John Remker never intended to become a pilot. He grew up on a small farm in what seemed the middle of nowhere with his mother, father, and several siblings. Sure, there was a small village nearby to sell goods to, but it would take at least half an hour to arrive there on horseback.

Remker was weighted with responsiblity. One of the oldest sons, he had to wake up before the sun rose and feed the livestock, tend to the wheat, and milk the cows. His family helped him, of course, but he always felt to be the one in charge.

One day changed his life forever. John was sitting on the front of the farm, facing the dirt road while taking care of his baby sister as his other brother, Steven, kept his other siblings entertained. John had been eagerly awaiting his father's arrival; it had been market day in the village and crops were booming. Already he could see the new clothes and baubles his father would bring.

As soon as John saw his father coming down the road in his old, horse-drawn carrige, he could sense something was wrong. As he got closer to his family in the carriage, John could clearly see his solemn -disallowed_word-basicaclly the only people he had even known), John believed his sudden mood swings to be a result of his family isolation.

Aside from that, one fine day John was in training with many others when a short pet John didn't recognize ran up to the officer teaching then about what to do when your plane has stalled. The pet whispered something in the officer's ear and his face turned pale.Unter Angriff..." He muttered, and then unwisely said aloud, in front of all to hear: "Under attack... A trench nearby is under attack!" A wave of panic swept through John's group, and the news spread like wildfire. Without meaning it, suddenly the whole group of novice pilots were scrambling about in a havoc.

GO!GO!GO!" The officers shouted angerly at the pilots. "Go help our brothers on the front!" Some officers even took off themselves. John's mind, eyes, and feet raced to find a suitable plane to take off in. After what seemed like hours but had been only minutes, his eyes came across one last plane, a two-cockpit.

Rushing over to it, John hastily strapped on his helm and snapped on his goggles. He was about to put his leather jacket on when he realized that he already had it on. When he looked up he was suprised to find another pet, a red Korbat hastily tying the straps of his own helm. Whenhe noticed John, he muttered, "Manfred A. Von Rictofen," John answered, "John Remker," "It's a pleasure," Manfred mumbled as he buttoned his jacket, not sounding like he really cared. John noticed that Manfred eyed the steering.

Don't even think about it," John replied. "Why not?" Manfred answered, crossing his arms. "I was here first, I get to choose." John said indignantly. "Rubbish. I'm the more experienced pilot." "Oh really? How many battles have you been in?" "Well..." "Aha!" "How many battles have you been in?" "Err..." "There you go. I've been on quite a few training flights myself-" "Oh, and why the h-

Before either one could retort again, an angry officer stormed in and yelled louder than a plane's engine; "If you two don't take off immediately, I may as well dismiss you both! GET ON THAT AIRSTRIP AND HELP THE FRONT!" That got them moving. Manfred, being closer to the front cockpit, leaped in. John growled and took the guns in the back. A few seconds before they took off, Manfred made a face at him, and John one back, and then they were airborne.


XXX

So, where are we headed?" John inquiried.I'm the pilot, that's my business." Manfred answered. John cursed to himself and fingered the guns. If only they were the steering... John was snapped back to his senses when he heard gunshots ahead and realized that they were in the battle zone.

Planes whizzed this way and that and had it not been for the painted air force logos it would have been impossible to tell which plane was on what side. Luckily, Manfred spotted a lone enemy plane near enemy lines. He dove towards it, gaining a dangerous amount of acceleration.

Hey!" John yelled in suprise at the plane's sudden movement. "You shouldn't do such dangerous turns, it could stall the engine if you turn too suddenly." Manfred didn't look back, but John could tell that he was smiling. "Oh, you mean like this?" Manfred smirked, making another sharp right turn while still following the ememy plane. John gritted his teeth angerly and grabbed the guns firmly in his paws. Shooting at the enemy plane in front of him, he aimed so that the bullets barely made it past Manfred's head. "Oi!" Manfred shouted, startled, and John chuckled.Before either could continue, a sudden noise came from behind them:
BAM

John looked back and saw a blue enemy plane closing in on their 5 o'clock. He also noticed that the tail was relatively loose and had several bullet holes through it. "Great," He mumbled. "Manfred, we've got ourselves a bogey, five o-clock, and the tail's loose!

Manfred swerved left so that John could get a better shot, and John did not take his responsibility lightly. He aimed quickly as he could, hopefully at the engines or the propellers, maybe the pilot. He heard the rat-a-tat-tat of his gun, and perhaps a hissing afterwards, and before John could turn around he daw the whole frontside of the plane alight. Manfred, who had been looking at the plane casually, said, "First kill of the day..." He then turned back to the steering. "Beginner's luck," John heard himself grumble as they steered back to the battle.



