The Dip

There are many, "traditions,'' that go along with an USAF pilots first solo flight. Here is a pictorial description of what went down after Chris's solo flight. As you can see, "Lt. Herk " was the first to greet Christopher when he got off the breadbox back at the squadron. Hi Jason! Doesn't this look like a friendly exchange?

Below...you can see things getting a little violent. Tradition says, if a pilot gets away from the mob after his solo, everyone in the class has to buy him/her a 30 rack of beer. As you might imagine...pilots can never escape their fate. Chris put up an OK fight though.
"The Tank." Doesnt it look pretty on the outside?? 09-15 is Chris's class number.

A view of the water... yucky, but doesnt look to bad in this shot.

THIS IS THE WATER THEY DUNK IN! Even the rubber duckies are floating dead!!

If you look closely enough, you can see dead flies and rust chunks in the H2O! Even if these guys survive the solo flight...I am not quite sure how they live through a dunking in this water!

Post-tackle..Chris's classmates grabbing an arm and an arm and some legs.

Heave HO!!!!

...and a splash.

Alright people...I posted this one so you could see that even his head went under that nasty water.

I am so happy that I was able to be a part of Chris's big day. I was able to go out to the ramp with Chris to watch his pre-flight checks, watch him strap up and taxi away. I even was able to watch him fly over my head a few times! Thank you to Dave and Ian for being my escorts! :-)