Hurricane Hunters

Flyguy99

New Member
I was just surfing the web and found the Hurricane Hunters website. Hurricanehunters.com. Talk about a cool job as a pilot!!! I know that when I finish my B.S I will definitely apply for a pilot slot with them. What else could be cooler than flying a C-130 through a hurricane? I just thought I would share this.
 
About the best deal going (I wish I had known about it a few years ago) is NOAA. FSI has the contract for their pilot training and we see a few of their guys a year. Paid as well as military officers, they come here and get all their training for free! In fact, they get per diem while they're at it! From here, they go to fly Twotters, King Airs and Gulfstreams....not bad at 200 hours.

Chunk
 
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What else could be cooler than flying a C-130 through a hurricane? I just thought I would share this.


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Flying a C-130 not in a hurricane!
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That's got to be dangerous!
 
This honestly sounds like something I'd be interested in after I graduate with my bachelors in 2-3 years. I suppose their training program is a bit of "weeding out" out process, and a lot of the applicants probably already have military flying experience. I'd be willing to commit for a period of years if it meant getting behind a c130, but I bet the Air Force Officer Qualification Test is pretty difficult. Honestly I've been considering the Air Force a in general quite a bit lately, but it'd be a huge disaster for me personally if for some reason I wasn't able to actually sit in a cockpit. That fear is probably the one thing keeping me from seriously considering the military. 90% of the guys that go into the air force probably want to fly too, but I'm sure there aren't near that many pilot slots.

I Hope these selfish, ambitious feelings don't make me a wuss or a bad citizen, but I have an inherent paranoia about surrendering my fate to an entity which has little regard for my opinion about what I should be doing.
 
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Honestly I've been considering the Air Force a in general quite a bit lately, but it'd be a huge disaster for me personally if for some reason I wasn't able to actually sit in a cockpit. That fear is probably the one thing keeping me from seriously considering the military. 90% of the guys that go into the air force probably want to fly too, but I'm sure there aren't near that many pilot slots.

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That statement rings true for me as well.

One comment that was made on this board in the past (I think by Eagle) is that you have to want to be a military officer first, then a pilot.

I think our priorities are a little off…
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Yes, you have to undergo the officer application process to become an officer and get in the cockpit, which is (from what I've heard) very rigorous and selective compared to the basic enlistment process. Cream of the crop only.

And I might add and that I don't want to simply use the military as free training for an airline career. If I went in and earned a flying job I might well consider making a permanent career of it if the life suited me.
 
I think if you were one of the fortunate ones to make military flying a career it would be great! It's just that off chance that you may be doing something you don't want to do, in a place you don't want to be!

It would be interesting to know what the percentage is that actually make it through UPT... Any military guys have an idea?
 
You'd be suprised....the vast majority make it through UPT.



As far as NOAA goes, check out their website if youare interested...you wear a uniform, but you really aren't military. Get the same pay, but no hostilities. You are a pilot for the federal govt. but don't go to UPT but to FSI.

Chunk
 
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