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*******P-38 Maint. hanger, March Field, USAAF, Riverside, California, January 19, 1942*******


Lockheed Instructor: ....your P-38 turbocharger intercooler is housed in the leading wing edge.....here <points to large diagram>. The turbocharger boosts engine performance even at high altitudes, which is a feature lacking in many other contemporary aircraft...

Trainee Pilot: Oh...oh...oh...oh!

Lockheed Instructor: Yes, what is it Lt. Little?

Trainee Pilot: Ummm...yeah. It's that Small guy, Lt. Small over here. He is picking his nose and eating it.

Lockheed Instructor: Madre de dios!

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

ORIGINAL: khyberbill

I likely the idea of stripping pilots...administratively, I mean. How do I get the experience ones back into the pool? Do I put them in squadron reserve then ask for them from another squadron?

Request veterans (little doohickey to the right of the request pilot thingie) and pick your vet. Leave 81+ vets in the pool to help train the dummies. In fact, you should send your 81+ pilots from active duty to TRACCOM. You have several squads in the west coast that have early withdrawal dates (june 42 etc) and some worthless wapitis in India. Put as many green pilots as you can in these and start training. When the withdrawal date gets close either disband to the pool (if the squad is not returning) or withdraw and the squad will come back trained. Slicker than snake snot!

Right..I can see how you can purposely select "retards" for a doomed squadron, but how do you send back the good ones?

When you're ready to refill with lesser "retards" (i.e., more qualified pilots), there's a few ways you can do it.

The easiest way:

1. Find the squadron page that you wish to populate with decent pilots.
2. Toggle their pilot pool draw to 'reserve'. Select 'manual' from the top of the page too.
3. Click 'get pilot'. The computer will automatically select a pilot from your [blank] reserve that best suits your needs. It will generally do a decent job of selecting fighter pilots of good air combat skill to fill your ranks, for example. Of course, this assumes that you've properly populated your reserve pools.
(see numbers 4 and beyond below)

The harder way (but, with more personalized control):

1. See #1 above.
2. Toggle the pilot pool draw to 'any'. Select 'manual' from the top of the page too.
3. Click 'select veteran'. You will be brought to a page with a large roster of pilots with different sortable skills (e.g., air, naval torpedo, ground bombing, etc.). Select an individual pilot that exists (note: some of these pilots have not yet arrived. Don't ask-it's a long story. For best results, don't pick those yet unborn) that suits your particular fancy and skill set.
4. Return to your pilot page and check out your haul. 8/15 (don't ask) chance that your pilot won't be there just yet-check back in a week. Otherwise, they'll have a listed delay between 1-7 (days), as they are in transit for the duration.
5. [a week goes by] Check the squadron page again. Pilots that have arrived but have not yet been activated can be discerned by the number of pilots on the squadron page. For example, 15(1) means 15 active pilots, one inactive pilot. Go to the pilot page and right click on the pilot (grayed out) with the delay of one. This will return him to active duty. Your pilot number should now be 16(0).
6. Lather, rinse and repeat.

Hope this helps.

And if you think that's crazy, just remember what crazy really is. Crazy is walking down the street with half a cantalope on your head, saying "I'm a hamster. I'm a hamster." That's crazy.

That is crazy. A half a cantaloupe wouldn't stay on my head if I was walking down the street. I'd need a whole one with a fenestration cut out for my head. 'Round here, we say 'potato' as we walk down the street with our underwear on our head. I guess you Argletonians favor hamsters-to each their own, neh?

ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

That is crazy. A half a cantaloupe wouldn't stay on my head if I was walking down the street. I'd need a whole one with a fenestration cut out for my head. 'Round here, we say 'potato' as we walk down the street with our underwear on our head. I guess you Argletonians favor hamsters-to each their own, neh?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/6474746/Mystery-of-Argleton-the-Google-town-that-only-exists-online.html

[:D]

Insanity reigns here. Just sayin.
[:D]

Hey Cap,

I'm not SF.

However, I was in the military for a long time and met and worked with several US and one or two non-US SF guys.

I've never met one SF guy that actually said he was an SF guy in conversation. You knew from the patches on the uniform, haircut (or lack thereof) out of uniform, and the general sense that you would probably lose in any altercation.

I don't know your Belgian guy, but it sounds like a line.

Best Regards,
T Rav

ORIGINAL: T Rav

Hey Cap,

I'm not SF.

However, I was in the military for a long time and met and worked with several US and one or two non-US SF guys.

I've never met one SF guy that actually said he was an SF guy in conversation. You knew from the patches on the uniform, haircut (or lack thereof) out of uniform, and the general sense that you would probably lose in any altercation.

I don't know your Belgian guy, but it sounds like a line.

Best Regards,
T Rav

So if SF guys never mention they're SF guys and that none SF guys frequently claim to be one, does the fact that you say you're not a SF guy mean you're actually not not a SF guy?

Too many double-negatives for me to keep up with. Nope, I'm just a regular guy.

Ciao,
T Rav

Don't ever trust a Belgian, not even if he's telling you not to trust Belgians !

Oh, oh. Can't wait for the flood of angry forum PM's in Flemish.


By the way, is it just me or are the security words to log onto the forum in Arabic?

I just logged on with "Ummuar", which means "woman whose wax at beauty salon looks like carpet sample".


********Aboard IJN Shokaku, some 170 mi WSW of Santa Cruz Islands, January 21, 1942*******


Young Hideo "Sparks" Hata pushes a broom in the radio room of the flagship of the Kido Butai. He is an earnest man, proud of his position. There is a small carpet from the last port stop at Truk. Every piece of fringe is perfectly aligned with the flight deck. Every stack of papers is neatly bound. Pages outside of standard size have been hand trimmed so no edges will stick out. His food is arranged in neat little piles which must not touch the other piles. He doesn't know it yet because it hasn't been invented but he has some serious OCD. He is a real nutbar, but earnest. Did I say that?

