1445: TEFLON 3 entering the Guard Dog area with Potomac TRACON...coming in at FL 250 and cleared down to 240...135.525
TEFLON 2 = KC-135R, 58-0107, 132nd ARS ME-ANG Bangor
TEFLON 3 = KC-135R, 59-1466, 108th ARS, IL-ANG Scott
Change the tanker suffixes to a single digit. I was using the old standard but the first one displayed "TEFLON2" in his Mode-S and used that on the radio. TEFLON3 is doing the same thing. This is definitely a change from past practices and I guess we'll find out if it's official once we see a couple more tankers come in over the rest of the day. If they go with the six letter, 1 digit callsign makeup, they'll join a select handful of others across the Air Force using that format (TOPCAT, COPPER, MOTOWN, CARMEN are the only others I know using it) Of course, when they get to TEFLON and double digit suffixes, that'll all go to hell.
1446: HARASS 41/42 into the CAP but 41 must RTB to Langley due to a fuel tank that won't feed. They are requesting a replacement...260.9
1451: HARASS 41 tells Potomac TRACON that he'll be RTBing in 5-10 minutes and that 42 will stay...350.25
1455: Apparently HARASS 35 is going to stay in the CAP to keep 42 company and 36 is going to RTB as a single ship in 5 minutes...350.25
1457: HARASS 42 is heading to TEFLON 3 to refuel...260.9
1500: HARASS 35 giving an explanation of the situation to Potomac TRACON...says he's staying in the CAP until a replacement for 41 arrives and that 36 will RTB in about one minute...350.25
1504: HARASS 36 and 41 start for home....HARASS 42 asks for his marching orders from 35. 35 gives him his altitude, orbit and squawk...42 then reports he has no prime radio. 35 asks him to confirm he only has one radio. He does and 35 exclaims, "Oh no!"
1507: HARASS 35 takes 42 to interflight freq and tells him how to set up the two freqs he should monitor in his radio (one position for Guard Dog 350.25 and one for HUNTRESS 260.9...those are the only two freqs he'll be able to monitor during his shift without more manual changes to the radios...360.15
1530: HARASS 35 asks Potomac to check w/Langley to see if HARASS 41 made it back okay. A couple of minutes later he thanks Potomac for the reply and it sounds like everything is okay from the tone of voice used...350.25
1534: HARASS 35 asks HUNTRESS if he shows a flight of four Vipers near "Destination 7 by Andrews." (he's no doubt referencing a flight of four DC-ANG F-16s returning to ADW which I just heard working ZDC freqs on their way home from W-107)
1540: HARASS 35 given a TOI by HUNTRESS...BRAA is 244/9/2K/N....tells 42 to align on him...next report is that it's at 1000 feet, heading 260...260.9
1542: TOI BRA is 263/11/2K...then tries to describe it and I copied none of it but it wasn't a specific ID...heading 360 now...260.9
1544: HARASS 35 (calling himself 36) asks HUNTRESS if he dropped the track since he doesn't see it in the net now...then he's told to "skip it"...HARASS 35 tells 42 to make sure his nose is cold again...260.9
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Mark, a couple of those C-130J Keesler birds you mentioned last night are just arriving at RAF Mildenhall at 1450 (our time). 05-8157 and 05-8152 are arriving as REACH 209 and 869 respectively. I understand they did an RON at CYYT. I'm not sure where the other two are (06-8159 as RCH588 and 05-8158 as RCH264).
Later reports indicate they've all arrived.
DC-ANG F-16s have been flying most of the day. I know a couple of flights went up to W-107. Earlier in the day, the NJ-ANG F-16s were also flying with both DEVIL and BANGER flights also doing some AR work with TEAM 33 and 34 from McGuire. The DEVIL flight used 288.4 and BANGER used 288.0 for their AR work.
1519: Have one of the 142nd AS, DE-ANG C-130H types (84-0208) in the area using callsign JILL 98. That's some type mission callsign that has been used in the past by several different C-130 units. I show several instances of it being used this past June by various units (142nd AS, 36th AS, 328th AS, 130th AS, 39th AS)
Well, we know the 58th Fighter Squadron/33rd Fighter Wing at Eglin won't have a turn in the Guard Dog CAP ever again. Story today says...
"The transition of the 33rd Fighter Wing will become more "real" when the
unit's last F-15 departs Sept. 8 for a final destination in Tucson, Ariz.
Col. Todd Harmer, 33rd FW commander, will fly the last of 52 aircraft that
were under his tenure when he took leadership of the Nomads in January 2008.
"It's bittersweet knowing that once I'm airborne, it's the end of the
Eagle's 30-year association with the 33rd Figher Wing, and the ramp will sit
empty until the F-35s arrive next year," he said."
