My son just called and he made Staff Sgt!

[Coalcracker]

I think it's similar with the difference being he does not need to see them to know where they are. He only needs to have them make a call or use a radio and boom! Bye bye bad guys!

Yep- he does not see them, just gets to kill them. Most times, innocents, women, old men, and kids, the so called "bad guys" are long gone by the time the shells, and bombs drop.

Hope your son comes home safe.

 

[paddler3d]

Is that similar to a forward observer? They are the Army's group that calls for fire. And congratulations, too!

The 13F's work with the AF FAC's (forward air controllers). Sounds like he may be closer to the 13R's (counter battery radar).

 

[Deep VI]

Yep- he does not see them, just gets to kill them. Most times, innocents, women, old men, and kids, the so called "bad guys" are long gone by the time the shells, and bombs drop.

You can not be freakin' serious!! Do you have any idea of how much of a pain in the ass it is just to call in an airstrike. To get the authorization just to ensure this is kept to a minimum goes through an entire chain of command. It isn't just two guys making a decision to blow some **** up. How long do you think it takes to call in an airstrike? There are ALWAYS aircraft in the air in their own box of airspace that can respond in minutes to a call. Many a groundpounder has been saved by the quick reaction of airpower. Can't believe you would spout such stupid, moronic, hippie bull**** in a thread such as this. By the way I make a living loading/maintaining the aircraft that "kills" the innocents, women, old men, and kids and am damn proud of it.

 

[Deep VI]

On another note. Congradulations on your sons promotion. The "line" he was referring to, was his "line number". It's the order he will be promoted, the higher the line number the longer it will take to sew on his stripe.

 

[DevonDiver]

Yep- he does not see them, just gets to kill them. Most times, innocents, women, old men, and kids, the so called "bad guys" are long gone by the time the shells, and bombs drop.

Occupation9-5 Corporate type

Maybe it's just best to leave the wildly inaccurate and assuming comments about the nature of military operations for those who have been in that situation and understand the reality of it.

No offence intended whatsoever to Coalcracker, but you really shouldn't allow your perceptions to be formed by junk media and sensationalists.

 

[mdb]

Good comments Andy, I know we all want Jim Laps son home safe and sound after his deployment. I served in the USMC in Vietnam as a FO with a Marine infantry company and, later, as the Battery FDO. I have seen a number of civilian casualties, even though we were trying to target only those who were targeting us. It is the nature of war, as you must know.

 

[deeper thoughts]

Congrats

 

[Coalcracker]

Yep- he does not see them, just gets to kill them. Most times, innocents, women, old men, and kids, the so called "bad guys" are long gone by the time the shells, and bombs drop.

You can not be freakin' serious!! Do you have any idea of how much of a pain in the ass it is just to call in an airstrike. To get the authorization just to ensure this is kept to a minimum goes through an entire chain of command. It isn't just two guys making a decision to blow some **** up. How long do you think it takes to call in an airstrike? There are ALWAYS aircraft in the air in their own box of airspace that can respond in minutes to a call. Many a groundpounder has been saved by the quick reaction of airpower. Can't believe you would spout such stupid, moronic, hippie bull**** in a thread such as this. By the way I make a living loading/maintaining the aircraft that "kills" the innocents, women, old men, and kids and am damn proud of it.

Hi Air Force: Thank you for your service. I'm no hippy just a coal region guy. I'm a combat vet along with a lot of others in my hometown. I've called in arty and air while looking at the targets. Someone, obviously no veteran, talked about today's technology as a "video game". I do not think it is a video game to those innocents who are, as we used to say, caught in the crossfire. We now refer to those deaths as "collateral damage". I do not think that the wives, husbands, children feel like that.

I know you save a lot of groundpounders with your quick response. Thanks for that and thanks for explaining that your call for fire must work its way up your chain of command.

 

[letterboy]

All I know is you and your son are having a beer on me jim when I meet you!

Congrats!

Signed-the guy who can call strikes in from mortars to warships

PS- Scubasteve isn't that far off, withh all the technology flying drones and calling airstrikes can and is done from behind a controler not much different from an ex-box controller....


Posted via Mobile Device

 

[Tigerman]

My son is at Offut in Nebraska. Test scores came out on Wednesday. He made it! He'll graduate Airman Leadership school on Sept 18 and when the paperwork is all done forget what he called it something about "lines" he'll get his 4th stripe. Then he;s off to Bragg in Nov. for joint training with the Army and then off to Balad in Iraq. I thought he was going to Qatar but no. But he will be back in the RJ instead of the Guardrail.:cool2: I am very proud of him. Airborne Linguist in Mandarin Chinese and now becoming a Tactical Sensor Operator on top of that. Not sure what it is but he can call in the F16's to inflict mass casualties and that is real cool!

So now he can tell the chinese to **** off or get bombed in their native tongue - and make good on it?
How cool is THAT?

Grats, good luck and hope he stays safe