i'd really like to go into the airforce after school... i'm thinking a fighter pilot would be sooo cool...
anyone here with stories, advice and so forth?
anyone here with stories, advice and so forth?
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airforce
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You should talk to a recruiter to get all the information now and stuff. My fiancee is in tech school in the Air Force. He joined in March and left for BMT in June. Not much time to prepare.
I think that only officers can fly planes. Im not 100% sure, but I think that's what my fiancee told me.
Anyways, good luck, if you have any questions, you can PM me and I can ask him anything for you!
I think that only officers can fly planes. Im not 100% sure, but I think that's what my fiancee told me.
Anyways, good luck, if you have any questions, you can PM me and I can ask him anything for you!
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A
aca_rev55
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Well, you'll need to be an officer before you can be any sort of pilot (in America, that is).
There's a few ways you can go about doing that. You can do what I'm doing, which is to enlist right after high school, and get my education while I'm enlisted, and then later become an officer after I finish college. Or you can not enlist right away, go to college, then go to Officer Training School.
There's more options than that, but those are pretty much the major ones, I believe.
Air Force is a good way to go! I leave next summer for BMT, and I'm definitely looking forward to it!
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Being in the Coast Guard, I know that recruiters in all services will tell you what they want you to hear to get you to join. Be careful when you talk to the guy/gal. Don't take any bull and don't let them interrupt you. Be kind of rude if you have to. Ask him exactly what will be in store for you to become a pilot. How many years. What are different types of programs to get into. I guarantee there are more than one.
You'll definitely have to be an officer.
Otherwise, I have a good friend who did it. It took him at least four years to get into the airman program. But he did it, he flies, and he loves it. Good luck.
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ROTC is the most common way to become an officer. Find a college that you're interested in, and find out if they have an AFROTC program. Call up that program or ask to meet with the ROTC recruiter when you tour a campus, or at a career day, or something. I'm sure there is a number you can call also. Don't just go to the recruiter in the mall, they are mainly for enlisted, and they will tell you it's better to enlist first, which isn't true. If you get into the ROTC program, they often have scholarships that pay for most or all of your college, and you become an officer right after college, and possibly go to flight training.
the other common way is to go to the air force academy, which is what i did. you have to have decent test scores and hs grades to get in, and you need to be pretty motivated. the good thing about the academy, though, is that you are pretty much guaranteed to become a pilot if you want to be, unless you have some medical issue and can't.
pm me if you want to know more. i'm not a pilot myself, but i have a lot of friends who are in training right now, and i know the whole process.
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aLiVeNwELL
Junior Member
Hello mariechen!
I just wanted to tell you that I've been in the Air Force for 11 years now, and will probably retire in the next 10. Joining was the best decision of my life. There is so much opportunity, even if you don't get the chance to be a pilot. The travel opportunities are great! For instance, I spent a year in South Korea, and now I'm about to transfer to Oahu, Hawaii and live out there for 3 years. There's a lot of really cool overseas bases.
Speaking of being a pilot, you should know that it is a very competitive career field to get into. And most of the people that get accepted don't make it through the rigorous training program. Part of my job in the Air Force is working with Medical Standards, so I know first-hand that the medical requirements for the pilot program are pretty restrictive.
I sincerely hope this doesn't come across as trying to talk you out of being a pilot -- I think it's a great goal and you should go for it all the way! I just think that you are entitled to know the whole story. Recruiters are paid to get people to sign-up, so a lot of the time they may not give you all the information if they think it will keep you from signing up.
I wish you all the best and if you have any questions, feel free to ask!!
God Bless!!
I just wanted to tell you that I've been in the Air Force for 11 years now, and will probably retire in the next 10. Joining was the best decision of my life. There is so much opportunity, even if you don't get the chance to be a pilot. The travel opportunities are great! For instance, I spent a year in South Korea, and now I'm about to transfer to Oahu, Hawaii and live out there for 3 years. There's a lot of really cool overseas bases.
Speaking of being a pilot, you should know that it is a very competitive career field to get into. And most of the people that get accepted don't make it through the rigorous training program. Part of my job in the Air Force is working with Medical Standards, so I know first-hand that the medical requirements for the pilot program are pretty restrictive.
