GDAL
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Posts posted by GDAL
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44 minutes ago, cerealsine said:
Ive heard differing information on what makes someone exempt from IFS. Is it simply having your PPL?
It think it also depends on your unit.
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1 hour ago, Papote said:
I was not aware of this...
My ASVAB is expires next month. Not sure what to do now... I had gotten good scores in my ASVAB, but it took a lot of studying for a while. I just passed my physical yesterday.
I've been many times to the recruiting office and never seen an officer. There only enlisted members there. Going to another recruiting office is out of the question, cause there really isn't. Had the same recruiter for like 3 years. Had to speak to his supervisor (MSgt) last month, since he wouldn't go over my file. Always gave me some excuse. I'm supposed to call him next week to setup to go to the base and see the jobs first hand.
Officer recruiters aren't actually officers themselves, just NCOs. Forget the ASVAB. Get in touch with the line officer recruiter and schedule the AFOQT.
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2 hours ago, Papote said:
Recruiter gave me a gave a hard time saying I was too old and stuff.
Don't enlist unless the jobs you listed above are the ones you can see yourself doing for the duration of your AF career. You may otherwise find yourself in a world of disappointment down the road.
If he/she says you're too old to commission now, enlisting will just make things more challenging down the road. IMHO, you're just hearing more verbal diarrhea from a recruiter with a quota.
You know what you want, don't take no for an answer.
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Why would you enlist with the specific purpose of commissioning? There's no guarantee you'll ever get a commission if you enlist. It will be much easier (especially considering your age) to go the OTS route now.
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Apply all you want, but you won't be very competitive interviewing at a fighter squadron without at least a PPL.
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24 minutes ago, cerealsine said:
Did you get your FC1 scheduled four months after hire? I was told it would take four months to schedule, and then it is scheduled another 4-6 weeks out.
My FC1 was scheduled 2 months after swearing in and the wait was 2 months...4 months total. I had already been to MEPS prior to swearing in.
In theory you should be able to schedule your FC1 as soon as you swear in, but that's not the reality in most cases.
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1 hour ago, Papote said:
Sadly I'm to old. 37.
Straight from the AF website:
- You must be between 18 and 39 years of age
- be a U.S. citizen
- have at least a bachelor's degree.
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10 hours ago, Papote said:
I'm considering joining my local Air National Guard and have a couple of questions regarding initial pay. I have a bachelor's degree. I understand that I would go in as an E3. Since everyone in BMT is an airman (E1), would pay be as E1? If so, would E3 be sown on and E3 pay be at or after Tech Scool? Is there retroactive pay? Also, I've seen some airman drill before going to BMT, would pay then be as E1 as well? Who actually pays during the trainings: the federal government or the state?
Bonus question... I have a full-time job and since I'm voluntarily joining the ANG, are they legally bound to hold my position until I finish and come back as opposed to being called to active?
Why not commission?
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14 hours ago, koonunga_hill said:
Kind of a similar situation for me: current ABM age 28 with >5 years commissioned service.
Tests: P 96 /N 95/A 86/V 80/Q 84
PCSM: 66 with 6 hours, I’m up to 16 hours now, solo’d, 94 on 201+ column
Undergrad GPA is 3.3 in math/physics
MBA complete (UNC’s grad school doesn’t do GPA)
FC1 complete
I’ve rushed a few units so far, had a good time, had a few or more drinks, just want to see if my experience in ops will be seen as a good thing, or if the ETP for TFCSD will be too much of a hindrance.
I’m casting a wide net, honestly just want to fly. I have preferences on MDS/location, but I’d be happy to join a good unit anywhere flying anything.Your stats are stellar, bro. It definitely depends on the unit, though. I have interviewed alongside several ABMs that required an ETP, so the opportunity is there.
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13 hours ago, cerealsine said:
Just got hired 9 Jan 2018. My recruiter told me that guys are having to wait up to 4 months just to schedule their FC1? Whats the holdup in scheduling that?
The pipeline is full. My wait from hire to FC1 is exactly 4 months.
