I am Thunderbird #5, Lead Solo for the US Air Force Thunderbirds - ASK ME ANYTHING

Hey Maj Jones. What's your callsign, and what's the story behind it?

Also, since the team transitioned to new sunglasses, can you mail me a pair of the old ones? Yeah? OK, thanks!

Thanks for your time with the AMA. Here you are being cool (congrats on the promotion) at MRY and here you are doing the awesome sneak pass at SNS.

Awesome pictures! As you can see on my helmet, my callsign is "Deuce." There are several stories to why I have that name - the primary one is that my wife (who flies F-15s) outranks me! So I am, technically, 2nd in command in my family - hence the name Deuce!

No, you can't have my old sunglasses. I like them better than the new one's anyway!

Did you commission through the Academy, AFROTC, or OTS?

I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess USAFA.

OTS!

I worked in a bakery for 6 years before I quit my job and joined the Air Force in hopes of being a fighter pilot. People thought I was crazy, I THOUGHT I WAS CRAZY, but bottom line - if you dedicate yourself to reaching your goals, nothing can stop you

What is the closest to death moment you've had?

When I crashed my brother's motorcycle. I didn't almost die from the motorcycle crash. He almost killed me because I crashed his bike.

In a jet? I've been lucky with no real close calls... sorry that's not very exciting, but it's a testament to our great maintainers keeping our jets tip top

Do you ever sing this Song when you take off?

How did you know?

What are you gonna have for lunch today?

Steak!

Maj Jones,

I would love to hear the story of you ripping the wings off of a fighter. Care to share?

Ha! Maybe I embellished that statement a little... But, while performing the opposing split-s with TB#6, I flew through his jet wash. The force on the jet was so great that it litterally ripped my leading edge flap in two. I didn't notice this until after I landed - the jet flew just fine but WOW was that tear in the wing impressive.

Hey! What do you think is the coolest moment of your career?

When I got the phone call saying I was going to be a Thunderbird - hands down without a doubt. The second coolest moment was everything after that

Why are we still using f-16's for demonstrations? It's a fine aircraft, but well past being a dominant fighter. Aren't the F-22 and F-35 considered better fighters with the added bonus of an extra engine and larger payload.

Not to mention that the need for "fighter" aircraft seems to be diminished with the emergence of drone aircraft. Don't get me wrong...I wish I had your job, but is there a future in flying f-16's?

I'd love to fly the F-22 in the demo - but we didn't make enough to dedicate a squadron of jets to the Thunderbirds. The F-35 is the next Thunderbird jet on the horizon, I'm not sure of the time frame though

[...] but well past being a dominant fighter.

I wouldn't go that far. Any wars in the near future can be fought with F-16s and other aircraft in its generation. Sure, 5th gen aircraft would be useful, but 4th gen jets will still be completely superior in any fight within reason.

The F-16s we fly are Block-52's. These are some of the most advanced F-16s we have and they are still awesome

How would you describe your package:

1. Adequate Force
2. Shock & Awe
3. Bunker Buster
4. WMD
5. Non-threat

it's classified

Hi! We're really going to miss seeing you in San Antonio this year!

I'm going to miss the river walk!

Talk to me about herding camels, this sounds interesting. Do you feel like a cowboy when you do it?

We were flying in the desert with absolutely NOTHING going on. I saw about 100 camels and thought, why not? You know those things are fast! (Disclamer) No camels were injured or endangered in the making of this story

With the Govt nearly 17 Trillion in debt, no end to the deficit spending in site, and the reality that it could take decades to pay it off even if they did stop deficit spending, do you really for see the Thunderbirds ever flying again. Do you guys have any plan to get reinstated?

That's the question...

Yes, I think we will fly again, I think we will fly next year. Air Force leadership has big decisions to make regarding distributing funds. The fact remains that the Thunderbirds are the most powerful recruiting tool the AF has. In an all voluntary force, recruitment is very important and we provide a large impact to millions of people for a relatively small cost

I was CAP for 6 years I've worked hundreds of air shows mainly as the taxy boy for the plane parking lot, all I wanted growing up was to go to embry riddle and be you. My question is would you wanna go 1v1 some day in Ace Combat?

You might embarrass me!

Hey, thanks for doing this AMA.

What's the scariest moment you've had while flying?

Additionally, what would it take for you to reconsider continuing?

I was doing a "knife edge" pass - that's where I fly in a stright line at 90 degrees of bank for 2 miles at 500 knots and my engine had a slight loss of thrust. We were practicing over the desert and the closest airport was 7 miles away. Luckily, it was just a "hickup" with the engine and I was able to land safely. Had the engine not come back to life, I'm not sure I could have made it to the airport!

How does the knife edge work? Like, if your left wing is down do you need full right rudder to keep the nose up?

It takes a full boot of right rudder to keep the jet level - even then, there is a slight sink rate

Thank you for doing an AMA!

What part of the tour do you love best?

I love going to the different cities around the country and meeting so many great Americans.

What's the scariest thing that's happened to you during an air show?

Every time I do the high alpha

If you weren't in the Air Force, what other job would you do?

Before I was in the Air Force, I was a baker. I worked for 6 years in a bakery BUT I quit that job and joined the AF because I wanted to have fun. I can't imagine doing anything else.

Just want to say thank you to you, and all of our other Troops for your dedication to this country and the sacrifices you make on our behalf.

Also, you have one of the coolest jobs on the planet!

