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JustHangingOut

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    Pilot Shortage Deepens, USAF is SCREWED.

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    1 minute ago, Fuzz said:

    Because we are the exact inverse of the army, almost entirely FW with a small RW piece. It makes more sense to send everyone fixed wing and peel a handful of pilots off every year to go RW than stand up an entirely separate program with all the overhead cost.

    The only way a RW only course for the AF would make sense would be to have a joint partnership and roll them into the same program with the army guys so they aren't reinventing the wheel and starting from scratch.  I'm not sure if it's even possible with the color of money, but it makes sense in m head.

    Guard/Reserve timeline to UPT

    in Air National Guard / Air Force Reserves

    Posted

    8 minutes ago, ackc said:

    Thanks!

     I was hired on by the guard, but no, I haven’t been sworn in yet. My recruiter told me that as soon as we get my appointment letter back from NGB he can set up my swear in. I’m just waiting for that to happen so I can get dates for everything else. I’m just in limbo for the time being.

    keep us updated on that approval from NGB timeline if you could.  I will be in the almost exact situation as you soon.

    Army to AF Transfer (Green to Blue)

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    On ‎1‎/‎10‎/‎2018 at 10:44 AM, Blue1316 said:

    I am so glad I found this thread. I am currently serving as an Infantry officer at Ft. Riley. I have always been interested in flying so I decided to get my private pilots license and completed my training last summer. During my flight training, I realized how much I love flying and decided that I want to have a career flying planes whether that is in the military or civilian sector. However, I want to serve a career in the military so I have been looking into switching to the Air Force, or the AF reserves, to try and get a pilots slot. However, it's not possible to do a service Transfer mid contract (that I know of), so I plan on finishing my contract to the Army and then try and switch once I get out. The problem is I will be 29 and 5 months at the earliest I could get out which would put me at a critical age or disqualify me completely if there is no possibility of getting an age waiver. I want to know if what I want to do is possible? If it is, what could I be doing now to strengthen my chances of accomplishing this. I can't get out till May of 2021, so I have time to get an instrument rating or a masters. Is what I want to do only possible through the reserves? I would be happy doing anything as long as I have the chance to fly. I know some people want to fly fighters and that's it, but I would love the opportunity to fly bombers, cargo, or fuelers. Anything that would let me fly a plane. Let me know what y'all think. 

    Refer to DoD Instruction 1205.05, 1300.04, and 1304.25 for references on transferring within your commitment.

    It is possible if they are willing to release you.

    And yes, it is possible to get an age waiver.  I am working through one right now for the unit that selected me.  I am not AD however, I am going from Army Guard to Air Guard.  Certain squadrons are more willing to take applicants with age waivers, others wont even consider it.  In short, make them tell you "no" and if they do, there are others out there.

    Have you taken the AFOQT and TBAS yet?  If not, get on that immediately.  I would also go ahead and see if you could get an AF flight physical if you can.

    Hope this helps!

    Base housing

    in Military Spouses

    Posted

    9 minutes ago, torqued said:

    as soon as you receive your PCS orders that show you will be accompanied by your dependents to your UPT base, make a TLF (temporary lodging facility) reservation. your TLF will be furnished with washer and dryer in nearly all cases. housing may or may not be available immediately upon your arrival. when you are assigned a house, it will likely not have a washer and dryer nor will it be furnished.

    pro tip: you may already know this but buy a small enclosed trailer and a used washer and dryer. do a partial (or full if you have few household goods) DITY move. always do partial DITY moves. the amount you will receive for moving the trailer, washer/dryer, and other goods will cover the cost of the trailer/washer/dryer and then some. sell when no longer needed.

    This ^^^^

    I'v done two partial DITY moves and came out with at least 3k each trip, and I didn't even use a trailer.

    • Upvote 1

    Info on flight boots

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    1 hour ago, tk1313 said:

    Done a little bit of research on boots... I'm primarily concerned with getting good boots that are lightweight and good/comfortable for running in. What do you guys think about Nike SFB vs Rocky C4T? Those seem to be the two that guys are comfortable running and spending a lot of time in.

    If you have wide feet like me, nike's aren't that great.  for everyone else...they are pretty awesome

    the Rocky's tend to fit more people and are also a light boot.  If you need something for the field work... Rocky s2v all the way.  They are super tough, comfortable for long ruck marches, and the dry out fast after they get soaked. 

    Another great boot for all around garrison or field work is the Garmont T8.  I'm not sure if they are flight approved though.

    Another thing to consider is good socks.  Darn Tough socks are expensive, but the best out there.  They have a lifetime no questions asked warranty.  I have a few pair of them and quality socks make a huge difference.

    • Thanks 1

    Guard/Reserve timeline to UPT

    in Air National Guard / Air Force Reserves

    Posted

    14 hours ago, extender10 said:

    So, looks like I'll be running straight up the gut for the next year and a half.  Selected September 2017, inprocessed this past week with the 340th FTG at Randolph.

