As my "handle" implies

[Ex Pat]

Howdy, from the great (big) State of Tejas

I'm a California Ex Pat - my 1st 40 years were spent "growing" is So Cal during the golden years of the 50s, 60s and 70s - then a 9 year stint in the Army which sent me twice to Germany and twice to Viet Nam

After Service I worked as a Pilot for a Commercial Airline, for the next 31 years - based at LAX, Honolulu and finally Houston (where I retired)

I am active on a Baja Oklahoma (Texas) Gun Forum but thought I'd head over to "your place" to get a feel of how firearm ownership is going on the West Coast - and, if I've got anything of value to offer, I'll do so

p.s. - my Wife and I enjoy owning and shooting firearms (target, no hunting) - prefer Handguns but do have an assortment of long guns

[jarhead714]

What was your favorite aircraft to fly? 727, 747, or 757?

[Garv]

Welcome EP

[Ex Pat]

my reply

What was your favorite aircraft to fly? 727, 747, or 757?

I wasn't senior enough to fly the 747 (before the Company got rid of them), the 757/767s were just coming in about the time I retired so, for reasons of cost to the Company, I wasn't allowed to transition

I started on the 707 (720 & 320), which were a fine airplanes, then went back and forth from the 727 to the DC10 (the 707s were retired as were the DC10s - the DC10s, by the way, got a bad rap after the American Airlines Chicago accident, perped by ignorant people who wrongly 2nd guessed the reason for the crash)

I retired as a 727 Captain

[jarhead714]

Could the 727 really make better than 540 knots? Probably my favorite of all time. Love three holers.

[Ex Pat]

my reply

Could the 727 really make better than 540 knots? Probably my favorite of all time. Love three holers.

9nm per minute is pretty fast for a commercial airpland but flying from LAX to Houston I'd sometimes have a really good (prevailing) jet stream tailwind and I'd, informally, try to break the then existing speed records - would, sometimes, get going above .90 mach and watch the miles click off

oh, by the way - when I went from the 707s (4 engines) to the 727 (3 engines) I was very apprehensive about "losing" that 4th engine (can only imagine how it feels to fly the ponds the 1st few time in a 2 engined aircraft (gulp)

an add : the handle "Jarhead".....I've got a life-long buddy who lives in Escondido - as youngsters he joined the Marines - I, later, joined the Army. To this day I call him Jarhead and he calls me Dog Face

[jarhead714]

Good stuff. Welcome to Calguns!

[Ex Pat]

thank you Sir, pleasure is mine

[Fastattack]

Welcome EP. You'll find many of us here.
I like to say I didn't leave Cali, it left me.

[Ex Pat]

"north central Arizona" - Flagstaff perhaps ?

[gdr_11]

Perhaps the correct name for OP and the many thousands of others should be "Texafornian". It has a nice ring to it

[Ex Pat]

Perhaps the correct name for OP and the many thousands of others should be "Texafornian". It has a nice ring to it

I prefer "baja oklahoman"

(where in E. Tejas are you located ?)

[pratchett]

Welcome! Glad you're here.

[Ex Pat]

thank you