Ready For Takeoff - Turn Your Aviation Passion Into A Career

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RFT 389: Plan B Apr 23, 2020

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If you plan on having a career in Aviation, it would be a wise move to have an alternate way of generating income, a Plan B. In this episode, General Borling shares an aviation story of his Plan B during a challenging overwater flight. One possible avenue of additional income is through the SOS America program of County Chairmen. General Borling explains how the program works and describes the potential for an additional source of income.

RFT 388: First Female Martin-Baker Rider Linda Maloney Apr 20, 2020

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Linda Maloney is an award winning author, business owner, leadership development professional, speaker and former military aviator and officer. She spent 20 years in the Navy, first as an enlisted air traffic controller and then as a Naval Flight Officer, flying both the A-6 “Intruder” and EA-6B “Prowler.” She was one of the first women in U.S. history to join a combat military flying squadron and received numerous military awards, including the distinguished air medal for combat, awarded for flights flown over Southern Iraq in support of the no-fly zone during her deployment to the Arabian Gulf. She also was the first woman to eject from a Martin Baker ejection seat from her A-6 aircraft in 1991 over the Atlantic Ocean. Linda speaks throughout the country on topics such as Passing Down a Legacy, Leadership & Women, Women & Non-traditional Careers, Margin & Life Balance, Transitioning from Military Leadership to Business Leadership, and Aviation for K-12 Groups.

Linda established Women Veteran Speakers in December 2015, inviting exclusively women military veterans – speakers, coaches, trainers, and facilitators—from emerging up-and-comers to polished experts, covering a wide array of business, corporate, military and defense expertise.

Linda’s award winning book—Military Fly Moms ~ Sharing Memories, Building Legacies, Inspiring Hope [Tannenbaum Publishing], was published in 2012, and is a biographical collection of the inspiring true stories and photographs of seventy women who shared the same two dreams—becoming aviators in the military, and being moms.

RFT 387: SOS America Apr 16, 2020

Show notes

SOS America (Service over Self) is a patriotic, membership organization that supports a military service program for our young adults. It will require broad public support (polling is very encouraging). Congressional legislation (previous draft legislation died in committee) and Executive Branch support are required. The plans for 2019 address all these matters.

Increasingly, the high costs of the All Volunteer Force (AVF) raise legitimate questions as to shortages in many career fields and the need to have such highly qualified people in the many support roles. SOS America contends that a specialized one-year enlistment program can be of great benefit to our young adults and the nation. Designed to augment the AVF, it would have these characteristics:

Its name is: The United States Military Service Corps (USMSC)

It will take advantage of small unit identity and loyalty. Volunteer recruits will enlist, train and serve together in small units.
The Units (roughly 100 recruits) will be led by 6 active duty personnel–2 officers and 4 experienced sergeants.
Open to recruits ages 18-25–the units will mix geography, ages, economic and educational backgrounds.
Physical and Mental requirements are based on the ability to ‘take care of (look after) oneself’ vs current AVF requirements that eliminate an estimated 85% of our young adults.
Yearly recruit numbers will be based “on demand.” The Services, Guard and Reserve plus Federal and State Agencies will forecast their needs to allow for planning and accession.
Proposed legislation will identify the Department of Defense as the executive/responsible agency.
The selective service system will be used, in part, to help administer the program
The program is highly encouraged but voluntary for young men and women (18-25).
The costs of the program, part of the Defense budget, will return 3 to 4 times program cost investment in a given year.
Recruits will be subject to the Uniformed Code of Military Justice.
Recruit remuneration will be at a basic enlistment rate.
An educational (mustering out) stipend will be awarded upon honorable completion of the year of service.
The honorable year of service should also secure citizenship (if needed), expunge police records, ensure English language and GED or better achievement and like benefits.

These program characteristics are essential elements of the proposed program and legislation.

RFT 386: Air America Pilot Neil Hansen Apr 13, 2020

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Neil Hansen began his aviation career as a pilot for Teamster boss Jimmy Hoffa. He spent more than a decade in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War era as a captain for Air America, the CIA's airline that operated there during the Vietnam era and the 'Secret War' in Laos. Neil reveled in the risky flying that fed his adrenaline addiction. Upon returning to the States, ultimately unable to find work and unable to let go of the Air America exhilaration rush, he saw the profession he loved come to an end when his trajectory veered off course.

Neil Hansen's engrossing memoir FLIGHT avoids the standard pilot cliches -- there is nothing stereotypical about the exciting "war stories" deftly recounted in this book. Hansen's riveting prose describes his adventures as an Air America civilian pilot for the CIA's clandestine Southeast Asia airline during the 1950--76 "secret air war" in Laos and Cambodia -- officially neutral countries, but the scene of countless U.S. covert operations. There is "an allure so mystical it borders on madness for those who play the game of war with abandon," he writes. "Machismo propelled those whose existence was spurred by the bursts of excitement that pushed life to its apex." Hansen flew for Air America from 1964 to 1975, logging 29,000 hours (9,000 of those dodging anti-aircraft fire in the secret combat zone). He was nicknamed "Weird" by fellow pilots for his bizarre behavior (although in the cockpit Hansen was "all business, all the time"), and his irreverent memoir certainly validates that sobriquet. Co-authored by veteran aviation writer Luann Grosscup, FLIGHT offers readers Weird's detailed page turning account of flying undercover "spook" missions with "a motley crew of aviators in Southeast Asia. "FLIGHT also recounts Hansen's "descent" as he struggled to return to "normalcy" in the States. He couldn't cope with the sudden lack of his daily adrenaline fix. "I didn't learn about the idea of adrenaline addiction until much later, when the damage had already been done." FLIGHT is a wonderful slice-of-life book, filled with dark humor that allows us to psychologically endure bad things that happen, mundane and boring bits we put up with, and the moments of stark terror that confront us. Some 240 Air America pilots and crews died in the secret war in Indochina. Hansen's memoir is a tribute to all those civilians who fought on the war's "spook side" in now-forgotten places our government prefers to ignore.

