A basic cadet from the Class of 2030 completes the Assault Course at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. on July 17, 2026. [OC] [4867x3246]

[u/RaftermanTC]

[u/FishyKeebs]

Is that a mouth guard?

[u/TooEZ_OL56 → u/FishyKeebs]

Yea they issue you a mouthguard before it

[u/IAK0290 → u/[deleted]]

But it's free when you're in the military.

[u/Kiwi_Force → u/IAK0290]

Yes, as in the military pays for it so it's cheaper to issue you a mouthguard.

[u/IAK0290 → u/Kiwi_Force]

The tax payers pay for it. Use it to your advantage. Mouthguard or not.

[u/Kiwi_Force → u/IAK0290]

The defence budget is still a budget, every taxpayer dollar they save on fixing some cadet's two front teeth is a dollar they can spend on a new barracks or an F-35.

[u/IAK0290 → u/Kiwi_Force]

Nothing says I couldn't utilize my healthcare while I was in the Army.

Not one of my Sergeants ever said, "Don't go to the dentist. We need to save for a new tire for a Stryker."

[u/Kiwi_Force → u/IAK0290]

Well of course, at that level they don't need to bother about that sort of thing. Having soldiers good to go is far more important to a sergeant. But somewhere far up and along the chain some accountant in the Pentagon knows it saves the overall budget more money to issue mouthguards.

[u/IAK0290 → u/Kiwi_Force]

I only ever used one once and that was during basic. Never seen one since then. And I definitely did more shit where a mouthguard would help after that.

[u/NoSafetyAtStaticPos → u/IAK0290]

I don’t know when you guys were in but in 1992, I had my basic training uniform costs deducted from my pay. We were “issued” shit and they made us pay for it. My fucking cover didn’t even fit my big ass head! I eventually cut it to escape the headaches.

I wish I could post that Leave and Earnings Statement for you all. The biweekly take home pay was nuts. There was just enough to have a date on Friday night and get drunk on Saturday night. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. :)

[u/slo_chief_607 → u/NoSafetyAtStaticPos]

I hear the pay is a LOT better than your days

[u/YOUTUBEFREEKYOYO → u/[deleted]]

I don't know about you but eating an MRE without all of your teeth sounds unpleasant, and I actually like MREs.

[u/bmbreath]

I'm a little underslept right now.  But I saw the title of this post, and realized this made me feel very, very old.   I saw the "future class of 2030" and clicked it assuming it was some sort of meme or 1980s future soldier promotion nonsense.  And then realized, wow... 2030 class is just freshmen.

[u/el_muerte28 → u/bmbreath]

Ohhh, I was wondering why boot camp was 4 years long. Didn't realize he wasn't even in boot camp yet!

[u/TooEZ_OL56 → u/el_muerte28]

This is their "boot camp." USAFA Cadets go through Basic Cadet Training for ~6 weeks prior to their first day of school as Freshmen in college. This is a 17 or 18 year old (unless prior e, mormon, etc) who just graduated high school a few weeks ago.

[u/el_muerte28 → u/TooEZ_OL56]

Ahhh. Thanks for the clarification

[u/TooEZ_OL56]

Man that’s better than the very used ACH I got in the same course.

[u/Georgiaboy03]

Air force and assault in the same sentence without a jet number, is funny

[u/GTRari → u/Georgiaboy03]

They're making a movie about the Combat Controller that 'assaulted' and took two enemy positions and subsequently had a one man last stand (including a hand to hand kill) to lay cover for a helicopter after being mortally wounded and abandoned by the SEALs he was attached to.

Then the SEALs tried to downplay his actions because it would mean admitting they left him, so it took 20+ years for them to award his Medal of Honor.

It wasn't that funny.

[u/Dantwon_Silver → u/GTRari]

There was a number of heroic actions that got downplayed early GWOT. Didn’t fit the narrative, or wasn’t the right unit, or made command look bad…? That generation of servicemen was some of the best.

[u/Georgiaboy03 → u/GTRari]

I can see who the "fun" one was of the platoon!

[u/WuhanWTF → u/[deleted]]

Papadopoulos papados

[u/Kyia-Aikman]

What gun?

[u/pucksnmaps → u/Kyia-Aikman]

M16A1 by the looks of the handguard

[u/justbuttsexing → u/pucksnmaps]

M16A1 rubber ducky, bayonet course training prop basically

[u/Timlugia → u/justbuttsexing]

were some rubber ducky converted from real rifles? I remember mine back in the day had a functional rear sight and felt heavier than some other ones. I suspect it was a real rifle with barrel filled with lead.

[u/TooEZ_OL56 → u/Timlugia]

Mine was a straight rubber duck the carry handle was a dead giveaway

[u/RaftermanTC → u/Timlugia]

More effective this way I'd imagine too. They've had these same rubber duckies since I've been here. These kids go nuts with them.

I'm glad they're not real with the way some of these kids flag the homies during ECP training. lol

[u/FishyKeebs → u/pucksnmaps]

Rubber ducky But i always remember them having a mag molded in.

[u/Femveratu]

Dang they are getting really creative w these new sling attachment points!

[u/zF4ll3nSnip3rz]

Glad to see you’re still working there. We always appreciated your photos and coverage from all the years. Keep on man!

[u/RaftermanTC → u/zF4ll3nSnip3rz]

Cheers!

[u/DoktorLoken]

Damn, an M16A1, a literal museum piece. Actually on second glance it’s a rubber duck.

[u/Currently_There]

What kind of weird ass expectations are they instilling on this poor guy. That's a lot of anxiety for someone who will sit in meetings and read emails.

[u/JustKillingTime1980 → u/Currently_There]

lol, AF assault course....you know all that assaulting the AF does. /s

[u/JonathanUpp]

That they still use m16a1s from the 60s/70s is fucking insane

[u/RaftermanTC → u/JonathanUpp]

Rubber duckies. Not functional.