One of the true heroes in my life! Part 2

 

 

So there I was…an At-38B Instructor Pilot at Holloman Airplane Patch New Mexico.  I’ve been there about two years and my non-flying duty is squadron scheduler.  I have been blessed with a “good deal”, and I have made the most of it.

Current Wing Policy is that all senior Wing Personnel will receive check rides from the Chief of Stan-Eval.  The actual name is Standardization and Evaluation, most of us called them Stan Evil.  Ostensibly the requirement for the Wing King and the like to get their check rides from the Branch Chief was to reduce the likelihood of “undue Command Influence” in passing their check rides.  Works for me!  A Lieutenant Colonel looking for a Squadron to Command and therefore, earn his ticket to Bird Colonel.  No possibility for influence there…..

In any case, those thunderstorms raged far, far above my limited horizon.  My immediate problem was simple.  I had busted the Director of Operations (The number three guy in the Wing, call sign Vegas) on his last ride before his check ride.  Apparently, he had forgotton everything he’d learned in his 4000+ hours of flying about landing a jet, therefore he required another practice ride and his Check Ride was scheduled for tomorrow.

The Chief of Stan-Eval had booked a cruise for the day after and would not be available for the next two weeks. When dealing with the gods, scheduling is important.

I get back into the squadron, and the squadron CO is waiting for me.  Already having  been chastised by Vegas for having questioned my busting him on the ride, he asks me what my intention is.  I look at the schedule and see a three ship of IPs scheduled  for a continuation sortie.  Continuation sorties were missions where the IPs flew front seat and actually got to fly the jet and remain proficient at flying a fighter.  Students may or may not get to tag along in the back seat. Didn’t get a lot of them and these three guys were going to go out and fly a 2 V 1.  This was about as fun and complex a mission as we were allowed.  Highly sought after. Schedulers were able to get IPs to do all sorts of unpleasant things on the promise of a continuation ride.

I walk up to the schedule, draw a line through the 1 in the 2 V 1 and wrote Vegas and my name in.  The IPs would now be going on a 1 V 1.  Vegas and I would get our refly.  I was not popular.

Obviously, this ride was going to be later in the day and at Holloman during the summer, a later sortie made everything just a little bit more difficult.  The pressure altitude was higher, the engines responded different, winds were gusty, dust frequently blew so visibility was worse.  In short, for a person having difficulty landing a jet, flying late in the afternoon could make or break him.

We blast off, go to the area for a few minutes just to get down to landing weight, then return to the pattern for touch and go’s.  I’m a bit tense, but Vegas doesn’t seem to be worried.  He flies down initial, pitches out, configures, starts the turn, rolls out on speed and greases the landing.  Requests closed, granted, rolls out on downwind, configures, starts the turn, rolls out on speed and greases the landing.  Starts the go around, and says, “You want to fly the rest?”

I clearly had passed the test.

It’s now towards the end of the program.  Vegas had flown with other IPs, but I still was his primary IP.  We’re now in the first ride in the Air to Ground phase and Vegas is in the front seat.

 Once he sees the bombing range from the front seat, he will switch to the back seat and “instruct” me in Air to Ground techniques. Truthfully, I’m looking forward to it.  We had just completed Air to Air, and having him in my back seat instructing me (note the lack of quotation marks), had been VERY educational both for my IP skills as well as my actual Fighter Pilot skills.  I was looking forward to experiencing the same in Air to Ground. 

We’ve been to the range, dropped our 6 blue practice bombs and headed home.

We’re coming down initial for runway 16 and I hear the tower clear a flight of 4 F-15s on to runway 25 to hold. 

We pitch out, configure, turn final for a Touch and Go.  Roll out on final, I do a quick look out the nose of the Jet to check lineup, configuration etc.  (I’m still the Aircraft Commander, and IP, it’s my butt if something happens.)  As expected, Vegas is on the numbers.  I glance out the right side of the jet as we cross over the overrun….

Pause for a scenario setting .  Runway 16 and Runway 25 butt up against one another.  The overruns intersect.

The problem will occur in the light gray area at the top center of the photo.

Clearing a flight on to hold, gives that flight permission to do just that.  Taxi into position and sit there until given clearance to do something else.

It does not give you permission to run your engines up to military power in anticipation of takeoff!!

So, enough interlude.  I glance out the right expecting big wide exhaust nozzles  from 8 Pratt and Whitney F-100 Engines .

