Search results

phrogdriver and I are two separate people... ;) The $45K bonus was for SMCR, not AR. AR is actively recruiting, and you'd get snatched up quick - only because there are very FEW (read: none that I know of) V-22 guys in the AR world. AR is a good deal, same pay/benefits as AD and same retirement...

I got a $10K 3 year bonus (as most of us did). They just came out with a $45K bonus for targeted MOSs. Some of them were for MOSs that are undermanned (AH-1W, UH-1N, CH-53E) and an additional MOS that is GOING to be undermanned based on who's transitioning from 764 (and who's going to...

FIFY.

Still my favorite Blue Angels aircraft EVER.

FWIW - there's a $45K affiliation bonus as a V-22 guy in the reserves...

Yeah, but your sample size is small, I would argue almost all Marines... When I was in South Field, I would argue that probably 60-75% of the guys I went through Whiting with (that were Marines) actually wanted helos. My selection card was "1. Helos, 2. Helos, 3. Helos" another buddy put down...

PSW (Phrog'sShoeWife, aka my wife) is a member, and she lat moved from SWO to IW. She's currently underway, but I'll let her know about the thread. There's also another website you could join and talk to some IW officers (some lat movers) it's www.informationwarriors.net. Hope that helps.

It's not just a 10 digit grid. It's also HAE, which your standard Vector/DAGR combo can't produce. Mensurated grids, PSS-SOF, or a Relnav delivery produce ten digit grids + HAE that is JDAM quality. And to clarify, the Vector/DAGR does produce 10 digit grids + elevation. However, they are...

There's a fair chance you'll get passed over for your first look at LCDR. I have a classmate of mine from USNA that did NFO to pilot, and a buddy of mine's wife did it. They both were passed over on their first O-4 look. The buddy from USNA got picked up on his above zone look, and my buddy's...

That would work too. But his original statement of an LRF and JDAMs didn't make sense...

I think you have a misunderstanding of how the technology works. A LRF will only tell the snake eater how far away from the target he is, and if it's tied to his GPS a 10 digit grid that is NOT accurate enough for a JDAM. We routinely train our studs that the grid they get from the Vector/DAGR...

If you saw one of his builds, you'd get excited... He takes what he gets from the parts kits, and builds to that. If the furniture is beat up, and there's a ton of patina on the metal parts, he makes a "battlefield pickup". If it's near mint - he bead blasts and re-parkerizes it, and makes it...

For what it's worth, a buddy of mine has a hobby of building AK's. Has a ton of kits/receivers on hand. Has already sold several at close to 300% profit.

Oh, I agree that it's a decent callsign. But still... The best callsigns out there are ones that come from the younger guys. They are also the ones that get struck down by older guys. Case in point: The hands-down best callsign I've heard in a while is "Chaffe". What's the back story...

Something I've come to grips with as I've gotten older. What we old guys think as cool, isn't. ;)

I can do you one beetter... I had a hand grinder, a french press stainless steel mug and a MSR stove in my pack anytime I went to the field in the battalion.

Pretty sure there are a handful (if that) of billets with NSW. Being an instructor at the school house, I get to cross paths with JTACs/FACs from all services. The schoolhouse is now a pre-req for FAC(A) on the Navy side, and we've got an adjunct faculty member (Navy F/A-18 LCDR type) that works...

To put it in simpler terms, I very seriously considered doing a FAC tour as my final tour in the reserves before retiring. Then timing worked out where I'd be able to retire the same day as the Phrog, and I changed my mind. Plus, having a job where I'm a JTAC(I) is pretty sweet. Although I am...

One year. The idea is to get you out of the battalion in enough time to not refresh if you want to head back to a fleet squadron. I was getting out, so I spent a year and a half in my battalion. Varies by battalion, garrison/exercise, and type of deployment. I did a MEU deployment, so my...

There are tons of pros, and a handful of cons. It was hands down the most rewarding and enjoyable tour of my career. You have any specific questions?

No worries, threads merged.

That makes sense, as a reserve dude I'm out of the loop most times and without a MARADMIN I was beginning to wonder if it was something that originated in MARFORRES (again, the only thing I had seen in writing) that grew out of hand.