Anyway, he spies a dust bunny behind an ominous looking electrical cabinet which glows yellow with vacuum tubes. A sign reads "Imperial Croaking Device". He puts one foot behind the cabinet and struggles to reach the dust bunny with the broom. It is a supreme scrifice because there might be spiders or something, but he is compelled to act. The broom becomes entangled in some electrical cords. He gives a small tug...then a larger one until the broom pulls free. At the same time, the vacuum tubes turn dark and there is the sound of fans winding down.

He is a man who likes to be efficient with his words. This is a no brainer, "OH SHIT!"

Oh ruck? [:D]

It seems there may have been a Japanese CV sighting in an unexpected area last turn. &nbsp;[:D]

It seems there may have been a Japanese CV sighting in an unexpected area last turn.

One without radio. How can they listen to Imus in the morning?

[font="Courier New"]
Janaury 21, 1942


To All Sailors and Officers of IJN Shokaku;


Effective immediately, all foreign language swear words are hearby banned from use aboard this vessel. Especailly, I don't want to hear anyone saying, "Madre de Dios" on this vessel again. This order also applies to expressions from our allies. I have heard several sailors saying "non mi rompere le palle". Do you really want your mother's to know you speak like that? And just yesterday, in the officers dining room, I heard an officer exclaim, "SCHIESSE!", when he was given a large helping of creamed chip beef on toast. We are eating better than most Japanese on the home islands. Please show some gratitude. The Discipline Officer will distribute an approved list of Japanese language curses that may be used if you drop a 250 kg bomb on your toes or something, but hey, let's not wear them out, OK? See, that is the problem. If you curse over little things then you will find when the need really arises, you will have to find more fantastical curses. I have asked the ship's surgeon to give a serious of lectures on Stoicism. This might help.


Your Captain

Matsubara Hiroshi



PS. If I find out that some other useless, ****-for-brains, dumb **** unplugs the ***-****** Imperial mother-******* Croaking Device I will put my ***-****** boot so far up the stupid ****-******'s *** he won't know whether to **** or wind his wrist watch.[/font]

Cap:

****! That ****** Hiroshi is really ****** ***!

This seems to be the motto of the USN of late, but at least nothing big got sunk the past few days.

USS Cuttlefish put in to Wenchow after suffering a near fatal depth charge attack. The flooding had stabilized and she was beginning to repair. Then the Japs found her and put a bomb into her with one of those generally useless Marys. That is particularly galling.

South Pac:

The KB was spotted moving NE near the Santa Cruz Islands. Most likely they are headed to Truk. I cant believe they have any more fuel or operations points left for another "double-back" move so I am proceding with a surge of troop transports bound for Noumea.

Noumea is a level 2 airfield and buidling. A Marine SBD squadron and a Marine F4F squadron should be there in 2 days. I am hoping for a window of opportunity to reinforce Noumea while the KB is refueling.

Samoa is a level 3 building to level 4 with one squadron of P-39's and one squadron P-40B's. The port is still inadequate.

Yorktown is proceding to Oz to link up with Enterprise. Enterprise will take on Saratoga's air complement. Two carriers cant take on the grouping of Shokaku, Zuikaku, Hyryu and Soryu, but they will at least keep the Japs honest about sending air cover for any landing attempts in New Caledonia or further South.

A seaplane tender is headed for Lord Howe Island to give better search capability over the Coral Sea.

The first two squadrons of B-17E's are staging at Canton for movement to Oz.

PI: Manila held for a big Jap attack on the 20th at 1:1 odds. Supply is good at Manila as I have been able to land supplies in drips and drabs. Single AK's are coming all the way from Pearl now as the supply route via the Makassar Strait is now shut. I am not sure if the Japs don't know that supplies are coming in or if they don't care. I had not lost one AK in this role until Kaga moved intot he Makassar Strait to support the landing at Samarwhatsitsname. Bataan has nearly 40,000 supply and level 4 fortifications. I have moved all the artillery and the best US Army and Marine units to Bataan to prepare for the seige when Manila or Clark need to be abandoned. Supply is sketchy at Clark but the troopps there are in good shape. The Japs are bombarding daily.

Mindanao: Davao fell 2 d ago. The Japs have limited forces on Mindanao but there is no hope to hold so the Cagayan USN engineer unit is getting out to Ambon.

DEI: Tarakan holds. Samarwhatsitsname fell. Now the Japs will come by land to take Balikpapan. Can't be helped. All the ground support troops there that could get out are ordered out to augment Darwin and Ambon.

Merak: Now has zeroes and has been mined by the Japs. No more naval bombardments. The huge Jap land force there hasn't budged. I suspect they are low on supply. They will likely need another supply convoy to get the offensive rolling. This will need carrier cover or they will pay a price in ships on the way in.

ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

Cap:

****! That ****** Hiroshi is really ****** ***!

Indeed, but he didn't get where he is just from his witty conversational skills and hilarious impersonations of Yamamoto.

Hmmm ... talking about Yamamoto. Attached is a screen shot from the save file screen in my current PBEM. When I recieved the first turn from my opp (in slot 120), I responded with the one in slot 121. [:D][;)]

Grollub;

I would caution you about giving the CINCPAC cleaning lady too much authority. I made a similar mistake and now I tend find a set of allen wrenches that I haven't seen for 2 years in the drawer with old swimming suits I havent used in 10 years. This is, of course, after I spent 2 hrs looking for the damn allen wrenches and finally broke down and bought a new set.

Before you know it she will have your carriers doing mine sweeping duty.