June-September 2007
The second phase of flight training is called Intermediate. I was still part of the VT-4 Warbucks, I was just learning to fly a new airplane. This T1 Jayhawk is an Air Force jet, and therefore has a lot of fancy equipment! It was a great cockpit and there were 4 seats in the back for passengers. Most flights there was 2 students at a time and we would just swap seats mid-flight. Trying not to fall asleep when I wasn't in front was the toughest part! I was lucky enough to be able to score 2 cross countries during this phase, one to San Diego, CA, and one to Grand Junction, CO. I had never been to either place and they were both amazing!
The first trip was to San Diego. I went with another student, Vishal Amin, who was from that area originally. It was great to have my very own tour guide! He took me to Coronado where the US Navy Seals train! That was my favorite part! I even met up with my good friend, Chip, from OCS who flew through his BUD/S (Basic Underwater Demolition / SEAL) training. SEAL stands for Sea, Air, and Land, and the training is the most challenging military training a person could experience. I was so moved to see his base and the obstacle course, and SO very proud of him! We also drove to Mount Soledad Veterans' Memorial in La Jolla. It was a breathtaking view of the entire city, into Mexico, and had beautiful granit walls with pictures of our bravest men and women and their stories.
We also had a great night out on the town, and 1stSGT Griffith and Carson came down to visit from 29 Palms, CA! 
My second cross country (the very next weekend), was planned to go into Salt Lake City, UT. My instructor was going to run a marathon there, and I had never been! I was with two other students this time around, Scott Maynes and Lee Dai. On our trip out there, we realized we were running short on gas and crew day so we had to divert into Grand Junction, CO. At first I was bummed because from the window of the jet, this area looked bleak. But when we landed, we found it was not the case!!! We got a hotel and went out on the town to find that the local people LOVED us! We had free drinks the entire night! The next morning, we got up early and drove up to the plateaus in the distance. It was so surprising to see the deep canyons with sheer walls, and red sandstone monoliths, and the home to the Colorado National Monument. We did a small trail hike to the top of Serpent's Trail and found some spectacular views!
Getting ready to take off on our last day at sunrise, we see that parked right next to us is an F/A-18F Superhornet! It was a gorgeous silhouette and I knew then that I wanted to fly in that!
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