Aviation Officer Candidate School

(AOCS)

They called these officer candidates “90 day wonders”. Peter was probably the skinniest candidate in class 30-86 under the supervision of Gunnery Sergeant Calamari (fourth from left pictured above), a factor that would challenge his physical capabilities in a true test of stamina and perseverance. His class began with about 75, and graduated 35 after many failed their Pensacola medical examinations or DOR’d (Dropped [Out] On Request). The class won every ribbon challenge presented to them, like rifle drill team presentation. You can see all of their ribbons below: Witness above his graduating class in front of the F-4 Phantom jet that sparked his early “Dream”. Peter remarks that it was his pure mental determination and drive to become a Naval Aviator that overcame his lack in physical strength and endurance. Although falling short on most of the obstacle course and swimming challenges on early attempts, he succeeded in the very end, passing everything. Of course, Peter found his aerodynamics class the easiest here (having an aero degree), and the teacher often caught him nodding off during an afternoon lecture. AOCS was a program designed to fill the pilot slots during the attrition of the Vietnam War. It produced many astronauts and other notable officers. The drill instruction fell under the auspices of the United States Marine Corps. These were Marine DI’s, and they were highly efficient at weeding out those who didn’t have the right stuff! As hard and challenging as being the subject of a DI was, most of the candidates found our DI, Calamari, simply hillarious in the jokes and sarcasm that would eek out from time to time. It was these precious moments of laughter, contained or otherwise, that helped the recruits get through their demanding long days. And when class 30-86 earned their weekend freedom, there was no place better to show off their white uniforms than McGuire’s Irish Pub where one could “kiss the moose!” At the graduation ceremony, Peter’s mother, upon introduction to Gunny Calamari, was greeted by just two words: “Feed Him!”

Navy Flight School - Get Jets!

Peter began flight training with VT-2 at Whiting Field, Milton, FL. This was, at the time, the busiest airport in the country with daily operations. Pilot students had three aircraft pipelines to shoot for after this initial training in the T-34: Helicopters like the SH-60 Fixed Wing Multi-engine aircraft like the E-2 Hawkeye, P-3 Orion, or C-130; or jets, like the F-14, F-18, A-6, S-3, or EA-6B. Many students knew of the low level excitement a helicopter tour could deliver. Others had heard about the long flights that P-3 flying could promise, helping secure easier likelihood of getting hired by the airlines down the road. But for most, the alluring thrill was to fly jets and to become a tailhook pilot flying off aircraft carriers. Flight time, who cares? It was all about the traps! Peter began with fairly average grades through most of the curriculum until the instrument training began. It was largely in these simulator events that required finesse on precision approaches where Peter began raking in “three above” evaluations, time and time again. This segment of his training helped secure the competitive grades necessary to be awarded the jet pipeline! But before he left VT-2, he and his fellow students experienced the first loss as one of the T-34s from its sister squadron crashed during stall training. It was a somber event for all, and a reminder there was no “RESET” button when mistakes were made in this profession. Out of Florida Peter left to begin training at McCain Field, Meridian, MS, for about one year. It was there that he flew his first jet, the T-2 Buckeye for VT-19, and the A-4 Skyhawk for VT- 7. He tells us that one of the most memorable moments was his first takeoff in a jet airplane, where the powerful noise of the two engines on takeoff brought home the thrills that he had hoped for. Carrier qualifications off the tiny USS Lexington proved nerve racking, especially since it was done solo without an instructor. Fortunately for Peter he tells us that he was in the first wave of students on a three day detachment out of Key West. Upon qualifying early in the first morning, he was released for fun times with his friends in “Paradise”! Flying the A-4 was like driving a hot rod! It was able to role 720 degrees  in one second! Flying formation flights, bombing hops, road reckies (reconnaissances) and low levels from under this sleek and stylish glass canopy was as exhilarating as could be. Detachments were flown out of El Centro where the Navy Blue Angels were sometimes based. It was there that Peter defeated one of his instructors in an ACM training hop (Air Combat Maneuvering), a truly confidence-building moment in his life where he finally thought, “I can do this!” Peter’s father had previously lived in San Diego, CA, where he worked as a civil engineer helping in the design of the new convention center. Peter, visiting his dad, loved the scenery by the harbor and the comfortable climate and sunshine this SoCal city offered. Just before graduation as a Naval Aviator, Peter was presented a wish list for his fleet aircraft assignment. Besides choosing the specific aircraft that was desired, there was an option of prioritizing the location of training. San Diego was one of those options, and unlike most pilots, Peter was one of the few that chose San Diego over aircraft choice. From San Diego he would pick the F-14 Tomcat or the little known S-3 Viking. It turned out that for that week based on the ‘needs of the Navy’, most of the new aviators were assigned the S-3. Peter would wind up rejoining many of his friends from AOCS as a student at VS-41.

