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Captain Butch Barnes
 Name: Butch Barnes Rank: Captain Callsign: Burner Description: If one had to pick a word to describe Burner, it would be fun-loving. This Marine officer is full of enthusiasm and loves to play around. However, make no mistake-he is ultra-serious when it comes to his duties. Burner is the unit's Special Operations officer, and commands its ground forces (himself, Cipher, and Buddha). He also is the Sea Bandits' foremost lady-charmer, though Chaser gives him quite a run for his money. If Burner is off-duty and not at the Bucket, one can be certain he is pursuing some new female quarry. Burner was originally an F/A-18 pilot, graduating with Spoon and Ice's Nugget class and even joining the Flying Bandits. However, one fateful carrier requal trip changed all that. On the day that Burner was scheduled to requalify on his carrier landings, weather over the Atlantic looked bad, and he was urged to wait until the next day. Colonel Kelly and Hammer were there as well, and though both said that Burner could catch up to the rest of the MEU's training schedule with few problems, he knew he was behind and had to get back. So, he went up anyway-and was still in the air when a massive storm hit the coast. Due to a lightning strike to his Hornet, he lost his instruments, and eventually ran completely out of fuel. Only a miracle allowed him to find his way back to the carrier and land safely-and he knew it. This experience caused Burner to reevaluate his belief system, as it were; previous to his flight, he always claimed to believe in only three things: himself, the Corps, and the structural integrity of his F-18 Hornet. However, after he was returned safely from what should have been death, Burner began to consider the bigger picture, and faced for the first time the existence of something spiritual that he could not explain. In order to deal with this knowledge, and to find a reason for his salvation, he turned in his wings and left the Flying Bandits. Though at the time Burner left he wanted to work with disadvantaged children, he later decided to go into Special Operations, where he was briefly reunited with his friends on a strike mission into Latin America. Though Burner loves his work in Special Ops, and being back with his friends (old and new), he misses flying dearly, and would give much to be able to sit in the cockpit of a Hornet again. And who knows-perhaps one day, he'll get his chance? |
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