Say Davy…

Posted on 06/03/2014 by Bobo

Overheard from Col. William B. Travis to Davy Crockett, as they stood looking out over the wall of the Alamo just before dawn,

Alamo

 

“Say Davy, did somebody order up some concrete work I don’t know anything about?”

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German Luftwaffe Fighter Pilot, or U-Boat Captain?

Posted on 06/03/2014 by Bobo

A friend called yesterday to tell me that he was heading up to an auction to (perhaps) buy a German Luger.  I have a German Luger – they are neat weapons.

As we talked I told him that if he indeed bought a Luger,  we would then haf (German for ‘have’) to go shopping for German Luftwaffe tunics.  Only fitting; we are both retired pilots.   And we wouldn’t want to be sitting on a porch somewhere with our Lugers, waiting for some unsuspecting salesman while looking tacky now, would we?  (Reference: “Second Hand Lions”).

il_570xN.552322116_tllh

 

 

We laughed a bit, then I mentioned that we would also need a hat – but only one.  The German WW II hats actually doubled as either a Luftwaffe pilot’s hat, when worn conventionally, or U-Boat Captain’s hat, when worn backwards!   More laughing…

$_3

Just depends upon the task at hand… LOL!

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A Lesson In Clearing

Posted on 04/03/2014 by Bobo

After reading an earlier post here, a friend shared this story:

My first FOT (Follow-On-Training) flight as a new IP in “L” flight was with a couple of “O” flight guys, Chuck H. and Mark M.  I can’t remember the other IP.  I was flying with Chuck and the experience was rather enlightening.  Spent a lot of time in afterburner in the area (learned how to really fly extended trail ) and flew some pretty impressive overheads (rolling out just short of overrun) back at Vance.  I think that we landed min fuel (not announcing it ) after about .8 of flight time.  I had a great time and decided that being an IP was going to be fun after all .  Shortly after returning to squadron, Chuck and I were standing at attention in front of Lt. Col. Goddard’s (ops officer) desk explaining our actions.  Seems the DO was in the RSU and observed our antics in the pattern.  Even though he chewed our asses, I think LTC Goddard understood.  I tried to learn from Chuck and Mark’s introduction and continue in their tradition.  However, I was more careful back in the pattern, especially if their was a blue staff car beside the RSU.  Have not thought about this in years.  Thanks for reminding me how much fun it was flying the T-38.

(This is one of the beauties about this blog – having friends chime in every now and then, with ‘your’ stories!  Thanks!)

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Randy 10 Lead Is ‘Bingo’

Posted on 04/03/2014 by Bobo

In flying, ‘Bingo’ is the term we use that means we have just enough fuel remaining to return to the base, land and have our ‘minimum fuel’ by regulation.  More often than not, in T-38 flying, that value is 600 pounds.  At Randolph Field, TX we would use 400 pounds for recovery.  So, in this case, our ‘Bingo’ would be 1,000 pounds.  Many of the guys I flew with would kick this figure up a bit, to maybe 1,200 pounds or so, ‘just in case…’  Probably not a bad idea at the time we were flying ’38’s.  Today, with so little flying due to ‘sequestration,’ I reckon you could get away with 1,000 pounds – no worries.

Anyway, this one afternoon Jim E., call sign “Rat,” was a check pilot in a 2-ship formation flight.   Toward the end of the mission he was flying as the Number 2 guy.  The formation was in ‘extended trail’ at the time.  This is a formation wherein the number 2 guy flies 500 to 800 feet behind the lead aircraft, maneuvering in a 30-degree cone as needed to stay in position.

All of a sudden Lead calls, “Randy 10 is Bingo.”  By convention we usually didn’t call ‘Bingo’ as Lead; we would just call (air traffic control) for recovery.  As in this case, the leader would usually just rock his wings, to rejoin the formation, and call for recovery – often at the same time.

In this case however, Lead never stood a chance.  We had talked about this situation numerous times, usually after a couple-3 beers, and Rat was primed for him.  “Roger,” Rat, upon hearing Lead’s, ‘Bingo’ call replies, “Randy 10-2 copies, go Channel 4, descent check.”  Now Lead is screwed!

(In our East operating areas we were under the control of Houston Center.  For recovery we had to switch over to San Antonio Approach Control.)  So now Jim goes over to San Antonio Approach, and Lead is still on Houston Center.  He has lost complete control of the formation.  (I don’t know if Jim briefed the other check pilot or not – I suspect he might have…).  Anyway, it is not long before Lead breaks the code and switches over Channel 4, just in time to hear Jim say, “Randy 10 flight check.”  Lead now replies, “Randy 10 Lead,” totally flustered…

I don’t know how far it went after this, I was laughing so hard as Jim told us the story later that evening – after a couple beers, of course.  But I will guess that that kid never called ‘Bingo” ever again, as Lead!

