Well, yesterday was officially the second most exciting day of my Air Force career next to getting my pilot wings. I was able to jump in the back seat of an F-16 and enjoy an air-to-air BFM ride while two instructors "fought" each other...I don't think I have the words to describe how cool it was! We stepped out of the crew bus at our jet and had a crewchief (the enlisted guys that keep the jets working and do maintenance) there standing at parade rest. As the instructor and I walked up, he snapped to attention and gave us a crisp salute. I returned the salute, thanked him, got some good tips on how to do a good preflight of the jet from the instructor and then jumped in the backseat. It took me awhile to get all settled in since I had only practiced strapping into the seat once before. One of the awesome things about the F-16 is that we don't have to carry a heavy parachute on our backs out the the jet anymore...it's all packed into the ejection seat. All we wear is a harness that is attached to the seat.
About 20 minutes after engine start our formation was cleared for takeoff and we took the runway. I was in the number 2 jet (the wingman) on this flight, so once flight lead confirmed our engines were working good he lit the afterburner and headed down the runway...our jet was shaking a ton from the thrust his engine was putting out. Ten seconds later, the front seater of my jet released brakes and lit the wick as they say (lit the afterburner). I had never felt thrust like that before, and was definitely thrown back into the seat a lot more than I had been in the T-38! Soon we were airborne and joined up on lead's wing...all I had to do was enjoy the ride and enjoy the sites, which is exactly what I did! I knew most of what was going on during the air-to-air engagements since I had flown the basics of BFM back in IFF. All I wanted to do was have a good time and not pass out from the high g's the jet can put on your body. We hit between 8.5 and 9.0 g's three to four times, but it's wasn't as bad as I thought it might be. All I had to relate to was my experience in the centrifuge at Holloman AFB, which was a lot worse! One our way to and from the MOA, it was cool flying over new scenery that I hadn't seen before. Everything is really brown, even the mountains. As you fly in from the West, Phoenix appears and seems to go forever...it's a huge city. After the flight I had a few geasles (little red dots on your arms, butt and upper legs from capillaries breaking while straining hard to keep the blood in your head under g) after the flight, but it's all good. They don't hurt, just proof that you were working a little bit during the flight. It usually only happens when your body hasn't been exposed to high g levels for awhile, and it had been about five weeks since I had last flown...plus, I had never been close to 9 g's in a jet before.This next week is the big week where we're in the front seat running the show. Thursday morning about 0525 I'll be briefing up my first F-16 ride where I'm the pilot in command. We've had a lot of simulator time to help us prepare for the big day. Flying a jet is flying a jet, you just have to get used to the new systems and procedures specific to the airframe...that will be the harder part. I feel like one of the most blessed people in the world doing what I'm doing, and I hope all of you out there are able to reach your goals and dreams like God has allowed me to. Fly safe, and check six!
We just finished the first week of F-16 academics with a test today...they aren't joking about the fire hose effect. The test was over the F-16 engine, which in the Block 42 is the Pratt & Whitney 220 (PW220). Flying the F-16 is going to take a whole different mindset compared to what I've been used to up until this point. The two jets I flew in pilot training and IFF all had two engines...in other words, if one dies on you the other should be sufficient to get you home safely. The F-16 having only one causes the pilot to always have in the back of his mind where the closest piece of concrete is just in case the engine decides it's had enough. It also affects the way we handle emergencies...you can't just shot off the engine if it's acting up like you could have more easily in a twin engine jet. Next week we're looking forward to two more tests and our first sims to start getting us used to the new jet. They've told us our first flights are going to be on 25 Aug, so that's already less than a month away!There are eight guys in my class, all but one is married and the other is engaged. So, it looks like I'll be eating well during my time here. They'll all want to make me feel a part of the married crowd by cooking me meals...I'm not complaining! I have to admit I don't cook that much, nor do I care to take the time to do so. A man's place is with the grill! Speaking of a grill, the house I just moved into and will be renting while I'm in Phoenix is completely furnished to include a grill. It's a sweet place only about 10 minutes from the base with a nice pool in the back. Another guy and I in the program will be splitting the costs. Well, I'm tired after a long week. I'll write more when the fun stuff begins. Oh, the Luke AFB aircraft designator is "LF" as seen in the first picture.
