ThermalOW t1_j9xue8u wrote on February 25, 2023 at 9:59 AM

Anyone know what happens to the pilot that missed? Does he get reprimanded, extra training, or does he just get made fun of by the pilot that actually could hit it

wilderop t1_j9xxz97 wrote on February 25, 2023 at 10:51 AM

Nothing happens.

chipperlew t1_j9y6v20 wrote on February 25, 2023 at 12:45 PM

They absolutely get made fun of by the other pilots.

covfefe-boy t1_j9yanr2 wrote on February 25, 2023 at 1:25 PM

I remember a post saying the most unrealistic part of Top Gun is that they all generally have cool call-signs, the only realistic one was Hang Man for leaving his wing men out to dry.

Usually the call-sign comes about from something embarrassing and is given by your wing mates, some of the examples I can remember:

Legend - definitely badass sounding. But earned by being the first & only pilot to fail some test in the Air Force.
Zeus - Zero Effort Unless Supervised. Apparently lied to his commander about a report being done, was asked to pull it up, and then the commander stood over his shoulder for the next half hour until the report was done.
Bambi - during takeoff or landing a pregnant deer jumped in front of his plane, and he meat crayoned it across the tarmac.
Obi-2: Ewan McGregor played Obi-Wan Kenobi. And his brother was a pilot in the RAF, hence Obi-2. This is a bit unproven but I like to believe.

So I'd imagine the pilot that missed the balloon might be getting a new call sign.

wilderop t1_j9y80u8 wrote on February 25, 2023 at 12:57 PM

I am sure it happens sometimes, but I bet in general the pilots are happy to fly a mission where they get to shoot something, I don't think it's very common outside of training.

chipperlew t1_j9y852o wrote on February 25, 2023 at 12:58 PM

They “train” every day they’re not flying real missions. The idea is that they see everything they shoot as an inanimate object. Wouldn’t want them freezing up when they’re shooting things with humans inside.

wilderop t1_j9y8u4u wrote on February 25, 2023 at 1:06 PM

I know they train every day, I've stood there and had my ears blown out by afterburners daily.

BUSFULOFNUNS t1_j9xz26e wrote on February 25, 2023 at 11:06 AM

SWING, and a miss.

Atta-boy! You'll get the next one.

Slggyqo t1_j9y78t2 wrote on February 25, 2023 at 12:49 PM

I’m surprised sidewinders can even track balloons, frankly. They’re heat seeking missiles, a balloon has to be pretty close to ambient air temperature, unlike a jet engine.

Sidewinder may have been the best option for the job—there’s a general quotes as saying it was—but I don’t think the military actually has any good weapons for taking down balloons. Not exactly a modern battlefield threat.