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Posted on 08/10/2017 9:46:56 PM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
(Captured from the internet)
TAIPEI, Taiwan — The F-16 is one of the world's most recognizable and widely used fighter jets. It has a frameless bubble canopy, an an internal M61 Vulcan cannon and 11 locations for other weapons to be mounted.
It is also quite spacious, with two seats. And even when you've got someone in the back, there is still quite a lot of room — so why not take advantage of it?
At least that was the logic of one Taiwanese pilot who recently flew to Hualien as part of his training, according to an Apple Daily report.
When he left Hualien and returned to base, he landed in hot water when a superior officer reportedly discovered two boxes of mochi stacked behind his seat.
In a statement, Air Force Command Headquarters said the actions, if true, would be a clear violation of the rules.
A photo circulating online doesn't seem to leave much room for doubt.
An investigation would be immediately launched, the HQ said, adding that the officer could be charged with dereliction of duty.
In the pilot's defense, in Taiwan, picking up local treats to share with your coworkers is a gesture widely expected of anyone who leaves town on a trip.
Mochi is a popular souvenir among visitors to Hualien, and the pilot's selection was excellent: the two boxes were from Tzen Chi Mochi, which has earned a positive reputation for gourmet mochi.
Others have defended the pilot by pointing out that those in other countries, including the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, are permitted to carry personal effects into the cockpit.
A former AT-3 pilot even said that it was never a big deal for his colleagues to pick up some of Hsinchu's famous rice noodles when they were in the city and to take them back by stowing them in the jet.
Goodness YES, let the pilot bring some little happiness to the “ground pounders” and others at his home base! Done it myself!
Doesn’t look like a FOD hazard.
Should have brought some hidden in his bug-out bag!
Poeple would never believe some the things we carried home in a C-130. Aircrew has its privileges.
Never developed a taste for it, sugary dough wrapped around a morsel of fruit.
Back in the Cold War my B-52 and KC-135 friends would deploy for a month or so. When they came back they brought all sorts of great stuff. One of my best friends deployed to Maine for several weeks and when they came back they didn’t fly a gas mission so the Boom Pod was filled with ice and lobsters.
Rules is rules ay?
Many boxes of fresh strawberries were loaded onto aircraft at Vandenberg AFB during missile competition events.
I spent a solid week at Tsu Chi University on the outskirts of Hualien. I could watch the F16s come and go from my vantage point in the dormitories. I loved that place.
Helicopters used to bring beer back aboard Princeton.
My brother inlaw used to fly F-16’s out of San Antonio for the Air National Guard. He and 3 other pilots brought their panes up from SA for and Air Show here. In his rear seat was a giant Armadillo that flew in and flew out with him. While he was here we loaded up his travel pod with Venison and fresh crappie. When I asked about icing it down he said don’t worry i’ll have it frozen solid in less than a minute once I take off. The other piolet were the first to leave and they took off as normal. When he hit the end of the runway he stuck the nose straight up and went vertical until he was damn near out of sight. Fast Freeze.
You don’t want to know what all the Huey’s hauled when we were in Vietnam.
“even when you’ve got someone in the back, there is still quite a lot of room — so why not take advantage of it?”
You mean like some sort of ‘Ten Mile High’ club? Turn up the oxygen and the canopy defogger and bring on the barrel rolls. I would not be surprised to learn that it’s already been done!
Taiwan is now a very different place. Reading the article about the new proposed passport from China, for Taiwanese, shows that politics and reality still don't fully mix in that part of the world.
Would love it if you could post some stories about your time there.
Nope; just saw two interesting stories from the same place!
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