FLY WITH ME in a USAF T-38A Doing an Overhead Pattern to Land

In the last few videos we showed the overhead pattern but didn't really explain what it means or what's going on. In this video I was returning from an adversary air sortie solo at beautiful Eglin Air Force Base doing the beach run back and a little non-standard for this airport as far as where I arrived and kind of some of the restrictions but you'll get a good sense of how the overhead pattern works and this is something that everyone uses from pilot training in the T-6 to even heavies do overhead patterns or the overhead break. Navy does it a little bit different they do a carrier break but this is the air force overhead in a T-38A. Doesn't get any more basic than that. So this is why I said it's a little non-standard. Typically we would go via gate which brings you on the east side of the airport. Brooks Bridge was way more convenient brings you on the west side of the airport the only issue is Hurlburt's airspace is very close. Today's mission I was not Nomex I'm race 01 and I will explain later why I ended up changing to Nomex later on flying down here because it just wasn't a good idea. 249 Whiskey Mike flight engine 090. Last call for FLAK. FLAK 184 verify there's two F-35s inside off your nose for 7 miles. FLAK 01 is sensor contact looking. Roger that. FLAK 157 I'm going to approach to 3-0-0-3. FLAK 01 visual traffic. 5-9-7-9 Quebec I'm going to approach to 3-0-0-4. Roger that. General aircraft altimeter 3-0-0-4. FLAK 01 is up to 4,500 for weather. And FLAK 1 who's requested? Race 1 field site. Race 1 A-C on site. Race 1 A-C on field site. Race 1 A-C. FLAK Mike flight engine 3-0-0-0. And race 1 has traffic crossing underneath no factor. Race 1 A-C further decent over which bridge? Race 1. So I called the traffic in sight mostly to get the descent. I mean obviously I had the traffic in sight but they were holding me higher over traffic usually going into Destin which there's a busy executive airport there so calling the traffic in sight would have given me lower but they said no not Tilburg's bridge which will make this higher than usual. You can see Destin off to the right. And there's a lot of civilian traffic. Helicopters, banner towers. It's a pretty busy airspace. The controllers do a good job of keeping us safe. General run on which can I contact departure 1-2-5-1. FLAK 1 you can maintain V4 at or above 4,500. Coming to 3,000 feet. I'll be a flight of 4 at 16. FLAK 2-1, VFR at or above 4,500. FLAK 2-1, rocket 5-1, say go 5,000. Rocket 5-1, I'm going to approach down to 3-0-0-4. 3-0-0-4, rocket 5-1. Race 1 approaching Birch Bridge. Approach race 1, like to switch down. Unreadable, say again. Race 1, roger that. Maintain 2,100 till you're at initial. For traffic parting way 3-6 at Harbour, turn south-eastbound. Okay, 2,100 till initial, race 1 and push tower. Race 1, you can contact the tower 2-0-4. Race 1, switch. Banner 1. Eagle 3-2, 4 mile final, gear down. Option 1-9. Eagle 3-2, roger. Tower, race 1, just inside of Birch Bridge. 2,100 for initial. Race 2-1, I can report initial runway 1-2. Race 1. So from here, I'm going to the 92 initial point, which is 90 degrees off the runway heading. Then I'll turn right and be runway heading, which is initial, which is about three miles off the end of the runway. That's a reporting point. And from there, you'll get to over the runway into the left break to inside downwind, which is where you slow down and configure with landing gear and flaps to the final turn and roll out on final to land. This is the most efficient way to get aircraft through the pattern at high speed, especially fighter types, but also big aircraft, like I talked about, do this too. Race 1, initial. Race 0-1, a break to follow the second F-15 in the left 270 for the downwind runway 1-2. Catching on to go runway 1-X. Eagle 3-2, left 170. Race 1. So this is the first part of why I stopped flying with the race 0-1 call sign, is because they kept calling me racer 0-1, which would be confused here. In a minute, there's actually another racer 0-1 in the pattern, which is very confusing. I would race with no R. So typically, I would have been in the left break by now, but they had me follow traffic. So here you see, I'm looking for the traffic. You can actually see it, the left part of the screen. And my job is just to create spacing and break to follow that aircraft to the left side there. It's going to be a little bit farther extended upwind than usually would. 10-1, carry through re-enter gate for initial runway 1-2 for departures off runway. 10-1, re-enter gate. Eagle 3-1, left base gear touch and go, 1-2. Eagle 3-1, runway 1-2, wind 250 at 6, cleared touch and go. Traffic's a flight of four F-16s on the hold, 1-9. Eagle 3-1. Racer 1, runway 1-9, line up and wait. Traffic multiple fighters on the go, runway 1-2. Racer 1, line up and wait, 1-9. 10-1, Bozeman 1, single shift in sequence, 1-9. Bozeman 1, making tour of short runway 1-9 in sequence. Bozeman 1, holding short 1-9. So you saw the overhead break, level turn, slowing down, reducing power, trying to get slow on inside downwind with appropriate spacing from the runway to lower the gear and flaps below 240 knots, which is the gear speed on this aircraft. Eagle 3-2, left base gear touch and go, 1-2. Eagle 3-2, roger. Eagle 3-2, runway 1-2, wind 250 at 6, cleared touch and go. Eagle 3-2, cleared touch and go, 1-2. Tower 5-1, over Brooks Bridge, initial 2100 for approach. 7-1, extended JL, follow F-35 over Brooks Bridge and route to initial runway 1-2. Eagle 3-1, on the go request for re-enter gate, then JL, then initial. Eagle 3-1, approved as requested, follow F-35 over gate and route to JL. Eagle 3-1. Flap 1, Eagle 3-1, roger, report initial runway 1-2. Flap 1. Flap 1, Chief Director, inside of the T-38 over gate for JL. Flap 1, direct initial. Raise to my base gear, stop 1-2. Raise to 1, runway 1-2, wind 260 at 6, cleared to land. Cleared to land, raise to 1. So once I hit what's called the perch, it was a left turn, 180 degrees, descending to roll out on final. My base gear stop call was late because of all of the radio traffic in the pattern because it was just very, very busy, and they have priority. Tower kind of knew where I was, so it wasn't a huge urgency to get that call out. Baron 1 to follow F-22, 90 to initial runway 1-2. Flap 1, short initial, 1-2, full stop. Flap 1, break departure in traffic, 4 to 4, F-16, departing 1-1. Flap 1, departure in. So you can see the T-38 flies a very shallow approach, but once you're landed, you get into what's called the aero brake to let the aerodynamics of the aircraft slow you down. Also, you notice I landed on the left side of the runway. We usually alternate left and right side of the runway in case somebody's behind us that they have to keep going or the brakes don't work, they have to take a cable or whatever. They can take their half of the runway, I can take mine, and then you clear cold. So it's standard not to land right dead center line. You land one side or the other. And then slowly lower the nose, fly it onto the runway, and stop. So the other reason I stopped flying with race 01 is because a lot of controllers would call race is 01, which sounds like race is 01. So when they kept adding the S, I was like, you know what? I'm done. Let's be Nomex from here on out. So I stopped flying with that call sign forever. But that's it. This was an overhead pattern coming back from a great day of flying in the Florida panhandle. Really enjoyed flying it, miss flying the T-38. And I hope you got something out of this and enjoyed this flight.