VS-41; VS-38; Operation Desert

Storm (Gulf War I)

Training at VS-41 took about a year. During that time period the pilots were paired up with Naval Flight Officers (NFOs) who performed crew member work in the cockpit that assisted the pilot and technically controlled the mission at hand. These NFOs, performing tasks similar to how a RIO assists a fighter pilot, were not carrier qualified until they finished training in their fleet aircraft. Peter was paired up with LTJG David Jennings, with whom he had flown months of events together, including training in the delivery of nuclear weapons. Upon graduation from VS-41, David was flown out to his squadron, already at sea. On his first cat shot, his S-3 Viking made a slow uncommanded role inverted at 60 feet above the sea. All four crew members ejected. David was immediately killed as his seat ejected straight into the ocean. Peter was next assigned to the Red Griffins of VS-38 of AirWing 2. It is there that he spent more time than any other squadron including two full “workups” and two full WESTPAC deployments covering about three years. In the very beginning of this deployment on the very first Blue Water Ops night recovery (when the ship is the only available place to land, i.e. too distant from any land-based airports), Peter was a bit timid in descending the aircraft down into the dark abyss, and found himself high, high, and high. He made three attempts to land, each time failing to pull off enough power on his engines, and this resulted in two bolters before catching the wire on his third attempt. This poor early performance earned Jalajas a one-on-one with Skipper Chris (Ryan) Henry. Peter will never forget that chewing out, because it was the necessary reprimand that forced him to focus mentally on the fix. Just as his physical challenges at AOCS were met with mental fortitude, Peter applied the same tactics to correct his apprehension at night. He had the pilot skills necessary for good, safe landings. But to help matters along he started using a new technique that not all Navy pilots used: the auto-throttles. Flying the S-3 with auto-throttles on required almost a more delicate hand on the controls, as over-controlling the airplane with up and down pitch could get very exaggerated. When Navy pilots use this technique, they’d have to make it part of “calling the ball” to the LSOs (Landing Signal Officers, e.g. “701, Viking Ball, 3.5, Auto”), so that they could give the proper instruction over the radio to correct any problems. And so over the course of this deployment Peter’s landings showed marked improvement by exercising mind over matter and using auto- throttles. On the sailing towards the Persian Gulf, we were afforded just one recreational port call in the very hot and humid Subic Bay, Phillipines. It was there that Peter joined together with LT William (Tom) Costen of VA-155 and a small group of troops for Project HandClasp. Having coordinated for months prior to cruise with the ship’s chaplain office, the two officers led this charity-driven work party with a stake truck full of paint over to a public school to be freshly painted. It was an all-day event, the very first matter of business after pulling into port. Tom and Peter hadn’t met before painting the school house, but by the end of the day they had formed a friendship after many hours of  toiling under the oppressive sun. By the end of the day the group completed their good deed, and the sheen and cheerful exterior of the school surely brightened the future of those students and administration. Timing is everything, and as CV-61 steamed towards the Middle East, so steamed the foreign politics surrounding Iraq’s occupation of Kuwait.  