Your favorite duty station

[BusyBee604]

San Francisco

Ditto, NAS Alameda (back in the day - pre Vietnam war). Great liberty, great base O-Club/BOQ, military friendly locals, outstanding flying, etc.

Not so today, bay area bases all closed & military generally unwelcome in the area. You'd have to be self-destructive to wear a military uniform in public, in the area today!
BzB

 

[jollygreen07]

Ditto, NAS Alameda (back in the day - pre Vietnam war). Great liberty, great base O-Club/BOQ, military friendly locals, outstanding flying, etc.

Not so today, bay area bases all closed & military generally unwelcome in the area. You'd have to be self-destructive to wear a military uniform in public, in the area today!
BzB

Maybe in the Oakland area, but I had a few buddies participate in the SF Fleet Week and they were treated like rock stars. I think the vocal minority make up the majority of the anti-military crowd in SF.

 

[707guy]

Spent time in Jax and Pax and outside of how much housing costs - Pax hands down. Being able to drive up to DC whenever you want to take in the sights was sweet.

 

[Malo83]

Loved the Bay area back in the 70/80's
Best: NAS. Moffett Field
NAS. Alameda
Worst: NAS. Lemoore


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[nittany03]

Really want to give the Pacific NW a shot next...

North of Olympia, south of Whistler, west of the Cascades, and east of the Olympics. Herein lies God's country. Not too hot in the summer, not too cold in the winter (though it does get dark and wet). It makes up for the winter by having the sun out until ridiculously late this time of year. Great beer, great hiking, and when the clouds part and it's sunny out (which happens more often than the haters will admit, even in winter), you'd think you'd died and gone to Heaven.

Unfortunately, you do have to avoid downtown Seattle every once in awhile when the left-wing nutjobs get uppity and start smashing things. But for the most part, there are enough conservatives in the state to keep the nanny-state types from ruining everything a la California.

 

[Brunes]

North of Olympia, south of Whistler, west of the Cascades, and east of the Olympics. Herein lies God's country. Not too hot in the summer, not too cold in the winter (though it does get dark and wet). It makes up for the winter by having the sun out until ridiculously late this time of year. Great beer, great hiking, and when the clouds part and it's sunny out (which happens more often than the haters will admit, even in winter), you'd think you'd died and gone to Heaven.

Unfortunately, you do have to avoid downtown Seattle every once in awhile when the left-wing nutjobs get uppity and start smashing things. But for the most part, there are enough conservatives in the state to keep the nanny-state types from ruining everything a la California.

You just need to tell my detailed that I need to go to heaven then...

And my wife says Port Angeles is even better...

 

[sodajones]

Port Angeles is dope. I don't think there could be a better location in the Pac NW for a duty station. I use to drive up and do a lot of cold water diving around the area. There and Hood canal is probably the best cold weather diving in the western hemisphere.

 

[SamAca10]

You just need to tell my detailed that I need to go to heaven then...

And my wife says Port Angeles is even better...

Is your wife a flyer Brunes?

Anyone know if Alaska is as bad as they say?

 

[RadicalDude]

Leeeeeemore. Tule fog in the winter, acrid yellow sulfur tap water year round. Haze/smog obscuring the gorgeous sierras to the east-worst air quality/lowest employment in the nation. Dairy farm/cow shit/fertilizer fumes in your lungs 24 hrs a day. Only 3-6 hours drive to civilization, and oh yeah it's 138 degrees on the flight line during the summer.

 

[brownshoe]

JAX, and Cecil Field for me, hands down! And I traveled all over the place during my stint (hated Norfolk). I did enjoy quals aboard the Lex in Pensacola and of course the “Yuma Yummies” while out there (not to mention San Luis), but Cecil was home for me. Of course none of this stuff counts today ‘cause I’m talking 40 years ago.

Edit: MB, traffic wasn’t bad back in my day. Heck, I once towed, with a mule (wing walkers’ and all), an A4 form JAX to Cecil Field, easy, no problems, no traffic at all (40 years ago).

 

[RobLyman]

I get what MB is saying with traffic to Mayport. Only one way in/out. At least Wonderwood is an option now, unlike when I was stationed there. Cecil traffic is not bad at all. I drive down 103rd, but it isn't bad. The scenery now is a bit different then 40 years ago, I am sure. I think 103rd is now what Phillips Highway was 30 years ago.

 

[MasterBates]

Yeah. The big issue with Mayport, was same BAH as JAX/Cecil, but less housing close to base, and you paid a lot more for the same "quality" of place. So most of the JOs I knew in Mayport had a long drive, timewise, if not distance as the crow flies.

As the Seahawk flies, I lived 12.2 miles from the TACAN, but 28 miles by car, and that often took 1+15 with traffic.

NAS JAX was 19 miles by SeaChicken, and 22 by road, but was 40 minutes tops going in at normal times.

FWIW, it seemed most of the guys who were DHs bought houses in JAX/Neptune/Atlantic Beach as JOs in the mid-late 90s, but by 2004, that was out of all but DINK couples with not student loans budget range.

 

[brownshoe]

I get what MB is saying with traffic to Mayport. Only one way in/out. At least Wonderwood is an option now, unlike when I was stationed there. Cecil traffic is not bad at all. I drive down 103rd, but it isn't bad. The scenery now is a bit different then 40 years ago, I am sure. I think 103rd is now what Phillips Highway was 30 years ago.

103rd was just woods and a few houses in my day. Cecil was out in “the sticks” in the 60's. A really great duty station! JAX wasn't that bad either. Sad to see how things have changed.

 

[Gatordev]

Yeah. The big issue with Mayport, was same BAH as JAX/Cecil, but less housing close to base, and you paid a lot more for the same "quality" of place. So most of the JOs I knew in Mayport had a long drive, timewise, if not distance as the crow flies.

As the Seahawk flies, I lived 12.2 miles from the TACAN, but 28 miles by car, and that often took 1+15 with traffic.

NAS JAX was 19 miles by SeaChicken, and 22 by road, but was 40 minutes tops going in at normal times.

FWIW, it seemed most of the guys who were DHs bought houses in JAX/Neptune/Atlantic Beach as JOs in the mid-late 90s, but by 2004, that was out of all but DINK couples with not student loans budget range.

Don't worry, by 2007-2008, everything was very affordable again. You just had bad timing...like everyone else in 2004-2005 (myself included in PNS).

The gate at Mayport is annoying, but there's far worse places getting on or maybe more so, off the base.

How can there only be one Oahu/Hawaii vote so far? There's so much to do and the flying was great.

 

[MasterBates]

Don't worry, by 2007-2008, everything was very affordable again. You just had bad timing...like everyone else in 2004-2005 (myself included in PNS)..

Yeah.. Bought my house there for $115k in August 03.

Here we are, 9 years later, and I'd be lucky to get 60k for it. I'm just glad I bought a "cheap" (most JGs were dropping 200+ on houses then) house that I can rent out and cover the mortgage.