Thank YOU! We sincerely appreciate your support

Major Jones,

Sir, I flew down to see your last show at Titusville, FL and it was absolutely awesome... thank you!

My question is: How do you see the USAF as remaining an independent service in the future? Competence in tactical air/ground missions and many facets of the "Strategic Pivot" to the Pacific are now shared with the USMC, USN and our Allies. With the growing threat of A2/AD, do you see Long Range Strike and Air Superiority missions with extremely high-cost and fewer assets in play being sufficient to maintain the USAF's independent role in our national strategy? What does the force of the future look like to you?

Thank you for kicking ass, sir.

Thanks for your support at our show! We had a blast at Titusville.

Your question sounds like it was taken out of an Airpower Studies course! Keep in mind that we are extremely limited in our abilities on the ground if we don't have Air Superiority. While airpower may not be able to win a war by itself - it's a fact that you can't win a war without commanding the skies. Great question!

Maj Jones, What is the hardest part of flying with the Thunderbirds?

It takes an incredible amount of concentration day in and day out while performing the demo and that can wear on you, but it's too much fun and well worth it.

Everyone on the team has to have the same level of attention to detail to ensure we have great (and above all, safe) show. It's amazing to be surrounded by such an outstanding group of individuals

I'm leaving August 27th for BMT. I plan on getting a degree while in and trying to go officer, any tips on this? A few of my dads friends who were officers said to do your job, do it above and beyond, and don't get in trouble. I take thats a given, but any tips would be great! Also love the shows, been going since I was a little kid at Ft Lauderdale beach.

Congrats! Yes, get your degree - that is your #1 priority along with doing the best you can at your job. Become the expert and make your leadership WANT to send you to OTS because you will be perfect for it. The sky is the limit - If I can do it, you can too!

Why are you grounded? Sequestration can never be good.

The effects of sequestration took all of our money we use to pay for jet fuel, aircraft maintenance, etc. BUT WE'LL BE BACK NEXT FISCAL YEAR!!!

Ever pull any pranks on the Blue Angels, or vice versa?

No, but our bathroom here in the Thunderbird hangar is dedicated to the Blue Angels. We even have a little F-18 on the handle of our urinal!

Blue angels are what it's called when you light your farts on fire. Is that where the term originated? Ironic it's the bathroom.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSUg0RaX8dI

HAHAHAHAHA

Dear, Maj. Jones

As a past CAP Cadet and Current USAF Trainee, there are a few questions that i have in mind, here they are.

1. I know that there is a big diference between real-world Thunderbirds and the YS Flight Thunderbirds (of which i command) But since You are the Lead solo and one of my best friends is a lead solo on the YS Thunderbirds team, is there any tips you can give to perfecting his side of the demonstration as a lead solo pilot? Anything will do!

2. After your tour with Thunderbirds how many years are you planning on serving in the USAF?

3. Before you enlisted in the USAF, have you seen the Thunderbirds as a civilian? If so what was your first Thunderbird Airshow that you went to?

Keep up the outstanding work! And thank you for answering these questions! I hope that someday i will be a pilot in the worlds greatest Air and space force, the US Air Force! We at the YS Flight Thunderbirds overwhelmingly enjoy your shows and can't wait to see you guys in 2014!

Thanks!

1)I can't help you out with your YS Flight Thunderbirds, but I think it's awesome you guys are doing that. 2) I will stay in the Air Force as long as they'll keep me! 3) Seeing the Thunderbirds is the reason I joined the AF! I saw them when I was working on the roof of a bakery. It was the most unbelievable thing I had ever seen. The next day I signed up for flight lessons at the local airport and within a year I was at Officer Training School - Anything is possible!!!

My understanding is that the Thunderbirds are used for public entertainment and PR/recruitment. With our shrinking AF, why invest money in your program? We've already put Tops In Blues on hold to save some cash.

Our main mission is to recruit the next generation of Airmen. The Thunderbirds have a huge outreach to millions of people each year. So many people in the Air Force are here today because they saw the Thunderbirds when they were a kid. We have to continue to invest in the future or we will pay the price down the road.

And the show is awesome...

Outside of the your checklist of safety procedures, do you have any habits or rituals that you go through before flying?

6 and I always high five before the flight. I say "fly safe" and he says "SOLOS RULE!"

Are there any planes you haven't flown that you wish you could fly?

I'd love to fly the A-10. They have an awesome mission and an incredible jet

1.) Would you consider yourself a natural adrenaline junkie? Meaning, have you sought out situations or stimulation that would frighten other people all of your life? I'm thinking of the type of kid who jumps off of garage roofs and things like that?

2.) If the answer to #1 is "yes", do you enjoy any other activities outside of flying that are of the "adrenaline-pumping" variety, like bungie jumping or big rollercoasters?

3.) Have you ever thrown up as a consequence of a maneuver?

1) No - but herding camels with an F-22 is pretty fun (Don't tell the Emeraties I did that)

2) I'm actually a little scared of heights

3) My first - probably 10 flights - in a jet I puked so much my socks ended up in the barf bag

Just to be clear:

The recently passed NDAA (National Defense Authorization Act) has an amendment that legalizes propaganda in the US.

My question is: Were you ordered to do this AMA?

Yes, when I mentioned in my opening statement that I have spoken with the President, I was referring to the phone conversation I had with him when he asked me to do this AMA.

Only kidding

Since we're not flying around the country, we're still trying to get the word out about the great opportunities the Air Force has to offer. Plus it gives us the chance to interact with the public since we're not traveling

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Thanks for your support