10 Things about Army life at Ft. Rucker

This month I had the chance to take a few Army Family Team Building classes that teach Army family members a range of things from ranks to stress management to finances, etc. and with Alex having two days (yes, 2 DAYS) left of B.O.L.C (Basic Officer Leadership Class) I have had the chance to observe a little bit more about how things are done in the Army, specifically at Fort Rucker.

1. Army has posts, compared to other branches of services that are referred to as "base." Marine bases, Air Force bases, etc. Fort Rucker is considered an Army "post," not a "base."
2. When 5:00 rolls around each day, no matter what you are doing, you stop, get out of your car and put your hand over your heart and face the nearest flag. The "retreat" music is played over loud speakers and an actual cannon is fired.  This is also done in the morning as well.
3. At Fort Rucker, it is important to be well acquainted with all the different types of helicopters the Army flies, not just their name, but their numbers as well.

This is the BLACKHAWK, or properly known as UH-60 (UH stands for Utility Helicopter) It is the most abundant and versatile, as well as the most well known type of helicopter.



There is also the CHINOOK, or the CH-47 (CH stands for Cargo Helicopter) which as you can see is huge! It is extremely powerful and can lift an enormous amount of weight. (Alex would probably know better approximately how much, and maybe I'll be able to convince him to write a post about all the incredible and unique talents they have someday...)

Then there is the KIOWA, the OH-58D, and I can't remember what the O stands for, my guess is Operational Helicopter? Probably not, again, I'll ask Alex:) The OH-58D is the smallest of all the helicopters, and is more of a scout helicopter equipped with weapons. The Chinook and Kiowa are the two helicopters that are a little more rare to be able to fly, in each class of flight students that cycle through, there may be only one or two available to fly (if any)

(see the little "biscuit" type thing at the top? That is one of the reasons this is a "scout" type helicopter)
Last but not least, there is the APACHE, the AH-64D which is, you can probably guess... Attack Helicopter! The specialized training for this Helicopter is the longest, at 21.4 weeks.

      4.  One of the most important things I have learned about the uniqueness of each helicopter is the personality of the Pilot that flies each of them. There is a stereo-type person for each of them that I have heard numerous times, from both pilots and the wives, and also, from my own observations, they are pretty accurate. The Blackhawks personalities are the hardest to pin, only because they are the most abundant. They are typically pretty laid back. UH-60 Pilots have a wider range of places they will be stationed (from Alaska, to Hawaii to Germany, Korea, etc.) A UH-60 Pilot will typically get the most flight hours, and will have the easiest transition if they want to fly outside the military. The UH-60 is also the type of helicopter used for Medevac.
The Chinook CH-47 guy is known as the "California surfer" type of Pilot who is extremely laid back. He doesn't have to worry about too much weight on his helicopter, because, really, there isn't much he can't lift.  This Pilot is usually the top of his class, because there aren't very many of them available, and usually they are a pretty coveted aircraft.  The Kiowa OH-58D is an active type guy, usually type A. His rival is the Appache AH-64D, who are both Attackers. The Kiowa Pilot is usually the first guy on the scene. The Appache AH-64D Pilot is the easiest to stereo-type. He has his certain hair cut (the one where his bangs are combed up slightly) he is mostly the type A personality who wants to see action and fly the type of helicopter with the advanced computer weapons system. That being said, each one of the Pilots loves what they fly, and will try and convince everyone around them that theirs is the best. I would say there is a healthy amount of rivalry that goes on with the pilots of each aircraft. They also say that the helicopter picks you (the Pilot).
Can you guess which one Alex wants to fly??? :)

5.  I mentioned this earlier, but different Helicopters are going to be stationed different places. This is a list we were given, but it doesn't mean the Army can't station us wherever they want, because they will and can station you anywhere, anytime. Blackhawk: KY, KS, NC, NY, TX, WA, CA, AL, GA, LA, Honduras, Germany, AK, HI, Korea, Sinai, Japan.  Chinook: GA, KY, KS, NC, NY, TX, AL, Germany, AK, HI, Korea, Honduras. Kiowa: GA, KY, NC, WA, KS, NY, AK, HI. APACHE: GA, KY, KS, NC, TX, CO, NY, TX, Germany, Korea.  We have what's called a "Dream sheet" where we can put down our preferences of where we would like to be stationed next, but it is often a joke around here that they pick from the bottom of your list and send you there. Really, this list is not exclusive, we have heard of many other places people are being sent that aren't on this list, it's just an overview.