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2 hours ago, Airman8403 said:
This post probably won't contribute much to anyone but I need to get it off my chest and I'm here... so why not? I joined the Air Force at 19 years old in 2003. After 18 months, I was separated under "Force Shaping Phase II" (I was RIF'd) in 2004 at 20 years old. During those 18 months on AD, I worked on C130H models as a GAC troop and dreamed of one day flying for Big Blue. After my separation, I joined the Air National Guard so I could stay a part of the family and started plugging away at my undergrad degree so I could apply to OTS while thinking, incorrectly, that my time in service would count against my age and that I'd be able to apply to fly after graduating. Supporting a wife and 2 kids, it took me until 2013 to graduate with my B.S. in Physics at the age of 29. After racking up 50 hours in Cessna prop jobs and taking the AFOQT, scoring high across the board (94P/93N/91AA/93V/81Q), I headed to the OTS recruiter, excited to apply for that long awaited rated slot... only to be told that I was too old. I still wanted (and want) to serve so I applied for what I qualified for and was picked up as a Space Operations Officer. I'm out at Randolph right now for a training TDY as a 33 year old 1st Lt with nearly 15 year of TIS, only 8 of which is active, and it's killing me to see the T-38s and hear the constant thunder of students earning their wings, knowing that in the eyes of the Air Force I am just too old to ever join that world. So how does one let go of a long held dream? I have no idea. I'll say this to anyone who's considering pursuing this path. DON'T wait. Time is not your friend. The pain of regret for not seizing the opportunity to fly when I could will haunt me for the rest of my life. Good luck to each of you. Make the best of it.
Being a pilot isn't all banging chicks and pulling g's. Your career path is just as solid, reconcile with yourself and move on.
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36 minutes ago, stuckindayton said:
Do NOT get ICL's. Those would be non-waiverable. As far as flat corneas post PRK/LASIK, how flat are we talking? Less than 35 D? The AF has no standard for post op flat K's or corneal thickness for applicants (although we probably should), however, you may be risking your vision for the rest of your life and it's possible you may not meet the AF standards for vision if the outcome is really poor. Let me know if you want more details.
Thanks for being such a great resource for the community.
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@stuckindayton is the expert on this topic, but I do not believe there exists a waiver for refractive error outside of -4.50 for FCIA. Check out the USAFSAM Waiver Guide for more details. I would suggest getting a second opinion regarding refractive surgery.
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35 minutes ago, FlyArmy said:
FWIW here’s my AFRC experience so far. Prior service army pilot with decent break in service and ETPs required.
Oct 15 - “hired”
Oct 16 - recruiter assigned
Nov 6 - MEPS (could have been a week or so earlier but recruiter messed up paperwork) Tried to rush it to get into Nov AFRC board but that didn’t work. Going to Jan AFRC Board now
FC1 scheduled for Feb 19th (imo that could have been done in Dec, but, here we are)
No idea for UPT start. Don’t need OTS or SERE. Hoping for early summer pipeline start, but that seems optimistic since dudes are already getting plugged in UPT in that timeframe and I won’t be sworn in for another couple months.
Will update when further along.
See you at Wright Patt on the 19th!
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11 hours ago, matmacwc said:
or go ANG.
^^^
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Guard / non prior
Interview/hired Sep 2017
Swear in Oct 2017
FC1 Feb 2018
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On 12/6/2017 at 5:41 PM, FlyArmy said:
Yes...my recruiter is taking care of all my FC1 scheduling, so I never saw an email like yours, but he needed my MEPS physical for Wright Patt in order to get an FC1 scheduled. He got it from MEPS with no issue.
I guess I'm doing all the legwork, but I finally got a hold of my recruiter and got my MEPS paperwork to send the USAFSAM. Thanks for the words!
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The e-mail for my FC1 appointment says I need to send them a copy of my military entrance physical within 5 days of receiving the notification. Has anyone else had to acquire their copy of their MEPS physical and e-mail it to Wright Patt? I am having a hard time getting a copy of it, haven't heard anything from my recruiter or my training manager.
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1 hour ago, AlwaysUp96 said:
Thanks for the response GDAL!