 

This is what F-15 engines look like in Idle as they should be while waiting for permission to take off.  Below is an F-15 in Mil Power and what I'm seeing

 

I advance the throttles into afterburner, while at the same time calmly communicating to Vegas that I was going to take command of the aircraft and would he please let go of the stick (I slammed the throttles to AB while I screamed “I got it!!”), just as we hit the turbulence.

The jet rolled to the left, and my guardian angel kicked in at that second, because my expected reaction should have been to roll back right.  I didn't, I added right rudder, which yawed the nose away from the ground as well as countered the rolling moment. I have no idea where that reaction, the only and absolute right move, came from.   I’m not sure what the angle of bank was, but I have a very clear picture of looking up at the runway.  The jet begins to yaw the nose above the horizon while rolling back towards level. We exit the turbulence as the aircraft rights itself.  I clean the gear and flaps up and remember the burners.  About this time, Vegas calls from the front seat and says “Well, that was exciting, do you mind if I fly the full stop?”  “No Sir, not at all.”

These guys practice it,  me, not so much!

Full stop, and Vegas asks what happened.  He’d never seen the four ship and all he knew was we had almost lost control.  I explained what had happened.  Debrief began later than usual that day as my student was unavailable.  Evidently, a flight lead lost his flight lead status.

About 6 months later, I’m now the Wing Scheduler and am up for assignment.  The F-4 is being phased out and F-15s and F-16s are starting to be assigned.  However, the AF still needs folks assigned to F-4Gs as well as F-111s, so the policy is that IPs  up for assignment in the next 6 months will be divided into Top Half/ Bottom Half.  Top Half will get the jet of their dreams; Bottom Half will get needs of the AF.  I’m fairly certain I’m in the Top Half, but, since I also want to be assigned with my wife, also military, and 2 year old son, I’m a bit tense.  Today is the day.  I get the call from my assignment officer.  F-4G to George.  I’m disappointed, but it is with my wife, so that’s the way the ball bounces. 

Vegas also knows this is the day.  He comes walking in to my office and asks what I got.  I tell him, his jaw drops and he says “Captain, can I borrow your desk?”  Dials an number and says (I’ve forgotten the name, so let’s use Stan)”Stan, Vegas here, do you personnel wienies still subscribe to the Top Half/Bottom Half policy?....Well, I’d like to know why Juvat here, my number one guy in this assignment tranche, is getting an F-4G? …..Yeah, I know about his wife…..Look, Colonel, I've got a retention problem here (he did) and if I can’t get my number one guy a new jet, what am I going to tell the rest of the guys to keep them in the AF? Why should they stay? I want him in an Eagle, and I want his wife assigned to the same base.” 

At that instant, it no longer mattered to me what my assignment was, I was reassured there were still people in the AF that cared about their people.  I would stay.

There’s more conversation on the phone, finally Vegas hangs up and says “Juvat, you and Mrs. Juvat are going to Kadena. You've got an Eagle!”

And it was the absolute highlight of my flying career!  Loved the Jet, the wife and I did quite a bit of touring the orient.  She had a great job and made Major BZ.  We both were sent to Army Command and Staff (after a 1 year separation.)  Little J and I went to Leavenworth, she and the new daughter came the next year.  I went to the School for Advanced Military Studies (SAMS), AKA the Jedi warriors that did so well planning the Gulf War. I was a little late for that, but got a great job at Camp Smith HI, again along with the wife.  

 

So, Vegas, I never got a chance to say thank you, Sir. Hopefully, someday on some cloud somewhere I can.  I'm very grateful.

 

Peace out, y'All! 

One of the true Heroes in my life!

 

This is a rerun of a story of one of the true heroes in my life. Sorry folks, I'm running out of home construction stories.  This one is more of an explanation of how I got where I was flying fighters.

So, there I was…stationed at Holloman AFB in lovely Alamogordo-by-the-sea NM. I’ve been married about a year now and my personnel officer bride and I have managed to align the moons of Jupiter and gotten assigned together.  She is working at the Consolidated Base Personnel Office (CBPO) and I am assigned to the 435^th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron (TFTS) as an Instructor Pilot (IP) at Lead-in Fighter Training (LIFT). (I’m trying to expand Sarge’s Acronym Locker).The 435^th mission was to teach newly graduated pilots the basics of flying a fighter, and also trained existing fighter pilots in the AT-38B and qualified them as IPs.

I’ve completed instructor training (Ed Rasimus was my IP, story(s) at a later date), and have been working as Squadron Scheduler.  Ed’s description of his Replacement Training Unit (RTU) scheduler, Wimpy, in “When Thunder Rolled” accurately describes a scheduler’s duties.

