Some how I expected that. I will have to meet Marine standards as well for my CREST training.

But I have at least 8 months to get myself into shape, it is going to be tough but I know I can do it.

This thread is so full of testosterone I'm starting to grow hair on my chest just reading it.

This probably doesn't count, but I'm a military wife. My husband is a Major in the Army and has been deployed to Fort Jackson, SC for almost two years now...training up those kiddies to ship 'em off to Iraq.

Best of luck to all of you, and thanks. =)

I'm around 6 feet actually. Anyone know the max height? If I can't fly real planes, it'd still be a kick to fly predator UAVs.

Thanks man, even though I have a few more years of college to power through first. Grrrr.... I can't imagine OTS would be hard either...but...who knows. All the guys I've talked with went in as enlisted men and not through OTS.

Is it just me, or are you always riding your husband's accomplishments?

Well, it will be harder than enlisted boot camp, that's a given. But it's also not saying much. We are talking about Air Force boot camp. ;)

Why on earth would you even say that? I'm very proud of him, but I don't "ride his accomplishments." Also, are you married? It's not easy being a military wife and I sort of consider it my patriotic duty that I've held down the fort while he's been gone. And by the way, it's not easy.

I don't drive around with one of those "Army Wife: Toughest Job In The Military" bumper stickers, but it really is a team effort. Asshole.

I don't see how my being married could make me see how tough it is being a military wife. And I don't mean to be offensive, but I've read more about your husband and what he does than anything about you.

But on a more serious note. I've heard stories about guys that go off to Iraq only to have their wives or girlfriends cheat on em or something. It takes a special kinda woman to stay with your man through that kind of thing.

What you said was very offensive. You'd better get on your knees beside your Thomas the Tank Engine bunk beds right now and pray to God that your future wife never finds out you said that. Listen, I'm not under any delusions that I have it tougher than he does, but fuck you if you think that raising three kids (basically) by yourself, two of them being teenagers, isn't hard. He's been away from home more than he's been at home over the last ten years that we've been married, and IT IS HARD.

And maybe the reason you've heard more about my husband than you have about me is because I'm prouder of him than I am of myself.

Did I say raising kids was not tough, because I don't recall that. Maybe if you'd stop raging for a minute. And quite frankly, I have more important issues to worry about than what my future wife might think about something I said in my past.

But to get back on topic, I'll just stop.

I'll be damned...I just had to google it when I read it:
http://i.walmart.com/i/p/00/05/07/43...AV_500X500.jpg

On a serious note: It does take a special kind of woman to stay with a man who is not always there. Alice, I'd like to thank you for being that kind of a woman.

May I interject here? I've never been a military wife, but I do live in a very big military city, and yes, it is hard on the wife as well as the husband that is in the military. (Hi Alice!)

For those of you who are already in the military or are planning on going in, I commend you. :)

I'm currently serving the US Airforce. My job is in telecommunication/satellite and maintaining electronic equipment, mostly the fun stuff.
I haven't been in any hostile action yet (just 5 years worth of training, so I'm not complaining), but I will be ready when it happens.
What's it like? Well in my profession you don't get to fly jets, we ride in C-130's instead =p. Seeing as that my unit resides in hawaii we use them a lot. But my work environment can be either hectic or laid back* as the purpose of my job is to transmit data and maintain that equipment.

* Oh and when I say laid back I mean sticking my nose in 1000 page service manuals, I think my unit calls them TO's (technical ordinances.) Other services might know them better as TM's or technical manuals. If you use equipment, especially the expensive toys TO/TM's quickly become your favorite book.

Kairyu ~ I edit TO's for a living and I see C-130's every day at the base in my city. We call them technical manuals because we do them for Honeywell, who in turn is doing them for Boeing.

Ever heard of the 5th Mob? Big communications group here at RAFB.

I'm usually not good with names, its a wonder I can remember the hundreds of acronyms in need to know.
Anyway, did you mean the 5th Combat Communications Group in Robin's Airforce Base? If so, I was there for a few a weeks after 9 months of tech schooling :). It was for going through their MOPP school, which is basically a fun version of basic training.

Imagine having to defend a base (with 15 or so other people of various rank) on your own for 3 days, against your instructors. We got to use smoke bombs, M16's with blanks, and nightvision equipment. Oh yeah, you can be taken prisoner. That is if you're crazy enough to ignore orders and play rambo against ex-marines.
On the first day it really did look like we were playing a real life version of Call of Duty.

I've been reading up on it via the web and haven't found a detailed enough explanation. So if any of you military blokes know, could you explain to me exactly HOW super-cruise improves efficiency and negates the need for after burners on the F-22? I know that's totally off-topic but I have a special interest in jets.

I believe the reason to use super-cruising is to reduce heat exhaustion. Large heat signatures while afterburning was a problem with fighter jets. So to improve the f-22's stealth capability was to use super-cruising. There is one disadvantage I believe, and that using it too much can damage the engine or literally melting the exhaust fins.

I'm sure there was more to it, I'm just remembering stuff off the top of my head.

When my friend enlisted in the army, he went straight to boot camp for 6 weeks or so. He got like a month break and then he was shipped off to Iraq. He's a tank driver now. He does like patrols in Baghdad which sucks with all the recent activities going on. I hope he is well.

My Dad, my granddad, and my great grandad have all served in the military. My grandad did every jump in WW2, and my dad was a marine for a large majority of his youth, till he met my mom.

My dad, whos the hardest working man ive ever met, said the marines taught him to never do a job half way. My dad is also the most physically fit man ive ever met. Im not talking about being a meat head, im talking about endurance and physique. Hes in his late 40's and lifts, boxes, and does cardio almost every day after work. He attributes this all to the things he learned while in the marines.

Ive always held those who serve our country in the highest regard. Ive even considered joining myself many times, but my dad and mom always insisted I go to college. It still never hurts to show respect though.

Im not saying that everybody who joins is a hero, but it still takes a certain person to get the job done.

i live in a Super high-density military area: Southeast VA. it's home to the largest Naval base in the world.

I salute and thank all the men and women who are serving oversees and in the states! they sacrifice themselves to make America the best country in the world.

Wow looks like there was some bickering during my absence. Anyway…

I thank everyone for their support of those who serve the military.

Alice, I thank you for your sacrifice in support of your husband’s career. I am getting married in 4 months so I can understand what it is like to be away from loved ones for long periods of time.

Kairyu: I have a friend going into the Airforce for the same thing you are doing right now. I think he has some misconceptions as to what it is you guys do :/

Ouch, like what kind of misconceptions? I'm sure their recruiter explained it fairly clearly >_>. Heck my recruiter almost talked me out of it when she kept mentioning how much physical labor was involved (she wasn't kidding, but I do enjoy it anyhow.)
But my job isn't the most glamorous. Half the time I'm in a small box configuring modems and transmitters.

Finnish defence (hah) forces. Army is compulsory here for men, by the way. Served 9 months, which I was assigned to. I toured around Europe doing secret undercover missions in Italy, France, Russia and Estonia doing these very secret operations called Military Tattoos. They're so secret even I don't know what the hell we were doing there.

Now I am happily in reserve troops that get promptly into the battlefield if one comes. Only I'll be doing those secret missions again, this time in home soil, though. My reserve rank is the local corporal, which roughly equals a commended private in the US.

I hate the army system.

So your like an E-2 or E-3 in the American military system. Sounds like you don't like it too much.


Kairyu: My buddy seems to think this is a real layed back job were he can fuck around most of the time/drink on the job :/

Have you considered being an Officer once you get out of college? O-1 pay is better than E-6 pay.