Peter remembers that crossing the Straits of Hormuz was a precarious situation. His flights off Ranger involved flying low altitude patterns ahead of the ship sweeping for mines with its MAD boom (magnetic anomaly detector). Upon arriving on station, his battle group was now part of Desert Shield, an effort to protect Saudi Arabia. Early on the dark morning of January 17, 1991, Peter launched in the first strike mission of Desert Storm. His flight involved topping off his fuel tanks from an Air Force KC-135 prior to tanking some A-6s enroute to targets. The role of the S-3 primarily was as tanker and surface reconnaissance of the gulf, although it also launched TALD (Tactical Air Launched Decoys), provided important logistics flights (like delivering the Air Tasking Order, ATO, for our next day’s targets from Riyadh to the carrier battle group), and light attack when needed. On day two of the war, LT Tom Costen flew a mining mission into Kuwait Harbor (with bombardiere-navigator LT Charles Turner) and never returned to the ship. Here is a link to an early report made on the tragedy: https://pownetwork.org/gulf/td021.htm Readers can see the memorial park dedicated to Lt Costen and Turner here: https://www.navylifepnw.com/programs/05a46 6b6-8841-44b7-858b-a29fa65cc737 As Peter later learned, the first few days of the war saw our A-6 Intruders attacking at very low altitudes (200 ft. or lower) while evading immense curtains of Iraqi AAA fire and missiles. It was immediately clear, and perhaps the Costen/Turner crash was the turning point, that higher altitude delivery techniques were the only way to proceed from that point on. Peter will never forget the memorial service on the top of the deck for these fine patriots, probably delivered by the same chaplain who coordinated Tom’s charity work in the Phillipines. Gulf War 1 ended in just five weeks. What Peter found most trying was the all-night flying and getting no more than four hours sleep every day. Even though the war ended quickly, this night shift duty continued for most of their stay. Every strike launch was preceded by the playing of The William Tell Overture over the ship’s public address system. It certainly was a spirited song that kept the crews motivated. On one night the Ranger went to “general quarters” as they believed there was an inbound Exocet missile coming their way. Peter’s aircraft was loaded with large cannisters of CHAF which he strategically deployed as a screen in front of the ship to confuse the weapon. Fortunately, it was a false alarm, but upon debriefing it sounded as if Peter got the better end of the deal in being part of the air defense as opposed to scrambling within the confines of the ship and preparing for hell. On the night of April 5, Peter’s S-3 was briefly fired upon from a small, fast boat. Evasive maneuvers helped keep him from getting hit, but this clearly was not an Iraqi target as the war was over and they were patroling a southerly area. Nothing came of this. The coalition of forces at Desert Storm met its limited goals of ejecting Iraqi forces out of Kuwait. All the air crew in VS-38 earned themselves Air Medals, and most had flown more than 50 “combat” missions. And although they had spent Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years onboard the ship, followed by war operations, the squadron experienced great comraderie throughout. With such a dynamics as being thrust into the theatre of war while having his first six month experience oboard the carrier, future ambitions of Peter had not even peeked its head.  By the end of cruise, his landing grades placed him as the #2 Nugget Pilot on Ranger. He was well prepared and experienced for deployment number two. One amazing LSO who helped shape him up into better landing grades was CDR John “Bug” Roach. He was not like any other Landing Signal Officer, and his subtle and soothing radio calls to the pilots were often non-standard (especially regarding left and right corrections). Peter describes him as being the “cowboy” jet whisperer, as he usually wore cowboy boots with his flight suit, had a thick cowboy mustache, and was largely responsible for the exceptional landing and safety record enjoyed by USS Ranger pilots. Peter’s memory holds one particular flight near Kuwait in his mind: Bug was flying beside him in formation in arial support while Peter flew  a critical mission in his defenseless S-3 Viking. Looking over at Bug’s Tomcat was a beautiful sight. Here was a legendary LSO flying together with him in an breath-takingly impressive jet aircraft, both serving our country. For Peter this snapshot will never fade. For CDR Roach, his immortal legacy began early after cruise when his parachute failed him following an ejection from an A-4E. Fellow Ranger Pilot CDR Wiliam Shivell wrote a nice tribute to him here: https://store.tailhook.net/b-bug-roach.html

