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Pilot Callsigns

Callsigns starting with " R"

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Razor
Fellow pilot who always made the sharpest turns and sharpest manoeuvers in combat training.
Rebound
Sim-aviator. Has been in so many rebound relationships that the name stuck. As a double entendre, it is believed that his plane must be made of rubber, since he hasn't figured out landing... yet.
Rhino
Big guy with a huge pimple on his nose, the spot went, the nickname did not
Ruble
Original callsign was dollar. He embarrassed the entire fighter pilot community by ACTIVELY competing for the "most eligible bachelor" award for some girly magazine. (Instead of just being a fighter pilot and doing what bachelor fighter pilots do.....) So he was emergency renamed to the lowest form of monetary currency--the ruble.
Rabbit
I was a late-rated guy - spent my first few years as a Security Forces officer...so named after the rookie cop in Super Troopers...couple that with the fact that my wife and I had three children separated by 27 months - no twins - so you can imagine the rabbit comparison.
Rabbit
Evidently the F-15E driver came a little "too close" to the lights on the approach end of the runway. (Chased the rabbit and killed it.) He always was fond of saying 'once an eagle, always an eagle', but that rabbit had no meat.
Radar
I got tagged with this by my MTI in basic. He said I looked like Radar from M.A.S.H. and having the name Walter didn't help. Oddly enough it followed me wherever I was assigned with me saying a word.
RADIO
Running Around Drunk Into Objects. Commanding officer of my first squadron
Radio
Consistently screwed up communications until they started calling me “radio boy” when talking to other people about my awful comms skills. and then just “radio”, eventually. It could be worse!
Rage
Synonomous with the dudes last name, but trying to take down your 6'4" 230lb WIC IP Operations Officer on your naming night doesn't hurt either.
RAI
Requires Adult Intervention. Pronounced as "Rye" A dumbass pilot who kept doing stupid stuff and ended up having a ‘buddy’ system so he’d stop getting into trouble.
Rain Man
One night in a drunken stupor he urinated on his passed out buddy.
Rainbow
I flew with this NFO in a reserve Hornet squadron. On his second flight out of NAS Lemoore he transmitted "check out that rainbow" over the guard frequency inadvertently. Apparently in response to a circular rainbow from a recent rain squall.
Rambo
Skinniest guy in the squadron
RAMROD
Involved an unfortunate encounter with an unlucky civi female... I learned that there IS such a thing as too much. (thought up by my staff members long before the super troopers film)
Ranger
Guy in my squadron that was from the city and never camped outdoors.
Ratdog
A C-17 pilot (Jeff Daniels) spotted several vehicles headed to the Iranian border in SW Afghanistan. After calling it in, two fighters did a "show of force" to check them out. They were fired upon and subsequently destroyed the vehicles. During the intel debrief, a young intel airman was impressed that the C-17 pilot was "a dog" for "ratting out" the Taliban... "A Ratdog". The EAG/CC was in the debrief and immediately named him.
Rattler
Guy was a FAMU grad, so it just worked out naturally...
Rattler
While at flight school, Miramar California "Fighter Town" I decided to visit the desert with some buddies. Lo and behold while walking, out of nowhere comes this mean diamondback rattle snake. He missed me but I had the s*** scared out of me. From that day on that was my call sign.
Raven
In dog-fight training, I always came in and picked off my team mate's target, after he had been trying to get a lock-on for some time. Hence the name "Raven."
Razor
Lt Col Gillette, 309 FS, Luke AFB. Pretty obvious one if you ask me.
RB
"Ricky Bobby" An F-18 driver who landed with the parking brakes set. The jet almost skidded off the runway, brakes caught fire, and the tires blew out. Said pilot jumped out of the cockpit and ran from the aircraft like a bat out of hell, not even waiting for the ladder to be put down. [Ed Note: after NASCAR racer R Bobby]
RBFCWK
Pronounced "Rib Fika Wik". Rejected By Fat Chick With Kids. B-course buddy of mine who thought he could get any girl in the bar, until he found out his beer goggles were still on. He woke up on her couch to find her kids playing with his flightsuit, then she kicked him out.
Ready
Ready-Fire-Aim!

