Journey to the Cockpit

 Final Thoughts Hello everyone for the last time. I want to use this final post to help inspire you all to follow your dreams. For me, this blog has been about me following my dream. I hope it all along the way has inspired you to fly, or fight for your dreams until the very end. One time long ago I gave up on my dreams because I didn't think I was good enough to accomplish those goals. Since then, I have been lucky to acknowledge and face the dreams head on to make the most out of my life.  If you want to Fly If you want to fly, remember to not let anything stop you. It isn't an easy profession to get involved with, however if you don't let any obstacle get in your way, it is very much possible. It is for anyone willing to make the effort and fight through the hard times. Go get scholarships if it's financially, go study if you feel like your grades aren't good enough. If you are scared and intimidated about starting, go talk to someone like a family member, a recr...

Flight Scholarships For most people, the most daunting part of wanting to get into aviation is the massive prices for flight and pilot training. This is the same for me too, just like many of you. What I'd like for you all to know and understand is that there are great opportunities to get everyone in a cockpit so that they can follow their dreams in aviation. For some that might be commercial, for some that might be military. Everyone deserves a chance to fly in some fashion. So go online, look for scholarships in your area and flight schools in your area. Many of them do offer the first lesson totally free where you can go through preflight procedures, taxiing, takeoff (maybe), some time in the air, and sometimes you will have the opportunity to help land the aircraft. The one thing I was told though if you really want to fly "Make them tell you no." If you want bad enough you will do whatever it takes to get yourself there. So good luck to you all, toss a nic...

The F-22 Raptor The world's premiere air superiority Fighter Jet was just yesterday introduced into dcs. While it isn't 100% accurate, the creator GrinelliDesigns spent 6 months piecing together the closest simulator rendition of the raptor available using the unclassified information available to the public. I have spent a considerable amount of time learning it's systems and capabilities in the simulator since that release yesterday. In that time alone I feel like I am capable of saying this. It is a beast in the sky. I have already gained the capabilities to take on 4 enemy aircraft simultaneously and live to tell the tale. It has the ability to turn off its flight control computer which allows the pilot to push the aircraft to it's limits and turn absurdly tight and fast circles.  Stealth The biggest advantage the F-22 provides is stealth, which plays the strongest role in BVR combat where radar locks are what allows the pilot t...

ROTC Officer Selection In ROTC not everybody is guarunteed to get a spot as an Air Force Officer. There comes a point called PSP where everyone is stacked around the nation and the Air Force makes a selection based on those standings. This isn't always an easy process for cadets, so for many they may find they need to another year and try again, or even have to drop their aspirations to commission. As you may have guessed, this process has just begun for the sophomore cadets this year.  Looking Out For Your Wingmen The reason why I wanted to talk about this is because only about half of the cadets move on after PSP. It is imperative to look out for each other and insure the mental state of those who don't make it are still good. For this reason I will keep this post a little more brief as this is a stressful time for not only myself, but many cadets out there today. Keep a lookout for each and stay safe. On a good note, tomorrow will be much more lighthearted. A very big new ai...

The Basic concepts of Beyond Visual Range Combat  Now to preface this, most of the strategies and concepts I will be discussing are only associated with Digital Combat Simulator, nothing to do with real life strategies as that is entirely classified in every was imaginable.  What is it? Beyond Visual Range combat is air-to-air combat done between aircraft in a range of which from roughly 20 miles or further hence it being beyond visual range.  Energy Similar to WVR or BFM as talked about last week, energy, or speed, is crucial to success. If a missile is fired when the pilot is going very slow, inevitably the missile will also be slow. This will reduce it's range significantly. Faster = better in BVR.  Altitude Altitude is another crucial key to success in BVR combat. Higher altitude results in thinner air. Thinner air provides less drag on the aircraft and less drag on missiles, this also helps the missile go further. In a sense, the pi...

Impact of COVID-19 on Piloting and ROTC So as many of you are aware, with the virus still at large, commercial airlines and piloting has hit a very big low. That even goes as far as to affect those learning to fly, and even though I have not personally started the journey of getting flight hours as of yet I still see the toll it takes. Many places are struggling to get new people learning because people aren't starting now, they are instead waiting. Many people, with goals either commercial or military, are worried to get into due to the impact currently felt. This does affect me because I myself am slated to begin my first set of flight hours as early as next month.  The Impact on ROTC This is even more of a big change to what is was like prior to the pandemic. Now, many detachments can no longer even teach in-person, which provides major benefits to the cadets preparing for their next big steps whether that be Field Training (the officer equivalent of Basic Trainin...

 Basic Fighter Maneuvers Commonly referred to as dogfighting, is Air-to-Air combat at a relatively close range where either fighter tries to gain an offensive position combined with a firing solution. Generally, this happens after a BVR (Beyond-Visual-Range) engagement comes extremely close following failed shots on either side with long missiles. It begins with the merge, essentially when two aircraft pass each other going opposite directions. This usually occurs at a level altitude where both are at the same general altitude. Sometimes this comes VERY VERY close, like under 100 feet close dangerously enough. From here it (generally) goes one of two ways. From the Merge to the Circle Those 2 ways are either a 2-circle fight or a 1 circle fight. A 2-circle fight, sometimes referred to a Rate fight as in the rate in which the aircraft can turn in degrees per second. This often looks as from the perspective of the pilot that you are going in one large circle and the enemy is pointed ...

  The Many Positions to Learn In ROTC there are many things to learn in the form of flight positions. The main positions to be learned is Commander, Deputy, Physical Fitness Officer, Academics Officer, Safety Officer, Drill and Ceremonies, and finally Standardization Officer. They all play a pivotal role in making the flight or squadron function properly. Luckily, I've been able to learn each of these positions individually.  Commander The head of the squadron or flight, they say the commands and insure the orders of the day are carried out in the quickest and best way of doing things. Nobody does anything unless the Commander says to do it. I figured I would choose this topic because I was selected to be the Flight Commander this week.  I was given the responsibility of assigning all of the other positions. Deputy The deputy has the duty of keeping everyone accounted for, if someone is missing it is their job to know and relay that to the Commander. The deputy insure tha...