Reminiscing

 Well, Campers, it's Monday (when you first can read this), but it's Sunday in Juvat land as I write this.  Sarge, being the hard taskmaster he is, has set Monday as juvat post day.  This means I write on Sunday.  After Church of course, during which I am furiously praying, "Please Lord, give me something I can write about." He comes through pretty often.

For which I'm relieved.  By which I don't mean removed from the task, just happy to have an idea. So, as the song goes, "Off we go..."

 

 

Just thought I'd add that to the Melange.  (BTW the uniforms are awful!)

Anyhow!

I got to pondering my flying career.  Yes, I've got several stories about it in Sarge's vast library.  Some were about the Leadership I worked under and learned from. Others were about the fun and games of being a fighter pilot on TDY's away from home without much supervision. Yes, I learned a lot from them.  Usually the hard way.

A little historic chronology might help understand how I got where I am. I was commissioned in '77, came on AD in '78.  Got my wings in '79, went to my first assignment, Kunsan ROK, in the F-4D in '80, second assignment in the F-4E at Moody AFB GA in 81.  

 

My Phantom! (Source)

Went to Holloman AFB in '84 flying the AT-38B as an IP. 

 

Source

 Finally got an Eagle in '87 through '90. 

Yeah, I'm in there!

 That was my last flying assignment.

More's the pity.  Do I miss it?  Silly Question!

Now, the reason for that chronology is that up through my AT-38 assignment Air to Air Basic Fighter Maneuvering was pretty much the same in all the airplanes I had flown/fought in.  The jet on the offense would be about a mile back and about 30 degrees off the tail of the jet on defense.  This was just outside of weapons parameters.  The defender's sole advantage was he got to call "Fight's on".  Typically, because the radio transmit button was on the throttles, he would make the call, just after he had slammed the throttles to the stop and the afterburners had lit.  

Hey, it ain't cheatin' if you win.

The guy on offense would pull the nose up (lighting the AB's also) and turn a bit towards the defender.  

Source

This was called a High Yo-Yo, if he'd gone below the defender's plane of motion, it would be a Low Yo-Yo. He would use these maneuvers to get within the launch envelope for a missile as well as close the distance to use guns if needed.  Once he had altitude separations, he would roll the aircraft to put the lift vector of the jet out in front of the defender and below the horizon.  

That would give him an extra G more than the defender would have as the defender wants to keep the offensive guy as close as possible.  Turning room is everything for the guy on offense.

Without going to much more details, this had been the way air to air was fought since the Korean War.  Probably all the way back to WWI in the mechanics of it.  I don't know, ask Sarge, he was there in that one.

Now, Now, Sarge, just kiddin'

When I got to F-15 RTU (F-15 school), I thought I was pretty good at air to air.  My primary mission in my previous 3 assignments had been air to mud, but we did a bit of air to air just in case.  

My first F-15 ride taught me a lot.  First, an afterburner takeoff in the Eagle can put you behind the aircraft in a heartbeat if you're not ready.  If you are ready, it's a blast!  You just got to remember that the instant you're airborne, put the gear up or the gear doors might be left behind.  Right after that, pull the stick back until you're pointed just about straight up.  Otherwise, well, the people on the ground might not like that sonic boom thing you got going on behind you.

Second, when my IP/Flight Lead got us out to the area and set us up for the first BFM engagement, he went out front on defense.  He called "fight's on" and I started my tried and true tactic.  Slight turn into him, AB lit, climb a bit above him, just like a thousand times before.

Except, he pulled to the G limit with AB lit and I was above him and basically even with him fore and aft.  Very shortly thereafter, I was looking over my shoulder at somebody pointed at me.

We had a short air to air debrief as we got set up for the second engagement.  I did better, I wasn't out front, however I was looking out the side of the canopy at him.  He then demonstrated the slow speed scissors  capability of the Eagle.

Source

 

Something I also didn't know.  Pretty soon I was looking over my shoulder again.

Another short air to air debrief, set up again and...well, I'm learning.  We do end up in a slow speed scissors but we were neutral.  Betty* hollered at me, so I glanced at my fuel gauge and called knock it off, I was at Bingo Fuel.  Meaning I had to go home as I was low on fuel.

Debrief was long, but educational.  I had a rematch scheduled for the next day.  I did better.

I did well enough thereafter to graduate and get to my F-15 Base at Kadena AB Okinawa.  This was in the Reagan years, flight time was abundant.  There were a lot of very experienced Eagle Drivers in the squadron.  I learned to listen to them.  (To be sure, there were some F-15 Pilots there also.  Good at instrument flying, not much else.)

 The place/operation I really learned to fly the Eagle was Cope Thunder.  This was the Pacific's version of Red Flag.  It was an full scale aerial war game.  By full scale, I mean, there could be about a hundred airplanes in the airspace during any one mission.  The airspace wasn't all that big, so it got crowded quick.

But, it was very instructive and I learned a lot.  After a few exercises, I was fairly confident that if the NORK's wanted to vacation in the south, their Air Force would be non-existent very quickly.

All good things must come to an end.  I got orders to Army Command and Staff.  Shortly after arrival, I got called into the Commander's office and notified that one of the members of the Flight I commanded had been killed in a mid-air collision at Cope Thunder.

That took a lot of air out of me.

Unfortunately, Kadena was the last time I flew as a pilot.  Dream about it often, miss it a lot. If I got to do it over, I wouldn't do anything different.  Well...Except warn Rocket about keeping his head on a swivel so he wouldn't hit anything.

Peace out, Y'all! 

*Betty is the somewhat affectionate name for a verbal warning of various serious conditions i.e low fuel, engine fire, over stressing the aircraft etc.