He never planned the work out all the way, causing it to be done over again.

Reaper
A guy in my old FS. We'd be out dog fighting (training obviously) and after someone would take him out he'd go dead quiet and then pop up behind you and get you.. cheating little bastard if you ask me... he got busted though. Best callsign if you ask me.
Rectum
Lt. Colonel in JROTC, just graduated this year. Known school wide as an egotistical, know-it-all @$$ho1e, hence "Rectum." He also wrecked his first car, a '98 Ford Explorer in a "ran a red light" incident; also killed a bird that flew into his car while going 80 on the highway (it's still there, by the way) and resulted in a large dent in his hood. He's also an all around speeder, hence "Rectum" = "Wrecked 'em."
Red October
An avid reader of anything Tom Clancy, this guy spoke fluent Russian and his favorite book was Red October. Of course, he was also spotted pulling a "Red October" on a trip to Malaysia (Urban Dictionary, folks!)
Redeye
While flying out of our "Forward Operating Location" (FOL) at Sembach Germany, all the "old craniums" would stay up until the wee hours of the morning playing poker and drinking adult beverages, mostly scotch. I on the other hand would retire to bed at a respectable hour and even with a full nights sleep my eyes looked as if I had been on a three day bender....probably something to do with my red hair.... Redeye....was given and used for 22 years.......with a one year break while I was in Kunsan, where as the "Ops O" of the only fighter squadron (Juvats) I was given "Torch", again having to do with the red hair I assume......
Revlon
My fellow pilots in my ANG unit have little to no imagination. Wouldn't guess I was the only female aviator would you:)
Rexxxx
He landed close enough to his flight lead to be his ALE-50. It took a couple of 'x'-tra rides to get through initial qualification training.
Rhino
'We had 2 of these; had to do with their last name. To make the distinction they were subsequently known as 'Stupid Rhino' and 'Fat Rhino''
Ricky
Polish guy in an English squadron, actual name Miroslaw - even shortened to Mirek, most of the boys couldn't pronounce it, so they shortened it again to Ricky.
Ricky Bobby
The guys has two first names. Andy Jerry
Ricky Bobby
Received three speeding tickets in his first month on-station. [Ed note: named after the NASCAR driver]
Rico
Intense, and constantly armed to the teeth... like the psychotic penguin from the Madagascar movie, only hotter and female
Rico
CH-53E pilot on advance logistics det to LHD for an exercise. By the time we made it from Pearl to SoCal, I was always chatting with all the women in the Wardroom, so short for 'Rico Suave'
Riot
Flight Doc. Fitness nut always kept bottles of water in his helmet bag on left console behind throttle. One of his first flights while taxiing to the arming area, he reaches for his helmet bag and the handle snags the throttle advancing it to near mil-power. Random inputs on throttle - RIOT.
RIOT
Dutch Viper driver who misidentified the target and accidentally strafed the control tower at the Cornfield range. Rolled In On Tower - RIOT.

Miraculously nobody was injured, despite multiple direct hits to the control tower.

