"Go Purple Onion"

[Hold West]

"Go Purple Onion" - What the heck does that mean?

 

[Deuce130]

What's the context?

 

[AdlerDriver]

Careful!!

I'd stop asking questions about that if I were you.

 

[Hold West]

I'd stop asking questions about that if I were you.

That's why I'm being completely non-specific about where, how and when I heard it, but let's just say it was on an open frequency, non-encrypted, unsecure, etc.

Subject dropped.

 

[Fury220]

Are you sure it wasn't "Go Purple Mushroom??" That would make sense if you were talking to a flight of Hornets.





I keeeed! I keeeed!

 

[CCDiscoB]

Actually, it's Execute Purple Onion and Abort Red Monkey. You can fill in the word “Go” as you see fit.

All I can say is that they’re code words, like you needed me to tell you that.

 

[SIG600]

I think this thread has probably reached the end of it's useful life... much like the Tomcat. Zing! (And I woulda loved the chance to fly it)

 

[frog_flyer]

I think this thread has probably reached the end of it's useful life... much like the Tomcat. Zing! (And I woulda loved the chance to fly it)

i cry everytime i watch top gun

 

[Fury220]

i cry everytime i watch top gun

That's odd, because I laugh my a$$ off.

 

[SIG600]

That's odd, because I laugh my a$$ off.

I cringe...

 

[GVFlyer]

... much like the Tomcat. Zing! (And I woulda loved the chance to fly it)

I dunno - peeing blood isn't near as much fun as it used to be...


GV

 

[SIG600]

That one's over my head....

 

[Eagleflip]

I don't know about the origination of "Purple Onion," but I can tell you second hand the story from the first Gulf War. If you need verification, ask JethroF15...he wuz there.

The 53rd Nato Tiger Squadron (TIGER TIGER TIGER....ROAR!) had deployed to Al Kharj AB in mid-Saudi, 60 nm south of Ryadh and close to Hell. Well, you couldn't quite see Hell, but you knew it was there.

During the deployment, the commander, a Lt Col Big's Bigum, had a habit of using the term "Purple Onion" to describe any maneuver, action or otherwise task that didn't have a name. "Ok, guys, tomorrow am at oh-dark thirty we'll get our asses up and head to the chow tent, then Purple Onion to the ops town to brief." It became part of the squadron vernacular, apparently.

One day at lunch, our intrepid Eagle drivers saw an abandoned brick...Brick, to you and the uninitiated, is a large hand held FM radio that all of the big wigs use. Huge (like their namesake) and unweildy, they are easily lost.

The Tigers found it. And, during their innocent and protracted glee at having found such a useless device, they decided to call none other than Raymond 6, the Command Post.

Now the Command Post is normally inhabited by gnomes who have no eyes and common sense, knowing only to pursue the truth through that second most useless item in an office-type environment, the checklist.

Our Tiger pilots called in their most professional voice over the radio, "Raymond 6, Raymond 6, this is Viceroy. Execute Purple Onion. I repeat, execute Purple Onion."

After about four seconds came the reply. "Raymond 6, roger sir. Executing Purple Onion."

Silence gripped the airwaves. No one dared to speak. They would interrupt perhaps the most difficult checklist ever known to the War, specifically the Purple Onion checklist.

The one that didn't exist. Neither did Viceroy, for that matter, but this didn't matter.

So, after a few guffaws, a dog pile (a generous helping of soft served ice cream) and general mockery of the Air Force in specific, our band of roving air monkeys decided to quell their treachery.

"Raymond 6, this is Viceroy. Cancel Purple Onion, I repeat cancel Purple onion."

They then left the brick where they had found it and went on their merry way, ignorant of the havoc they had created within the Command Post.

Evidently, having not found the Purple Onion checklist, the Command Post contacted every O-6 on the base and proceeded to alert them to the Purple Onion. Who knows what else went on, but the next day Bigs saw the boys in the Ops room.

"HOLY JEBUS, GUYS!" said Bigs, violently shaking his head, "Whoever did that Purple Onion thing knock it off! The General chewed our ass this morning at Stand Up (the daily how goes it meeting) about it. The Command Post went ape ******************** yesterday when that was called in!"

Ah, what bored pilots will do...

 

[TankerDriver]

Now the Command Post is normally inhabited by nomes who have no eyes and common sense, knowing only to pursue the truth through that second most useless item in an office-type environment, the checklist.

:laugh:

What's the first most useless item?

Great story. BTW, what happened to THAT Air Force?

 

[KCPilot]

I do miss it!

 

[Huggyu2]

God bless ya, EagleFlip!! Thanks for sharing that. That's the kind of stuff that the USAF historians SHOULD be recording.....

 

[SoundBarViolatr]

Ughhh...TACC...Commode Post...I miss the old Air Force. Whatever happened to the days when Min Crew Rest was a 4 letter word?? Either way, the experiences in the military is defintely unparalleled. Jeez, just the story behind a patch design was always a good nuf cause to crack a brain grenade.

