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HFF

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  1. Thanks for the replies. I'm currently rushing 5 heavy units which are within 1 hour driving distance of full time top 20 MBA programs and major cities. I'm graduating college in June and am taking a job at a Fortune 500 company working in operations management. Flying for the USAF has been a dream of mine since high school, but I'd also like to have a successful civilian career. Is this something that can be reasonably done provided I live within 1 hour of my base and my civilian job? Or would it be wiser to choose between the guard and my operations management career? I'm passionate about flying and public service but don't want to spread myself too thin.
  2. Hi Guys, Thanks a bunch for the replies. I have a couple of follow up questions. Firstly, I'm wondering how GI Bill benefits work for traditional reservists and guardsmen. It's my understanding that one must serve at least 6 years to qualify for tuition assistance. Does that mean 6 years in addition to your original 10 year commitment for pilots (making it 16 years) or is it concurrent? Secondly, I assume that after graduating an MBA program one would be taking on a managerial position within a company that would involve significantly more responsibility. I'm wondering how the guys in your units balanced the added responsibilities of their civilian job with their guard duties. The only reason I ask is because I recall seeing another thread on here dealing with this topic, and I remember some responses talking about those in their unit who were having difficulty balancing a civilian managerial job with their military duties. I've visited a few units already and talked to some of the pilots about this, but the vast majority are airline pilots. Of the few who are working corporate gigs, some are making it work while others are having difficulties. Does anyone here have any experiences or advice relating to that? Thanks again for the help. Hank
  3. Hi everyone, I'm wondering if any pilots here have attended a full time or part time (non-online) MBA program while a traditional reservist. If so, were you able top balance your commitment to your unit with your course load and were you able to get any tuition assistance from the guard/reserve? I'm in the early stages of submitting my application package to boards, and I'm considering getting my MBA a few years down the line. If this is something that's feasible for me to do, it's going to influence the units I apply to. Any other comments or criticism on my plans are welcome. Thanks! Hank
  4. I'm actually also curious about holding down a non-airline civilian job while a Guard/Reserve pilot in a C-17 or C-5 Unit. If I get picked up by a unit within the next 2 years or so, my plan is to spend 2 years training and another 2 seasoning. After that it's off to graduate school to get an MPA, MBA, or MPP and then eventually on to a GS or corporate job. How reasonable is that goal? Everytime I ask, I always hear "yes, provided you live close to both your base and your civilian job it's doable". However, don't most heavy units require flying 6-8 days per month at a minimum to stay current/proficient? I'm not really sure how it would be possible to miss that much work and still hold down a civilian job unless you work for an insanely flexible employer. Does anyone have any insight on this?
  5. "Current or history of irritable bowel syndrome (564.1) of sufficient severity to require frequent intervention or prescription medication or to interfere with normal function." Yea, I'll have to cross that bridge when I get there. Luckily it hasn't been severe enough to require frequent (or any, for that matter) medical intervention or prescription medication, so I'm optimistic. Crossing my fingers is all I can do at this point.
  6. One more question before I shut up: "Allergy to common food (milk, bread, eggs, meat, fish or other common food) (4)" 1) Medically I don't have an "allergy" to anything. What I have is not considered an "allergy", and the above foods don't give me what is known as an allergic reaction. The mechanism is completely different. No other question on that form describes what I have except for "chronic intestinal problem", which is no longer chronic since I don't eat gluten. 2) Since whatever I have has not been 100% documented by a medical professional, technically I don't know that I have anything. I'm not a doctor. 3) If what I have is indeed "Celiac", a sensitivity to gluten, eating a gluten free diet reduces the number of antibodies in my bloodstream to a level undiagnosable by a blood test. As of now, it is undetectable. I know it sounds slimy, but I'm not trying to get desked over a manageable medical condition. I'm also not trying to get court martialed for bringing gluten free bagels on an overnight trip.
  7. What tests do they do during the physical? As far as my medical record is concerned I'm free of any allergies, so in what ways could this still DQ me? Bloodwork as a kid came back negative. I have no idea what they're going to do to me during the physical. My reason for asking here is so that I can find out what they do and get tested before MEPS. No use pressing forward if they're going to discover a disqualifying condition. I would probalby fall into this category, since it's not documented anywhere: What is the food situation like in the Guard/Reserve?