Southern Watch; Operation

Restore Hope & Ranger’s Last Ride

The next deployment on CV-61 would be “Ranger’s Last Ride”. ending a voyage that began in 1957 as a Forrestal class aircraft carrier (Ranger was the first carrier ever built from the beginning as an angled-deck ship). This cruise was preceded with Peter taking part in “work ups”, consisting of various one, two and three week operations off the coast of San Diego. He also made a detachment operation to Whidbey Island, WA, for some advanced anti-submarine exercises on the Nanoose Test Range off the coast of Vancouver Island. To build proficiency in low-level flying and bombing, VS-38 joined CAG- 2 in Fallon, NV for three weeks. All the squdrons would work together in planning full airwing offensives, flying the missions, and getting debriefed with high-tech (for that time) replays in auditorium style rooms with large displays. Laser pods were used to simulate the weapon delivery in some cases, live bombs in others. The S-3, although not a great delivery platform for weapons outside anti-submarine warfare, was still capable of dropping 500 pound (MK82) bombs, 2000 pound bombs and firing zuni rockets. Later advancements allowed the S-3B to fire Harpoon cruise missiles. The flight schedule in Fallon was often busy, with flight crews flying three events per day. The common motto of our Navy squadrons was always “Work Hard, Play Hard, Get the X”, the “X” being the completion of an event or sortie. Recreation was provided by the gambling casino in town and the Fallon Officers Club bar. Peter will never forget January 14, 1992: a night mission where the entire airwing launched and proceeded over the very dark, high mountains to the east. It couldn’t have been twenty minutes into this flight when the enormous fireball exploded in his distant forward view, low. It was an F-14 from VF-1 Wolfpack squadron. Peter was airborne when Navy doctors, who were helicoptered to the crach site, confirmed on the radio their finding remains from two separate individuals. There was no ejection. The Tomcat had experienced some irregular chaffing in an obscure confine of its fuselage, causing the flight controls to fail. At the end of the flight, Peter returned to the squadron duty officer to inquire who was in that F-14. It was his AOCS classmate and friend of six years, LT Neal Jones and his RIO LT Scott Waldinger. Neal was not the first from AOCS class 30-86 to get killed. Another young officer lost his life very early after graduating at Pensacola, hit head on at night by a truck on his motorcycle. For his second cruise, Peter was now familiar with the petrol-tainted taste of the ship’s potable water, and he was going to avoid it at all costs. On loading gear onto the ship portside at NAS North Island, while some officers bent the rules and smuggled a few bottles of their favorite whisky, Peter made several trips hauling onboard about 30 2.5 gallon containers of fresh, clean spring water! This was a good move, and others were envious of him as the months dragged on. A new skipper was in charge of The Red Griffins, CDR Stan Douglas. Going into this deployment for Operation Southern Watch, he insisted that pilots be paired up with NFOs as regular crews, so that these teams could would increase their efficiency by getting familiar with working together. CDR Douglass, an NFO, insisted on having LT Jalajas as his personal pilot, and Peter hopes that this was a compliment! Adding to Peter’s responsibility, Douglass assigned him collateral duty as the squadron’s Safety Department Head, a position normally reserved for Lieutenant Commanders! Heading on out enroute to the Persian Gulf the Ranger pulled into Yokosuka, Japan, and South Korea for a little R&R. Peter recalls having been assigned ship duty on the middle of the first three day port call, thus keeping him from joining his friends on an excursion into Tokyo. He did, however, learn all the proper etiquette of handing chop sticks! Now on the arrival into Busan, South Korea, the time off began rather poorly. Peter vividly recalls how he and the other officers were attempting to hail a cab from the port area to take them to the hotel where they’d hang out the next few days (officers called this “the admin”). It was a dreary, rainy day. Standing out by the roadside, with countless taxi cabs driving by, none would pick them up for many hours. Of course, there was no Uber back then and they didn’t have access to any other wheels. They just waited and waited, drenched, until a driver finally pulled over to pick them up. Peter wonders, were these American sailors not welcome by the locals? Speaking of not being welcome, Peter recalls one port call in Dubai from the last cruise. A group of about eight guys walked through the city looking for a place to eat, when one of the officers accidentally brushed his pants against a car that was being hand waxed along the sidewalk. The man jumped up and loudly protested in Arabic. Peter’s friend calmly apologized in English, having meant no harm. But all of a sudden at least ten or more locals popped out from the shops and encircled them. To Peter, it appeared like they were ready to start court, deliberate, and begin executing the punishment onsight. They were very forceful and angry at the men. Fortunately,  Peter and his friends managed to carefully move along without engaging the locals in a fight. That event took place well after Desert Storm. They believed that they were heroes in the eyes of the Arab population. But this event had reinforced to these Naval officers some deeper local feelings…convictions that may have later contributed to 9/11. Perhaps they shouldn’t be there in the first place? Flights during Southern Watch were much easier, having more sleep and having familiarity with both the routine around the ship and the Persian Gulf. Red Griffins made low level flights over battle-ridden structures and oil wells, gazing down at scorched property. The mission for the airwing was to support the UN sanctioned no-fly zone, and Peter doesn’t recall there being many hickups. Port calls in this region were not numerous or very exciting. When the ship went for an extended period without pulling in for R & R, they would hold a beer day on the flight deck. This was kind of