In any case, I’m building the schedule one day when the Squadron Commander walks in.  He’s one of the VERY few people allowed in the scheduling office when the schedule is being built.  Reduces distractions, eliminates the opportunity for pulling rank, bribery or blackmail to get on the schedule.  But the Squadron Commander is the boss, so he’s allowed.  Anyhow, he walks in and says “Juvat, old boy, I've got a good deal for you!”  Immediately I think “Shields to Maximum!  Ready all phasers and photon torpedos!”  I am attentive to his every mannerism at this point and, based on previous experience, am evaluating various escape routes.

He says “You know we’re getting a new DO (Director of Operations, the person in charge of all the Operational aspects of a Fighter Wing, an O-6, Full Colonel) shortly.  Because we’ll have to work around his schedule, and since you’re the scheduler, I want you to be his Instructor.”

Now, I need to go off track a bit to set the stage for what I envision is an opportunity to commit career suicide.  At this point in time, Tactical Air Command had instituted a policy which, to me, was absolute genius.  They modified the uniform regulation for flight suits so they could include a small patch on the sleeve showing a pilot’s experience level.  One silver colored star for every 500 hours of Fighter Time.  Additionally, a pilot would have a gold colored star if he had even 1 hour of combat time and would add additional gold stars for every 500 hours of combat time. 

There were a lot of Vietnam era pilots in the 435^th at the time.

Ed had at least 3 gold stars ( I think he might have had 4).  Most of the Majors and above had at least 2. 

Since I had a little less than 1000 hours in the F-4, I had one silver star.

The reason I thought this policy was genius, and undoubtedly the reason it was done away with, was you could instantly judge a senior officer’s credibility with a quick glance to his sleeve. Fighter Pilots judge credibility primarily on having employed weapons from a Fighter in anger, multiple times.  So an O-4 with 3 Gold Stars and 6 Silver stars (4000+ hours of flying time and at least 1000+ combat time, AKA Ed) had much more credibility than an O-6 with 2 Silver Stars (our Wing Commander at the time).

About now, Sarge is probably saying “Get ON with it, juvat!  We’re paying by the electron here.”  Back in the squadron, as I have now eliminated all possible escape routes as impossible, I’m thinking about the many different ways I can screw this up.  If he’s a rising star in the, as was muttered about at the squadron bar "Chair Force", I will probably run afoul of him because, well let’s just say, I’m not very tactful.  If he’s actually a Fighter Pilot (an attitude not an AFSC), what is little ol’ minimally experienced ME gonna teach him?

But, the die is cast; I am to be his IP.  The day of his arrival is now upon us, and I happen to be looking out the window when I see a brand new Corvette sweeping into the parking lot.  By sweeping, I mean driven as a Corvette should be driven, with authority! Out steps the driver who jams his flight cap on his head at the requisite Fighter Pilot angle and with the Fighter Pilot crush at the back. 

Robin Olds, NOT Vegas, but the flight cap is right.

A quick glance at his sleeve, 3 golds, 6 silvers.  He’s been there, done that!

He strides into the squadron like he owns it (which technically he does), and the squadron is called to attention.  Bellows “As you were”.  Walks up to me sticks out his hand and says “Juvat, I’m Vegas” I reply…..”Pleased to meet you, Sir.”  We sit down and I begin the flight briefing for his first ride.

The Instructor Pilot program at LIFT was divided into 2 parts, aircraft qualification and Instructor qualification.  Aircraft qualification was 5 flights, 3 in the front and 2 in the back followed by a check ride.  Successfully completing the check ride meant you were qualified to fly the aircraft.  The front seat rides were for practicing aircraft handling as well as landings.  The back seat was for instruments.  Landing from the back seat was taught after the check ride as part of the instructor qualification.

So, for Vegas’ first ride, we’re going to go out to the area and do a little acro then some stalls and falls, then return to the base and beat up the landing pattern.  We get suited up and walk out to the jet, fire it up and taxi it out.  The AT-38 was a pretty sweet little jet and performed the LIFT role well, but takeoff at Holloman on a hot summer day was often exciting.  Holloman’s field elevation was 4000’, which meant that a lot of runway 22’s 12000’ was needed. 

