WheelsUpHeelsUp
Banned
The original Pinto "almost" got laid. So in theory Pinto is almost a compliment.
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How Are Mustangs Viewed In the Officers Ranks?
- Thread starter Jackrat
- Start date
The original Pinto "almost" got laid. So in theory Pinto is almost a compliment.
WheelsUpHeelsUp
Banned
Mustangers seemed to demand more respect and often they got it. One in particular stands out in my mind. A Gyrine Gunny who earned himself a battlefield promotion in VN and eventually became a good friend of mine. He was a K9 handler and though to hear him talk you would think he could eat nails despite him weighing 130 lbs dripping wet. Tears came to this guys eyes when he showed pictures of his K9 Marines with parachutes! When he left country he had to put them down.
Frank, if you're out there :icon_mi_6
Frank, if you're out there :icon_mi_6
I mean, PINTO, that has a rather nice ring to it
Honestly, it isn't THAT bad at all. Beats what was dreamed up in Skippy's thread.
I can see I'm not going to win any "points" with this observation, but nevertheless, people want "truth", or nothing at all .....
Most of the Mustangs in my experience were assholes. Not that they weren't "competent", as most of them were that, for sure --- but they looked down on the junior officers and kissed the asses of the mid-to-senior officers. And they ran roughshod over the troops ... like they had a "short memory". One of them falsified official records following an accident to cover HIS ass ....
That's just the way it was in my experience. There were, obviously, some salient exceptions to this: competent guys and good guys, too.
Just not many ...
Most of the Mustangs in my experience were assholes. Not that they weren't "competent", as most of them were that, for sure --- but they looked down on the junior officers and kissed the asses of the mid-to-senior officers. And they ran roughshod over the troops ... like they had a "short memory". One of them falsified official records following an accident to cover HIS ass ....
That's just the way it was in my experience. There were, obviously, some salient exceptions to this: competent guys and good guys, too.
Just not many ...
I have found that the shorter time in the E ranks the more of a tool someone ends up being. That is not an absolute, just what I have seen. I knew one guy who was in Nuke School when he got picked up to go to the USNA. He would brag about being prior enlisted and treat the E's like shit. It was up to us as a JOPA to police our own. I would call him out on it. To me being in a A school is not prior enlisted. Training commands are not the fleet. Kind of like the difference between an E-5 and a Second Class. It is all in the attitude. In the end it is all what you do with it.
You hit the nail on the head - seen it a thousand times before (especially those nuke school guys). Obviously there are some shades of gray between "prior," "Mustang," etc.
Bottom line - if you're in the Navy, you don't call yourself a Mustang unless you're an LDO or CWO.
Brett
If I may give a USAF perspective, I'll start by saying we don't even have a term like "Mustang". I'm only aware of it from my extensive time hanging around Navy bases (ok, save the jokes for later) and my many Navy/Marine friends.
In my experience, no one views it negatively. They judge you by your current abilities. A number of pilots I work with are prior enlisted. When their prior enlisted time comes up in discussion, we are generally interested in their outlook on an issue, and find it offers a good alternative view on occasion. My bud that was killed in the June 05 U-2 crash was a prior enlisted Marine. I could rattle off a bunch of U-2 pilots with prior enlisted time. Quite a few.
Does it affect a USAF officer's promotion? I've not had the opportunity to get deeply involved with promotion boards, but I'd have to say no (other than possibly the fact that the person has a great deal of total military service time).
Bottom line: in the USAF flying communities that I've worked in, you wouldn't know if a guy was a Mustang unless he told you, and most do a great job.
In my experience, no one views it negatively. They judge you by your current abilities. A number of pilots I work with are prior enlisted. When their prior enlisted time comes up in discussion, we are generally interested in their outlook on an issue, and find it offers a good alternative view on occasion. My bud that was killed in the June 05 U-2 crash was a prior enlisted Marine. I could rattle off a bunch of U-2 pilots with prior enlisted time. Quite a few.
Does it affect a USAF officer's promotion? I've not had the opportunity to get deeply involved with promotion boards, but I'd have to say no (other than possibly the fact that the person has a great deal of total military service time).
Bottom line: in the USAF flying communities that I've worked in, you wouldn't know if a guy was a Mustang unless he told you, and most do a great job.