I'm not a fighter guy, but I've seen a couple of combat theaters. Football players spend most of their time in practice, not in a game. Policemen spend more time walking a beat than chasing a perp down a dark alley. Firemen spend a lot more time in the stationhouse waiting for a call than rescueing babies. Life ain't like the movies, and the plot doesn't wrap up with the good guys winning in an hour-and-a-half.
It's a cliche, but true, that war, and flying, is 99% boredom punctuated by 1% sheer terror. That means flying in a war gets you up to 2% terror, so there is some excitement to be had.
Aviation is a pretty interesting way to earn a living, in peace or war. There's supposedly a Chinese curse,"May you live in interesting times." Do I always want to be at the "tip of the spear," as they say? Yes. Not because I have some weird bloodlust, but the same reason a football player wants to be on the field in the 4th quarter--because there's a job to do and I'm supposed to be doing it.
Have I been shot at? Yes. Nothing "Nam-style," but enough to realize that some guy on the ground doesn't want me around anymore. Not fun, but part of the job. Those who have had their backs against the wall, "behind enemy lines," or whatever, generally say it wasn't the most fun thing ever.
I can say from experience, that having an engine catch on fire is enough excitement for one day without any extraneous factors, like hadji trying to kill you. So's recovering on the boat with little gas at night. So, if my country wants or needs me to take the field for the big play, I want to be there, but I'm not sitting around wishing for it.
It's a cliche, but true, that war, and flying, is 99% boredom punctuated by 1% sheer terror. That means flying in a war gets you up to 2% terror, so there is some excitement to be had.
Aviation is a pretty interesting way to earn a living, in peace or war. There's supposedly a Chinese curse,"May you live in interesting times." Do I always want to be at the "tip of the spear," as they say? Yes. Not because I have some weird bloodlust, but the same reason a football player wants to be on the field in the 4th quarter--because there's a job to do and I'm supposed to be doing it.
Have I been shot at? Yes. Nothing "Nam-style," but enough to realize that some guy on the ground doesn't want me around anymore. Not fun, but part of the job. Those who have had their backs against the wall, "behind enemy lines," or whatever, generally say it wasn't the most fun thing ever.
I can say from experience, that having an engine catch on fire is enough excitement for one day without any extraneous factors, like hadji trying to kill you. So's recovering on the boat with little gas at night. So, if my country wants or needs me to take the field for the big play, I want to be there, but I'm not sitting around wishing for it.
