visit our ACE* (Accelerated Copilot Enrichment) bases. I was a T-38 … Continue reading →

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Beauty!

Posted on 30/11/2019 by Cheeta17

In 1978 I was the Chief of Safety at Vance AFB, OK. One morning we received a call from the Command Post telling us that one of our T-37s (Tweets) had crashed. My first concern was for the condition of … Continue reading →

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A Thud, Out in A Pasture…

Posted on 20/11/2019 by Cheeta17

A lone man is seen walking up a remote country lane one afternoon, apparently alone deep in thought. Off to the side, sitting in a pasture, is a warhorse from years past – a Thud. Did the man fly the … Continue reading →

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Flying With Iranians…

Posted on 23/10/2018 by Cheeta17

In the late ’70’s, we received 29 Iranians at Vance AFB, OK for pilot training.  In preparation for these guys we had a 3-4 hour briefing on their (Muslim) customs from the State Department. (In retrospect, one of the best … Continue reading →

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WW Fog…

Posted on 01/11/2016 by Cheeta17

We had a UPT student at Vance, Class 76-09, named “W.W. Fog” – good kid.  One day in the flight room he answered the phone in a smart, military fashion as he had been taught.  After a short pause he … Continue reading →

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Whining About Shoeclerks

Posted on 10/01/2015 by Cheeta17

Shoeclerks:  Essentially ‘non-flying folks’ who are put in jobs to hinder, harass and annoy pilots.  For the most part these folks sit behind nice gray steel desks, creating empires.  We encounter them at Personnel, Finance, Weather, Intelligence, etc.  When these … Continue reading →

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Echelon, You Hockey Puck!

Posted on 05/01/2015 by Cheeta17

This is an “Echelon” formation:   It is used primarily at low level, to maneuver around the traffic pattern and so forth.  It is characterized with all the aircraft in the formation being on the same side as opposed to … Continue reading →

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No Jim, You’re Not Screwed Up…

Posted on 02/01/2015 by Cheeta17

After I wrote about our Christmas 4-ship last week I received the following reply from Jim N. “Yes it seems like only yesterday…but I checked the calendar and it says no.  Hey, it’s important to see the other 3 guys … Continue reading →

Posted in Just Things I Notice, USAF | 2 Comments