The first time I went to St. John’s, it was an experience not to be forgotten. I think of St. John’s as an adult Disneyland. From 2003 until about 2014 I was there at least twice a year, many years it was more. When flying the C-130 to Europe, or on to the Middle East,…
My first one-hundred hours in the Herk were a bit different than most students. I started down the typical path. I went to BFE at the Arkansas Air National Guard. In 2005 the guard and reserves sent FE students to the Arkansas Air Guard unit as opposed to Altus. BFE was an interesting mix of…
I went to southern California, Orange County, for family vacations twice when I was in my early teens. That was my first time in the ocean. I loved it. Prior to those trips we would spend several weeks in northern Minnesota fishing. I really enjoyed being on the water. I’ve always liked swimming. Being in…
Day One – Killer sinus headache! Every summer it seems I have to learn how to swim all over again. I inevitably take in water through my nose somehow. After the first week of getting back into the pool, I end up with a sinus infection. I’ve never been a great swimmer, but I’ve completed…
As we make our way from St. John’s Newfoundland to Ayr Scotland the drone of the turboprop engines of the 130 lulls me into a relaxed, almost meditative state. The airplane is behaving as it should. The cockpit is in order. There is nothing to look at except the ocean as it passes slowly beneath…
Welcome to Hey Eng. I’m interested in the history of flight engineers and enlisted flyers in the USAAF and the USAF. Why do pilots say “Hey Eng!”, where and how did the phrase originate? I’ve wondered why there weren’t FEs on bombers after World War II but they remained on cargo aircraft. In addition to…
