Aviation & Creative PhotographyJosie made it out on the Flight Line and ceremonially anointed me with champagne while the fellow 'Chiefs' hosed me down. I'd hoped to avoid the event since I don't consider this my 'Final Flight' in F-15E Strike Eagles, but it was a fitting close to a memorable assignment.
My mission was supposed to be a straight forward 'Red Air' presentation, meaning we'd play the bad guys against folks who were really working hard trying to kill and survive while meeting their mission objectives. Weather didn't allow for that plan so we all had to scramble in the morning to come up with low level strike mission against a town a few hundred miles to the east where the weather was supposed to be better. Then we got word that we needed to push up our takeoff time since some large heavy aircraft were also scheduled to shoot through the same low level route and we needed to get in ahead of them... so much for straight forward 'Red Air'.
We finished all of the targeting products, briefed the flight planning, put on our gear and stepped to our jet only to find that I couldn't see the first four characters on my 'scratch pad' which is our primary data entry panel... it's only important for things like bomb targeting and communications... but we were in a hurry so it was decided that since I could still enter data, even though I couldn't see it as I did, I'd just have to double check the entries once they were in the targeting pod, radar, radio, etc... that would have been fun. Fortunately one of the two engines wouldn't start in that jet so we stepped to a spare that was in fantastic condition and we pressed on.
The mission was great. Low level with a low (but legal) cloud deck... the weather was poor throughout the entire area. We 'Shacked' our target perfectly after I radar mapped and captured it in the targeting pod while speeding along at ~500 mph, popping up from ~500 ft, flipping upside down to pull back down to the target, all in about 45 seconds from the pop up to bomb impact... did I already mention that's fun?
After the bomb run we pressed up to a refueling tanker and I flew formation while our wingmen refueled. We got our gas and then flew home where I shot the approach which was unusually difficult because I was distracted taking everything in for the last time at this base. Our landing was thankfully uneventful and I stepped through all the shutdown procedures thinking how much I'd miss this jet... It was great seeing Josie on the flight line with all the guys and I took the requisite brutal soaking in stride.
Another Air Force chapter closed... Bring on the Texas Air National Guard!