Junglejett

Let me throw in my 2 cents. I am enlisted aircrew and have been for 15 years plus a few months. I am also an ATP rated 4500 hour pilot with 5 type ratings currently flying manned ISR in Afghanistan. I fly with retired military folks on a daily basis..everything from 0-3 to 0-6's, CW-5's, Fighter pilots, 160th SOAR dudes, heavy drivers..you name it. Quality varies greatly. I gain a lot from my enlisted flying and it has made me a better pilot, and being a pilot has made me a better enlisted flyer. It has been a recognized asset and one I am quite proud of. Add my enlisted flight time and pilot time, I have about 7200 hours of "time". Anyone who tells you that you are wasting your time as enlisted aircrew while pursuing a degree and hoping for a UPT slot is not doing you any favors. My previous ANG squadron looked at the enlisted flyers when it came to UPT with great results. They were a known commodity within the squadron. We hired 75+% of our UPT candidates from within. It just made sense...and still does. I still recommend it to people. + anyone who disregards the comments of a crew member, enlisted or commissioned, is not worth their weight on the Form-F. I have seen countless times where the FE/LM/AG broke the error chain. I have also seen pilots ignore their enlisted folks with marginal results. It is a crew airplane for a reason. The types that thought that since they were pilots, nothing else mattered, were usually the lamest crew members and scheduled around. You wanna be that guy/gal...knock yourself out.

I fly for another company doing manned ISR and I can you tell for a FACT, we SAVE the government money...period. Look past the monthly pay and to the support network that comes along with the US military supporting ONE airplane. We have 25% the manning, do the same job and do it in some instances, better. When the military comes over with an airplane, they bring hundreds of people..that they have to keep on the books for years. We can be gone in a month..no strings attached. Our training cost are less as well. Plus, most of the guys doing this work, did it in the military world. Much more experience in the contractor world. As for pay, it is good. I make 20K a month. Not bad for a enlisted guy (aircrew) in the reserves flying as a pilot in theater. Some companies offering health care..I do not need it, my wife's insurance rocks. Housing cost?? What housing cost? No one thinks we pay for housing in theater right? We live like everyone else in theater, eat the same food, use the same facilities...ect. And we are directly supporting the war effort. Our customers seems to like what we do..and that is all that matters.

Think of the AD/Guard/Reserve as beer. Your gonna have fun either way..just how much. AD=Non-Alcoholic Beer The taste sucks and you do not get much out of it. Why bother? Reserves= Lite Beer. Taste is marginal and it is right between full flavored and non-a beer. But make no mistake, it beats non-a. But not by a wide margin. Guard=Full flavored middle of the road beer. More alcohol, better taste..but still a product of the USAF. The USAF (Llc) is becoming way to corporate. Less focus on work performance and more on dress blues and pushups. I am AFRC now but trying to get back to the ANG as soon as I can.

With the current direction of the USAF, this should come at no surprise. There is less emphasis put on your abilities do perform your duties than on your ability to fit into a size 37 pair of ABU's. Ops normal for the USAF.