A pilot takes the full force of a fire hose on the apron, soaked to the skin and laughing, beside the camouflaged flank of his aircraft. The wetting down was the standard squadron welcome for a flier completing a final or milestone combat mission, performed with the enthusiastic cooperation of the base fire section. In units that lost aircraft and crews regularly, these rituals carried real weight: they marked survival as much as achievement, and every man watching understood what the ceremony really celebrated. Project: 219827