Deployment Question

robofos

robofos

Well-Known Member
Hey I'm another college grad with 300 hours in airplanes, and considering joining the military as a pilot. I have talked to recruiters from different branches, and got some basic info from them, there's some good info on these forums too. I am still hesitant, because I don't know what I may be getting myself into.

Are there any active duty aviators out there that can share? What's deployment like? Where are you and what are you doing? I haven't got any info from recruiters or the miltary websites on what to expect for deployment. Its a reality they seem to avoid talking about up front. I really don't wanna come home in a box, and I know that it's a possibility. How do you get around that? How do you cope with all the death and destruction that you may have caused? Pretty deep and serious stuff right? That alone is my main concern with joining the military, and Its hard to get a real idea of what to expect.

Thanks!
 
robofos said:
Are there any active duty aviators out there that can share? What's deployment like? Where are you and what are you doing? I haven't got any info from recruiters or the miltary websites on what to expect for deployment.
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You're where they send you. Can be a combat zone, can be a boring zone. Can get shot at, or maybe not. It really all depends. Be ready and available for any contingency.

Its a reality they seem to avoid talking about up front. I really don't wanna come home in a box, and I know that it's a possibility. How do you get around that? How do you cope with all the death and destruction that you may have caused? Pretty deep and serious stuff right? That alone is my main concern with joining the military, and Its hard to get a real idea of what to expect.

Thanks!
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What can they tell you? With all the various possibilities out there, they can't really answer your question and cover all the different contingencies.

You get around coming home in a box, by it not being your time to go. If your number is up, its up. Simple as that.

Pretty deep and serious stuff? Are you REALLY asking that? What do you think it would be otherwise? Fun?

It's a job and you do it. You can't really be prepared for it, you just have to experience it for yourself, and either have it in you to do the job, or not. Whether it being boring staff work, or frontline combat.
 
I'm currently on my 7th deployment. I left my airplane job at home and came here to do staff work. There's really no typical deployment. A lot will depend on the branch of service, and they community within that branch. I've done everything from flying over combat zones from a carrier, to moving humanitarian aid to victims of natural disasters, to just doing regular training but from an overseas base instead of home. Currently I'm doing something different than all of that, and about as far away from flying as one can get.

How I cope with what damage I may have caused? For me, it's about duty. I went where I was sent, and I did what I was told. I'm a cog in a gear of our nation's war machine, and sometimes that requires guys who are willing to do unspeakable violence simply because the President told us to. That may sound flippant, but I find peace in it, knowing that I've done the best job I could at what I've been asked to do. I've had plenty of friends who when flying one day and never came home, and honestly, it was harder dealing with that than whatever damage I've done to some bad actor who decided to pick a fight with the US.
 
Honestly if you are worried about deploying then you should probably not join the military
 
I agree with Ian, it doesn't sound like the military is right for you. If anything, I would suggest airlift at a Guard or Reserve unit and definitely not Active Duty.
 
I'd be troubled if someone wasn't worried about a deployment to a war zone. I was scared before I deployed to war. And I wondered what it was going to be like before the first one I went to.

The OP asked some legitimate questions in my opinion. There's nothing wrong at all with asking what it might be like in war and how people deal with the difficulties they face.

To the OP - Mike and Nihon are right - it is tough to give an answer because experiences can differ so much depending on what your job is and where you are at. All you can do is train harder at home than you expect to fight in combat. Training saves lives, and allows you to act in the face of adversity.
 
Ian J, thanks. I maybe should have just asked where everyone is at, what they are doing, and what they think of the whole thing. I am thinking about making the biggest decision in my life right now, and Im trying to get as much information as possible. I have seen other posts on here with guys eager to give information or talk to prospective military aviatiors. I am very interested in listening to active duty guys, vets, or guys still in training cause the only thing I know of the military is what i see on TV. I have a very high level of respect for you guys and I would take very seriously anything you have to say.
 
Military flying will definitely require challenges and sacrifices that will be difficult to identify and define before you are actually there. Having served as a military pilot, I still ask myself if I had it to do all over again, would I?

While the training and experiences were incredible, the toll it took on personal and family relationships was high.