Vegas gets us airborne and flies the departure like he’s been doing it for years, we get through the advanced handling without me demo’ing any of the maneuvers, the man has golden hands.  Back into the pattern, pitch out, configure, on airspeed in the final turn, touch down on the numbers on speed.  Power back up; go around, another perfect landing and another and another.  Full stop and taxiing back in, I’m trying to figure out what to say in the debrief.  I can’t say “Got nothin’ Boss, great ride!” without appearing like a suck up, but that’s what it was.  However, we get into the debrief and he starts with “Man, I think I was about 2 knots fast on that first touch and go……” and proceeds to conduct his own debrief.

Second ride is in the back seat, he wants to do the takeoff.  Smooth as glass.  We head to Roswell to shoot an approach.  That penetration and approach was pretty tricky, there’s a big descent to make a hard altitude and if you’re not paying attention, your airspeed can get away from you, making the rest of the approach difficult.  More than one pilot has busted a check ride on that approach.  His approach was textbook. 

At one point in my life, I could read this.  Now, pretty much Greek.

We get back to Holloman and I’m looking forward to maybe getting SOME stick time at least with the landing, but NOOOOOOO.  Vegas asks if he can do the landing.  Greases it.  I’m glad I let him land, might have been embarrassing.

So this goes on for rides 3 and 4.  I’m learning more from him than the other way around.  We’re now heading back into the pattern on ride 5, his last ride before the qualifying check ride.  I’m very relaxed.  He pitches out, configures, comes around the final turn and we’re over the overrun, but a few knots slow.  I notice the nose start to rise a little sooner than I expected as he begins the flare and the throttles start coming back.  BAM, we smack down on the runway.  Power comes up, we complete the touch and go and get cleared for a closed pattern (pitch up to downwind from the end of the runway rather than go out to the pattern entry point and reenter traffic).  I’m thinking, what the heck was that, a fluke?  Configure, start the final turn, rollout.  And the same thing happens again.  Too slow+Early Flare=Hard Landing.  We've got gas for one more pattern so I can’t demo. If he doesn't land correctly this time….He doesn't.  If anything the full stop was worse.  So much so, that we’re taxiing on the runway longer than usual.  He asks me “How was that?”  

The mind is racing.  Decisions, Decisions…

“Well, sir, I think you need another ride.”  He says, “Can we do that? How?”  I say “I bust you on this one.”

 Silence.

I’m thinking, well at least McDonald’s is hiring.

After clearing the runway, we typically would call back to the squadron with the Aircraft status (Code 1-fully operational, music to Sarge’s ears, rarely happened; Code 2-flyable, but some problems; Code 3- not flyable without repairs) and the mission status (T3C -Student Passed, T2M- mission unsuccessful Maintenance, a needed system was inop, T2W- Unsuccessful Weather and T2S- Unsuccessful Student non-progress). Hard Landings have to be written up, so the jet is Code 2.

“Black Eagle ops, Juvat, Code 2, T2S” 

“Juvat, Black Eagle Ops, say again” 

“Black Eagle ops, Juvat, Code 2, T2 Sierra” 

“Standby Juvat”

“Juvat, Black Eagle One (the commander), say reason for T2S”

Before I can respond, the DO gets on the radio from the front seat and says “If my IP says I busted this ride, I busted this ride!”

I’d follow him through the gates of Hell.

Regular Monday

 Well, Campers, it's Monday again.  Not a lot of exciting things have happened down here.  Fortunately, the Super Storm petered out before it got anywhere close.  I think the lowest the temp got was in the low 40's.

Now, that is definitely NOT a complaint.  Hopefully, all y'all are doing ok.

Some progress has been made on the house construction.  Last update was the clearing of where the house will be located.

This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago when the old, dilapidated structure was demolished.

 

 That was followed by clearing the debris and leveling the area where the house will be built.

However, notice the line where the leveled dirt is and the tree line is.  That side is really impassable and unusable.  

So we got with our construction foreman and talked through the issue.

He hired a guy with a shredder with a tank tread-like base.    He went to work and pretty soon...

 That area used to be unaccessable. Now the whole area where the house, horse barn and paddock will be are accessible but still shaded. 

He also cleared out the areas where my workshop and Mrs J's "She Shed" will be placed.

 

 Wasn't quite finished yet. But we have confidence.

So.  Progress is occurring.  We shall see what the next steps are.  Electricity and Water to the specific sites I would think.  They are on the property.

 

Peace out, y'all

 

Early (very early) Monday

 

No, Beans, it's not Monday. Sarge had a bit of bad news and decided to take a break in posting.  I had a post in the works, so I'm going to post it today instead of Monday.

Here's hoping the Blogger Guardian Angel has another posting idea he'll send me.

Anyhow, here we go.

