From the Basic to Blues website
If you’re considering joining the military you probably have a lot of questions, like how hard is Air Force basic training? This list of Air Force facts has the in’s and out’s of how Air Force basic training used to be. If you wanna know what it was actually like, this article paints a good picture.
Here are 50 surprising facts about basic training a recruiter probably wouldn’t tell you.
What to know about Air Force basic training, in no particular order.
From the Air Force Magazine website
The new B-21 Raider stealth bomber is making good progress and should fly in December 2021, USAF Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Stephen “Seve” Wilson said July 24.
Wilson, speaking at an AFA Mitchell Institute event in Washington, D.C., said the service continues to analyze its capacity for long-range strike. The Air Force still believes it is short, and is reviewing alternative force mixes.
Speaking on deterrence and the need to modernize the nuclear command, control, and communications network, Wilson said he was at Northrop Grumman’s facilities in Melbourne, Fla. in the last few weeks, “looking at the B-21,” and said the company is “moving out on that pretty fast.” Wilson said he has an application on his phone “counting down the days … and don’t hold me to it, but it’s something like 863 days to first flight.”
From the Wired Magazine website
The titans of social media are trapped, and we’re all suffering for it. As free services, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube monetize you by keeping you engaged, so they can show you more ads. The services are designed to exploit our brain chemistry, flashing us notifications and giving us one more hit of algorithm-recommended video. If they didn’t, their revenue would dwindle and shareholders would be unhappy.
This is not a mutually beneficial relationship, as the platforms like to say; it’s a parasitic one. Social media hoovers up our energy and most intimate data, and in return we get anxiety and the destabilization of democracy.
It’s gotten to the point where the tech giants know more about you than the government does. Take it from Yael Eisenstat, who served as a CIA officer, a diplomat in East Africa, and an adviser to Vice President Biden before joining Facebook in 2018 to tackle its election meddling problem. “I get to make this joke—not everyone does, having been in both places—but Facebook knows you better than the CIA ever will,” she says. “Facebook knows more about you than you know about yourself.”
From the This Day in Aviation website
The first pre-production prototype McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, YF-15A-1-MC 72-0280, on its first flight near Edwards Air Force Base, California, 27 July 1972. (U.S. Air Force)
27 July 1972: McDonnell Douglas Chief Experimental Test Pilot Irving L. Burrows made the first flight of the prototype YF-15A-1-MC Eagle, 71-0280, at Edwards Air Force Base, California.
The F-15A Eagle is a single-seat, twin-engine air superiority fighter, built by the McDonnell Douglas Corporation at St. Louis, Missouri. The fighter has outstanding acceleration and maneuverability. It is 63 feet, 9 inches (19.431 meters) long, with a wingspan of 42 feet, 9.75 inches (13.049 meters) and overall height of 18 feet, 7.5 inches (5.677 meters).
The 199th Fighter Squadron flew the F-15A/B Eagle from 1987–2009 and the F-15C Eagle from 1991–2010.
From the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) website
Six Hawaii Air National Guardsmen (HIANG) participated in a State Partnership Program (SPP) Air Defense subject matter expert exchange (SMEE) July 10, 2019, in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The SPP SMEE began in late June on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, when members of the HIANG’s 169th Air Defense Squadron hosted their Indonesian Air Force (TNI) counterparts.
Army Captain Marco Hartanto, Hawaii National Guard (HING) SPP director, was on hand in Yogyakarta to share general information about the Hawaii SPP and HING missions. Being bilingual in the Indonesian language, Hartanto’s presence was crucial to the mission as he provided his own brand of professional expertise in the continuing effort to build a stronger and more cohesive relationship with the Indonesian military.
From the Military Times website
The Post-9/11 GI Bill is a generous education benefit for the latest generation of service members and veterans. It includes payment of tuition and fees, a monthly housing allowance and a stipend for textbooks and supplies for up to 36 months. The GI Bill traces its history back to World War II when the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act was enacted to provide education and training, home loan guarantee and other benefits for veterans. Revamped several times to aid veterans of war and peacetime, the GI Bill as we know it was signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2008 and went into effect the following year. Portions of the GI Bill were updated again in 2017 under the Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act, better known as the “Forever GI Bill.”
From the Military Times website
As about 3 million more people will soon be eligible to shop at military stores, officials are working to make sure these new customers will have access to bases, and that the shelves will be stocked.
Starting Jan. 1, all service-connected disabled veterans, Purple Heart recipients, former prisoners of war and primary veteran caregivers will be eligible to shop at commissaries and exchanges, and officials from three federal agencies are preparing the way.