fun. Flight ops was suspended for the day, and little inflatable pools would be set up by the airplanes while sports and games were played on the non-skid flight deck. Exactly two beer chits were distributed to everyone not on duty, and Peter exclaims that after two months with no alcohol, those two beers hit him hard! A few noteworthy missions performed by Peter’s squadron was the tracking of a Russian Kilo diesel submarine that transited on its delivery to the state of Iran. There also was a short detachment for many days where VS-38 S-3s scoured the Arabian Sea for a small ship departed out of Pakistan carrying untold amounts of illegal drugs. One of Peter’s fellow pilots was actually intercepted by the Pakistani Air Force during its close encounters with their airspace. In fact, the ship was located and tracked in support of our nation’s intelligence operations. Other merits worth noting on this ‘92 - ‘93 deployment included their earning the Meritorious Unit Commendation, Battle “E” (second consecutive), COMASWWINGPAC Golden Wrench, and CINCPACFLT Golden Anchor Award. Peter, as mentioned on this home page, flew the very first Navy mission in support of Operation Restore Hope, a United Nations “humanitarian” exercise in nation building to help Somalia. Peter has survived all the numerous exotic vaccines injected into him for this venture (as well as the anti-nerve gas agents given him for Desert Storm)! Now that the air wing was free from a hostile aggressor as in the last cruise, the squadrons focused more on competition between themselves. Individual pilots worked on their landing grades, and their results were posted on a “greenie board”, the center of attention in every ready room. Examples can be seen here: https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=greenie +board&qpvt=greenie+board&FORM=IGRE  Peter’s previous cruise under the tutelage of “Bug” Roach gave him the experience he needed to accel in round two. Together with his fellow pilots, he helped VS-38 garner the Airwing Top Hook award. Peter’s contribution to his squadron’s landing grades can be seen here. Finally, on Ranger’s return to America, the ship headed towards some exciting ports of call: Perth and Sydney, Australia. But before reaching this festive destinations, there was one harrowing night that sticks in Peter’s mind. Peter’s aircraft was already airborne on a typical tanking mission, he believes it was the overhead tanker that night - “Texaco”. One thing worth mentioning before describing the incident is this: The non-skid surface of an aircraft carrier is what keeps the airplanes from sliding around the greasy deck when taxiing. This rough surface wears away as the months go on, and by the end of the cruise it is very ineffective. It is downright slippery and pilots need to heed this. Well, it was in the Arabian Sea with a slippery deck, a dark night, several hundred miles from the nearest land - Jukarta - when one of our F- 14s was literally blown half way off the flight deck, suspended. The CAG launched every tanker asset that was available, and fuel management became extremely critical. You see, the F-14 was stuck in the middle of the landing area, the pilot and RIO had to be extracted safely, and the “tilly” crane had to be used to save this expensive flying machine! All would have gone fairly smoothly if it weren’t for the fact that the crane was not rigged properly. So in the darkness of this vast ocean our ship’s company scrambled to make things right. The overhead aircraft, like Peter’s, had been airborne far longer than usual. He believes it was nearly an extra hour as they conserved and tanked and listened anxiously for good news. We all had gotten very close to our “Bingo” fuel values for a flight to Jakarta. That Tomcat probably came pretty close being shoved off the flight deck all together. But it all worked out! Peter was not flying that pointy nosed supersonic F-14 he so admired, but on nights like that one or so many others when he successfully “hawked” low-fuel state jets, Peter understood that this was a team effort, and that his S-3A was as vital to the mission as was the E- 2, the SH-60, the EA-6B, or the A-6.  The crowning moment of this period for Peter was Tiger Cruise. Tiger Cruise represented the last week’s sail from Hawaii to San Diego, where (at that time) male relatives or friends could ride aboard. On this segment, Peter was joined by his father, who was an avid boater and Coast Guard certified sailor himself. Peter only had one landing to impress his father. It would come after a small airshow was flown for the new guests. Peter performed a high speed flyby of the ship, while his father was viewing with many Red Griffins and ships company surrounding him. Anybody familiar with the S-3 knows that it is not extremely fast, but on that morning Peter ticked the airpseed’s redline at 450 knots. Two and a half decades later a squadronmate happened to mention to Peter that he was standing there next to Peter’s dad. And when he flew by all heads spun and comments roared as they had never seen an S-3 come in so hot! The flyby was as impressive as he could make it, but the flight was not over yet. Peter rolled out on final and called the ball. The Ranger was pitching and rolling like he’d never seen before - “great!”, he thought while his dad watched every move.  Indeed, the sea and swells were so rough that day that the LSOs made this a MOVLAS approach, manually controlling the “meatball” of the fresnel lens. His palms were sweating inside his gloves, his heart racing, and he honestly thought he would bolter. He had to make far more corrections than usual, but he worked on his concentration and followed every instruction as this ugly approach proceeded. “Right for lineup; easy with the power” and a than at the last second a tap of the DLC (Direct Lift Control). He caught a wire! Success! Peter doesn’t remember which wire he caught that day, but he will never forget how difficult that final trap and landing was - all for his father to witness. Peter tallied 328 traps, almost all on CV-61, and also earned his night centurian patch. He lived the dream. He survived an adventure. But he also came out of this tour understanding real “sacrifice”, the kind not found in most professions.

