2012 Mil Pic Post

[Blackhawk]

Picture of my favorite military pilot in front of her favorite steed- pre-doctor days. Second female selected to fly the airframe, first female to command an OH-58D Troop. Unlike the Air Force and Navy, the Army did not make a big deal about the female "firsts" in aviation, and that is the way my wife wanted it. The press did not show up for her contemporaries' change of command, so she did not want the press at hers. You won't find her name in Wikepedia.
Years later I ran into some female OH-58D pilots at Tallil and commented that my wife was the first female 58D Troop commander almost 10 years earlier. They wondered who the first one was... but that is how my wife wants it. Not a female pilot or commander, but a pilot and commander.
She would kill me if she knew I posted this.

 

[Blackhawk]

Couple more. First one is of me and a French officer right at the border of Algeria, Mauritania and Western Sahara. All I could think of was the Sam Kenison line about fighting over a desert. Okay, not my brightest moment.
Second was the aircraft I got to fly from time to time.

 

[MikeD]

Picture of my favorite military pilot in front of her favorite steed- pre-doctor days. Second female selected to fly the airframe, first female to command an OH-58D Troop. Unlike the Air Force and Navy, the Army did not make a big deal about the female "firsts" in aviation, and that is the way my wife wanted it. The press did not show up for her contemporaries' change of command, so she did not want the press at hers. You won't find her name in Wikepedia.
Years later I ran into some female OH-58D pilots at Tallil and commented that my wife was the first female 58D Troop commander almost 10 years earlier. They wondered who the first one was... but that is how my wife wants it. Not a female pilot or commander, but a pilot and commander.
She would kill me if she knew I posted this.

Im telling on you, just so you know. Because you topped my students in the WX post.

Are -58Ds new build airframes, or are they modified -58A/Cs?

Btw....being out east now, are you missing Rudys?

 

[Blackhawk]

Im telling on you, just so you know. Because you topped my students in the WX post.

Are -58Ds new build airframes, or are they modified -58A/Cs?

Btw....being out east now, are you missing Rudys?

Please. Don't do that. As she likes to point out, she was the gun pilot in the family.
Don't know if they are modified A/C's or new airframes. I know most started out as unarmed artillery spotter aircraft (AHIP)- they were actually controlled by FA branch when they first came on line (I think), and when I came on active duty there were enlisted spotters who were given an abbreviated form of flight school and thrown in the other seat. Armed versions were used in the Prime Chance operation and were successful. It was then decided to arm all of them. I know in Iraq they were in great demand- many airframes were flying about 120 hours/month when I was over there. Not so great in Afghanistan last I heard due to their low power.
I only flew the C model, but I do think the OH-6/MD-500 was a better aircraft than the OH-58A/C (with my vast 25 hours of expertise in the OH-6/MD-500). I can't compare it to the OH-58D as I never flew it.
Mmmm... Rudys. I do miss Texas BBQ. We did get lucky with one of the warmest winters on record. Still, 40 degrees and raining during my daughter's school soccer game in the fall is really cold. Oh... and Lake Effect Snow? Yeah, it's pretty much what you heard. I go inside to watch my kids practice and it's nice outside. I come out 2 hours later and wump. There's 6" of freakin' snow on the ground and more coming down so fast we can barely see the car.

 

[Blackhawk]

Picture of my wife getting ready to show the Navy who's the boss.

 

[MikeD]

Picture of my wife getting ready to show the Navy who's the boss.

Thats taking the scout mission to a whole new level......ASW warfare!

 

[Blackhawk]

Thats taking the scout mission to a whole new level......ASW warfare!

Their hellfire range was a barge off of Cherry Point and the Army made a point of keeping them DLQ current.

 

[///AMG]

Their hellfire range was a barge off of Cherry Point and the Army made a point of keeping them DLQ current.

Stumpy Pt? We just started bombing there in the last few months.......kinda fun actually, it's small enough that it tests your kentucky windage bombing skills far more than any raked range where a win is just hitting the ground.

 

[MikeD]

Stumpy Pt? We just started bombing there in the last few months.......kinda fun actually, it's small enough that it tests your kentucky windage bombing skills far more than any raked range where a win is just hitting the ground.

Kentucky windage? You dropping manual and/or HUD out? Rock on!

 

[///AMG]

Kentucky windage? You dropping manual and/or HUD out? Rock on!

I wish I were that cool. Would you take CCIP WAG method as an alternate method? Works well enough for me if my boresight isn't hacking it.

 

[MikeD]

I wish I were that cool. Would to take CCIP WAG method as an alternate method? Works well enough for me if my boresight isn't hacking it.

I always wondered why guys would bet quarters on system-delivery passes. I mean, with release consent, you could be effed-up 20 ways from Sunday, and the systems will correct your release point.

I will pay you to, on your next bombing ride to the controlled range, switch to manual pipper, crank in the mils, go heawind-add / tailwind subtract, correct for any crosswind, and go bombing.

Double if you win against the HUD baby pansies.

Triple if you do it with heavyweight lives.