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Gas Training

Posted on 03/03/2014 by Bobo

When I was in Aerospace Munitions School in the Fall of 1968 we had to go through ‘tear gas training.’  This is where they put us in a room then tossed in canisters of tear gas.  Not the ‘mild’ stuff, but the ‘real deal!’  We carried gas masks but weren’t allowed to put them on until we received the ‘word’ from the instructors.  And our instructors didn’t seem to be in any particular hurry to give us ‘the word.’  Anyway, I just saw this on a post in Facebook; I can ‘relate.’

Cough

‘Gas Training’ was the last lesson we had that day.  Just before we were released we were told NOT to go to the Officer’s Club for lunch.  Telling that to us was stupid.  Any guesses where we went for lunch?

Tear gas not only gets into your eyes and nose; it also gets into your clothes – and lingers.  Although it took us perhaps a half-hour or so to get to the Club, the gas was still in our uniforms.  By then we had become totally acclimated to it, and were showing no adverse effects at all as we got in the lunch line.

That line cleared in less than 30 seconds!  People tearing up, hacking, spinning around in anguish – and we were just standing there!  What?  LOL!  It is still funny as Hell!

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One of My Favorites…

Posted on 02/03/2014 by Bobo

On a rainy day, an little Indian boy from the tribe goes to his chief and asks, “Chief, how do you name all the people of our tribe?”

The Chief replies,”Oh, it quite easy.  When baby born, I look first thing I see moving in wilderness, and name baby just that.”

“How so?” asks the Indian.

“Well,” replies the Chief, “if I see coyote running in field, I name baby Running Coyote; if I see bull sit, I name baby Sitting Bull.”

“Oh, I see now” says the Indian boy.

The Chief then turns to the little Indian boy and asks, “Why so curious today, Two Dogs Fucking?”

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WNA – 5

Posted on 02/03/2014 by Bobo

“We do not want churches because they will teach us to quarrel about God…”

new-josephChief Joseph
Nez Perce

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“Why Don’t You Fly for a Little Bit, Bob?”

Posted on 01/03/2014 by Bobo

We took a 4-ship of T-38s from Randolph Field, TX to Tyndall AFB, FL one weekend, just to enjoy the weekend on the beach.  I was flying with Nick A., our squadron commander.  Good guy.

Enroute we had a planned stop at England AFB, LA – at Alexandria, LA – for a gas-and-go.  When we departed Randolph the weather at ‘Alex’ was forecast to be okay.  It was suppose to ‘go down’ later that evening.

Nick did the takeoff and flew the better part of the leg to Alex.  During the descent we were advised that the ceiling was dropping sooner than expected.  At that time, maybe 40 – 50 miles from landing, we still had VFR (Visual Flight Rules) weather.  As we continued to drill in closer, the ceiling continued to drop.  The cloud deck above us was kinda thick so visibility was also dropping, to the point where we needed radar vectors to Initial.

About 5 or 6 miles out we picked up the runway.  It wasn’t raining but it was misty.  As we reached 2 or 3 miles out Nick said, “Why don’t you fly for a while Bob?”  Swell; but no worries.  I took control and began planning for the pitch out.

I had no idea what our altitude was at the time – I was focused on remaining below the clouds.  And at this time we didn’t have the gas to split up for instrument approaches.

I pitched out and glanced at the altimeter – 800 feet above the ground!  And I was just below the cloud deck!  (Our minimum ceiling for an ‘overhead visual pattern’ was 2,500 feet or so.)  Oh well – you do what you have to do.

We all eventually all got down, and nobody said a word.  “Why don’t you fly for a while, Bob?” is all I could think about!

After we got our gas, we took off in two 2-ship formations.  The weather wasn’t good enough for a 4-ship flight to Tyndall!

(I had forgotten all about this flight until a friend of mine was reminding me of it the other day.  He was in one of the other jets, and we laughed about it – now!  LOL!)

 

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My Last Flight…

Posted on 01/03/2014 by Bobo

As a pilot, only two bad things can happen to you (and one of them will):

a. One day you will walk out to the aircraft, knowing it is your last flight, or

b. One day you will walk out to the aircraft, not knowing it is your last flight.

I walked out to ‘the Jet’ on 15 July 1988, knowing it was NOT my last flight in a T-38.  It was the day I retired from the USAF; but somehow, I knew it wasn’t my last flight in the T-38.

009_4_2My last flight in the ’38 came on 25 May 2006.

DSC_5407

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WNA – 4

Posted on 28/02/2014 by Bobo

“We send our little Indian boys and girls to school, and when they come back talking English, they come back swearing.  There is no swear word in the Indian languages, and I haven’t yet learned to swear.”

GertrudeBonnin

Gertrude S. Bonnin (Zitkala-Sa)
Yankton Sioux

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