Definitely already setup my plans for a PPL. Would you say an online ground school is sufficient for the AFOQT or is the general consensus that an in person ground school is better overall?
Would love to fly for the guard or reserve but I honestly want to fly more than anything. Is AD that poor of a gig over the ANG / AFRES?
Again, you need to finish your PPL and actually STUDY AFOQT prep books. Then retake the test.
I'm not bashing on AD, it's all about lifestyle choices. But the general consensus is that ANG/AFRES > AD. You need to ask yourself what you want out of life. Would you like to have a full time commitment of 10 years in AD taking whatever is thrown at you (could be awesome, could be...not), or would you rather keep some semblance of a normal life and fly for the guard/reserve? The only catch is that you will need to be employable in the civilian world for most guard/reserve jobs, since they are typically part time after seasoning.
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GPA is competitive + STEM degree. You're good there, just don't let it fall. No, your volunteer stats are sufficient. You should aim to get a PPL at the very least and as many hours as financially possible. If you can afford to keep flying after PPL, get your instrument rating. So that's the good.
Your AFOQT is sub par. Find a highly rated AFOQT study book on Amazon. Shouldn't be too hard, you're a data scientist, no? Formulate a study plan, take the test over and over again. Timed. However, I wouldn't take the AFOQT until after you take your PPL written. It will help your pilot score tremendously. And then take the TBAS.
I'm not even going to comment as to why you'd consider active duty over ANG / AFRES. To each their own, but who wouldn't want to be able to pick their airframe and their base?
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14 hours ago, josh t said:
I need some help to what this TBAS is. Im a flight instructor and have an AF pilot candidate coming in to add some flight hours to increase this PCSM score. I understand the officer side that is a judge of math and more. How does this TBAS relate to aviation? Want to better judge his score and how it plays into knowledge of aviation.
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30 minutes ago, huntfishvote said:
Thanks. I didn't know you can just "show up." They didn't let any applicant show up to visit before the last board. Not a single interviewee was let on base prior to the interview. I think you're right though. I gotta just show up and make it happen. I'm not local but a 2.5 hour drive isn't bad at all. Thank you, sir.
No worries. I'm just another dude in your same situation. I have a 2.5 hour drive and I show up every drill. You should swear in ASAP and then you'll get paid to show up to drill (probably as an E3) and get free lodging. Just make sure you're on the Student Flight Roster before you make the drive. PM me if you have any questions.
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1 hour ago, huntfishvote said:
Hey all- I'm an off the street select at an ANG unit.
I was put in touch with the unit's recruiter and had one conversation with him about a month ago. I still haven't heard back. I haven't provided him any additional documents either. This is all pre-MEPS/FC1.
Do you have any suggested plan of action if you were in this situation?
I know about the waiting game, but when phones go silent, and emails aren't responded to I get anxious.
I am considering waiting another month and then reaching out to the pilot hiring board and the chief pilot.
Any suggestions? Should I call the other recruiters at the unit? In the mean time I'm finishing the last hours of my PPL.
Dude...you got hired. Friggin' show up to drill and get your shit done. The guys hired in on my board who aren't willing to commute aren't nearly as far along in the process because they don't show up to drill. It's all about face time with the right people.
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46 minutes ago, ned1 said:
Be wary, this is most likely meddling from a foreign power. Saudi Arabia claims the Houthis launched a missile at Riyadh, then begin executing Stalinesque purges on the SAME WEEKEND the paradise papers are coming out. This mass shooting was most likely timed to distract from the Saudi coup and the baggage of the rich and powerful that will soon be revealed to all. The Japanese PM has been looking a little tired lately...
Basically we are going to be shotgun blasted by the MSM on more irrelevant stories like men who are paid millions to chase a ball kneeling during the anthem while the elites once again get away with murder. Don't believe me? Tell me THIS was an accident:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-middle-east-41881058...the hell?
Enlistment to commission path
in Air National Guard / Air Force Reserves
Posted · Edited by GDAL
Seriously, just study and get it done. Now's the time to decide if being an officer is right for you.