Rain Seal

By lex, on February 29th, 2012

I am an admittedly early riser (and am often late to bed), having been broken of that comfortable junior officer habit of sleeping on both ears until the noontime bell some years ago. “Eight hours sleep per day,” we used to say on deployment, adding that, “whatever you get at night is gravy.” To which some wag would inevitably respond that, if you could sleep twelve hours a day, it was only a three-month cruise.

Paean to the Ordies

By lex, on January 26th, 2012

Out of the pages of the NYT, of all places:

Night and Day

By lex, on January 24th, 2012

So, your host flew a night hop last night and a day sortie today. The difference between the two was, well: Look at the title.

We’d missed some sorties for weather. Gotten kicked out of the brawl when the training rules limited the number of fighters and bandits that could contest the same airspace. No hard feelings, it all made sense. When you’ve got Hornets, or Super Hornets, or F-16s with radars and night vision devices zorching around at one another at high fractions of the number, it makes sense to pad your chances.

Twice is a Trend

By lex, on December 21st, 2011

Last week in Wired.com’s Danger Room, David Axe gave a USAF mishap investigation team a harrowing over their report of an Elmendorf-based F-22 crash. The mishap report itself seemed to me fair, factual and rational. Mr. Axe’s response, less so. This week he has the Marine Corps MV-22 in his cross-hairs in a post entitled “Controversial Marine Tiltrotor Fights Its First Gun Battle.”

We’re Off

By lex, on October 23rd, 2009

Heading out in an hour or so with Son Number One on that long drive to Pensacola, Florida – the cradle of naval aviation. No intention to post over the next few days, so you’re welcome to talk among yourselves. Here or over on the other side.* Which, by the way – and I know that an “off the air notice” is a bad time to rattle the cup – but what with the server spikes we’ve been enduring the tip jar has been drained, and it’s out of pocket, I am, keeping this place humming. If anyone felt inclined to throw a fin in the jar, that’d be taken as a kindness.

Catching Up

 

By lex, on November 10th, 2011

So I haven’t had much time to keep apprised with the news. Apart from that dreadful business at Penn State, and you’d have to be a hermit to have missed it. Nothing I could add that hasn’t been said. Except that maybe there is a time to go softly into that good night. I guess by the time you’re in your late 70s you think maybe you’ve heard it all. Damn shame, all the way around.

Traveling

 

By lex, on November 9th, 2011

Which it’s our birthday, and we plan to spend it at Flight Level 290 ferrying a jet from Fallon to Buckley ANGB, in Aurora, CO. Overnight thither, then on to Newport News via Scott AFB on Thursday. Home on Friday night, the Good Lord willing and the dam don’t break.