How did he get suspended without it going in his real file, not just Killian's double-secret-probation file?
Suspended from flight status happens all the time in the military today. It is not a NEGATIVE thing. People go from flight status to desk jobs all the time.
Every military member fills an authorized slot on a unit roster. Congress tells each unit how many slots they can have and the skill that's required to fill each slot.
For example, A flight unit of 100 men might have only 20 flight slots. Other slots will be maintenance skills, clerical skills, refueling skills, etc. There is the possibility that some of the officers running other offices are qualified pilots, but they are not in a flight slot.
Therefore, they don't get to fly EXCEPT for the opportunity once or twice a year to keep their flight status current.
Flying is so costly that it is pretty much restricted only to those in the pilot slots.
When pilots go to areas where they're not in a pilot slot, they can keep their status and their physical up-to-date or they cannot. There really is no stigma attached to not keeping up-to-date a status that you have no opportunity to practice.
In Lt Bush's case, not only was he NOT in a flight slot in Alabama....they didn't even have his type of plane, and they weren't going to spend their flight money on him since he wasn't even in their unit.
Lt Bush knew he wasn't staying in the Air Force, and he knew he couldn't fly in Alabama. I would have let my status lapse, too.
That's a pretty good question.
There was a document in his real file. He's said all along he was suspended from flying for not taking the physical because he wasn't flying at the time. These documents demonstrate that was true.