I was thumbing through the side bar on the blog a day or so ago.  I was looking at all the postings and what categories there were.  Good Gravy, there are a lot of them.  Most are Sarge's, but a few are mine.  Monday being my main category and is #1 on the list.  (Just in case you want to look at old posts I wrote. Hey, I think I got better as time went by.)

In any case, while trying to come up with ideas  back then, I ran across a video that had been taken in the mid-80's.  One of the pilots in my squadron was a photography buff and this was about the time that movie cameras became affordable and didn't weigh 5 tons.  Still a bit heavy though when pulling G's and you may notice that in the video.

So, I came across this video and decided to watch it again.  "Why" you may ask?

I was the pilot in the jet.  We had a couple of D models (2 seaters) assigned to the squadron.  One of them (78-564) had my name painted on the canopy rail.  Having come from a 2 seater background (T-37, T-38, F-4C, F-4D, F-4E, and AT-38), the squadron commander asked if I'd mind being assigned a 2 seater.  The jet could be set up to fly solo, the back seat just had to be secured.  So, I said "Sure".  

I flew that jet every time I saw it on the schedule.  I was a squadron scheduler at the time. My crew chief and I got along quite well.  I actually got a chance to take him up in "our" jet, but that's a story for another time.

My jet, with me in it was the camera jet for the film.  And the ground shot of the preflight was my jet and I'm in one of the scenes.  All inside the cockpit shots are in my jet with me doing the flying thing.

Yes, I got a little sentimental when I looked at this film again.  

Source

But, she is still flying, if no longer in the fighter business.  She's assigned to NASA.  Good for her.

My Jet in NASA Apparel

 

So, for your education and entertainment....

 

  

Enjoy! 

Ave Atque Vale

Source

I knew his real name, Dave Mustar, here on the blog, we knew him as Dakota Viking.  He's the #1 Nozzleman in the photo above. He's also here in the USS Carl Vinson's cruise book from 1989-1990.

Source

I hadn't heard from him in a while, I had a quick note from him a while back telling me that he'd been busy but had some more stories to share.

Gonna have to wait a while for that. David died quietly, in his sleep, on the 23rd of February, 2026. A friend of his, JK, left the message of his passing in yesterday's comments.

I'm going to go back and read some of those posts he shared with us, you can too if you click on the Dakota Viking label over on the right.

I think I'm going to take some time away from the blog for a bit. Cuppla days at least, maybe longer. This is going to take some time to process. I think I've got one more post he sent me that I haven't published yet. I need to find that. But for now ...

I am saddened by his passing.

Ave Atque Vale

Through many countries and over many seas

I have come, Brother, to these melancholy rites,

to show this final honour to the dead,

and speak (to what purpose?) to your silent ashes,

since now fate takes you, even you, from me.

Oh, Brother, ripped away from me so cruelly,

now at least take these last offerings, blessed

by the tradition of our parents, gifts to the dead.

Accept, by custom, what a brother’s tears drown,

and, for eternity, Brother, ‘Hail and Farewell’.

(Source)

Atque in perpetuum, frater, ave atque vale ...

Rest in peace, my brother in arms. Rest in peace.

And this is the 16th anniversary of my Dad's passing. Not feeling anything right now, just an aching void ...

Veni, Vidi, Vici

Vercingétorix devant César
Lionel Royer (PD)

Okay, I did arrive safely, I did see where I was, whether or not I conquered anything (other than the madhouse of the highway) remains to be seen.

Grandsons were happy to see me, once they were done beating the crap out of me.

Good boys, just a bit, shall we say, over eager?

It's good to be back in the Old Line State.

More to come once I recover from the sleep deficit, one thing I will say is that there is virtually no snow in the Annapolis area. I was in winter until I crossed the Delaware.

The Nuke tells me that while we up north were getting hammered with the white, they got mostly rain.

Can't say it bothers me, kinda nice to walk outside and not have to  stare at the ground to see if it's icy.

Kinda nice.

Makes my knee very happy.

Saddle Up!

Source

Once again it is time to mount up and head out. Boots and saddles, sea and anchor duty, etc., etc., etc.

Hopefully the roads will be like this ...

And not like this (à la Monday instant) ...

We can but hope.

I'm still amazed that after three hours of sleep (admittedly a very sound sleep) I was able to function for most of Wednesday.

I guess I'm just too busy to be tired.

Hey, it could happen!

See you from below the Mason-Dixon, not sure when, not sure how, but we'll meet again some sunny day. (At least I hope we're in for some more sunny days!)

Take it away, Willie!

Bis gleich! Und tschüss!