Unless there is a mission requirement for it, why is the parachute being deployed at high altitude? On ejection seats we delay the main parachute deployment but use either a ribbon or aeroconical drogue for stability and reduction to a moderate descent rate. The timing of the main chute...
I have a US-spec 97 TLS and the stock header did have that squashed section. The Yoshimura system it has now obviously doesn't. Prior to the Yosh system I installed a Two Brothers full system and before any fueling changes were made the extra torque was enough to cause the clutch to slip as...
The bikes that ran in Superbike used a Yoshimura exhaust which doesn't have the "crimp". The cross-sectional area is roughly the same as the rest of the mid-pipe and exists solely for clearance of the chain and therefore to allow enough ground clearance of the retracted sidestand as it sits...
We brought in a GD&T specialist, James Meadows (link below), to do some in-house training for our engineers building aircraft crash-damage fixtures.
http://www.geotolmeadows.com
Here is North Carolina at the Fleet Readiness Center-East (Marine Corp VSTOL rework center). The first operational squadron, the Thunder Chickens (VMM-263), is down the road at MCAS New River.
We have a subsystems, structures, and acquisition FST here and will be the rework facility after they go operational. Unfortunately its reputation for unreliability and overcomplication has spoiled our enthusiasm.
Money generally isn't a motivator to work for the DoD, but the work they do at NSWC Crane (I assume your friend is an EE) is very interesting stuff. In general, there is also plenty of room to advance as the previous generation retires - the DoD is very top-heavy right now.
The felony WILL be an issue for him. It is possible to get cleared, but when there are other just-as-qualified candidates w/o it I can guarantee that the Navy's security agency, NCIS, won't bother to go past that on his record.
Being DoD, I can say that in my short experience there is little politics involved in working-level engineering. Get to the PMA level and you are no longer an engineer but a politician.
The services all differ on how much is contractor oversight, but the trend is unfortunately heading towards...
Depends on the group, but not usually. Do more with less is the current philosophy. Serving in the Reserves is an accepted fact like jury duty. We do a lot of cross-training to fill slots when people are called away.
Or you could consider working for the DoD or some other govt agency along with your Reserve commission. A large part of our population is former or current military and it's very common to have deployed co-workers.