Thinking of joining the Coast Guard??

I'm 99% sure CG does primary in FL and not Corpus Christi?

I heard the CG fixed wing bases aren't near as good as the helo ones, any truth?
 
PGT said:
I'm 99% sure CG does primary in FL and not Corpus Christi?

I heard the CG fixed wing bases aren't near as good as the helo ones, any truth?
Click to expand...

You might be right, the Coast Guard studs I've seen out here have been VT-31 types.
 
Mike D, the J models have been missionized since around the 2008 time frame. Currently we have 6 all located in Elizabeth City N.C. It's my understanding we have 2 more on order and the next Airsta to go J model will be Barbers Pt. Hawaii. Of course that's the plan for now until it changes.

As far as flight school concerned all primary training is done in Pensacola so the only students in Corpus are fixed wing guys going through VT31 for advanced. Regarding duty stations fixed wing folks have less choices than our helo brethren. For Hercs we have Clearwater FL, Kodiak AK, Sacramento CA, Barbers Point HI & Elizabeth City, NC. For Falcons & the new CASA we have Miami FL, Cape Cod, MA & Corpus Christ TX. We also have a VIP squadron based out Washington Reagan with 2 G-Vs. I wouldn't necessarily say the fixed locals are bad just fewer options.
 
I forget to add we have an operational squadron of CASAs in Mobile, AL in addition to the schoolhouse.
 
All I can add is that it is extremely competitive. I too have a BS degree with an A&P license, 2 years experience as an airline mechanic, and I'm 10 hours away from a civilian Commercial pilots license with a multi engine add-on (240 total hours flight time). The recruiter said the board would not be interested simply because my college GPA was a 3.34. He said to even get a look a 3.5 is required. I guess getting some average grades in junior college classes, such as psychology and literature, are really what makes a good candidate?? Please....
 
CGFlyer said:
To be a pilot in the CG you have to complete NAVY flight training or come from another service and apply for the direct commission aviator program. A pretty high percentage of our pilots come from other services probably in the 40-50% range. For civilians off the street you will need a 4 year degree to apply to OCS and flight school. Unlike most services you cannot get guaranteed flight school, you apply for OCS then while you are in OCS you'll apply for flight training. There are some programs available for individuals where you can get guaranteed flight slots but you have to go to certain universities and meet required criteria. The CG web page or recruiters have the most up to date info on those programs. Being a Herc guy myself we do not have NFOs in the CG our NAV & Sensor operators are all enlisted. Platform choice depends on needs of the service. When I went through you selected fixed wing or rotary wing the day you checked into flight school. The helo folks stayed in Pensacola after primary and fixed wing folks went to Corpus for VT31 advanced training. Over the last few years the CG was trying to plus up the fixed wing slots for the arrival of the CASA so a good number of pilots were forced to go fixed wing but I think the pendulum is swinging back now. Following advanced the majority of CG pilots go to Mobile, AL to train on their fleet aircraft. C-130 folks go to Little Rock or Tampa for their initial training. Overall great organization & missions regardless of platform you fly.
Click to expand...


My cousin flew the Herc in the USCG he wanted to go USN originally but got accepted to the USCG academy but he had one eye that was slightly under 20/20 and did not get flight training and was assigned to a ship but was picked up with a waiver and allowed to fly he said he never would have gotten a waiver in the Navy. So he was a LTJG when he started flight school and he also wanted helos but wound up fixed wing. But he had some good experience was stationed in BQN for a yr I think then went to Kodiak. Said it was great flying and great experience.
 
FWIW, Navy/USMC standards are no longer 20/20 uncorrected, and haven't been for about a decade now. 20/40 uncorrected minimum, correctable to 20/20 is the standard for Student Naval Aviator (SNA) or applicants. I'm sure your cousin probably was looking into it during a different time-frame, but those are the requirements today.
 
