I pulled some strings to get out to Fallon, and I just loved every freaking second of it.

It is what everyone wants to do. If they want to be a tactical aviator and they want to get good in their jet, there's no better

place to go than to go to Fallon. You know, at the time you realize it, but you're kind of like

in the, you know, the mecca of naval aviation to be in Fallon for a summer cruise.

Fallon, as we learned from Dud on the last episode, lies in hours drive east of Reno, Nevada,

and what's known as the Great Basin. The high desert community, not far from a few Pony Express

stops of old, is surrounded by alfalfa and cantaloupe fields and builds itself as the oasis of the desert.

Now, my first time in Fallon was in the fall

of 1997. I was a brand new FAA 18 pilot assigned to an East Coast squadron, and we were out there

for exercises, and I'll tell you, the desolation of a high desert environment stood in stark

contrast to the cutting-edge tactics being honed at the naval air station situated

there. Only just the year before, Top Gun, the storied institution that turned around the Navy's

air war over Vietnam, left Fighter Town USA for the Oasis, trading Southern California beach sands

for Nevada desert sands. I was fortunate enough to be at Miramar in the heyday, and this was Fighter Town USA.

This was Jim DiMateau, Colanguido.

He retired from the Navy as a captain having logged over 5,500 hours in various tactical

fighters during the course of his career.

He still flies the F5 Tiger for a private

company that has contracted the Navy to develop upgrades for the airplane. This is where Navy

Navy Fire Weapons School, the bandits, this is where it all happened. All the Tomcat

squadrons were here. There was a feeling from the Top Gun world that it wasn't an echelon two command.

An echelon two command is an organization that reports directly to the chief of naval operations,

...