Jumping into the fishbowl

Blindbat29

Well-Known Member
Been a long time lurker roughly from roughly about the time that Doug stood up this great site, thanks a bunch, Doug! Figured it was finally time to jump into the fishbowl and join the crowd. From what I’ve seen, this forum has a great vibe. Folks out there contributing their .02 both positive and negative…keeping it real.
Quick intro, once upon a time applied to USAF UPT, didn’t work out, even after an ETP…I’ll save the rest for beers one day. Have a lot of friends at least I hope so (just kidding), that are in the industry both private sector, and military. I’m currently the PIC (Person in Command) of my cubicle, and like to brag that I’m a DJ (Desk Jockey) to those that don’t know any better. My current employer, USAF, really doesn’t care what I do; as long as I don’t screw up…I’m just another cog in the huge machine that goes round and round. As long as I do my part, everyone is happy.
I’ve been thinking about flying for some time now and with the advent of the sequestration and the furlough of DOD employees, I don’t feels as secure as I once did. Huge assumption, but “flying” may be the way to go and has always been a HUGE consideration of mine. I know, I know, there are a lot of negatives, but the positives also still do exist. I recall many moons ago reviewing the many discussions of the hiring boom a few years ago and the “500 hr” requirements. Actually, almost made the jump, during that time, but hesitated, and waited to see how everything the ebbed and flowed.
Discussed a potential career change (ripe ole age of 42) a million times with a real good buddy of mine who just happens to fly for Atlas Air. He simply summed it up this way, “ Do you still look up when you hear a jet fly over…if you do, well, you’ve already made your decision, as the Nike slogan says, Just Do It.” Better to give it a shot, than to regret later in life that you at least didn’t try.
First things first, gotta work on the PPL and we’ll see how it goes from there. Maybe I’ll be hate it, maybe I’ll be a good stick, who knows…actually have a whopping four hours, from years ago. Pretty sure I’ll like it…now professionally it could very easily be a different ball game, and I’m sure it is.
So, in closing, to get the ball rolling, I’m jumping in feet first with Jet Careers.com as the first step to the big blue. I thank everyone in advance for any assistance provided, and most importantly their patience. I’ve got thick skin, so I truly appreciate no one holding back on their opinions, no worries.
 
Welcome. Can you say more about your job? Just curious what you do. Does any expertise you have over the years translate into any aviation related jobs? The cool thing about flying is you can go a lot of different directions once you put your time in on the bottom. For example, I trained this guy for his IFR years ago who went to Amflight and was a check airman there. I figured he'd work his way up to big airline pilot someday, no problem. Turns out he got a nice Air Ambo gig and he's happy being in one place, having a good schedule, and making under 100K a year. No big deal. Hopefully you can find a niche that works for you.
 
SInce you mentioned trying to get to UPT, that you are currently employed by Big Blue, and that you are now 42, is it safe to assume that you are just finishing a career and going to be collecting a military retirement as well as have the backing of a GI Bill as you begin this career change?
 
SInce you mentioned trying to get to UPT, that you are currently employed by Big Blue, and that you are now 42, is it safe to assume that you are just finishing a career and going to be collecting a military retirement as well as have the backing of a GI Bill as you begin this career change?

I assumed the OP to be a GS type who has now been furloughed twice in a six month period and who hasn't seen a pay raise in 3-4 years.
 
I guess I interpreted his reference to the furloughs as him wanting to avoid doing that type of work after the military. Selective reading, I guess...you are probably right.
 
I guess I interpreted his reference to the furloughs as him wanting to avoid doing that type of work after the military. Selective reading, I guess...you are probably right.

I see much of the "What's the point?" attitude from our gov civilians. The cog in the machine feeling is common among those I know. I hear "I'll take any early-retirement offer now and actually go do something with a purpose" often. The situation was different when growth and stability were the underlying assumptions. For all the problems the AF has with rated officer retention, I think attracting and retaining civilian talent will be its own unique problem in next few years. It makes me sad that this is where we're at.
 
Hey thanks for the responses! Going to try and respond to each discussion/questions...how the heck do you include the peach color text bubbles in the response? In the meantime I'll just the copy/paste method...pulling the trigger, here we go.

- Welcome. Can you say more about your job? Just curious what you do. Does any expertise you have over the years translate into any aviation related jobs? The cool thing about flying is you can go a lot of different directions once you put your time in on the bottom. For example, I trained this guy for his IFR years ago who went to Amflight and was a check airman there. I figured he'd work his way up to big airline pilot someday, no problem. Turns out he got a nice Air Ambo gig and he's happy being in one place, having a good schedule, and making under 100K a year. No big deal. Hopefully you can find a niche that works for you

Currently an Acquisitions guy (Contracting Officer) 1102 series, silly-villain (civilian), simply said, I "buy" things or put things on contract for the USAF. Unfortunately, I don't think my skillset translates well into the flying realm? But I will say though, I've had excellent networking opportunities of a lot AF guys getting out or planning to do. For example, my Atlas Air buddy that I mentioned in my posting was a tanker dude in his former life at the 909th, Kadena AB. I have another friend that's an Eagle driver at the 65 AGRS was a Shogun as well. One thing I've learned about this site is that apparently "networking" is key if one wants to get anywhere. Thanks for the idea of potentially using my current skillset to give me a leg up...maybe in the future after I've amassed a gazillion hours, it might be useful? Would definitely be nice though.

- Since you mentioned trying to get to UPT, that you are currently employed by Big Blue, and that you are now 42, is it safe to assume that you are just finishing a career and going to be collecting a military retirement as well as have the backing of a GI Bill as you begin this career change?

Well, that's where things get a little complicated, and I'm going to opt for the "save that for beers one day", Belgians please. I don't have a retirement per se, and have completed a separate career, been saving the coin for quite a while, juggling the priorities is going to be the hardest part. I WISH I had the GI Bill, from what I've seen it's a great deal in one has it, definitely a huge cost mitigator.

- I assumed the OP to be a GS type who has now been furloughed twice in a six month period and who hasn't seen a pay raise in 3-4 years.

Yepper, you are correct, and that's what brought me to the forums to start picking brains. It's definitely not fun, when the CC of the unit comes down TWICE in a six month period to hand you the "letter". Soon after he says, we'll see ya, when we see ya. You said, "pay raise", what the heck is that? That's about as rare as the unicorn.

- I guess I interpreted his reference to the furloughs as him wanting to avoid doing that type of work after the military. Selective reading, I guess...you are probably right

Hacker15e, you hit the nail on the head with that one! The nail in the coffin for me was not only the furloughs, but with the current economic state making contract awards has so much red tape attached it's ridiculous! Everything is looked at with such scrutiny, it seems everyone has forgotten the basic mission requirements...put money to contract to support the warfighter. Apparently my skillset is very marketable, but I would like to avoid this type of work in the future...it's a great plan "B" though.

- I see much of the "What's the point?" attitude from our gov civilians. The cog in the machine feeling is common among those I know. I hear "I'll take any early-retirement offer now and actually go do something with a purpose" often. The situation was different when growth and stability were the underlying assumptions. For all the problems the AF has with rated officer retention, I think attracting and retaining civilian talent will be its own unique problem in next few years. It makes me sad that this is where we're at.

I hear ya hook dupin...our field is critically manned right now, which for all intents and purposes I think is everywhere. A few years ago they had the grand idea of hiring folks off the street as long as they had a degree in hand to become 1102's (contract specialist). Well, looks like a great idea...throw more people to solve that manning issue, which you actually do. However, similar to flying, there is a lot of training involved, and to be mission capable takes about 2-3 years. So in the meantime, I'm executing what I'm supposed to be doing, AND training which I don't mind, BUT the newbies are the same pay grade as I? In my units they are 12's...talk about a demotiviator. There's a lot of folks that I know that are seriously contemplating getting out and heading to the Boeings and the Lockheed Martins, but that's a different can of worms altogether.

Thanks guys, now if I can figure out how to make the text bubbles in the responses, I won't look like a newbie.
 
Unfortunately, I don't think my skillset translates well into the flying.

You'll have to make your market. Between contract air cargo, ISR, contract rotators, fire suppression, and low-end flight test, I see quite a number of firms who could combine aviation knowledge with contracting. Sure... your PK knowledge may not have a place at a major airline.. but I think there's room for you somewhere. For example, the DOT recompetes the Essential Air Service routes every few years. Additionally, if you stay as a GS, the FAA has a fair number of contracting types now.
 
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