6.  I am amazed at the cost of helicopters. I learned that one propeller blade for a Blackhawk costs 250,000.00 Just ONE blade! Sheesh!

7. At Fort Rucker, none of the wives ask "what does your husband do?" Instead it's, "what does your husband FLY?" I think Fort Rucker is very unique in that pretty much everyone you meet is here to fly (the exception is the Air Traffic Controllers who are sent here to train as well. I have not met one single enlisted person on the Fort.

8.  Every day there are moving trucks on the block, if not your block, then the block over. Our neighbors on both sides have already moved since we have been here.

9.  This last week we had a class BBQ for the families and guys in Alex's BOLC class. During our time there, when an AH-64D passed over the area (remember what Helicopter that one is??) every singe one of the guys stopped what they were doing, whether they were outside or in, looked out and stood in awe of the helicopter. I guess they had to pay their "respects." It doesn't matter how many helicopters you will see, because we see many, day and night, Aviators (especially ones in training) are going to stop what they're doing and "pay their respect." Many had to wipe the drool off their mouths after it flew over, and we see as many helicopters as we do birds in the sky!

10.  My last "observation point" is close to my heart. There is a lot of confusion about the differences between a Warrant Officer Aviator and a Commissioned Officer Aviator. Most people can go their whole military career and never meet a Warrant Officer, with the exception of Aviators, they are a rare rank.  One wife asked in our class if WO (Warrant Officers) even have their degrees. Our Instructors answer is probably the best I have heard, so I will share it with you. WO's will most always have their degrees (there is only 1 in Alex's entire class who does not have a BA) Warrant Officers are very specialized. They join specifically to fly, and they are only responsible for their crew. Officers may fly one or two tours, and then they will be put into a "management" position that is training and paperwork related. Officers join to climb the ranks, Warrant Officers join to fly and not have to deal with the paperwork or bureaucracy.  Our instructor said that every Aviation Officer at one time or another will want to become Warrant, and some do, and some Warrant Officers will have their fill of flying and deployments and become Officers. Either way, both are considered Officers of the U.S. Army.

I hope you know a little bit more about how life at Fort Rucker is unique and learned a little bit about all the helicopters and Pilots and maybe Army life in general! Alex has today and tomorrow left of BOLC, then he'll be in SERE Training for 3 weeks then it is actually going to be his turn to learn to fly helicopters! Woohoo!!!

This entry's recipe is actually just going to be a sauce, but it's taken me a few tries to achieve just the right consistency. Peanut sauce is something Alex and I both favor. Greatly. We love rice noodles (and unfortunately cannot find them at the commisary here on the FORT :) but this sauce recipe tastes just fine over fetuccini noodles too.  You can make up your own mish-mash of stir fry veggies to go along with the noodles, or buy a frozen bagged stir fry and add it to the noodles and sauce.  Just make sure to top with crunched peanuts and coarsly chopped green onions!

Amy's Peanue Sauce:

1/4 c. rice vinegar (found in Asian food section)

1/4 c. soy sauce

2 tsp. sugar

2 tsp. brown sugar

4 heaping tsp creamy peanut butter

2 TBS water

1-2 tsp red pepper flakes (depending on how mild or spicy you like it!)

Microwave for about a minute, stir, microwave for another 40 seconds or until peanut butter is melted, and let sit for about 10 minutes.  Pour over stir fry and noodles.

Pictured above has shrimp, red bell pepper, carrot, broccoli, snap peas, fetuccini noodles, peanuts and green onions.

Enjoy!