RFT 385: General Borling Wrap-Up Apr 09, 2020

Show notes

Major General John L. Borling is the chief of staff, Headquarters Allied Forces North Europe, Stavanger, Norway. As the principal architect for this new tri-service and integrated North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Norwegian National Command, he is responsible for assets in excess of $500 million and 600 people. He also serves as the senior United States military officer in Scandinavia and NATO's Northwest Region. Born in Chicago, General Borling studied at the University of Illinois and Augustana College prior to graduating from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1963. He received his pilot wings in August 1964, then completed F-4 fighter training. In 1966, after 97 combat missions in Southeast Asia, he was shot down by ground fire northeast of Hanoi, North Vietnam. Seriously injured, he was captured and spent 6 1/2 years as a prisoner of war. He returned to the United States and resumed his military career to include command of fighter, bomber, tanker, missile and support units at squadron, group and division level. He is a command pilot and has flown many different aircraft. High level staff experience includes the White House, the Pentagon, Strategic Air Command as director of operations for the conflicts in Panama and Iraq, and Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE).

RFT 384: Major General John Borling Apr 06, 2020

Show notes

John Borling was a fighter pilot during the Vietnam War, where he was shot down by ground fire. Seriously injured in his crash, Captain Borling still attempted to commandeer a Vietnamese supply truck for his escape. He was able to gain control of a supply truck, but the truck was carrying Vietnamese regulars.[3] Borling was soon overpowered by the soldiers and would spend the next 6½ years as a prisoner of war in Hanoi.[2] John Borling was released on February 12, 1973.

Subsequent to his return, Borling was an F-15 Eagle fighter pilot and commander of the "Hat in the Ring" squadron. He was an Air Division commander at Minot AFB, and Head of Operations for Strategic Air Command (SAC) in Omaha. In that position, he directed SAC's support of hostilities in the first Gulf War and Panama and was charged with execution responsibilities for the nation's nuclear war plan. At the Pentagon, he led CHECKMATE, a highly classified war fighting think tank and was Director of Air Force Operational Requirements helping initiate a new family of guided weapons. In Germany, he commanded the largest fighter and support base outside the United States and later served at NATO's Supreme Headquarters in Belgium working directly for the Supreme Commander and Chief of Staff. He was central to the creation of HQ North in Norway and served as Chief of Staff of that integrated NATO/National command.

RFT 383: Resilience With General John Borling Apr 02, 2020

Show notes

Major General John Borling shares his thoughts about resilience and dealing with adversity, based on his experiences as a Prisoner of War (POW) in North Vietnam. His views help put our current situation in perspective.

As a POW, he composed (and memorized) poems, which have now been published in his book, Taps on the Walls.

RFT 382: F-35 IP Justin "Hasard" Lee Mar 30, 2020

Show notes

Major Lee has 9 years of experience flying both the F-16 and F-35. In 2016, he was selected as the 'Top Instructor Pilot of the Year' for the Air Force's largest F-16 Combat Wing. In 2017, he returned from Afghanistan where his squadron dropped the most ordnance since the opening days of the war. He's flown 82 combat missions and has 4 Air Medals. He also hosts a '2019 Top Podcast' called "The Professionals Playbook" where he interviews world-class experts on their keys to success. Major Lee also speaks on human-performance, decision-making, mental-toughness, and how to debrief.

RFT 381: More Hangar Flying With General John Borling Mar 26, 2020

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Major General John Borling has flown the f-4, F-16, SR-71, U-2, B-52 and B-2. In this episode, General Borling shares another hangar flying story you're going to love!

RFT 380: Airline Interview Expert Kirsty Ferguson Mar 23, 2020

Show notes

Interview expert Kirsty Ferguson is a dynamic business writer and inspiring interview coach. She was awarded the 2005 Telstra Micro Business Award for her work in Recruitment. In 2000 Kirsty created Pinstripe Solutions solely to support job seekers. She brings a diverse business background in advertising, publishing, recruitment and in a much earlier life as a government employee. Her first client was a 23-year old pilot with zero interview experience who struggled to string a sentence together. His interview was with elite airline, Cathay Pacific. Yes, with her help he got in! From there she became a specialist in aviation, but quickly expanded the business to support Professionals from diverse industries; Finance, School Leavers, Emergency Services, Government, ADF and Pharmacy candidates, to name a few. Her ability to build confidence, finesse communication skills, develop unforgettable CV’s and propel candidates into the employers spotlight has to be experienced to be believed.

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