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This is mostly for you Guard and Reserve guys, what do you call your jets? What I mean is, do you either formally, or informally, call your aircraft by their door art “names”? The reason this question has come-up is, as I was working on my door art book last night I made a statement which caused me to sit back and ask myself… is what I just wrote correct? What I wrote is….

<i>…before we get into the art itself I would like to make a quick point about A-10 door art. Unlike the nose art of WWII, door art does not define, or name, an aircraft. A lot of aircraft of WWII are known today by their nose art and are called by that name instead of by the tail number. I’m sure you know names like FiFi, The Enola Gay, and Memphis Bell but, have you ever heard of “The Dog Gone Ugly”, “Boss Hog”, or “Ice Hawg”? I’m pretty sure you haven’t heard of any of the latter three.

The only A-10, I known of, that has an unofficial name is 77-0205 the “Chopper Popper” of Desert Storm Fame…</i>

Do you see where I’m going with this? I know a lot of Guard/Reserve jets can carry the same door art for years, or even decades, has this art ever stuck as a name? This might be a stupid question but, it’s a question which arose in my mind and you are the guys to set me straight.




Ugly But Well Hung

30MM Jr's bird pissed hydraulic fluid all over him yesterday so he whacked the #4 engine and called her "B*T*H!" Does that count? <img src=icon_smile_evil.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=icon_smile_clown.gif border=0 align=middle>

"Duct tape is like the Force. It has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the universe together...." - Carl Zwanzig

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\"Those who hammer their guns into plows
will plow for those who do not.\"
- Thomas Jefferson

Are you going to dedicate a chapter to four letter words ? In the Guard we are obviously smaller than an active A10 base and we dont have multiple squadrons that we have to work with. We all know each other so the crew chiefs just reffer to the jets as my jet or Mikes jet or Bobs jet. Everyone in maintenance knows the numbers and names offf the top of their heads.

By this time tomorrow I shall have gained either a pearage or Westminster Abbey........Nelson

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YGBSM !

The #4 engine huh?

LOL....

<b>There are two kinds of soldiers.
Snipers...and targets.</b>
<img src="http://www.creedmoorsports.com/images/SA9121-M21.JPG" border=0>

Well, even though I'm AD, not Gaurd or Reserve, I know all the jets here at Eielson by thier door art and CC. I still have a hard time working with tail numbers alone. I still remember every tail # at pope and who was assigned to it though. I call each jet here either by its CC, like Kennys jets, Pack's jet... or by door art, which is easier here, because at Osan they were all picutres, very few had words. Here Most have 'names' SO I can remember Ice Hawg, Junk Yark Hawg, Devil Hawg...

"The government is like a baby's alimentary canal, with a happy appetite at one end and no responsibility at the other." - Ronald Reagan

I always called her "GG" short for "Gattlin Goose",even stenciled it on her enging covers back in the day.

So it depends on the CrewChief I guess,but then again I had "GG" Blessed by "Father Ray" When we were at Leck AB W.Germany in 1986 he put Holy Water on her and said a prayer to protect her and the pilots that flew her.(you notice the order)

I'd say it paid off in the Gulf 1&2 and since.

Hey If they can bless animals,why not Hawg's? <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>

Goose

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\"Live Free Or Die\"

We have one at B.C. That everyone calls "The Duck". It's always had some form of duck artwork! You rarely hear the tail number over the radio or anywhere else. "Control.....I need clearance to tow the duck to the trim pad".
Acft 80-222

We also have a jet that the CC is calling the "Sortie Saver"!
He just adjusted his artwork accordingly. I'll have to snap another pick.
On a different note.....We have more names for engines than jets.
Iron man- always has a bad joap sample
Polly want a cracker- Vibrating S.O.B. that caused many intake cracks
Tastes like chicken- sucked in several birds!
Burnt Betty- Catostrophic failure, melted
Exxon Valdez- Can't seem to find where all that oil is coming from?

That's all i can think of from memory right now!
<img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>

I am going to have to recomend we adopt that for sortie generation ops. That would be a great way to codify the tail numbers without using tail numbers during ops. Fixer you rock.

By this time tomorrow I shall have gained either a pearage or Westminster Abbey........Nelson

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YGBSM !

Mine was "LDSOB" (Leaky, dirty Sonuva#$@!%!) I always got complaints about how dirty it was (I didn't mind at all), but she flew like no other! Now I to fill the hydro all the time and she leaked out the dump mast on #1 when she sat. But she was Code 1 a lot! Other than that, we had a few names of Jets (jokes with the DCC's mostly).