XXX

Landed and back on the ground, John hastily untied his helm and removed his goggles. Shortly after they had returned to their origional position, John and Manfred learned that the battle had ended. After several minutes of bickering, John was gald he could finally get away from Manfred, as both were learning to despise each other very much.

Shortly after John began unbuttoning his leather jacket did he realize that and officer began walking hastily over to them. Oh no, John thought, alarmed; Perhaps he heard me bickering, and now we'll be chastised harshly, or even worse, dismissed for good! John and Manfred both stood to attention as the officer approached. He gave both of them a stern look and began to speak. "That was... some of the best hundfighting that I have ever seen! You two are quite the team, and I do declare that you both shall train together henceforth!"

But..." Manfred started, aghast. "Ah, no need to thank me, my boy. With you two on the team, you'll be promoted in no time!" John and Manfred stared at each other incrediously, sure that they had just ruined their careers.

XXX

Eventually through the course of time, John and Manfred grew a steady rivalry and, admist it all, a sort of friendship. Both flew through training when paired together, and even the highest-ranking officers had to admit that they made an amazing team. Eventually, the small, novice, training division had to let them go. Wherever they were sent after that, both of them went together, even if it be one-cockpit planes. Both had trained the other with plently of disipline. Though both went through many Squadrons, perhaps the most memorable for both was their last stop, Jasta 11.

Nicknamed 'The Flying Circus' for its brighly colored planes, Jasta 11 was perhaps the first when it came to kills. Morale rose high when Manfred joined (John joined at the same point) and soon the Jasta was fling high, like true heroes do or die.

Planes of Jasta 11:



The Halberstadt



The Albatros D.III



The Folkker DR.I*



The Folkker D.VII*

More soon to come.

*NOTE: The names of these planes had to be changed becase TNT doesn't like them. D:

Pilot lingo is a rather intresting subject when you study it. Of course, if someone told you that there was a bogey coming up at angle zero would you understand them? Probably not. Here's what you should know:



When a pilot is taking about a planes being on his four o'clock, this doesn't mean that a plane is going to arrive at four, or what time it is. Rather, it refers to the position of the enemy plane. Take a look at the 'clock' above you, for instance. You would not want a plane on your six o'clock, as this is right behind you. Ideally, you want the enemy plane at your 12 o'clock so it will be easiest to shoot.

Other words to know:

AAA Anti-Aircraft Artillery

ACM Air Combat Manuvering, a.k.a. dogfighting.

Ace- A pilot that has shot down five or more enemy aircraft.

Angels- Altitude measured in thousands of feet. i.e., 'Angels Thirteen' refers to 13,000 feet.

Angle of Attack (AOA)- Angle of the wing relative to the forward flight path of the airplane. On any aircraft, too great an angle of attack will cause the wing to stop flying (stall), as airflow across the upper surface is disrupted.

Angles- Gaining angles on a dogfight opponent involves maneuvering for a shot from astern. The ultimate in an angles fight is an angle of zero — straight up the enemy's tailpipe.

Bandit- Dogfight adversary positively identified as a bad guy. Hostile aircraft.

Beaded up- Worried or excited.

Bingo- Minimum fuel for a comfortable and safe return to base. Aircraft can fly and fight past bingo fuel in combat situations, but at considerable peril.

Birds- Aircraft

Bogey - Unidentified and potentially hostile aircraft.

Bounce, Tap- Unexpected attack on another aircraft.

Bravo Zulu- Praise for a good job.

CAVU- Ceiling And Visibility Unlimited: the best possible flying weather.

CEP- Circular Error Probable. The average "miss" distance of ordnance hits from a given aim point, such as a target bulls-eye.

Check Six- Visual observation of the rear quadrant, from which most air-to-air attacks can be expected. Refers to the clock system of scanning the envelope around the aircraft; 12 o'clock is straight ahead, 6 o'clock is directly astern. Also a common salutation and greeting among tactical pilots. Keep an eye on your behind, be careful.

Cherubs- Altitude under one thousand feet, measure in hundred. (i.e., 'Cherubs four' means 400 feet)

Colorful Actions- Boasting, showing off, or otherwise ignoring safe procedures while flying.

Dash Two- The second plane in a two-or-more aircraft formation; the wingman.

Dot- Refers to how a distant aircraft looks on the horizon, ("I'm a dot" means "I'm out of here").

Driver- Pilot

Envelope- The maximum performance parameters of an aircraft; flying at the edge of the envelope can be both exciting and dangerous.

Fangs Out- When a pilot is really hot for a dogfight.

Fangs Sunk in Floorboard- When a fighter pilot boresights on a kill but ends up getting shot himself.

Feet Wet/Dry- The former means "over-water," the latter "over-land."