If you have reservations at this point about military flying, I would highly recommend you explore a non-military option.
 
robofos said:
Ian J, thanks. I maybe should have just asked where everyone is at, what they are doing, and what they think of the whole thing. I am thinking about making the biggest decision in my life right now, and Im trying to get as much information as possible. I have seen other posts on here with guys eager to give information or talk to prospective military aviatiors. I am very interested in listening to active duty guys, vets, or guys still in training cause the only thing I know of the military is what i see on TV. I have a very high level of respect for you guys and I would take very seriously anything you have to say.
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Nothing wrong with asking questions about a very important decision. Experiences run the gambit, really. A guy kicking down doors in Falluja has a greatly different experience than a guy flying C5s in and out of country. A common thread though is as Calcapt mentioned - your time away from home can be great, and a lot of times, that is tougher than the conditions you're likely to face overseas. Deploying for 18 months, coming home for 12, and going again for 18 months can do some serious things to your head and can affect your relationships at home. It can, but different people manage it in different ways.


You said you were looking at different branches - what sort of military officer do you want to be?
 
Ian J and Calcapt are spot on. Even today, deployments vary so widely it's hard to compare. There are Marines deployed today to posts in Afghanistan where they only recently got electricity hooked up. I saw a picture in the paper about 2 weeks ago of a guy sitting in the dirt opening a Christmas card -- in March! There are other guys deployed today living in hotels and enjoying the good life.

The job you choose (or gets chosen for you) has a lot to do with your quality of life. Aviators usually (although certainly not always) deploy to an airfield, so the basic comforts of life are there. As Calcapt hinted to, there's another side to it. It's relatively easy for me to pick up, ship out, and work a job 12-18 hrs a day regardless of the conditions. I just put my head down and get it done. My wife, on the other hand, is still back home, all alone in our house, and trying to fill in for me while I'm gone. When I get to places where I can't talk/email her regularly, it's even harder. I was on a carrier in 1996, before there was shipboard email. We had 1 sat-phone, but it was secured often for security reasons because we were flying missions over Bosnia and Iraq. It took 2 weeks for me to ask her a question and get an answer. I nearly resigned my commission years ago because of the deployment tempo -- and that was before 9/11.

I just finished reading "House to House" by David Bellavia. You might pick it up and see what he says about his experience in the Battle of Fallujah and the toll the Army took on his family. I think itmay give you some insight to the questions you have. I couldn't put it down.
 
As far as Naval Aviation goes, the basic premise about deployment goes like this:

Flight school ~ 2 years depending on platform
FRS ~ 1-2 years depending on platform
Sea Tour - 3 years with most likely two 6 month deployments (some longer/some shorter)
Shore Tour - 3 years
Dissasociated Sea Tour - 2 years with at least one 6 month deployment, give or take
Department Head Tour - 2.5 years with at least one 6 month deployment, give or take.
Shore Tour - 2-3 years
Sea Tour - Either two years on a ship or one year unaccompanied over seas. I did a one year unaccompanied. Now, if selected for a command, this would be a 2.5 years tour or so.
Shore Tour - 2-3 years

Now, the above is in general. There can be a 6 - 12 month Iraq or Afghanistan GSA tour after your first sea or shore tour. Might be able to substitue the dissasociated tour with a GSA. I did everything above except the dissasociated tour due to taking so long to get through flight school (large wait times and knee injury).
 
as a heavy guy i'd be happy to answer any questions you have...and to clarify my first post i was saying if deployments are going to make or break your decision its probably not the right career field for you.....I guess I really can't answer much since the C-5 doesn't technically deploy, just goes TDY there, and i'm still in c-5 initial qual
 
Superfly7XAF said:
I agree with Ian, it doesn't sound like the military is right for you. If anything, I would suggest airlift at a Guard or Reserve unit and definitely not Active Duty.
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Guard/Reserve airlift (At least in the C-130 world) deploys just as much as Active Duty.

Now for my version of what's been said several times already:

OP: Naturally there is going to be apprehension about joining the military and deploying overseas. On the Air Force side, LOTS of aviators deploy anywhere from 4-8 months at a time, often in hostile areas. True we typically get sent to air bases (some helos crews may end up at Forward Operating Bases), where the creature comforts exist, however you're still getting shelled every other day by mortars and rockets. Missile Warning System indications and threat reactions will remind that what we do is no joke. Your training is what keeps your head level, and in the game.

It's not all bad though, the last time I deployed to Iraq, I had fun. Our crew got along and worked well together. I think that made the biggest difference in the world.

Best of luck in your decision.
 
OK Thanks to all who took the time to reply. Im getting the idea that deployment is unpredictable and different for everyone. I should probably ask a more specific question if I want a more specific answer. Don't have any idea what TDY or FNG is.... I found more info on baseops.net and Ill educate myself reading there. Ill also check out House to House, thanks for the recommendation.