///AMG said:
FWIW, Navy/USMC standards are no longer 20/20 uncorrected, and haven't been for about a decade now. 20/40 uncorrected minimum, correctable to 20/20 is the standard for Student Naval Aviator (SNA) or applicants. I'm sure your cousin probably was looking into it during a different time-frame, but those are the requirements today.
Click to expand...

Yes your right he was in flight school in the mid 80's he is a pilot for Alaska Airlines now.
 
FXMXC said:
Yes your right he was in flight school in the mid 80's he is a pilot for Alaska Airlines now.
Click to expand...

Yep, that would have been the case back then. I got lucky and missed the old standards by a couple of years, as I am only 20/25 in one eye uncorrected. I think the change came around 2000-2001 timeframe.
 
///AMG said:
FWIW, Navy/USMC standards are no longer 20/20 uncorrected, and haven't been for about a decade now. 20/40 uncorrected minimum, correctable to 20/20 is the standard for Student Naval Aviator (SNA) or applicants. I'm sure your cousin probably was looking into it during a different time-frame, but those are the requirements today.
Click to expand...

So for SNFO, is it 20/100 uncorrected then, or something similar?
 
Honestly I have no idea what NFO is, but that sounds familiar. I knew guys who were like 20/80 who got picked up for NFO so it's at least that.
 
///AMG said:
Honestly I have no idea what NFO is, but that sounds familiar. I knew guys who were like 20/80 who got picked up for NFO so it's at least that.
Click to expand...

Those weird guys in the back of the planes that have VMFA(AW) written on the side of them..........:D
 
MikeD said:
Those weird guys in the back of the planes that have VMFA(AW) written on the side of them..........:D
Click to expand...

haha yeah, I really know very little about their world. So as not to appear to be the • single seat pilot hating on WSO's, I will say that the last time I "flew" with a WSO, it was an abortion. It was in the RAG, classmatte of mine and I, both with a raging 2'ish hrs of real Hornet time, we were doing an EP sim, syllabus flight for him, warm-body practice for me. Got a gear malfunction right after takeoff, we both went heads down to troubleshoot, and both of us (again, with a grand total of about 4 hrs combined of flying time in the Hornet and/or in the local area at the time) completely forgot/misheard/disregarded our clearance altitude. About 10 seconds and 10-12k feet after we blew through it, the grumpy old sim instructor put it on pause, and asked in about the most demeaning tone possible "will one of you two a-holes start flying this airplane already?". Lesson learned.....two is not always better than one, especially if neither are equal to one. I think we both let each other down on that one pretty equally, pilot or WSO not-withstanding. Debrief was amazing, one below for my friend, and just the stink eye for me that made me feel like I had just been caught sucking off a dude or something. One of the better lessons I have had in aviating in my time. Has served me well in the several real emergencies I have had since, as the only guy in the jet.
 
Thats interesting. So in the RAG, you can get tasked for No-Grade rides to go be a warm body for the front seat of a D model sim?
 
///AMG said:
FWIW, Navy/USMC standards are no longer 20/20 uncorrected, and haven't been for about a decade now. 20/40 uncorrected minimum, correctable to 20/20 is the standard for Student Naval Aviator (SNA) or applicants. I'm sure your cousin probably was looking into it during a different time-frame, but those are the requirements today.
Click to expand...

The standard changed in 1993, so about two decades now.
 
Yep, it didn't happen much obviously since there were so many of us compared to them to go around, but actually now that I think of it, I did do it once or twice after that with much better results, once I had enough experience to not have my head in my behind........but saying the "last time" just had a better ring to it :) It was always a bit of a challenge though, because as I got more experienced, I was used to running checklists, game-plans, etc by myself and not waiting to confer with someone else. As I'm sure you know, the single-seat mindset, while not the only good way, is a hard thing to get rid of when it no longer applies. If I ever do end up in a multi-crew aircraft after this whole Navy thing is done, I think that will be a big adjustment for me. Maybe you have had a similar experience going to rotors.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top