Flathatting- Unauthorized low-level flying and stunting--thrilling, sometimes fatal, usually career-ending if caught.

Go Juice- Jet fuel or coffee.

Goo- Bad weather that makes it impossible to see; in the clouds.

Gripe- A mechanical problem on an aircraft. An "up" gripe means you can still fly, a "down" gripe means you can't.

Hop- A mission, or flight

Jink- To maneuver violently to avoid a threat.

JO- Junior Officer

Kick the Tires and Light the Fires- Formerly, to bypass or severely shorten the required routine of physically inspecting the aircraft prior to flight. Currently meaning "Let's get this aircraft preflighted and outta here pronto!"

Knife Fight in a Phone Booth- Close-in, slow-speed aerial dogfight with a nimble adversary. Often just called a "knife- fight."

Lost the Bubble- Got confused or forgot what was happening.

Loading/Unloading- Increasing or decreasing angle of attack and G's.

Loud Handle- Lever or grip that fires ejection seat.

LSO- Landing Signal Officer. Squadron member with considerable experience in carrier landings, responsible for assisting others onto the deck and for grading their efforts. Also known as "paddles."

Mort- Killed.

NFOD- No Fear of Death.

Nugget- A first-tour aviator.

Nylon Letdown- Ejection and subsequent parachute ride.

Oppurtunity to Excel- A disagreeable job without the time or resources to properly complete.

Padlocked- To have a bogey firmly in your sights.

Pass- The point at which fighters, closing head-on, flash past each other. Also, an attempt at landing.

Playmates- The pilots of other aircraft on the same mission as you.

Pole- Control stick

Prang- To bump, crunch, or break an aircraft.

Punch Out- To eject

Quick Fix- Stop-gap measure change to repair an aircraft quickly.

Ramp Strike- Landing short in the ramp area, resulting in a crash.

RAG- Replacement Air Group. Squadron in which newly trained pilots are introduced to, and trained in, a particular aircraft type. The official name is FRS (Fleet Replacement Squadron).

SA- Situational Awareness. An all-encompassing term for keeping track of what's happening when flying. SA involves knowing what your airplane is doing relative to its envelope, where your adversary is and what he's up to, where the ground is, the status of enemy threats on the ground, and hundreds of other variables. Loss of situational awareness is often cited as a contributing factor tomany military-aviation mishaps.

SAR- Search and Rescue

Section- Two aircraft operating together as a tactical unit.

Shoe- Short for "blackshoes," a derogatory term for nonflying personnel; aviators wear brown shoes.

Smoking Hole- An airplane crash site.

Speed of Heat, Warp One- Very, very fast.

Sweet- Up and working.

Tank- Refuel

Three-Nine Line- Imaginary line across your airplane's wingspan. A primary goal in ACM is to keep your adversary in front of your three-nine line.

Throttle Back- To slow down, take it easy.

Tiger- An aggressive pilot.

Tweak- To fine-tune or adjust.

Up- Working, not broken.

Up to Speed- To understand or to know what's going on.

Warm Fuzzy- Feeling of confidence or security. When things feel right.

Wingman- Second pilot in a two-plane formation. Responsible for ensuring that his leader's six o'clock remains clear.

Zero-Dark-Thirty- Technically a half-hour after midnight, but commonly used to describe any event that is scheduled to take place after midnight and before sunrise.

Zoombag- Flight suit.

I never though that I'd have adoptables for this page... ever. But frankly I came up with the idea of adoptable planes! Pretty spiffy, eh?
If you want a plane, please do not remove the link or alter it (that's what customs are for!). Take the code below and replace 'COLORORNAME' with any of the desired colors below, or if it's a custom, then your pet's full name.
<a href="http://www.neopets.com/~Remker"> <img src="http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h203/a_tale_of_two_lupes1/COLORORNAMEplane.jpg" border="0"></a>




Frankly, these adoptables work with any species. If you want a custom, just neomail me! I accept three at a time, sometimes more. If you do want a custom, please tell me the following:
What you want the main color of the plane to be
If you would like any special design/symbol for the wings and/or tail
What color you want the propellor tips to be
If you would like to have your pet's name (or other) on the side of the plane
If you want any variations in color, and if so, how? (i.e., Blue wings with a neon-green plane, etc.)

Customs to do:
1.
2.
3.


Custom pickup:

I know that you're probably wondering what John looks like, so, ta-da! Okay, it's not exactly Pablo Picasso, but I think it's decent for mspaint.

NOTE: If you do quad adopts, I understand that John's design may be a little hard to do. But don't fret; his quad design is relatively easy. Just remove everything but the jacket, helm, and goggles. If you want, you can put the goggles up on John's helm, like he just finished a flight. Or you could give him a red scarf with or without the jacket. But, you know, have fun with it. x3

Mein Toybox: