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USMC

Huey/Cobra Squadron

AH-1Z pilot whose call sign was “Mongoose” because he downed (“killed”) every AH-1Z Super Cobra he flew.

UH-1Y pilot who’s call sign was “Scandal” because she liked junior enlisted dick.

Attached File

I occasionally work with a retired AF fellow that was given the call sign Spaz. He will not talk about how he acquired it.

Class #?

We hired an ex military pilot into our flight department when I was flying corporate.
He tried his best to get us to call him by his military call sign and we all refused.
We actually gave him a new call sign that he hated.

I live in south eastern Virginia. There are a plethora of folks with call signs here. Just a few are Eagle, Tool, Crunchy, Buick, Squeaky, Demo, Killer, Snoop, Snort, Fistmeet, Bean   and many others..these span many ages and platforms and are great people that I am proud to know.

My Ranger company battle buddy eventually went to Navy Flight OCS once he graduated with an Agricultural Economics degree.  As an ensign with gold naval aviator wings and army jump wings his F-14 callsign was "Sarge."

Another ensign in his squadron was Rickey Ricardo.  They saddled him with "Retardo."

I was assisting in a sniper match.  The stage boss asked for additional stress on the participants besides the stopwatch.  Other stage support guys obliged with shouting and noise in traditional Marine fashion, trying to bump up the adrenaline and stress factor.

Once a sniper got to me I just told him in a matter-of-fact tone, "The pace you are moving is insufficient to pass this stage."

One shooter at the after-action told me, "Man,  I've been yelled and screamed at most of my career.  I had tuned out those other guys -- I was balls-out pushing as hard as I could. You just telling me I wasn't going to make it in conversational tone -- that's just sinister."

<===  Thus callsign.

I've heard alot of it happens when they finally graduate their flight training or other schooling.

A lot of them are earned by screwups, or because their name lends itself to an easy call sign, usually it's all commonly agreed upon by the group at the time.

After 20+ years in the military there should be something you just stop...like trying to still pretend you're still in.

A good friend of mine that flew for awhile is two bags.  His dreams of flying fighters were dashed that day.

Gaaaaaay.  The only way it gets changed if you don't like it is to something you like even less.

Not true.

I know a MH-60 chick who decided hers was 'mean' and got formal recognition of the change to what she wanted.

I was saying how it is, not how it really happens.  Also the "chick" part is probably relevant.

We had a female F-15 pilot whose call sign was “Combo”, she had big lips and small teeth.

Then there was the poor unlucky guy who was 5’6 who got his call sign right when the first Lord of the Rings movie came out, he was stuck with Frodo.

I have one from the sub I was on, due to my name, most guys on the boat had one. We had an OBGOB, which was only bald guy on board, he had what genetic ever thing that made him have no hair anywhere.

I have a friend who got Hollywood the exact same way.  Might have been Maui Jims.

I remember reading Chuck Yeager’s book and don’t recall him discussing any of his call signs. Although given his record and notoriously prickly temperament maybe he got to call himself whatever he wanted.

“Sir, what call sign for today?”
“Fuck off”
“Fuck off it is, thank you sir”

My CS is Joker

We did have an 'Ace' in my squadron.

HOWEVER...

His partner (in crime?) was 'Gary'...

....as in Ace & Gary, the ambiguously gay duo.

The fucking AOC is considered the 'Falconer' 'weapon system.'

Whatever.

Anyone who isn't rated in the Air Force who has a callsign is a poseur.

There was no feathers in my cap

My user name is my callsign from when I was in B Co 1/24 AVN and became Warlord 35

My CAV callsign was Outlaw 22

In the CAV our scout guys were all Outlaw 1 something and Cobra guys 2 something

In the Attack battalion the scouts were still 1 something and the Apache guys were 2 or 3 something

That is a classic.

Out here we have a roll call. Well most units do, the one I work with all the pilots call signs are solidified.

Basically they give a few names from good/bad shit or stuff that goes with their name and people vote on it.

Once you deploy names stuck apparently and is hard to change.

Nice!   .

Awesome.  And yeah, that was indeed..

Mine CS is Rockshow

Mine is POPE

Not a call sign per se, although it was used over the radio often enough, but I once stepped out of an HH43 about twenty odd feet above the ground.  When My commanding officer visited me in the hospital, he started with "Who the hell do you thing you are, Tinkerbell?"  It stuck.

I have a few friends from that time that time that still call me Tinkerbell.

