Any one have opinions/experience with the TX Air National Guard. I am working on my instrument rating and looking for somwhere to work part time - full time while I build my time towards commercial/CFI . I heard you can work with them part time, not sure how the money is, or time requirements. I have a college degree, am not interested in going overaseas, but would if they gave me a pilot slot (heck, who wouldnt). I am going to talk to a recruiter tomorrow but was wondering if anyone had the lowdown on the training, pay, lifestyle etc.... Thanks.
Texas Air National Guard
- Thread starter JimmyHat
- Start date
aloft
New Member
A military commitment is not something to be taken lightly, and it doesn't sound to me like you don't really understand what you'd be getting yourself into. For starters, you'd be gone initially anywhere from 3-12 months for basic training and tech school, depending on what specialty you enter.
As for not being "interested" in going overseas, if your unit gets deployed, you're going. Period, end of story. Unless you'd rather spend some time at Leavenworth.
As for not being "interested" in going overseas, if your unit gets deployed, you're going. Period, end of story. Unless you'd rather spend some time at Leavenworth.
ROFCIBC
Well-Known Member
JimmyHat said:
I'll piggyback on aloft's comment.
I was the commander of an Air Force Reserve unit, which is pretty much like the Air Guard in a lot of respects, most notably how you get in one.
One word..."COMMITMENT".
I did literally a thousand interviews when we started the KC10 unit at Barksdale in 1981. All to hire about 60 pilots. The singularly most disqualifying attribute was a lack of commitment to serve this Great Nation. I don't mean not having a "rah-rah" attitude about God, Motherhood, and Apple Pie. It is much deeper than that. It is a from the heart, part of your soul, that commitment to serve in the Armed Forces of the United States. To freely and knowingly commit yourself to fulfilling what the oath of office you will take.
It would take about an nanosecond of conversation to determine if that commitment was there.
That being said, and this is nothing against you, don't take it personally, the two words "not interested" speak volumes about commitment. And trust me, you cannot convince the people in charge of hiring you are committed if you aren't.
If you really want to get into any military unit, especially a flying unit, you have to first of all commit yourself to the rigors of military service. You have to know what it might entail and be willing to accept that over all other commitments. ALL of them. The second thing, and probably even more important, you have to convince the folks who will hire you of the same thing. And remember, they are in the unit, they have been hired, and they have that commitment. They know what it is from deep inside themselves and you cannot fool them into believing you have the same commitment, if in fact it is not deep within your soul.
Again, this isn't a personal attack on you. It's just some advice from someone who spent 28 years in the business of military aviation, and who spent a lot of time interviewing pilots who wanted to join our unit.
As I said, trust me on this one, I know.
Thank you for the well worded, honest responses. I think that I would enjoy working with the armed services, and would have alot to offer, but understand your points on the commitment. I wasnt sure if the guard was any different, dang recruiters will tell you anything.
Regardless of whether or not the guard is right for me, Ill always support the job they do for this country, along with all the other servicemen.
Back to the job search...
Regardless of whether or not the guard is right for me, Ill always support the job they do for this country, along with all the other servicemen.
Back to the job search...
ROFCIBC
Well-Known Member
JimmyHat said:
It used to be the guard or reserves weren't used a lot on a full time basis. That all took a drastic change when the budget cuts reduced the full time forces. A thing called "Total Force" came into being. And it was a good thing as it completely integrated the ARF (Air Reserve Forces...ANG and USAFR) into the active duty forces. Gave them parity, and top line equipment.
With time they started doing more and more, and with the increased ops tempo starting with Desert Storm the use of the ARF really picked up.
This is what "raised the stakes" so to speak in the commitment thing I was talking about. The days of one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer are gone...forever. In today's military the guard/reserve is fully integrated and as such fully utilized, in some cases nearly as much as the active duty forces.
As I said, I was not trying to question your motives, just pointing out that, like Bob Dylan said long ago, "The times they are a changing".
I wish you well with what ever path your aviation career takes. I did active duty, reserves (full time and part time) and capped it off with an airline career. I was blessed to have had the opportunity to do them all. In the end aviation be it military or civilian or both is a great profession and career. It is also full of hard times and not an easy one, but the rewards IMHO are well worth the sacrifices.
One pieced of advice about recruiters, and this in no way is a slap at them, they do a great job. Often they are beset with the big "q" as in quotas. If you are really interested in the flying part of the ARF, go to a unit, talk to the pilots who are in or running that unit. They will be the best source of getting a feel for how it really operates and what the demands on individual members are. Plus they will be the very ones who make the decisions about who does or does not get selected.