The only time I have been air-barreled was while I was deployed... but just barely.
It was on my first rotation to Iraq, we had only been out of the US for about 32 hours and were in Kuwait doing all the dumb training that is required before you jump into Iraq.
So I walk over the the MWR (morale, welfare, and recreation), and grab a bottle of water and start watching some fellow soldiers bang some balls around. So after about 20 minutes of some SERIOUS barking back and forth between 6 or 7 guys about "you can't beat me", and "N___A you ain't sh*^"... I decide I will kindly ask if I can play.
So I step to the table and ask if I could get on the table... well "the best player" (who couldn't run 4 balls if his mortgage was on the line) says, "we don't play for free... you gotta pay to play whiteboy"
To which my response was, "I will be honest with you, I have been watching you all play for about 20 minutes, and I could beat anyone of you, playing one handed, and my bridge hand can never even touch the table"
To which there were lots of OOOOOOHHHHHH NO HE DIDN'T, and many other hysterenoics... But he said he wanted to play $5 a rack 8 ball... which was fine by me, I WAS ROBBING.
So, we both knew that neither one of us had access to cash, as they don't allow us to carry cash into country (they give you this stupid little rechargeable debit card thingy)... so for $5 a rack, over the course of a couple of hours I beat him out of $115, playing one handed, and him not winning A SINGLE RACK... NOT ONE.
At which point, we had to go to a recall formation for accountablility... well here comes the SUCK
He walks over to put his top on (we had taken our jackets off to play, and had on just tan T-shirts), and turns around and I notice he is a Sargent First Class... Senior NCO... E7...
at the time I am a very fresh E2 Private, with mosquito wings... he notices my rank and says
"You know that according to AR600-20 that gambling is not allowed across the ranks, and is considered fraternization... but you play pretty good white boy" and walks out...
He was right though, it's not like I could take it up the chain of command... as gambling in a combat zone is not allow...
SUCH CRAP!!!