I sincerely hope this doesn't come across as trying to talk you out of being a pilot -- I think it's a great goal and you should go for it all the way! I just think that you are entitled to know the whole story. Recruiters are paid to get people to sign-up, so a lot of the time they may not give you all the information if they think it will keep you from signing up.
I wish you all the best and if you have any questions, feel free to ask!!
God Bless!!
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daveleau
In all you do, do it for Christ and w/ Him in mind
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I fly bombers for the USAF. The best thing you can do is to do well in school. Study for the AFOQT, so that you have a good BAT score when trying to get a pilot slot. Also, if you have your private pilot's license, that helps a great deal as well. The USAF doesn't like taking poeple without any flying experience, although they do if your application is competitive without it. Stay in shape. Fitness is a big part of being a fighter pilot.
The first female USAF pilot was stationed at my current base for her initial assignment (Kelly Flynn). We also have 4 female pilots currently in my squadron. I have met several female fighter pilots too, in my travels. So, keep your eye on your goal, and pray. Seek God's counsel first in anything you do. If you try to do it without seeking God first, your success will be severely limited.
Recruiters rarely deal with officer recruits. So, it you don't go through an ROTC program in college, that's the only time you will ever have contact with a recruiter. (I went through a recruiter, and he got me more than I was asking for. I asked to work in computers, and when he got my AFOQT scores back, he said I could do anything in the USAF I wanted. He was totally straight with me too.)
And, of course, all this applies to the US Air Force. So, if you aren't a US citizen, then nothing above applies except for the part where you should seek God's counsel first.
In Christ,
Dave
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LavenderLeaves
Active Member
Oooo...i think you should maybe consider. attending the airforce doesnt make you a fighter pilot (and i dont think they'll allow you to come close even after many recognitions of being a prestigous student there). have you ever had any courses in your highschool to do with jrotc? or afrotc or nrotc? - they're military funded programs but believe me none of that stuff about being in certain military alliances will take you near to what you want to do such as flying an aircraft. sorry to burst your bubble.
I've been looking into attending the air force for sometimes and actually have had friends who came from the airforce. its not where your perspectives may lead.
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WalkingANewRoad
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My cousin Billie and i were very close and i loved him more than anything in the world. He was just recently been sent to Iraq with the Airforce. I wish you good luck
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Ok, here is the deal on becoming a fighter pilot. I tried to become a fighter pilot after high school but did not make it, I tried all the routes and then tried to do the army helicopter thing and ended up quiting becasue it was a complete sham. These days fighter aircraft have become so advanced beyond that of other nations there are not that many getting shot down and even fewer pilots being killed, also they dont make very many planes every year because they are sooo expensive. What this means for you is some one has to retire or quit (kinda unlikely if they made it to the cockpit) before someone can take there place. I all reality, its not that hard to fly a fighter plane, the problem is everyone wants to do it, so they create all this competition. There are 4 ways to become an officer in the air force and only 3 of them apply if you want to fly,
1. First and formost the air force academy is a shoe in to fly, and it is accurate that you will most likely become a pilot if you dont have medical problems, the real question is will you be a "fighter" pilot, thats not guarenteed, but the academy is your best shot at flying. A serious side note about the academy, you will be seriously hazed for a very long period of time (like your first 2 years) and the summer between high school and your first "academic" year is supost to be an absolute nightmare.
2. AFROTC, you do this while you are in college and you can apply for a full ride AFROTC scholarship before your out of high school, even if you dont get the scholarship you can still join. The kicker is you have to commit to the military after either your first or second year (depending if you are on scholarship or not) and there is no flight contract so its a total crap shoot and you are gambling with almost a decade of your life.
3. OTS, this is the option where you have a strong degree (either a BS in engineering or hard science) and all the other bells and whistles and you can walk in off the street to compete for a flight slot, you will have to contact an AF officer recruiter, they are very difficult to find (usually there are only a few per state, in some obscure office with no signs), with the OTS option you can walk away if they dont give you a flying contract. It is very helpfull to have a private pilots licence as well (7500$ roughly, I like to use numbers to put things in perspective), its kinda tough to pull off when you just finished school and likely are having to start paying on what ever loans you have to shell out 7500$. Also remember it is a race against the clock, you only have until you are ~25 yrs old to truely be competitve.
