OOC: I moved your meeting here.....

She motions to a seat in front of her desk as she sets her tablet on the arm of the couch.

The office is fastidiously tidy, she was not kidding about being a neat freak. One gets the sense that a white glove inspection would leave dust, rather then pick any up.

A few items of note bedeck her domain. Flanking a low set bookshelf are flags of the Finnish Air Force and the Lapland Air Command (The parent command of Fighter Squadron 11). On the wall between the flags is a portrait of Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim. On the bookshelf is a budding plant (no blooms yet) in a pot that is clearly a spent 55mm shell casing. There is also a coffee pot (CP), full and waiting. A large flatscreen on wall behind the couch displays a snow-filled vista that is likely an image of home.

http://robotechrisingsun.wdfil...oss-annex/Office.png (Office; really rough rendering)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lapland_Air_Command
https://upload.wikimedia.org/w..._Mannerheim_1940.jpg

She pours herself a cup of coffee and offers some to the Captain.

"I saw you in there during recovery operations. Heard good things, so when your name came up..." She shrugs as she takes a seat on the couch, but not before closing the door a bit, not fully, closed enough to let others know a meeting is in progress, but open enough to hear whats going on outside.

"You'll be quite busy." She says. "We'll need a training plan and schedule to go with it as soon as possible. And, as you've already noticed we are under-strength."

"On top of that, you will be my back-seater." She says, and withdraws her glasses again and then picks up  her tablet. "I'm sending you the specs on our bird, it's...a handful." She remarks with a wry grin.

"We call her the Kiroileva Siili. It means Swearing Hedgehog." She adds. "'Hedgehog', because she has blisters, antennae and other 'spines' everywhere. 'Swearing', because that's what you will be doing in the back seat trying to keep up with it all." She finishes with an impish grin. Next to her, Lopez suppresses a chuckle.

OOC: Please see the specs for here link to a message in this game (Msg #4)

"I'll be honest, the FAF has no role for two-seater aircraft outside of training. Our 'Siili' is essentially a flying systems laboratory." She shrugs. "You're going to have your work cut out for you." She says, raising her coffee mug in salute, then sips.


OOC: Yes, the Swearing Hedgehog is a thing, and this image is the aircraft's nose art.
https://finland.fi/wp-content/...5/3394-swear-gif.gif
This message was last edited by the player at 05:55, Sat 27 Oct 2018.

The captain warms up his cup of coffee and takes the seat offered.  He pulls a cigar from a glass tube and offers it to her.

"I guess my victory dance is contraband."  He chuckles at that and slips it back into his pocket, pats it.  "Saved for a special occasion, Major.  Maybe if this gong show makes it back to Earth, I will have occasion."

He nods, taps his tablet, shrugs.  "I will go over the specs.  I suppose you already know I had a dual major in Electrical and Mechanical engineering, with a minor in Astrophysics.  I might be able to take care of her.  Might."

"Training, huh?  Can you give me an O-1 to do the paperwork for that?"

He sets his tablet to a side, matches her toast.

"You know, before doing this I was inserted into a lot of bad places with good people.  And among them a Finn-lander is a legend.  They call him Larry Thorne, he was born Lauri Törni."

A big grin of his own.

"I got a lot of respect for how badass Finns are, Major.  Let's give these alien sons-a-bitches hell."  A sip.  "You don't worry about the toys, I will sit in the back seat and help you kill.  A decade as a Combat Controller might have prepared me for the moment."

She takes the proffered 'contraband' and looks it over before handing it back with a nod.

She nods regards his background. Then gets a slightly guilty look on her face.

"Your O-1 is our very own Lt. Jenssen." She says.

"Saw his exhibit at the Sotamuseo in Helsinki during my second stint there." She nods. "Voted most courageous of the Mannerhiem Cross recipients in 2006." She adds proudly.

She nods and raises her mug at the sentiment regards the aliens. "Tulta munille." She says.

She takes a few long sips from her coffee, allowing silence to permeate the office for a moment or two.

"We have pilots from many disparate nations, and branches, in our squadron. Training will follow more or less along FAF standards, but Captain Lopez and myself are more then open to adopting best practices from wherever they may be found." She says finally then looks up.

"I suppose I should ask if you have any questions for me?"

He tries repeating, slowly, her toast.

He chuckles about the cigar.

"Jennsen?  Oh this will be interesting.  He is a.. passionate.. man.  He needs to keep it in bounds.

