2niner

5 FAIPs in the drop at KEND last night as well. 3 T-6 and 2 T-38. Don't have the full list of drops though.

I know of at least 1 stud that experienced hypoxia-like symptoms. But the vast majority have been IPs.

All good points,12 years ago I might as well been in diapers... Guard/Reserve does sound like the way to go, but I don't have nearly the resume to apply. I was one of those 0 flight hour selects ( I have flown since selection). I applied because I was looking for something exciting/rewarding to do with my life rather than sitting at this cubicle in my office job like I do now. I suppose I was lured into applying for the AF based on claims that you guys enjoyed a higher QOL relative to other service branches, golf course on every base, going straight from sortie to bar etc. etc. Its been great getting a reality check from you guys. But who really knows where the AF is headed in 10 years, the current trend is downward, but I'd think things would have to start improving at some point. But enough of the woe-is-me sob story from a pilot select. I know a lot of people want to be pilots but never get to for one reason or another. I obviously still have some thinking to do, and I'll be keeping an eye on this thread from the shadows.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to respond to my post, I've read all your responses. Glad to hear some more tempered opinions about what the job entails. And good to know that even with all the suck, you still come out of the experience with a net positive. I will comment on something SnapLock said though concerning QOL: I can certainly see how 16 hour days of running around base doing essentially nothing but queep would get old really fast. I was also amazed that you don't get allotted time for PT. The physical fitness of the pilot corps -- people who are responsible for the lives of aircrew and those on the ground -- seems more important than, you know, someone who sits in a cubicle all day. But I guess you can always get a workout in after your exhausting 16 hour day.

Reading through this thread, and posts like the one above, is quite disconcerting. I am a civ pilot select headed for OTS sometime in the future and this thread certainly has opened my eyes to some of the problems the AF is facing right now. Just the thought of going to Reapers after UPT makes me nauseous. Some questions if you'll indulge me: Knowing what you know now, being in for 5, 10, 20 years, if you could go back and tell your younger self "Don't join!" would your younger self have listened? Would you regret it 10 years down the road having not joined? I suppose it says something about my overall commitment to join that an online forum would cause me to re-think my future career as a military pilot. You all make valid points, but there have to be some redeeming qualities to being an AF pilot. I apologize if this is too much of a digression for this thread's topic. I was just reading through so I thought I'd post it here.