Lana's Surprise Visit

Yesterday after a long day's work, I returned to my dorm room a little after 9. After putting my things down on the counter and taking off my jacket I heard, "Hey Babe" from somewhere. At first I thought I had left the TV on or was imagining things. It took me a few seconds, but I realized Lana had surprised me and was getting some rest in bed after a long flight in from Munich. She had actually worked the Lufthansa flight to Seoul, checked in at the crew hotel and then took a two hour high speed train to visit me for a day here at Kunsan. It was a great surprise after a long difficult week! We slept in, got some exercise, ate some chicken bolgogi and then went for a hike at a nearby resevoir. The weather is still fairly cold here, but there wasn't a cloud in the sky. I just returned home after taking her back to the train station as she flies again with Lufthansa tomorrow. A short but great visit! I love you Schatz...danke!!

More Pictures:

Korea - Mar 09

Instructor Pilot Upgrade / Japan Cross-Country

The day before leaving on the cross-country to Japan, my squadron commander told me I had been selected to start the instructor pilot upgrade (IPUG). This was great news since one of my main goals while here in Korea is to finish the instructor pilot upgrade before moving on to another assignment. I'm looking forward to teaching younger pilots how to use the F-16 to its full potential...something I'm still getting better at myself. I'm actually starting the upgrade a little sooner than expected since some are here almost a year before starting. Timing plays a big part as it depends on how many instructors the squadron has and how many will be moving on in the near future. So, in a few months I'll be a new instructor pilot in the F-16!

The cross-country through Japan didn't exactly go as planned. Our route of flight was to Misawa Air Base on Friday and then to Kadena Air Base on Saturday stopping in Iwakuni Navy Base on the way. Saturday morning one of the jets had a maintenance problem which we were initially told would be fixed by the next day...well, that turned into the whole weekend. Our leadership here at Kusan wanted us to stay together as a 4-ship, so we enjoyed good sushi and Indian food (yes, there was a great Indian food restaurant right outside the base gate!) over the weekend as well as some good March madness games on TV. I had some time to hit the gym as well before flying back to Kunsan on Monday. Hopefully I'll get a chance in the future for another cross-country to Kadena since I have a cousin stationed there now and also because it's warmer and nicer than Kunsan.

Well, that should bring me up to date on all the latest from Korea...I've submitted paperwork to stay here through the summer of 2010, and I think it's been approved. So, only 15 more months and I'll be on to a different assignment. Most are probably wondering why I did that, but the short of it is US Air Force F-16s are slowly being retired to make way for the F-35 replacement. There are also other planes many pilots are being assigned to these days (UASs, RC-12s, etc) to help in the Iraq / Afghanistan wars. I want to keep flying the F-16 and this should help when I'm considered for my next assignment. Lana and I would like an assignment where we can settle for awhile and start our family together. We realize it's all in God's hands where the Air Force takes us, so I'll do the best I can with the abilities He's given!

Weekend Trip To Jeonju (전주시)

Last weekend Lana and I took a day trip to Jeonju, a town about 40 minutes to the east of Kunsan. Jeonju is known for good food, sports and festivals. It's also known for is good strawberries, even during the winter months. This was indeed the case as we bought and enjoyed fresh strawberries from a roadside stand. The weather for our trip was great, and on our list of things to do was visit another Korean palace, check out a European like church and a well known shopping center. It was nice to get off the base and enjoy a little Korean culture together.

The name of the palace we visited was called Jeonju Gyeonggi-jeon, another palace which was lived in by royal families in the past. It was similar to the one from Seoul, but much smaller. Right next to the palace was the Catholic church...for a second Lana and I thought we were in Europe again, only if that were true! By the time we finished looking at the church, we were both quite cold so decided to get some tea in a nearby cafe. Near the cafe was the shopping center, and after a little time looking around it was time for dinner. We ate at an Outback Steakhouse of all places...the steak I had tasted great and was a nice change to some of the Korean food I've had.

Well, that's it for now...I'm going on a cross-country trip through Japan next weekend so I'll update everyone when I get a chance after we get back.