A USAFR C5 FE/Corporate Jet Driver
(OMG its an enlisted guy up front!)

 

[Gorilla]

Great story Eagleflip. Purple Onion sounded to me, at the beginning of this thread, like some type of secret mode that would best be left unexplored in this media.

We had squadron-invented execution terms for a huge number of operational maneuvers. Getting aircraft to the merge against a BVR threat can be tough... thus maneuvers like the Chernobyl glower, Stack 'n' Rack, and the grandaddy of them all, the Polish heart attack.

 

[tomgoodman]

Military words

Besides code words and phrases, the military has come up with some great acronyms. My favorite was printed under an admiral's picture at NAS Roosevelt Roads, identifying him as FASOTRAGRULANT. What a title!!

 

[AdlerDriver]

Nice story Flip - I was at "the Bush" during the same time. We pulled the "Purple Onion" on the command post back in Germany too.

Too bad though, I was going to see how long we could string Hold West along thinking PO was something real. I think we had him going for a while.

No - I'm SURE he knew all along. :laugh:

 

[FL420]

I don't know about the origination of "Purple Onion," but I can tell you second hand the story from the first Gulf War. If you need verification, ask JethroF15...he wuz there.

Ah, what bored pilots will do...

And I was fairly certain AF JO's had their senses of humor beat and bred out of them. Classically funny.

 

[GVFlyer]

Great story, Eagleflip!

Makes you long for the days of playing Dead Bug on the floor of the Torrejon Officer's Club then tearing their urinals off the wall.

GV

 

[PHX767]

Great story, Eagleflip!
Makes you long for the days of playing Dead Bug on the floor of the Torrejon Officer's Club then tearing their urinals off the wall.
GV

Ahh, back when men were men, sheep were nervous, there were strippers and slot machines in the clubs, and beer was served at Commander's Call.

Back when a DUI was a youthful indiscretion, the dining in was a great event, and the smell of JP4 being converted into smoke and noise brought a smile to all...

 

[bssthound]

Flipper,
One of the all time best stories I've ever heard; and flying the mighty, mighty Phantom I served with several Vietnam Vets who could tell stories.

At the risk of being banned, it calls to mind a great saying I heard a few years ago:

"We used to drink whiskey and f--- women; now we drink diet coke and f--- each other."

 

[Huggyu2]

Flipper,
"We used to drink whiskey and f--- women; now we drink diet coke and f--- each other."

Shack. Sad but true.

 

[Fury220]

Dead Bug

Ouch. I just hurt my back.


Unfair calling deceased insect in the forum.

 

[Hold West]

Nice story Flip - I was at "the Bush" during the same time. We pulled the "Purple Onion" on the command post back in Germany too.

Too bad though, I was going to see how long we could string Hold West along thinking PO was something real. I think we had him going for a while.

No - I'm SURE he knew all along. :laugh:

Ah, no sorry, I was ignorant - except the "Abort Red Monkey" kinda gave it away, I was wondering at that one, sounded like you pulla my leg.

Now I am just going to be laying in wait for the opportunity to drop a Purple Onion on frequency...:bomb:

 

[jointops]

Flipper,

It's not just what bored pilots do. It's what bored pilots do while TDY. Whole 'nother level of fun to be had while TDY.

Happy landings,

 

[BoilerUP]

*sigh*

I get to miss out on all this fun because of "high interoccular pressure". At least I can live vicariously through FI...

Good story, Flip!

 

[Occam's Razor]

FWIW, "Abort Red Monkey" actually had a day in the sun. During Cope Thunder, 1986, a VMFP-3 (Marine PhotoRecon) RF-4B was making a photo flash run over the target in Crow Valley. One of the photo flash flares didn't eject properly and exploded inside the cannister. The blast severed the Hyd to the tail and the elevator went full down (nose up). The pilot and ARO were pinned to the seats as the Phantom corkscrewed through the air...somewhat horizontally.

The ARO was a bit of a body-builder and managed to do an impressive (against 8G's) push-up and yank the lower handle.

I've got a 3-view video of it, and the funniest part is the optic view from a "special" SAM site in Crow Valley that was tracking the flight as part of the exercise. The operator is giving a calm, mattter-of-fact narrative as the jet first appears...then as it starts to gyrate the voice gets excited. Within a second or two it is apparent the jet is headed for the site! The operator screams, "Ah-ya-ya!". The next sound is the mic being dropped and heavy, rapid footsteps out the door. (The jet impacted about 200m away).

The next voice is range control announcing "Abort Red Monkey!"

Ha! It was actually being used for real!!

Who knew?

For years that had been our squadron signal that we should knock-off whatever shenanigans we were up to...usually when the CO or another kahuna approached. "Execute Purple Onion" was used for spoofing grunts or women/USAF...often spoken into our wristwatches. We also used "Code Emerson" in the club to alert others to a nice rack, and "Buck Diamond Alpha" for a nice caboose (I have no idea why...).

Fun times.