Great So. Calif. Steakout, Herf & Tour of Edwards AFB - DONE!

[Charley]

WOW! This was one of the best herfs we've ever had. Great tour, great smokes and great converstations. I still can't get over the stories I heard from the test pilot (I think his name was Jim) durring dinner. That dude has some massive balls on him to do things he's done. Thanks again Danny for setting this up. The tour and herf combined with the an epic game seven of the NBA finals made for one memorable day.




Shant.............you can get out of the corner now.

 

[LA Kings Fan]

WOW! This was one of the best herfs we've ever had. Great tour, great smokes and great converstations. I still can't get over the stories I heard from the test pilot (I think his name was Jim) durring dinner. That dude has some massive balls on him to do things he's done. Thanks again Danny for setting this up. The tour and herf combined with the an epic game seven of the NBA finals made for one memorable day.




Shant.............you can get out of the corner now.

So my Celtic inspired time out is over? Great!

 

[DesertRat]

I still can't get over the stories I heard from the test pilot (I think his name was Jim) durring dinner. That dude has some massive balls on him to do things he's done.[/img]

Charley, the pilot your were talking with at dinner was John Fergione. He quite an accomplished pilot as you found out. Here is a quick bio on him that was done when he was entered into the "Aerospace Walk of Honor" which is the aerospace equivalent of getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

John A. Fergione

Flying experimental airplanes has always been an adventure for John Fergione. During his distinguished career, he has flown virtually all models of the F-16 for more than 26 years; most of that time spent in flight testing. Fergione joined General Dynamics, now Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company, as an experimental test pilot in 1981. He spent two years as the F-16XL Project Pilot and conducted the first flights of the F-16 with the F-100-GE-100 engine, both in the F-16XL and in the F-16C. He made numerous other first flights in the pursuit of increasing the F-16’s capabilities at Lockheed in Fort Worth as well as at Edwards AFB. He was assigned to the F-16 Combined Test Force at Edwards AFB from 1985 to 2002 and was also the company’s Facility Manager for much of that time. He was the Chief Test Pilot for the F-16 (non-Block 60) programs until late 2002, when he accepted a transfer to become the F-22A experimental test pilot. Conducting many “firsts” with the F-22A, he stated, “Given the choice of every other airplane in the world, if I only had one more flight in a fighter, I would want it to be in an F-22.” A Fellow and past President of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, Fergione has logged over 6,400 flight hours.

 

[Charley]

Well that bio didn't mention anything about the size of that guys balls but I'll bet they're impressive!






Bigger than Souldogs anyway.........




.

 

[PJ the Comic]

Just a few photos I got while you guys weren't looking.

 

[Salukis63]

I won't even call the Air force about the flight line photography.

There's some good national defense reasons for the photo restrictions- I know they- suck but Edwards has some of our most cutting edge hardware out there... sometimes right under the old nose... a cool photo of a jet that you took and put on CP or elsewhere on the net can be harvested for info on what we are doing/developing to a skilled analyst.

Sounds like an awesome day for all...

Nicely done Desert Rat!

 

[Friggame]

Thanks again for putting this together Danny.

The whole group is what made this one so much fun. I know Whynter and myself enjoyed it!