RIP-CORD
As I was free-falling in a skydive training complementation for my pilot training, had a nasty malfunction and spend too much time trying to disconnect my main parachute and then pull the ripcord of my reserve. After landing, one of the guys told me beside him was the skydiving instructor standing watching me fall like a stone to earth, and he in a low voice said PULL THE FKN RIPCORD OR RIP, PULL THE FKN RIPCORD OR RIP.... so my friend asked him what RIP standed for... and he said... PULL THE FKN RIPCORD OR REST IN PEACE...
Ripley
Believe it or not!!! - 69 stories (all true) prior to finishing MQT. To include JFS fire (ground egress), smoke in cockpit (ground egress), going to AB during a Mil form takeoff with the SQD/CC....
Roach
Like the bug im never seen in the light, i come out to hunt and feed at night and ive been called so crazy that i would be the only one to make it thru hell and come back laughing.i dont even blink at a 900 mph pass bubble to bubble at about 6 feet!
Rock
Wish it was something really clever, but unfortunately my first name is Richard, which then got shortened to Rick when I joined the RAAF. In basic survival training the boys quickly discovered that I don't exactly have good boyancy, in fact I 'float' about a metre under the surface! Rick quickly became Rock, as in 'floats like a... rock'. Here to stay unfortunately...
Rocket
Was told by this retired pilot of the 150FW that he "earned" his call sign in Germany flying F-4's. A 4-ship upon returning to base, on final approach he started passing everyone in his flight, he "forgot" to put his gear down.
Rocket
Close story about my Callsign. I actually got it in UPT while going down hill to our Aux Field, we were supposed to be in Idle with the Speedbrakes out and doing clearing turns. Since I was the first solo of the morning I decided to not put out the board or retard to idle. I wanted to see how fast I could get the mighty "Tweet" going. I didn't know there was an IP behind me who was trying to keep up (unsuccessfully) with me. I got caught and hence the name.
Rocky
Guy's last name was Stone.
Roid
Android or Hemorrhoid ?
ROLL
Had an in=flight aileron failure and started doing barrel rolls.
Romeo
Real name: Casanova
Romeo
Young man who flew L-39's for airshows and would always stop by to say hello to his group's maintainers whenever he could, ended up being good friends with most of them. Maintainers would always see him stopping at the security post talking to a young blonde security guard almost every day, but he denied any sort of romantic interest. Fast forward to a Top Gun movie night, where the one of my buddies, much to the young man's embarrassment, caught him making out with the security guard behind a storage shed. From then on, he was deemed "Romeo". And no, Romeo and Juliet never did work out.
Rommel
Tried to kill a tank with an AMRAAM during training. (After German Field Marshall Erwin Rommel, famous WWII tank commander)
Romo
Our instructor is from Texas and a big Cowboys fan. One of the students, being a Washington Redskins fan, told the instructor to take his Cowboys hat off and gave him crap the whole time. To get back at him we gave the student "Romo" after of course Tony Romo the Dallas quarterback
Rooster
Last name rhymed with Tyson (the chicken company) and he did pretty well in the henhouse (the bars)
Rotor
Ran Off The Only Runway
Rub
Last name Burdick. Say it with me now...
RUBMA
Last name "Johnson"
Rudderbutt
After trying to fly a biplane by the rudder and not using the ailerons. Quite funny when you consider I had never flown a plane before . They were going to call me crabby because of the way the plane was flown sideways and I said well it workes on the ground why not in the air.
Rudy
A short Marine Prowler pilot who actually walked on to the scrub team at Notre Dame.
Ruffles
F/A-18 driver who liked to take his favorite brand of potato chips up in the hell hole, a compartment behind the ejection seat. Due to the change in pressure at refueling altitude the bag popped and he freaked to his wingman thinking something had exploded. Was originally "shorty" after just meeting the height requirements.
Runitsa
Short story from my last name "Kop". During one of my first air-to-air training exersices with the west coast squad, I came upon a few other Eagles and i heard them saying "Run-it's-a-cop!"
Rushmore
Ellsworth AFB, SD B-52 driver - got bagged after climbing Mt Rushmore and sitting on Lincolns beard
RUSTY
Dude wouldn't shut up and loved to chatter; R U Still Talking Y
RUTRO
Travelpod fell off during a cross-country flight. In it were golf clubs, clothes, etc. His response when told about the pod was the sound Scooby-Doo makes when trouble comes a-knockin'. [Ed. note: "uh oh" in Scooby-Doo language becomes "rut ro"]

Other callsigns

Ragman , Rally , Rappin , Rascal , Rat , Ratbreath , RD , Rebel , Red , Redhot , Redman , Riddler , Rip , Ripster , Roach , Roach-Breath (R.B.) , Rocko , Rod , Roff , Root , Rube , Rudi , ...
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