"Dudley Henriques" wrote in message
ink.net...

"Mortimer Schnerd, RN" wrote in message
. com...
monkey wrote:
Like I said before, dud, you shouldn't be in any fellowship for
"fighter pilots" unless that's what you are/were.


Therein lies the conundrum: were you a fighter pilot if you flew P-51s
on
the
airshow circuit? The Mustang was most definitely a fighter. Were you
only a
fighter pilot if you flew fighters for a military service? Or only if
you've
fired your guns in anger?

This seems to be a grey area to me.

It might just be a little "grayer" than you imagine!! :-)))

Please allow me to give some of you "interested people" who are
commenting
on my life........a little hint on a few "things" if I might inject some
fact into all this fantasy please...... :-)
I'm afraid my association with the fighter community has little to do with
the flying of warbirds per se'. It is more directly involved with over
fifty years of association with the fighter community dealing with such
issues as the enhancement of flight safety and additional issues directly
of
interest to the community.
Although my association with the fighter community is honorary, I must
admit
that I has "honored" to be asked by that community to serve as the
President
of it's Fellowship; then first as the Maryland State Director ; then as
the
Regional Director of the Combat Pilots Association of the United States. I
was equally "honored" to be asked to narrate the flight demonstrations of
both the prototype YF17 Cobra AND the F14 Tomcat by both the Navy and
Northrop's demonstration test team. I was "honored" to do research test
flying in both the F14 and the T38. I was also "honored" to be asked to
fly
with the Canadian Snowbirds. I have also been "honored" to work within the
fighter community on many issues pertaining to the testing of high
performance aircraft. I am "honored" to have my name and bio appear in the
official book on the history of the P51Mustang along side those who flew
her
in harm's way. I have been "honored" by the Naval Test Pilot School being
asked to attend their reunions, but I believe I was "honored" most when
the
Thunderbirds invited my wife and I down to Andrews AFB to celebrate my
"retirement" as a pilot with them. This "official occasion" was celebrated
in the preflight brief with the team all signing the last page of a
logbook
dedicated to a lifetime's work in the air.
I remain to this day, involved with work dedicated to the saving of lives
within the fighter community as a consultant.
I'm deeply sorry that some of you fine folks on Usenet don't think I
should
identify myself with the fighter community since I'm not technically a
fighter pilot, but if you folks REALLY don't object too much, I think I'll
just accept my association with the community as it is, and continue to
enjoy the mutual respect I have shared with the fighter community all
through my aviation career.
Dudley Henriques
International Fighter Pilots Fellowship
Commercial Pilot/ CFI Retired
For personal email, please replace
the z's with e's.
dhenriquesATzarthlinkDOTnzt

Well said, Dudley....Perhaps this will put an end this matter !

Regards, BMC