 

[///AMG]

Agreed Mike, it is very forgiving of bad parameters.......like 50-100 kts and hundreds of feet off planned release. While I could argue that it makes us system cripples, I feel like I will appreciate it if I'm ever being shot at and trying to jump from an air-to-air fight straight to a roll-in while defending myself. I think we learned that lesson well enough in the skies over NVN. But you are on.

 

[MikeD]

Agreed Mike, it is very forgiving of bad parameters.......like 50-100 kts and hundreds of feet off planned release. While I could argue that it makes us system cripples, I feel like I will appreciate it if I'm ever being shot at and trying to jump from an air-to-air fight straight to a roll-in while defending myself. I think we learned that lesson well enough in the skies over NVN. But you are on.

It's back to basics young Padawan! Does the Hornet have a maual pipper you can crank? And how many mils max does it crank to? That'll determine what kinds of deliveries you can do, high to low.

Btw.....don't poo-poo manual deliveries. Try this one: Had an outpost in Afghan years ago that had a TIC in progress with enemy right outside the gates. Nighttime. HUD decides to go tits-up. Had to bring up the manual pipper, crank the mils in, and drop Mk-82s on the enemy outside the gates. Couldn't negate the crosswind due to run-in heading restrictions. Bombs HAD to be delivered, no other choice. I made it happen, but had to INSURE I didn't eff it up.

Do not poo-poo the basics. It will come and bite you in the ass later when someone else desperately needs your help.

 

[Blackhawk]

You guys need to just let go and use the force. It works in the movies so it must be real.
I can't imagine they are still using the same barge. That thing was so full of holes in '96 it was funny... except for the UH-60 crew the time an OH-58D fired a Hellfire, it lost the lock and went haywire into an arc in the -60's direction.

 

[C-182 flyer]

It's back to basics young Padawan! Does the Hornet have a maual pipper you can crank? And how many mils max does it crank to? That'll determine what kinds of deliveries you can do, high to low.

Btw.....don't poo-poo manual deliveries. Try this one: Had an outpost in Afghan years ago that had a TIC in progress with enemy right outside the gates. Nighttime. HUD decides to go tits-up. Had to bring up the manual pipper, crank the mils in, and drop Mk-82s on the enemy outside the gates. Couldn't negate the crosswind due to run-in heading restrictions. Bombs HAD to be delivered, no other choice. I made it happen, but had to INSURE I didn't eff it up.

Do not poo-poo the basics. It will come and bite you in the ass later when someone else desperately needs your help.

There is no manual pipper in the Hornet, but you can select manual and set the mils for the delivery, HUD is required. As a RAG IP, we would sometimes switch to manual in the circle the wagons pattern when leading students around if we got bored. I am not sure what the max mil setting is off hand, but we were doing 45 degree deliveries.

I am not sure how long Stumpy Point has been around, but BT-9 and 11 are closer to Cherry Point and one of them had some barges to bomb.

 

[///AMG]

I am not sure how long Stumpy Point has been around, but BT-9 and 11 are closer to Cherry Point and one of them had some barges to bomb.

Come to think of it, I think SP is a bit newer (though my frame of reference here is short). BT-11 or -9 would make sense, I haven't been to either yet, but I will look out for the barge when I'm there in the near future.

@ Mike, I'll have to try it. Maybe give it a few shots in the sim first so I don't really embarrass myself out on the range. I'm thinking it will take a couple passes to get used to the sight picture and remember all that manual bomb stuff we learned back in orange and whites.

 

[Blackhawk]

There is no manual pipper in the Hornet, but you can select manual and set the mils for the delivery, HUD is required. As a RAG IP, we would sometimes switch to manual in the circle the wagons pattern when leading students around if we got bored. I am not sure what the max mil setting is off hand, but we were doing 45 degree deliveries.

I am not sure how long Stumpy Point has been around, but BT-9 and 11 are closer to Cherry Point and one of them had some barges to bomb.

Your right- it was BT-9/11. We also used it a few times when I was in the 160th.

 

[GolfChuck]

Medevac training:

Artillery!

 

[MikeD]

@ Mike, I'll have to try it. Maybe give it a few shots in the sim first so I don't really embarrass myself out on the range. I'm thinking it will take a couple passes to get used to the sight picture and remember all that manual bomb stuff we learned back in orange and whites.

Are you alluding that you haven't done it yet? Not even in the RAG for your jet?

So you get a few "unscorable at 6" bombs. At least thats something to improve upon.

 

[///AMG]

Are you alluding that you haven't done it yet? Not even in the RAG for your jet?

So you get a few "unscorable at 6" bombs. At least thats something to improve upon.

IIRC one of the old contract sim instructors had me do it for fun on one of my first RAG bomb sims (I think there was a segue in there relating it somehow to the old days in Laos ), but no, it is not at all part of any syllabus that I have been in for the Hornet (RAG nor SFWT). I'm not worried about getting a couple bad hits, but I would like to be proficient enough in it beforehand that I'm not like throwing blue death outside of the range. Granted if my Z numbers are good, presumably the hits will at least been in the ballpark (winds dependant)