81-943: Cement 43- during a trip to the Bag, CE was repairing the runway and told the tower that they had finished the right side of the runway. Well it was the left side! COVERED IN WET CEMENT!!!! In fact it still has some in the wheel pods and nose well!

81-941: 94 Coughin' Weezy- This was my friends jet, that happend to be the longest flying A-10 on duty (10,000+ hours). Well this jet and mine were competing for that title. All of a sudden she got "sick" and kept ground aborting for a leak. So all the other crew chiefs and I would mess with him saying we should rape it for parts and leave it to die in the scrap heap at the Bag. He didn't like that much. So we would pour a little hydro on the nose right near the bugeyes and tell him she had a nosebleed and he should tend to her! I know, silly story but it was fun for a deployment!

82-665: Junk Junk 5- I hate that jet. Plain and simple. You figure the last one F/R makes would be the best one right?! WRONG! This thing is a PIG. Mystery leaks, code 3's, etc. etc. Now when I say mystery leaks this thing would leak like, well, a stuck pig. tear into everything and no leak. ANYWHERE!

Type-7 might remember hearing these planes called this.

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3 Branches down... 2 to go!
Put on your tinfoil hats, the black choppers are coming, and I'm calling them in.
Former DCC OA-10A T/N 80-278

Great stories.
941/943 are former WR tails.
I remember reading somewhere that the last jet 665, was put together with leftover parts, I think it was just one of those myths thats gets out from time to time.

Thanks for the replys, some graet stories and insight into your units. I will have to re-word by book a bit to make it correct.

Ugly But Well Hung

<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote><font size=1 face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote> I remember reading somewhere that the last jet 665, was put together with leftover parts, I think it was just one of those myths thats gets out from time to time.<hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size=2 id=quote>

I'm starting to think Mythbusters needs to check on the legend! <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>

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3 Branches down... 2 to go!
Put on your tinfoil hats, the black choppers are coming, and I'm calling them in.
Former DCC OA-10A T/N 80-278

I know when 144 was at Shaw we called it One Sore Boar.....

Go Ugly Early !
No body's ugly after 2:00 A.M.

Edited by - hogmender on Jul 14 2005 12:17 AM

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Go Ugly Early!
Nobody is ugly after 2 A.M.

Hogmender,

I still remember "One Sore Who.. I mean Boar" wasn't that Smittypups jet?

capche-capche da - we go forward together

Faugh ah Ballaugh -Clear The Way-

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Faugh ah Ballaugh ~ Clear the Way

I know I have given many a jet a new name when I was flying them...

Coach

<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote><font size=1 face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>
I know I have given many a jet a new name when I was flying them...

Coach


<hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size=2 id=quote>

ROFL...OK OK, I guess I opened myself up for some of these comments! <img src=newicons/anim_lol.gif border=0 align=middle>

Ugly But Well Hung

Dice,

It goes for all jets,My ET-39 was called the "Green Lizard" and at Travis AFB we had a trash hauler (C-141) with the tail number 60-0088 so we always called it "BALLS 88" not only for it's tail number but one of the crewdogs tripped one morning comming down from the stair ladder and busted his nutts when he fell on his toolbox he was trying to carry down with him.
Had to get a meat wagon for him and he spent a couple of days in the hospital.

What made it more "SAD" AWH- who are we kidding here "FUNNIER" was he was dating one of our other crewdogs in the other section and the dr's told him he had to atleast give it 30 days before using it again,and they would have cut backs and tell her "You know CUZ needs to heal so well keep you here to make sure that happens,its for both your sakes.
We kept a "CUZ" count down calender on the board in the truck,even JOB CONTROL would ask for a "CUZ update" everynite and we'd say "CUZ OU812 is still on NMCS STATUS awaiting parts repair and op's checks"

And right before the 30 days were up went sent him TDY for a month,
WE WERE SOME SICK BASTARDS BACK THEN! <img src=newicons/saevil.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=newicons/anim_lol.gif border=0 align=middle><img src=newicons/anim_lol.gif border=0 align=middle>

But when he got back bothsides gave them 5 days off for "OP'S CHECKS"

goose

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\"Live Free Or Die\"

Hitler, I remember 144 being Ken Pawlus's jet. After he started expediting, I'm not sure who took it over.

Go Ugly Early !
No body's ugly after 2:00 A.M.

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Go Ugly Early!
Nobody is ugly after 2 A.M.