EPOS

Emergency
Passenger
Oxygen
System

Or… a certain member of the squadron who was a huge shit sandwich of problems, one of which was being 50 pounds overweight…

Enormous
Piece
Of
Shit

Lolz.    That was properly earned.   The judges will allow it.

My dad was an RF-4 WSO, during his time in Germany he picked up a variation of our last name combined with Schnitzel, mainly because it rhymed.

After leaving active duty for the ANG, and moving over to the KC-135, he was blessed  with Goose, because he was the first fighter backseater to come to the unit (he's also a Martin Baker tie owner which didn't help)  this was right when the movie came out. The name has stuck ever since. He retired about twelve years ago  we were at an air show at his old base last summer. We stopped by one of the static KC-135s so my boys could get the executive tour. A handful of senior enlisted and O-5s saw him and started chatting him up, calling him Goose.

His grandsons had this huge WTF look. LOL They have seen both TG movies and thought it was weird his "callsign" was a dead guy. Welcome, to the military, boys. LMAO

Neerrrrrrrrrrds….

I got Lab Rat.  I'd roll with that.

In the Air Force they will typically be awarded at a roll call.  The heritage of the roll call goes back at least to WW2, where it grew out of aircrews drowning their PTSD and celebrating their victories at the squadron bar and toasting those who did not return.  Even today more serious, somber roll calls are often held after a mishap or other aircraft loss. More routine roll calls are typically lively and upbeat.  Roll calls are usually fairly well structured, with the details varying by community & unit, but including events like Instant Justice, unit history/heritage, tactical lessons learned, feats of strength/competitions, etc.

New arrivals who have never previously had a call sign usually get to be "FNG" for awhile in hopes that they do something hilarious or notable.   There are also some individuals who are "naturals" based on an unfortunate given first and/or last name.  After a suitable delay -- typically at a Flag exercise, TDY, or just before leaving for deployment (sometimes on deployment), the squadron will have a special roll call for a naming ceremony.  A whole bunch of names will go on the board, the hapless FNG can remove them one at a time (typically by performing feats of strength or winning in competitions), but the game is definitely balanced in favor of the mob.  By the end the FNG will have a name.

For those arriving to the unit with a callsign, its usually presumed to be valid and accepted if the individual has used it on combat deployment.  Otherwise the individual will have to defend it.  Callsigns granted by prestigious units, at a roll call presided over by a notable mayor or commander, which have good stories (even if only 10% true), and/or which are defended with vigorous feats of strength are likely to be retained.  If none of those factors apply, individuals can be hostilely renamed.

Callsigns typically are ratified by the commander of the unit, usually informally.  Stuff beyond the pale typically gets blackballed prior to the roll call event, or the commander will axe something live if needed.  The typical standard applied is the "red flag test" -- could you introduce this person in front of a GO/FO at the final day of a red flag without being viciously mocked, disciplined, or liable to face an EO/IG complaint?

Pilots and non-fliers assigned to flying units (maintenance, intel, etc), as well as graduates of the weapons school typically go through such a routine.  Other non flying units have their own traditions which are similar, often less formal, but vary in the details.

According to that my call sign is jackass, girlfriend's is sloth.

Because it is mostly a Vietnam and after tradition.

F*cking hell. The Commander has no authority in the bar. That is "The Mayor's" realm.  

The Mayor ratifies callsigns...especially if the Commander hates them.

Who is The Mayor?       Is it an elected position?

Truer words never spoken.   Had a guy give himself the callsign "Batman."  The wardwroom changed it to "Catwoman."

Nephew earned his in flight school. Told a true story that lots of laughs and boom, call sign given.

I remember VT-10. Good times.

My kid flies F-16's, just got hers. They're usually something stupid you did or the like. Hers is an acronym for an event she was involved in, many are.

More of an appointed position, perhaps. And this is strictly a USAF thing...and probably only a USAF fighter/trainer squadron thing, but I don't know for sure.

The Mayor is the squadron's Court Jester and official/unofficial social leader. He's the MC at Roll Call and naming ceremonies and the like. His domain is the squadron bar...sometimes the squadron's main briefing room depending on the event.

There was kind of a tradition where the Mayor was supposed to be the newest O-3 in the squadron, but that was rarely followed. Because the Mayor had to basically be a stand-up comedian as well as someone who was an unofficial leader among their peers who was well enough respected that he could lead bar shenanigans amongst some world-class rowdy people, rarely was that guy the newest O-3 in the sq.

In most of the squadrons I was in, an outgoing Mayor would hand-pick their replacement.

Awesome. Thanks for giving us insight into how it works.