QUestion for all the pilot in low paying jobs

B

bullmastiff

New Member
Mike I'm sure will chime in as well. Why are you guys/gals not considering military aviation. Age limit, no degree? The pay is much better starting out, and you get turbine time from the beginning. Best of all, the flying is much less boring. Trust me you still get your fair shair of Bull$[expletive deleted], but its not that bad at all. If you are Guard, you can tell them to shove it. Just wondering, I really never see anybody look at that option. We need pilots in the AF, not sure about other branches.
 
When I was young enough, they didn't want me b/c I didn't have 20/20. Now that lasik is around, they don't want me b/c I'm too old (33).
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If they'd waiver me, I'd sign up tomorrow...to fly ANYthing, ANYwhere.
 
I have a question for MikeD. How did you go about joining the Air Force? From what I can remember you kept applying till a pilot slot was awarded, yet you didn't have to join unless you got a pilot slot. I am very interested in hopping over to Kansas and flying their ANG 135's., or staying in Missouri and flying the ANG 130's
 
I started with goals in military aviation, but my goals changed. Flying for the airlines is the lifestyle that I want.
 
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I thought you needed a degree for the air force?

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Yes, you do need a degree.
You are guranteed a pilot slot
You can apply for a Guard slot a year prior to graduation
ANG, is where I am now, and I must say it is relaxed, laid back, and a hell of a lot of fun. I definetely put up with much less bull$hit then I did with Active Duty. If you are selected for a Guard slot, you will be full time for aprox 2 years. When you drop back to part-time you can still gat at least 1 flight a week normally. Gives you a nice supplemental income while you are slaving away at a lower paying civilian job. You will be so busy during the first 2 years, you will save a god deal of money. Not enough time to spend
 
i'ld do it in a heartbeat, but i dont have 20/20. I would go for ANG, but those slots are very hard to get.

-brian
 
I actually considered the Airforce for a longtime, and even went out and got that ARCO study guide for the military flight apptitude test. However, the more people I talked to (current and former AF/Navy pilots), and the more I started to think about it, I decided it wasnt the thing for me. I would love to fly for the airforce or the navy, but the thought of sitting at a desk most of the time didnt appeal to me.

All of the pilots I talked to ( one of them being a very close friend to the family and WWII bomber pilot ) told me that if I didn't want to become a military officer first, and pilot second then I shouldnt even try because I would be miserable. After thinking about what they said and all the options they gave me (active duty, guard), I decided I didnt want to waste my time nor the military's time for that matter.

The biggest sticking points for me were family inconvenience and having to do something even if it is against what you believe. It was actually depressing when I came to that conclusion because the military was the only way I was going to make flying a career b/c of financial reasons. Now, I have to convince myself that getting an office job isnt going to be that bad b/c I can look forward to flying on the weekends
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......unless I get called in on the weekends
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i'ld do it in a heartbeat, but i dont have 20/20. I would go for ANG, but those slots are very hard to get.

-brian

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From what I understood, your vision can be waivered depending on how bad it is. Guard slots can be a little easier than active duty slots if you know how to market yourself. For example, you would have a much easier time if you went to the ANG base and got to know the pilots, than if you just mailed out your application to various bases.

If you havent checked out http://baseops.net/ already, its a good source of info on available pilot slots for the guard.
 
I had an Air Force recruiter hang up on me once. I had the vision nailed, but they didn't like me having asthma. No matter that it's fully under control; checking the wrong box on the medical gets you screwed. I'd LOVE to go into the Coast Guard, but I can't get in.
 
I had the best of both worlds. The Air Force paid for half my college, then I went the civilian route.

'Nam had just ended and they were waffling on the whole "commitment" to give us all pilot slots. Since I had already made the mistake of telling anyone that would listen that I was only there to build time for an airline job, they started telling me what a good navigator I'd make. I decided to help them with the whole "not enough pilot slots" thing.

From what I've heard over the years the Guard is the way to go if you can get it. Back in my day I only was going to have a 4 year commitment after college. Little bit longer today.

Dave
 
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I actually considered the Airforce for a longtime, and even went out and got that ARCO study guide for the military flight apptitude test. However, the more people I talked to (current and former AF/Navy pilots), and the more I started to think about it, I decided it wasnt the thing for me. I would love to fly for the airforce or the navy, but the thought of sitting at a desk most of the time didnt appeal to me.

All of the pilots I talked to ( one of them being a very close friend to the family and WWII bomber pilot ) told me that if I didn't want to become a military officer first, and pilot second then I shouldnt even try because I would be miserable. After thinking about what they said and all the options they gave me (active duty, guard), I decided I didnt want to waste my time nor the military's time for that matter.

The biggest sticking points for me were family inconvenience and having to do something even if it is against what you believe. It was actually depressing when I came to that conclusion because the military was the only way I was going to make flying a career b/c of financial reasons. Now, I have to convince myself that getting an office job isnt going to be that bad b/c I can look forward to flying on the weekends
laugh.gif
......unless I get called in on the weekends
banghead.gif


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You would be alright in the Guard/Reserve. As a young part-time officer your time will be spent in the cockpit. You would not have additional duties unless you decided to do it full time
 
Bull, are you a recruiter?
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Just kidding.

I don't want to serve any more time than I already have. I originally planned on trying to do the eyesight waiver after I got in, found out all the red-tape that goes along with trying it, muchless accomplishing it. They started doing the surgery too late for me, so I'm outta here. Too old anyways, now. Served 9 years, building hours on shore duty just waiting for my time then going charter or freight (hopefully) next.
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Good luck to all those wanting to fly for the military.
 
Too old, vision too bad, only an associates degree... take your pick.

I tried to swap services over to the army and go helocopter pilot, and just about had everything set, and I went for the physical and had 20-80 vision in my right eye... they said "bye bye".

Now I'm 31 and too old to go anywhere else as far as I know and I'll be 34 when I get out of the navy... too old.
 
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