    OTS: 9 Jan to 9 Mar
    ...2 days later:
    SERE: 12 Mar to 30 Mar
    ...4 days later:
    Water survival: 4 Apr to 5 Apr
    ...5 days of driving later: 
    UPT (Vance): 10 Apr (report date), 24 Apr 2018 to May 2019.

    Not only did I get SERE before UPT and 2 days after OTS, but no real breaks in training, just PCS travel days.  

    Let's get this party started!

    have they switched up the curriculum to place SERE before UPT like the Army does?

    Civilian T-6 IPs?

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    On ‎12‎/‎17‎/‎2017 at 9:59 AM, YoungnDumb said:

    I'll throw my 2 cents in.  I've been to Rucker and seen how their civilians implement and by and large it seems pretty well managed/run given that the civilians only teach contact (transition I think they call it) and instruments then the green suiters teach all the other stuff.  I could see something similar working in T-6's.  The big thing I worry about is if the AF made it all civilian.  At that point you turn it into the same shit show that sim land is, the majority of the sim IP's are way out of touch, spend most of the time talking about the Tweet or having 'nam flashbacks in the middle of a sim, and care more about how accurate your instrument cockpit check was than actually teaching a kid how to fly instruments.  At many points during my tour as an IP did I have to re-explain basic instrument things to a student because the sim IP was focused on crap that hasn't mattered since the 60's.  I mean hell I told a sim IP I used the GPS to go direct for 300+ miles in the -38 and you would have thought the world was ending because I used the GPS and not ground based NAVAIDs.

    I will second this.

    There is a huge benefit to having years and years of not only flight experience, but experience as an instructor for a military organization.  I had an instructor who was an off the street guy.  He was the best instructor that I had because he cared more about teaching me how to be a pilot than he did about all the military bull shit.  The civilians I flew with whether prior military or not, genuinely cared about making you the best pilot that they could produce and were not afraid to chew you out when you deserved it.   I probably got chewed out more by the civilians than I did the military IP's that I had later on during IERW.  Many of us had our civilian IP's show up to our graduations to show their support, and even pinned their former students wings on if they did not have family in attendance.

    As to whether this is the best move for big blue...I cannot speak to that as I can only share my experience as it was a positive one.

    Air Force to begin testing enlisted pilots

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    54 minutes ago, HAWDINGL said:

    Other than money, and the few who really want to lead the paperwork war,... why would anyone want to become an officer? It’s my understanding that O’s who are pilots in the Army get stuck as paper pushers, while the WO’s are the combat leaders in the plane/helo. I think we have a few people on this forum that could speak to the validity/invalidity of that.

    At the end of the day, this is just another way for the Air Force to fix the problem by not addressing the real problem.

    As an Army guy myself, the O-grade vs WO-grade on paper is supposed to work as the WO's are the subject matter experts and flying is there thing.  Officers will be in a line unit for a short time as an LT, leave for staff, and potentially come back to the line as a commander as an O-3, but that doesn't always happen.  Sometimes LT's get put with a forward support company being in charge of fuelers, maintenances, feeding sections, etc...and only fly bare minimums to keep current....then go to staff, and then put command of another support company of some kind.

    the WO's tend to stay in the line longer, however, as O's move around often they end up inheriting a lot of Officer additional duties.  I'v even heard of WO's as company commanders and got all the work that goes along with it.

    I have plenty of WO's in my company that are very bitter and are headed out in one way or another (another reason I'm on here).  There is a mass exodus of Army pilots now.  It is not as publicized but the force is dwindling fast because now about 6 regional carriers will pay for us to get our FW certs and fly for them on a 1-2 year contract.  The big Army refuses to admit there is a problem let alone a massive pilot shortage.  the CCWO (command chief WO...basically the big kahuna WO) put out a memo basically saying "the army will still be the army without you"

    Hope this helps

     

    Upcoming Boards

    in Air National Guard / Air Force Reserves

    Posted

    19 hours ago, Sit On Acorns said:

    154th in Hawaii is having a joint board in the spring. Packages due December 22. Age waivers are being considered. Call a recruiting office and tell them you're interested in submitting a package to the pilot board and they'll get you setup. If for some reason you're unable to get your afoqt and/or tbas complete by the due date, submit anyways and get them done asap and update your application once complete. 

    Which squadron is hiring?

    • Upvote 1

    Upcoming Boards

    in Air National Guard / Air Force Reserves

    Posted

    1 hour ago, mb1685 said:

    How did you guys find out about the 93rd FS board, if you don't mind me asking? I didn't find out about it until it was too late. I check Bogidope, GuardReserveJobs, Baseops, and some Facebook groups literally every day so I'm bummed that one slipped under my radar. If there's another source I should be checking, I'd love to know.

    It eventually got on Bogidope, but I found out about it through Facebook

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