Always remember if you mess up and sign up for something you dont like you can walk away (military hardliners like to use the term AWOL) but if you read up on your rights and talk to JAG you will be fine. Once your in its tough to see out and know your rights, the military has alot of scare tactics, and just flat out immoral and dishonorable policies to harras people who want out.
4. Just in case you were curious is a direct commission, for doctors and lawyers and chaplins, they skip the nonsence and go to what they do.
I offer you an alternative if things dont work out,
http://www.thundermustang.com/
I plan on buying my own high performace aircraft and maybe someday flying in air shows, civilian stunt pilots outperform military pilots anyday in my book, I have been to quite few air shows and the civilian performers are way awsome with new stunts all the time, while the military pilots its always the same thing, 4 point turns and time to climb (duh its a jet, all he does is pull the stick up and increase the tax payers throttle). One exception was a russian jet pilot that flew his MIG 29 in the vertical position while moving laterally.
1. First and formost the air force academy is a shoe in to fly, and it is accurate that you will most likely become a pilot if you dont have medical problems, the real question is will you be a "fighter" pilot, thats not guarenteed, but the academy is your best shot at flying. A serious side note about the academy, you will be seriously hazed for a very long period of time (like your first 2 years) and the summer between high school and your first "academic" year is supost to be an absolute nightmare.
2. AFROTC, you do this while you are in college and you can apply for a full ride AFROTC scholarship before your out of high school, even if you dont get the scholarship you can still join. The kicker is you have to commit to the military after either your first or second year (depending if you are on scholarship or not) and there is no flight contract so its a total crap shoot and you are gambling with almost a decade of your life.
3. OTS, this is the option where you have a strong degree (either a BS in engineering or hard science) and all the other bells and whistles and you can walk in off the street to compete for a flight slot, you will have to contact an AF officer recruiter, they are very difficult to find (usually there are only a few per state, in some obscure office with no signs), with the OTS option you can walk away if they dont give you a flying contract. It is very helpfull to have a private pilots licence as well (7500$ roughly, I like to use numbers to put things in perspective), its kinda tough to pull off when you just finished school and likely are having to start paying on what ever loans you have to shell out 7500$. Also remember it is a race against the clock, you only have until you are ~25 yrs old to truely be competitve.
Always remember if you mess up and sign up for something you dont like you can walk away (military hardliners like to use the term AWOL) but if you read up on your rights and talk to JAG you will be fine. Once your in its tough to see out and know your rights, the military has alot of scare tactics, and just flat out immoral and dishonorable policies to harras people who want out.
4. Just in case you were curious is a direct commission, for doctors and lawyers and chaplins, they skip the nonsence and go to what they do.
I offer you an alternative if things dont work out,
http://www.thundermustang.com/
I plan on buying my own high performace aircraft and maybe someday flying in air shows, civilian stunt pilots outperform military pilots anyday in my book, I have been to quite few air shows and the civilian performers are way awsome with new stunts all the time, while the military pilots its always the same thing, 4 point turns and time to climb (duh its a jet, all he does is pull the stick up and increase the tax payers throttle). One exception was a russian jet pilot that flew his MIG 29 in the vertical position while moving laterally.
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O
Our Echelon
Guest
I'm going in January Baby!
Woooo!
I wanted to be a Combat Controller but I was color blind.
Maybe I can try again my recruiter says I can after a certain time.
So I'm doing Air Transportation instead for the time being. And I have no idea what to expect.
Woooo!
I wanted to be a Combat Controller but I was color blind.
Maybe I can try again my recruiter says I can after a certain time.
So I'm doing Air Transportation instead for the time being. And I have no idea what to expect.
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BoazB
Well-Known Member
Mmmmm. A fighter pilot. Without breaking your dream, let's look at a few facts.
When last I looked, SA only had a few squadrons, and only a fraction of those were interceptors. A squdrons is only a few planes...like 24 planes, for instance.
Say there are 8 squadrons (we are not at war, and defence is not a priority) , that would mean that there are about 8X24=192 planes/jobs... and out of 40 million people you are aiming at that job.