What kind of officer am I looking at?? I think warrant officer, but Im not sure. I need to pick a branch first! What made you guys decide which branch to join?

To Ian on the C-5, How did you get into that position? How much time did you have to spend training before you started flying? How is flying that thing? Is it as cool as i think it is? I think that would be one of my top aircraft choices.
 
robofos said:
OK Thanks to all who took the time to reply. Im getting the idea that deployment is unpredictable and different for everyone. I should probably ask a more specific question if I want a more specific answer. Don't have any idea what TDY or FNG is.... I found more info on baseops.net and Ill educate myself reading there. Ill also check out House to House, thanks for the recommendation.

What kind of officer am I looking at?? I think warrant officer, but Im not sure. I need to pick a branch first! What made you guys decide which branch to join?

To Ian on the C-5, How did you get into that position? How much time did you have to spend training before you started flying? How is flying that thing? Is it as cool as i think it is? I think that would be one of my top aircraft choices.
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TDY = Temporary Duty. It's what civilians call a "business trip".
FNG = Eff'in New Guy. Due to the rules, I can't say it or dash it out, but you get the point. That term is usually referred to the folks just out of a school by those that have been there, done that already. The term sticks until you get experience (usually by deploying).

I don't represent the officer aspect of aviation, so I cannot really comment on the rest.
 
robofos said:
What kind of officer am I looking at?? I think warrant officer, but Im not sure. I need to pick a branch first! What made you guys decide which branch to join?
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The vast majority of military pilots are regularly commissioned officers, though the Army has a large portion of warrant officers among their aviation ranks. The Navy also has a very small flying warrant officer program, but I don't think they accept guys off the street for this program currently (ie you must be prior enlisted).

In terms of which branch is for you, that is definitely a personal decision. Quality of life, where you want to live, what kind of flying you want to do....all of these are things you should think about. For me, the Navy made sense; my dad was a Naval Aviator, I thought flying off boats would be about the coolest thing ever, I had always been interested in the aircraft the Navy flies, and I thought the deployments around the world would be pretty exciting. I've been in flight school now for a little over 2 years, and I just have a few flights left until I get my wings, so like Bunk22 said, it generally takes about this long to get through flight school for us. I think the USAF and Army have somewhat shorter programs, but I think that is mostly because they are more efficient with their scheduling, and in terms of not having you sit around for months at a time between stages of training waiting to class up.
 
robofos said:
OK Thanks to all who took the time to reply. Im getting the idea that deployment is unpredictable and different for everyone. I should probably ask a more specific question if I want a more specific answer. Don't have any idea what TDY or FNG is.... I found more info on baseops.net and Ill educate myself reading there. Ill also check out House to House, thanks for the recommendation.

What kind of officer am I looking at?? I think warrant officer, but Im not sure. I need to pick a branch first! What made you guys decide which branch to join?

To Ian on the C-5, How did you get into that position? How much time did you have to spend training before you started flying? How is flying that thing? Is it as cool as i think it is? I think that would be one of my top aircraft choices.
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whatever you do, don't post on base ops....they love ripping on the new guy asking questions over there...you should be able to find anything you need over there by a search.

I got to where I am by going to the Air Force Academy but there are other ways to get a pilot slot...basically i went to the academy for 4 years, got my degree then went to pilot training for 54 weeks. I had about 300 hrs of prior flight time but that didn't really matter. out of UPT it was my third choice, but I think it was a blessing in disguise that I got it. If I would have known the perks of it when I filled out my dream sheet I would have put it first. (What you will find though is that everyone says the exact same thing about what they fly)

The plane itself is awesome and massive.

Mikey_G said:
TDY = Temporary Duty. It's what civilians call a "business trip".
FNG = Eff'in New Guy. Due to the rules, I can't say it or dash it out, but you get the point. That term is usually referred to the folks just out of a school by those that have been there, done that already. The term sticks until you get experience (usually by deploying).

I don't represent the officer aspect of aviation, so I cannot really comment on the rest.
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bite your tounge, i've been to al udeid for 31 days :rotfl:
 
I was in a similar boat as you a couple years ago. I had decided to join the Army and become a helicopter pilot. I enlisted first as an air traffic controller, now I am putting together my packet for flight school. consider all your options, then decide and dont look back. some schools have age requirements, medical requirements, so dont take 10 years in deciding. I had to get eye surgery first. Just one of the few things that you have to change in your life to pursue a dream.
 
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