Don't mess with the weekend warriors

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MarkG88
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Don't mess with the weekend warriors

Post by MarkG88 »

My father was a CMSgt in the Air Force Reserve, my oldest brother was Lt. Col. in the same unit before his demise. I have another brother who is in ANG so I'm biased here but I liked this article and what it had to say about reserve (and guard) air units abilities (ditto for army units too).
PARAMILITARY FORCES AND RESERVES: Age And Experience Triumph Again


December 21, 2008: Once more, the U.S. Air Force was reminded that its reserve pilots tend to be more capable than their active duty counterparts. The recently concluded "Buff Smoke" competition, in which active duty and reserve B-52 crews competed to test their skills, saw reservists walk away with the top prizes. Similar results have been encountered in the annual Gunsmoke (fighter pilot) and Hawg Smoke (A-10 ground attack pilots) contests.

The reserve pilots are former active duty pilots, many of them retired after two decades of service. These pilots often left active duty to fly as commercial pilots, but joined the reserves so they could continue to fly the more exciting military aircraft they had spent years working with. While the reservists don't fly as many hours (in military aircraft) as their active duty counterparts, they do have experience, and are more mature in years. Reservist bomber crews also tend to stay together longer, and this improves their teamwork and overall capabilities.

The army has found the same pattern with combat troops. Reservist tank and artillery crews often best their active duty counterparts in competitions. The Israeli military, which is largely a reservist force, emphasizes this aspect, and expects artillery and tank crews, as well as infantry units, to stay together for years and build their team spirit and capabilities.
....From strategypage.com newsletter

-Mark
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echoco
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Post by echoco »

That's interesting, are there more of that article? seems a little short.
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MarkG88
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Post by MarkG88 »

echoco wrote:That's interesting, are there more of that article? seems a little short.

Nope that was it, short and sweet articles there sometimes (that's why I tend to post the long ones, more info to chew over and discuss/think about).

-Mark
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japridemor
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Post by japridemor »

I had a similar experience in the Army Reserve. My Intel unit was staffed by NCO's who had literally been in the unit for decades and were amazing at their jobs. When activated and paired up with active duty components we totally outclassed them. Their NCO's had spent their time supervising work details and their junior EMs mowing yards and maintianing basic soldier proficiencies, while we had spent our (limited) active time on real missions. Their uniforms looked better and they out PT'd us though.
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MarkG88
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Post by MarkG88 »

japridemor wrote:I had a similar experience in the Army Reserve. My Intel unit was staffed by NCO's who had literally been in the unit for decades and were amazing at their jobs. When activated and paired up with active duty components we totally outclassed them. Their NCO's had spent their time supervising work details and their junior EMs mowing yards and maintianing basic soldier proficiencies, while we had spent our (limited) active time on real missions. Their uniforms looked better and they out PT'd us though.
That's great anecdote, thanks for sharing! :lol:

-Mark
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