Seoul For Valentine's Day

Lana and I spent our Valentine's Day weekend in Seoul together enjoying some Korean culture and good food. On Friday around noon we caught the high speed train from Iksan (a town about 30 minuets from Kunsan) to Seoul, which took about 1 hour 45 min...there were times when the train reached 300 km/hr helping the trip to go quickly. After arriving, we took a cab to the Yongsan Army Base to pick up our Fiat Bravo we had shipped from Italy about 2 months ago. We also spent our nights at The Dragon Hill on base which is right in Seoul city with easy access to the subway. After resting a bit Lana and I met up with a couple, Josh and Sabine, we briefly met the weekend before while at Osan Air Base for some dinner. They are in the Navy and Josh flies the F-18 Hornet. I had a flight scheduled with him earlier last week for some 1 vs 1 BFM, but sadly it was cancelled. It worked out we both had plans to stay at The Dragon Hill for the weekend and after enjoying a great Jordanian meal and a couple drinks in Itaewon, we called in a night.

The next day Lana and I wanted to see a palace and decided on Changdeokgung, a traditional Korean palace preserved in the heart of Seoul. Parts of this palace were actually used up until the mid 1990s. When you think of a palace, we're used to envisioning one huge single building or castle. In Korea, and probably across Asia in general, their palaces consisted of many different buildings to form more of a palace "grounds". Changdoekgung spans 110 acres of land, has 41 different buildings and pavilions and also has a garden with small lakes. Lana and I thought it was very interesting and felt we were walking in a completely different world. After our tour of the palace we spent some time in Insadong, a well known shopping area in Seoul, before making our way back to Itaewon for some Indian food this time. One of our favorite foods is Indian...great curry and nan bread makes my belly happy! After dinner we went to the base theater for a movie to wrap up our Valentine's Day. Sadly, Lana flew back to Munich today, but as long as her flying schedule works out she'll be back to Korea in three weeks! It was great having her here over the past couple of weeks and she's slowly getting adjusted to our new living situation...although, it'll never be easy. She knew one of the wives here visiting her husband, so it made the transition here a little easier.

The flying has been going well and I'm now back to flight lead status after a few rides. I've led a few flights to different parts of the RoK and am feeling confident again being on the "pointy" end as lead. I'm also getting more involved with the new job in OGV, especially since the chief has been gone on leave the past couple of weeks. Lots of responsibility, but I'm up for the new challenges ahead. Five weeks have passed already, and it seemed to go fast...I won't complain if it continues that way! Until the next time, fly safe and check six!

More Pictures:
Korea - Jan/Feb 2009

Lana's First Visit / First Flights Over The RoK

Lana flew in to town today for her first visit to Kunsan Air Base. She's currently sleeping off jet leg, which is the reason I'm on the computer updating the blog. After a 10 hour flight and a 3 hour bus ride, she finally made it and was exhausted. I think in the future she'll fly over on a Saturday so we can meet near Seuol at Osan Air Base, before making the final leg of the journey back to Kunsan...it's too much otherwise! We're looking forward to a little over two weeks together here before she has to fly back to Munich...it's GREAT having her here!

This past week I had my first two flights over the Republic of Korea (RoK), and it felt great to get the air back underneath me in the jet! The first was my local area orientation (LAO) flight around the peninsula showing me the different training airspace and ground references around the Kunsan air traffic pattern. The base is right on the west coast with the water only about 1000 ft to the west of the runway. The weather for the LAO was perfect, which is something I've been told not to get used to...lots of bad weather around here. My second flight was a close air support (CAS) flight up near the demilitarized zone (DMZ), which is the border between north and south Korea. Both of these flights were from the wingman position and next week I'll have two flights as #1 so that I can get signed off as a flight lead again. It's common for new guys to show up and have a few gradesheet rides to make sure they're ready to fly locally.

During my squadron commander interview, I was told I'd be working at the 8 Operations Group (OG) in OGV, or the standardization and evaluation office. It's my first job "outside" the squadron, and by that I mean I'll fly as an "attached" pilot to the 35FS. I'm not required to fly as much (5 instead of 9 times a month) and the job has more visibility to it. I'm looking forward to doing good things in my new job and get a chance later in the year to return to the squadron and start the instructor pilot upgrade (IPUG). Becoming an instructor in the F-16 is my main goal before leaving Kunsan so that I have more options for my next assignment. I want to keep flying the F-16 and Lana and I want a place where we can settle for three years to start a family. Yeah, little bambinos running around is something we're looking forward to soon!

Lana and I hope you're all doing well and would appreciate your continued prayers as I'm here at Kunsan...we're trying to figure out a way Lana can be here more often! For you flyer types, fly safe and check six!