  8. I'm looking for some advice on what to do in this situation. I'm a civilian pilot with a first class medical who will be applying to the guard/reserve in about a year. Starting back as far as I can remember I would get sick an average of once a month or so (sometimes more, sometimes less) with stomach aches/intestinal pain lasting 1-3 hours. I chalked it up to a weak system and didn't make any changes. Doc said I might have "IBS". I had some tests done early on in life and they came back negative (including Celiac). Around last March it began to get much worse. I was getting stomach achs an average of twice/week. My Dad has these exact same symptoms and once he stopped gluten they got a lot better, so seeing no other option I completely cut gluten from my diet. I stayed away from doctors or further tests because I didn't want anything damning on my medical record for when I do my flight physical. That was a month and a half ago, and I've gotten a lot better. Except for one minor issue I've been free from symptoms ever since. I want to know a few things: Firstly how big of a deal is this? I was under the impression that food allergies are disqualifying, however technically this is not a food allergy. I have a clear medical record (except for maybe "IBS" a year ago, but no visits for that since), I'm self diagnosed with some kind of gluten sensitivity. What tests will they do on me during my flight physical for the guard that might catch this? MREs will likely be a problem during training, but luckily there is no direct link to gluten and these symptoms, they simply increase in frequency if I eat gluten (sometimes I eat gluten and am fine, sometimes not). Even if I do pass my flight physical is being in the guard/reserve with a gluten sensitivity feasible? How much choice will I have over what I eat? Opinions on my situation?
  9. Apparently they're doing some kind of investigative piece on this. "Behind the Gates of the Guard". This whole thing seems fishy but as someone who's not a member of the CA ANG I can't really speak to the credibility of it. It focuses on racism and sexual assault within the 129th.
  10. I know this story is four months old, but I haven't seen it brought up anywhere on here. NBC published a story alleging rampant sexual assault, racism, and a host of other issues within the California ANG (singling out the 129th RQW). As a UPT applicant who's visited some of these units, I have a hard time believing this, since the culture at every unit I've visited thus far seems friendly and laid back. Is this just NBC being NBC or is there any truth to these allegations? http://www.nbcbayare...-179569401.html EDIT: Investigative piece "Behind the Gates of the Guard:"
  11. Hey guys, Another thread revival here. I'm a (civilian) instrument rated private pilot with a 1st class medical and I'll be applying to heavies guard units after I graduate from college. I may have been diagnosed with IBS last year by my primary care physician. I went to him complaining of occasional stomach upset more than the average person (I know, I'm an idiot). He did some tests and blood work but everything came back negative, so I guess he diagnosed me with IBS. My understanding of IBS is that it's the doctor telling you "you have stomach aches but I haven't a clue why". My guess is it's triggered by diet although I'm not really sure. The stomach aches are mild-moderate and usually don't last longer than 30 minutes, but they are somewhat unpredictable. They seldom happen (maybe 2-3/month, if that) so I don't really see it being an issue when it comes to flying, especially since heavies have bathrooms. There's no physical evidence of illness, the numbers say I'm healthy as a horse. The only reason this is an issue is because I didn't keep my mouth shut. I've had these my entire life and recognize the pain as something different than simple indigestion, so I wanted to finally go in and make sure nothing was seriously wrong with me, not thinking of course about the impact it could have on my flying career. So, what's do you advise I do next? If I'm stuck with this diagnosis, how hard is it to get a waiver?
  12. Hey everyone, I'm a 2nd year college student (may be graduating early) and an Instrument rated Private Pilot. I'm interested in a career as a pilot in the ANG/AFRES after I graduate and I'm wondering what the best way is to go about visitng a unit that you have no contacts in. The only contact I've made thus far was from shaking hands with an ANG pilot at an airshow, who ended up giving me his business card when I told him I was interested in a career with the Guard. I maintained contact with him and was able to visit that unit and had an excellent experience. I ended up really liking all of the pilots I met and plan on returning during a drill weekend. However the only reason I was able to do all this was because I knew someone on the inside. I also understand how competitive hiring is, so I want to look at a wide range of units. My contact at the ANG unit advised me to do the same with other units I'm interested in, and emphasized that getting to know pilots and "rushing" the unit are very important steps in getting hired. I've beein looking at units in California, however I'm not really sure how to get the process started. The only contact information I've been able to find from the internet machine are email addresses, which I haven't been able to get a response on. I've gathered a lot of good information from searching these forums on how to act during a visitation, but I haven't been able to find much on how to get the process started. Please forgive me if I missed something and there's already another thread on this. Thanks for your help!
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