He sets down his mug and runs both hands through his stubbly hair and then sits back.

"I have met him already, and I have a feeling he doesn't love me much.  But hey, we haven't had our first date yet."

He perks a brow at the questions.
"So.. you are going to hold me responsible for FAF training, hmmm?  Got a manual on that, in English?"

"One of the reasons I paired you. You are right, he has passion, but, he's very much Ready, Fire, Aim. I'm hoping with you running herd on him, that will change to Ready, Aim, Fire." She notes.

"The manual is on the share drive, translated. But, it's not as bad as you think. Since the VF-1 is a universal platform, the technical, mechanical, and flight training for it is standard across the board, and, since we are under a UN command umbrella, doctrine and strategy is also same across the board. Where we differ mainly is tactical doctrine. I'm sure you noticed we depart from the four ship flight layout used by the US armed forces and the Russ." She says looking into her cup.

"Back home and a lifetime ago, one flight would be relegated to flight and conversion training, leaving 12 as operational birds. Up here, that's not really needed." She adds.

"Beyond that, it's just little things like PT regimen and protocol." She shrugs.

OOC: https://puolustusvoimat.fi/doc...99/SK2017_ENG_lr.pdf   A GREAT resource!!! Culturally; Chapter 3's sections on cleanliness and punctuality are very revealing.

"Fair enough, he could use a hand.  How long has he been in the military, you know offhand?"

A chuckle.

"Oh, that was a joke Major.  I figured you had it translated.  I will review it."

He perks up at the mention of PT, grins.

"Mandatory PT, I like the sound of that.  I will work out a regimen with a little variety."  He stops short of rubbing his hands together with glee.

A nod "Three pairs, if we got the people for it."

She nods.

"Ah, I see. You'll find we are a literal people." She notes, regards the joke. "But not without humor." She adds.

"I've always preferred individual PT, but I know some of the Western nations are more used to group activities. My sense is that, if the person can pass their PT test by either individual or group training, than I'm fine with that, if not, then steps will need to be taken." She says.

"That said, I am fond of group sports activities. And, I'll be more than happy to endorse Sports Badges for non-Finn personnel. I'll issue them, even if their parent organizations may not authorize them for uniform wear once they return to them. But while in the 11th the can wear them when appropriate." She says. It may seem a little thing, but, it might be a good way to foster higher morale.

"One other thing before we need to return lest we be sorely missed. Back to the topic of Ready, Fire, Aim. One of our junior officers. Lieutenant Levina. I see a lot of potential, she was tossed into flight lead when the shit hit the fan and performed admirably. I could have taken over command of the flight once we'd, well, I'd determined her rank was junior to mine, but I didn't. I saw no reason to. Again, she performed admirably, which, is why I requested her for this squadron. But, she is a bit, whats the term...'Gung Ho?'" She says, scratching her chin. "Which I guess is fitting as she is one your countries Marines." She says as she sips from her mug. "I'd like to move her back into a Flight Command position, but I think a bit of grooming is required first. I've spoken about this with Captain Lopez, so, he is aware, and I'm letting you know so that you will be as well. Especially given your new department responsibilities." She pauses and then adds. "You can of course tell her as much, or as little, of this as you wish, and in any way you see fit. I leave that to your discretion."

She sits silently, waiting to see if Captain McIntyre has any more questions.

He seems to ponder.

"Sports... hmmm.  I will put a suggestion board up, and see what our people want to do.  And.. a little recreational martial arts might be interesting too."  He winks.  "I won't hurt anyone."

He slowly nods, chuckles and shakes his head.

"She needs to be more tactical, hmm?  We will want to be conservative, if we are as outnumbered as I suspect we are.  I will keep an eye on her, see if I can help.  Good thing is she will have infantry training, so we can talk intelligently on those terms.  One thing about Marines, they are a bit more balanced."

"We'll have more time to talk later, commander.  Thanks for taking me aside."

She nods regards the sports and the Martial Arts.

"Sounds like a plan. I look forward to it."

She stands and seem's reassured based on what he has said about Marines.

"Very good, I appreciate it. It was my pleasure. I know I've given you a lot for your plate." She says and shakes his hand. "My, and Captain Lopez's, doors are open, if you have any concerns, please bring it to our attention."

On the way out she refills her coffee, and offers the same to McIntyre.

He nods and stands, taking a refill on his coffee as well.

"Thanks, commander.  Look forward to working with you."

He heads to his office to take stock.