Has anyone actually seen a MARADMIN about it? The only thing I've seen in writing are stuff that originated at MARFORRES...

NFOs don't exist in any platform that can hover, so that's definitely a positive.

New thread would probably be appropriate.

Have you been drinking?!? Not that there's anything wrong with that... :)

We got your back.

And do a partial DITY. That's worth it, full DITY? I'm with you - never again.

That makes sense, and you're right it doesn't apply to me. We owned the property we were leaving and bought the property we were going to. Cue the theme song to The Jeffersons... Movin' on up!

I used to use high end electric almost exclusively. My personal opinion is that I got a closer shave with foil than with rotary. I had a high end Panasonic wet/dry and I could use it in the shower with hot water and shaving cream, and it was the closest shave I ever got from electric.

Whoops. More like Tapatalk strikes again. No easy way to tell it has been locked unless you moderate the thread.

Only thing U-Haul is good for is an in-town move. We ended up doing a full DITY (not like the gubment is going to pay to move us to a new house, not in conjunction with PCS orders, just because) even though our plan was to hire movers to move the heavy stuff (my back is still complaining about...

I deployed with someone who was a vegetarian, and she lost a ton of weight on the ship - I would say because it's not easy to maintain that kind of diet on the ship. Just food for thought. What zab said is true. No one will care. If you do decide to try meat, start with Bacon. It's the...

Yes, they do.

Policies change all the time, so it may be different when you get to OCS. But at one time, the policy was unmarried guys didn't get BAH until they checked into their Primary training wing (i.e. not while in API).

And don't rule out the reserves. Oftentimes, it's all of what you loved about being on active duty, and little to none of what you hated.

I blame it on senior leadership. Signed, A Marine Major for Life.

And that T-shirt is from over a decade spent at war? Yeah. Didn't think so. Not all of us are green behind the ears boots that you think we are. Some of us started our service early enough to know what you saw, and to still see what we see. For the record - I started off in this gun club in...

That's exactly what simunitions are. They're used on the ground side as well. They swap in a new upper receiver to the M-16/M-4 and fire cartridges that are essentially paint balls. Actually pretty damn good training.

You pretty much hit what I was saying. I had 1 hour for Motorcycle Safety, so I played the full movie and then spoke about the motorcycle club and the local courses/schools that we had available that the MAG would pay for.

I never said it was an excuse. However, I'm using personal anecdotes. This from my post: Was about two Marines in my squadron that no shit, were the rockstars. We're talking pro/cons of 4.7/4.8-ish. CDIs both. Never a single incident to indicate they were bad Marines. Jaws dropped when it...

Truth. As someone who had to be the senior officer of an admin board for just that, it's a pain in the ass. Not to mention, once you really get into the SEPSMAN, you realize that the kids should get a general vice OTH (and the rest of the board agrees), then you have to justify to higher why...

Therein lies the crux. What is the problem? If you don't pause and identify what the problem is, all you are is throwing money/time at treating the symptoms rather than the cause. Bath salts is not the problem. Neither is Spice, Ecstasy, Marijuana, Meth, Heroin, etc... Every single solitary...

Leadership. Something that seems to be seriously lacking in our senior leaders, because they continue to spend money on something tangible to say they've "done something" about a problem. Them "doing something" gets them promoted, and there's still the 10%... You know, I'm sure they were...

It may have started circa Tailhook '91... But it went to ludicrous/plaid in the last two years. Thanks to Romo's Bitch.

You want to guarantee to go to a ship? Fly helos or Ospreys. Go jets and you can get... F/A-18Ds. You'll CQ in that community, but that's about it. They do "expeditionary" deployments, no ships involved. Go Hercs? Not going to a ship. Everything else does, and 100% of the rotary wing/tilt-rotor...

My only question is why you went to the Army to fly helos, when you were already in the AF flying the coolest jet ever designed?

Truth. In order to be "CQ" you have to do unaided FCLPs/CQs. But even if you never do them, you can fly passengers out to the boat.