VS-41 RAG Flight Instructor (S-3

Replacement Air Group

Squadron)

Back to the Shamrocks of VS-41, Peter returned to where he learned how to fly the Lockheed S-3A Viking. Most of the fleet pilots followed their sea tour with instructor billets, but teaching at the RAG was reserved for those officers more serious about their Navy career than transfering into an airline job. And so Peter was surrounded by quite the cadre of professionals. He made new friends there and was challenged with new desk jobs and other interesting pilot work like teaching in the simulators. One of his positions fit in perfectly with his earlier ambitions as a kid. He would work as the Fleet Project Pilot for the S-3B Aircrew Systems Advisory Panel.  This job had him making frequent trips to to NAS Patuxent River (Pax River) to coordinate with engineers, an east coast pilot rep, and the S-3 Test Pilot to design the future glass cockpit and navigation upgrades for the airplane. Peter was excited to contribute in a meaningful way having just completed over two years at sea and being designated mission commander (usually a responsibility held by NFOs, rarely pilots). All these trips to Pax River, home of Navy Test Pilot School, rekindled his desire to give it a try. Georgia Tech, his alma mater, probably churned out more astronauts than most. Peter had the right degree - aerospace engineering. And the Test Pilot assignment was THE most feasible route to applying for astronaut slots at NASA. And now he was driving in front of the school. He would not let the opportunity pass. On one of these business trips Peter obtained a meeting with the civilian director of the program. It really was amazing, speaking with someone who could literally change the flight path of Peter’s career upwards towards the stars! It was a cordial conversation, and nothing challenging came up like that of an interview question. And when he left the building and looked over the large flight line filled with countless different jets that would be flown during the training, Peter thought to himself, “I can do this!” Back at NAS North Island, Peter enjoyed the everyday FAM (Aircraft Familiarization) hops he had to instruct and fly with the students. But as with all Navy pilots, there were always desk jobs that had to be fulfilled. In one job he rewrote the Power Plants curriculum and its associated visual aids (Power Points were just coming into fad). Again, this, for him, meant understanding the engine design better than just what the Navy taught us, and so he spent much time speaking with the TF-34 engine’s reps from GE (General Electric). Gaining this insight, with all the details that never before mattered, only strengthened his desire for Test Pilot School. His CO at the time, CDR Jansen Buckner, was 100% onboard with helping him out. He definitely boosted Peter’s spirit in this pursuit. The upcoming award in this particular year included an assignment to Monterey’s Navy Post Graduate School and a Master’s Degree Program. Peter was all “In Hot” for this opportunity. Help was sought out from current and prior commanders and leaders in the Viking community. Peter had his application package submitted, and now he had to just be patient and wait. In the meantime, he thoroughly enjoyed the flights around San Clemente Island, his low levels over the desert sands along the Colorado River, and the graceful aerobatic flying the aircraft could perform. As an instructor pilot he was in charge of a medium sized class of students who were now under his mentorship. During his squadron tenure his class voted Peter as “Instructor of the Month”, a kind gesture that in the end meant more to him than any other of his accolates. One of the students from his class, LT Pete Vinton, was actually much older than the others having transferred from the P-3 community into jets. Peter and Pete formed a working relationship in later years, until Pete himself lossed out to the inherent dangers of aviation. An appropriate dedication to this amazing pilot by Skyye can be found here: http://forum.cubcrafters.com/showthread.ph p/636-RIP-Pete-Vinton/page4  Peter’s student, Pete Vinton, was an extremely skilled aviator, and the dedication linked above reflects the realities of this profession. Coming from a rancher’s background, Pete had a personality and character that was All-American - big and bold - the type of guy that is becoming more rare with each passing year. It was fortunate for Peter Jalajas, in the end, to not have been given the Test Pilot School position, for he never would have shared in hearing Vinton’s adventurous stories or reciprocated in receiving flight instruction from him later in his career.