Most people in the airforce, when I was serving, were cooking, doing gaurd duty, walking the BIG rotweiller, filling in papers, answring phones. Some were rebombing planes (a very few).
My cousin was a pilot flying Mirage, 3CZ and that was a miracle. A friend of my Dad was in trainer of pilots - he was killed ejecting, when a trainee thought the yellow lights of a maintsreet was a runway. It was just before he was about to get his own squadron, and that too would have been a miracle.
We are talking of Millions of Rand for one small flying piece of metal. The emphasis in SA today is to build houses and infrastructure in the townships, and I am sure that - as there is no war on, and very little chance of there being one, they won't be building many of those interceptors.
Pity though 
Maths is very important, so make sure you are one of the top 192 students in matric for maths
Also your eyesight will be important...
And if you have a dream...GO FOR IT
When last I looked, SA only had a few squadrons, and only a fraction of those were interceptors. A squdrons is only a few planes...like 24 planes, for instance.
Say there are 8 squadrons (we are not at war, and defence is not a priority) , that would mean that there are about 8X24=192 planes/jobs... and out of 40 million people you are aiming at that job.
Most people in the airforce, when I was serving, were cooking, doing gaurd duty, walking the BIG rotweiller, filling in papers, answring phones. Some were rebombing planes (a very few).
My cousin was a pilot flying Mirage, 3CZ and that was a miracle. A friend of my Dad was in trainer of pilots - he was killed ejecting, when a trainee thought the yellow lights of a maintsreet was a runway. It was just before he was about to get his own squadron, and that too would have been a miracle.
We are talking of Millions of Rand for one small flying piece of metal. The emphasis in SA today is to build houses and infrastructure in the townships, and I am sure that - as there is no war on, and very little chance of there being one, they won't be building many of those interceptors.
Pity though
Maths is very important, so make sure you are one of the top 192 students in matric for maths
Also your eyesight will be important...
And if you have a dream...GO FOR IT
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Always go for it but make sure you dont get sucked into wasting 4-8 years of your life. If you dont get a pilot slot through the very narrow range of options you need to start considering doing it on your own, raising the money and buying your self an acrobatic performance aircraft. It saddens me to see that you are joining because you are going to be sorely disapointed, unless you joined through one of the narrow roads to becoming a pilot which from above it sounds like you are not.
If you havent joined yet and you insit on doing so I would strongly recommend the air national guard, after 6 months you can choose to go active if you like it, if not it is significantly eaisier to get out of the guard than the active duty, and I mean significantly.
Good luck.
If you havent joined yet and you insit on doing so I would strongly recommend the air national guard, after 6 months you can choose to go active if you like it, if not it is significantly eaisier to get out of the guard than the active duty, and I mean significantly.
Good luck.
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Mmmmm. A fighter pilot. Without breaking your dream, let's look at a few facts.
When last I looked, SA only had a few squadrons, and only a fraction of those were interceptors. A squdrons is only a few planes...like 24 planes, for instance.
Say there are 8 squadrons (we are not at war, and defence is not a priority) , that would mean that there are about 8X24=192 planes/jobs... and out of 40 million people you are aiming at that job.
Most people in the airforce, when I was serving, were cooking, doing gaurd duty, walking the BIG rotweiller, filling in papers, answring phones. Some were rebombing planes (a very few).
My cousin was a pilot flying Mirage, 3CZ and that was a miracle. A friend of my Dad was in trainer of pilots - he was killed ejecting, when a trainee thought the yellow lights of a maintsreet was a runway. It was just before he was about to get his own squadron, and that too would have been a miracle.
We are talking of Millions of Rand for one small flying piece of metal. The emphasis in SA today is to build houses and infrastructure in the townships, and I am sure that - as there is no war on, and very little chance of there being one, they won't be building many of those interceptors.
Pity though
Maths is very important, so make sure you are one of the top 192 students in matric for maths
Also your eyesight will be important...
And if you have a dream...GO FOR IT
thanks for the valuable info!
my maths is good... thankfully!
and my eyesight, well, that's probably part of the reason why i might not go - i don't have 20-20 vision though my glasses/contact lenses give me that...
i must admit i don't know much about our airforce, but they come to my school every year to recruit matrics (we've had quite a few of our girls going into the airforce) and... i love the things they talk about...
but thanks again!
air national guard? i feel so ignorant, i've never heard of it...
will google it. thanks!
