Happy Fast Jet Friday,

If you just joined us from Instagram or TikTok this week, welcome to the wingmen. Every Friday I send what I would want in my inbox if I were chasing a cockpit, and I read every reply.

Sometimes the answer to a new problem is an old airplane. This week the Air Force is looking backward to solve a very current shortage, and I have thoughts, because I flew the jet in question.

The Air Force says it will consider buying brand-new F-16s, reportedly dubbed the F-16G, to help fill a fighter shortfall as it plans the 2028 budget.

The math is hard to argue with. Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink told Congress in May the service had 1,098 fighters in its primary mission inventory, against a legal floor of 1,145. The stealth production lines alone cannot close that gap.

Here is how I explain the fleet to people who do not live in this world. The F-22 is a Lamborghini. Astonishing at one job, and you do not take it everywhere. The F-35 is a fully loaded Range Rover. The F-15EX is a Ford Raptor towing a missile trailer. A modern F-16 is a Corvette. Fast, familiar, genuinely capable, and a fraction of the trouble.

You do not need to drive a Lamborghini to Costco.

One caution. No requirement has been defined and no money committed. It is an option on the table, not a decision. Read the reporting

The Fighter Pilot in me loves that the Viper keeps earning its keep.

Before I ever took a Viper across the ocean to combat, this is what I looked like. The deployment floppy hat. The poopy suit, a dry suit built to keep you alive if you end up in the North Atlantic. A combat survival vest loaded with everything you hope you never need.

I always considered it a privilege.

Those crossings ran more than ten hours, strapped into a seat that does not recline, with water bottles, a string of tanker rendezvous, and bags you do not want to ask about. There is a Dos Gringos song about the bathroom situation. That is a conversation for another time.

What those flights taught me is the same thing I brief on every flight today. Be safe. Be professional. Treat your crew and your customers exceptionally well. And have fun. An ocean crossing just raises the stakes on all four. You know your ejection procedures cold, because heaven forbid you ever need them over the Atlantic. You plan the air refueling across multiple tanker cells. And you bring a positive attitude, because ten hours is a long time to be miserable.

Equipment, training, preparation and mindset. That is the whole game, whether you are crossing an ocean or walking into a checkride.

As rough as those missions were, I truly miss crossing the ocean in the mighty F-16. If the Air Force goes this route, maybe the Viper gets another chapter.

Few subjects scare pilots more than mental health and the medical. What happens if you ask for help? What about antidepressants? What does a HIMS AME actually do?

I sat down with Lt Col Rocky "Apollo" Jedick, an ER physician, HIMS AME and founder of GoFlightMedicine.com. Rocky did not watch the F-16 from the flight line. He flew about 150 sorties in it. When a flight doc has been strapped into the same jet you fly, the conversation changes.

The interview is still unlisted. You get to watch it before the public release.

🎙️ Watch the exclusive interview: From F-16 Cockpits to FAA Medicals

Short on time? 2:30 mental health stigma. 3:36 the antidepressant changes. 9:33 common medical exam mistakes. 14:02 TRT, GLP-1s and performance.

Too many aviators still make the worst possible decision, quietly avoiding help to protect a certificate. You do not have to figure it out alone.

The Guard and Reserve. Units across the country are hiring, for training slots and for rated pilots. Boards open and close fast and most are never advertised widely, which is exactly the problem BogiDope solves. GetYourPilotSlot.com Code: WHACKER

A dot worth connecting: the Air National Guard is the largest F-16 operator in the force. If new-build Vipers ever get funded, Guard units are a natural home for them. That is my opinion, not a plan on anyone's desk.

UPS is hiring First Officers. Non-rated A300 and B747 seats, 1,500 total time and an ATP, with 1,000 PIC in fixed-wing jet or multi-engine turboprop. The part built for this audience: UPS lets military applicants add a 0.3 factor per sortie. If you have been counting sorties instead of hours and assuming you were short, run your numbers again.

Josh Stefanski (@joshua_stefanski), an A321 First Officer at Hawaiian Airlines and one of my favorite rising voices in aviation fitness. Anyone who has tried to stay strong living out of a suitcase will want that one.

The Corvette in the garage is not an insult to the Lamborghini. It is an honest answer to how the work gets done.

Same is true of your career. The prettiest route is not always the one that flies. Take the slot, take the rating, take the seat that is actually open. Pack for the crossing before you need to. And if something is weighing on you, talk to somebody who understands both the medicine and the mission.

💬 What should I ask the flight doc next? Hit reply with a general question or topic. Keep personal medical details for your own doctor. I read every one.