The newly eligible customers will also be able to use certain morale, welfare and recreation activities.
Another article sent in by continuing contributor Gordon Lau.
It happened #OTD, 25 Jul 2000, at #EdwardsAirForceBase#F22 #Raptor #military #aviation #flighttest #history pic.twitter.com/qVbPUQLdIq
— Edwards AFB (@EdwardsAFB) July 25, 2018
The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is a fifth-generation, single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF). The result of the USAF’s Advanced Tactical Fighter program, the aircraft was designed primarily as an air superiority fighter, but also has ground attack, electronic warfare, and signal intelligence capabilities. The prime contractor, Lockheed Martin, built most of the F-22’s airframe and weapons systems and conducted final assembly, while Boeing provided the wings, aft fuselage, avionics integration, and training systems.
The aircraft was variously designated F-22 and F/A-22 before it formally entered service in December 2005 as the F-22A. After a protracted development and despite operational issues, the USAF considers the F-22 critical to its tactical air power, and says that the aircraft is unmatched by any known or projected fighter. The Raptor’s combination of stealth, aerodynamic performance, and situational awareness gives the aircraft unprecedented air combat capabilities.
The high cost of the aircraft, a lack of clear air-to-air missions due to delays in Russian and Chinese fighter programs, a ban on exports, and development of the more versatile F-35led to the end of F-22 production. A final procurement tally of 187 operational production aircraft was established in 2009, and the last F-22 was delivered to the USAF in 2012. (More from Wikipedia)
The 199th Fighter Squadron began flying the F-22 in 2010.
More than 40% of American households headed by someone between 35 and 64 years old are likely to run short of money in their retirement years, according to a recent report from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).
How short? It varies depending on marital status and age. Widowers age 60 to 64 fell $12,640 short, for example; widows had a $15,782 shortfall. But single people in that age group fare much worse, and single women have the most yawning gap. Single men are projected to have a $24,905 shortfall and single women can expect a $62,127 deficit.
From the Everyday Health website
BMI stands for body mass index, but you’ll almost always find it referred to simply as BMI. It’s an estimate of how much body fat a person has, and it’s calculated by dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by his or her height in square meters.
Don’t be intimidated by the number crunching — there are loads of online calculators that will generate your BMI when you put in your stats. The resulting number can help you determine whether you’re at a healthy weight. Here’s what your number means:
Henry Lagyatan, a retired Hawaii Air National Guard recruiter sent Retiree News this photograph and these comments.
Met up with Vince Nishina former 298th Air Traffic Control Flight commander, wife Carleen & brother-in-law Delo Chun on the 13th of July while visiting Camano Island, Washington. I was assigned to the 298th when I initially joined the Air Guard on Kauai prior to transferring to the 154th Wing and Vince was present at my retirement back in August 2007.
Before Vince because the 297 ATCF commander, he served with the 150th Aircraft Control & Warning Squadron. After his military retirement, he worked for a contractor at the Barking Sand complex.
From the Washington Post website
Here’s a to-do list for preventing dementia, new research suggests: Ditch red meat, take a brisk walk to the grocery store, do the Sunday crossword and stick to one glass of wine at dinner.
A study presented Sunday at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Los Angeles found that combining five lifestyle habits — including eating healthier, exercising regularly and refraining from smoking — can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s by 60 percent. A separate study showed that lifestyle choices can lower risk even for those who are genetically prelifestyle disposed to the disease.
From the Air Force Magazine website
For the first time in seven months, the Pentagon has a leader actually confirmed in the position by the Senate.
The Senate on July 23 confirmed Mark Esper to be the 27th defense secretary by a vote of 90-8. Hours later he was sworn in at the White House by President Donald Trump.
Esper sailed through his confirmation process, which officially began when his name was formally submitted to the Senate eight days before the vote. The Senate Armed Services Committee waived regular procedural rules to hold his confirmation hearing the next day.
Mark Esper is the first former Guardsman to hold the post. Esper served in the Army for 21 years, serving 10 years in the active component and 11 years in the Army National Guard and Army Reserve.
A retired lieutenant colonel, he served with Virginia and the District of Columbia during his Guard career. A 1986 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, he is also a veteran of the Gulf War and a former senior executive at the Raytheon Company.
Retired General Alex Kozlov of the Employee Support of Guard and Reserve (ESGR) and Lieutenant Colonel Elzadia Kaina of the 154th Medical Group Hawaii Air National Guard recently presented HPD Sergeant Kristopher Kiyabu with the Patriotic Employer Award. #HonoluluPD #cchnl pic.twitter.com/FqIfGH6Hzb
— Honolulu Police (@honolulupolice) July 17, 2019
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