After a very long drive, my dad and I finally made it to Phoenix, AZ. It's going to be an awesome place to live and fly! So far I haven't done too much besides move into my new house and chill out with some family in the area. The house is located in a nice place close to the base and has F-16s flying overhead a lot throughout the day. Thankfully it has a pool in the backyard to help deal with the heat! I'm headed to the base today to get my initial paperwork going and check in at my new squadron. I've been assigned to the 56th Fighter Wing, 63rd Fighter Squadron here at Luke AFB known as the Panthers. I'll be starting early next week with F-16 academics. It should be around a month or so before I start flying, and soon after that I'll have my first solo! I've had instructor pilots tell me their first solo in the fighter jet they were assigned to out of pilot training was the most memorable flight of their flying careers. I have an awesome 7-8 months of training ahead, and can hardly believe I'm going to be flying an F-16 around solo for the majority of the time! God's good!
We finished up IFF on Thursday with a small "graduation" ceremony. It pretty much consisted of the usual fighter pilot nonsense of making as much fun of each other as possible before handing you your certificate. I'm pretty sure I was given the most crap by my flight commander for things I had done throughout pilot training. The first thing he had on me was the website. If any of you out there start your own site and then get into fighters, be ready to take the heat from the dudes you work with. In reality they think you're really cool and wish they had one of their own, but they have to make fun so they feel better about themselves. =) The next was the callsign the guys back at Columbus AFB gave me, Turd. It comes from the SNL Celebrity Jeopardy clips from back in the day where a guy calls himself Turd Ferguson...anyway, that was also fair game at graduation. Lastly, I had made a comment during one of my first few flights something to the effect of "Jester's dead" after shooting a simulated air-to-air missile. Yeah, that didn't go over too well at the time, but it made for good laughs after the fact. IFF went well and I was able to come away with the air-to-air Top Gun award and I finished second in the air-to-ground phase of training. Good stuff, but now it's on to the real deal! After graduation, I drove all the way back to Columbus, MS picking up my dad at the Atlanta airport on the way. I finished out processing the CAFB, packed my things into a rental truck, loaded my car onto a trailer, had dinner with friends in the area and then left town Friday night. On to FTU!
As of yesterday afternoon, I"m officially done with IFF! I've had a great time in the program. God was good to me as always and allowed me to adjust quickly to the flying here making it a lot of fun. I finished up the SA portion of my training here with a 4-ship to the bombing range flying the tactical pattern. This pattern simulates there is a high concentration of surface threats (surface to air missile sites for example) in the area, and we need to ingress to the target low and fast. For this tactical pattern, we fly at 500' and 420 knots between a series of ground references to a pre-determined "pop" point. This point is where we pull the nose of the aircraft up to either 15 or 30 degrees nose high (depending if we're doing 10 or 20 degree passes), acquire the target at our left 10 o'clock or so in the climb and then roll in to bomb the target. This all happens pretty quick, so keeping yourself ahead of the jet is a must. These rides were definitely up there on my list of fun rides! Once I finished the SA rides I was on to my last two HABFM flights. High aspect is just that...we fly nose to nose each around 400 knots each and at the merge (when we pass each other) it's time to fight and kill the other dude like we did in OBFM and DBFM. Both went well and now it's time to press to Phoenix!
We'll pass the next couple days with last minute paperwork and crappy stuff like that before we graduate on Thursday. I'll be packed up and ready to go as soon as graduation's over with because I have to finish some things back at Columbus AFB before I start the long drive to Phoenix this weekend. I'll give a IFF graduation update once out in AZ. Until then, peace out!
About 20 minutes after engine start our formation was cleared for takeoff and we took the runway. I was in the number 2 jet (the wingman) on this flight, so once flight lead confirmed our engines were working good he lit the afterburner and headed down the runway...our jet was shaking a ton from the thrust his engine was putting out. Ten seconds later, the front seater of my jet released brakes and lit the wick as they say (lit the afterburner). I had never felt thrust like that before, and was definitely thrown back into the seat a lot more than I had been in the T-38! Soon we were airborne and joined up on lead's wing...all I had to do was enjoy the ride and enjoy the sites, which is exactly what I did! I knew most of what was going on during the air-to-air engagements since I had flown the basics of BFM back in IFF. All I wanted to do was have a good time and not pass out from the high g's the jet can put on your body. We hit between 8.5 and 9.0 g's three to four times, but it's wasn't as bad as I thought it might be. All I had to relate to was my experience in the centrifuge at Holloman AFB, which was a lot worse! One our way to and from the MOA, it was cool flying over new scenery that I hadn't seen before. Everything is really brown, even the mountains. As you fly in from the West, Phoenix appears and seems to go forever...it's a huge city. 
