Military musings from BlackOps!Jack

"Well, the gig was to learn how to fly and then become a bush pilot in Alaska." Jack looked sheepish and Hammond gave him a little knowing smile.

"I thought you were career military?" Daniel asked, the last of his beer sliding down the inside of his glass.

"I didn't plan on it," Jack explained. "But you see it's like this: I fell totally... head over heels."

"Sara?"

"Way before that. The F-100. Sweet plane." Jack shook his head wistfully. "No one's gonna fly prop planes after that."

Hammond's smile warmed and he settled further back into Jack's favorite chair. "Your first plane sure gets you, doesn't it?"

"Oh yeah." Jack stared off in the distance, lost in happy memory.

Daniel still looked slightly puzzled, picking up on undercurrents that he didn't quite follow. The military was certainly a foreign culture, with new nuances under every stone. The general threw him a clue. "No one joins the Air Force because they want to be soldiers, Dr. Jackson. It's a military truism that those who want to fight, join the Marines. Those who just need a job join the Army. And for those who need escape, well there's the Navy for that. Meanwhile those who want to fly join the Air Force."

"Fighting is mostly an unpleasant side effect," Jack added, making a face.