Navy Epilogue

We lose great men like LT Vinton, CDR Roach, LTJG Jennings, LT Costen and LT Jones almost monthly in aviation and other military operations around the globe. These leaders, who live “on the edge”, strike Peter as having the quality of character required to rescue this nation. Reflecting on their risks, their sacrifices and endeavors, Peter thinks back to his model building days in early childhood…an innocent time in the Sixties when kids would often yell at others “sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me!” Fifty years later the realities of dangerous professions confirms the “sticks and stones” part, but fails to answer the apprehension displayed in speaking the truth or the societal fear of being called certain names and epithets. It’s as if in today’s politically correct “polite society”, we are still able to churn out men (and now women) with physical courage, but far fewer are able to show the moral courage to speak one’s mind. And then again, morality becomes a relative term in the mind of the word-smiths. They have created for us a dystopian styled self-censorship that would make Stalin proud. Our CEO noticed this problem, and also observed one of the contributing causes: Disinformation, misrepresentation, obscuration and complete omission of essential information. Key puzzle pieces are hiding under your sister’s bed, and yet this is one of only a number of tactics used to defeat the understanding of a very complex problem. Apathy, the end results of a chronically comfortable middle class - and Virtue Signalling, the “philanthropic” sport of our elites and others, combines together as a poisonous infection in our nation’s spiritual body. We train our men and women to be the fittest fighting machine in the world, equipped with the latest technology, so as to fight in asymmetric warfare 7,500 miles away, whilst an insidious offense subverts the foundations of their ancestor’s homeland. At the same time, the weaker of the American population becomes entranced with indoctrination that would impress Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky (Lev Bronstein). Peter Jalajas founded Free Press Promotions as a simple business platform to help deliver honest information to the masses, rounding out what has hitherto been very biased to one side. It is a rewarding business for him, following his retirement from the U.S. Navy. In his company’s contribution to finding those missing puzzle pieces or putting the spectacles on the consumer or reader, he has realized an aparatus whose operation is consistent with the words of President Donald Trump when he said: “They will attack you, they will slander you, they will seek to destroy your career and your family, they will seek to destroy everything about you, including your reputation. They will lie, lie, lie, and then again they will do worse than that, they will do whatever is necessary.” Many may scoff at such words spoken by a sitting president, but Peter can affirm that there is much truth to this. The other assymetric battleground is here, where as of now only one side is playing for keeps. This company and Peter encourage all adults to read Eric Arthur Blair’s 1984 and Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, excellent futuristic novels from our past. Having had a taste of war and exposure to the greater world, peoples, and cultures (thanks to the Navy), Peter understands the challenges and threats like few others.