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Oh wait a second, I may have misled you, my advice referes to the united states military. If you are joining any other nations military please disregard my advice. I have no idea how forign militarys are ran.thanks for the valuable info!
my maths is good... thankfully!
and my eyesight, well, that's probably part of the reason why i might not go - i don't have 20-20 vision though my glasses/contact lenses give me that...
i must admit i don't know much about our airforce, but they come to my school every year to recruit matrics (we've had quite a few of our girls going into the airforce) and... i love the things they talk about...
but thanks again!
air national guard? i feel so ignorant, i've never heard of it...
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just for interest's sake... will a non-American be allowed to join US-military? or a non-Briton the British miltary?
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BoazB
Well-Known Member
Now there is an interesting thing. I will be very open with you that may be fully informed. What you are thinking of doing is a very big step. You will not be the first person to do so. Here are the factors needed if trying for Britain:
Passport:
If you hold a British passport, but are not resident in the UK, you have to move to the UK. This is provided that you are younger than 30 (I think, or it could be 25 or 28)
Patriality:
If you were not born in the UK, but have a father with a British passport, and your Grandfather was born in the UK.
Bottom line is you would have to move to Britain and live there. You would have to take on British Citizenship - to do this there are requirements that hopefully you could investigate at your nearest Embassy/consulate.
These criteria might have changed, so don't take my word for it - check for yourself.
Remember: Step one - get there.
Step two - become a resident
Step three - become a citizen
Step Four - join the RAF
Step Five - fly
This is a miracle course - but we have a miracle working God and if it be His will... You will have to PRAY, PRAY, PRAY PRAY ...
Step six - never come back! (Here is the sad side of it. At present South African law says that it is illegal to be a mercenary (soldier for hire to other countries etc.) They have interpreted this to be fighting for any other country. There was a case not too long ago, of a guy who finished matric at Grey High in P.E. He is of British descent, and left for the UK, and is presently a Lt. in the Royal Marine Commandos. He would dearly love to visit his parents and family in P.E., but is unable to because he joined RMC, and has also be in action in the either Kuwait, Iraq or Middle East. ) So please consider these things very carefully.
Passport:
If you hold a British passport, but are not resident in the UK, you have to move to the UK. This is provided that you are younger than 30 (I think, or it could be 25 or 28)
Patriality:
If you were not born in the UK, but have a father with a British passport, and your Grandfather was born in the UK.
Bottom line is you would have to move to Britain and live there. You would have to take on British Citizenship - to do this there are requirements that hopefully you could investigate at your nearest Embassy/consulate.
These criteria might have changed, so don't take my word for it - check for yourself.
Remember: Step one - get there.
Step two - become a resident
Step three - become a citizen
Step Four - join the RAF
Step Five - fly
This is a miracle course - but we have a miracle working God and if it be His will... You will have to PRAY, PRAY, PRAY PRAY ...
Step six - never come back!
(Here is the sad side of it. At present South African law says that it is illegal to be a mercenary (soldier for hire to other countries etc.) They have interpreted this to be fighting for any other country. There was a case not too long ago, of a guy who finished matric at Grey High in P.E. He is of British descent, and left for the UK, and is presently a Lt. in the Royal Marine Commandos. He would dearly love to visit his parents and family in P.E., but is unable to because he joined RMC, and has also be in action in the either Kuwait, Iraq or Middle East. ) So please consider these things very carefully.
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Billnew
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Citizenship is a very big obstacle in the U.S.
Takes up to 7 years.
And in the meantime the majority of people wanting to join the military want to fly. (or be in tanks)
So the way to being a U.S. military pilot is a long one.
Your country might be the best way to go, or if Citizenship in England is easier go that way.
Good luck and good flying.
Takes up to 7 years.
And in the meantime the majority of people wanting to join the military want to fly. (or be in tanks)
So the way to being a U.S. military pilot is a long one.
Your country might be the best way to go, or if Citizenship in England is easier go that way.
Good luck and good flying.
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