SongMan

Can you share what life is like in the Air Force as a non-pilot officer?

I'm 33 and married with a kid. I am seriously thinking of military as a career option right now.

Can an officer applicant ask for gurentee in certain field before signup?
What are my chances of being stuck with the job I'd hate?
Once assigned, how difficult or easy is it to change field or job in the Air Force?

What is the quality or life in Air Force as an officer?

Thanks!

Sputnik

All in the eyes of the beholder, I may love something you'd hate and vice versa.

You have the greatest say about your career field as you're coming in, so be best bet is figure out what you want to do, then see if you can get picked up to do it. If you pick a job, then actually turn out to hate it.....who's fault is that?

I would say QOL is pretty good, your opinion may vary. Realize you'll most likely deploy at some point. Some career fields deploy a lot, some not so much.

You can switch career paths, generally easier earlier in your career. That said, in pretty much any field there's a wide variety of jobs so you can move about without actually switching. Also there's always "career broadening" kinds of things.

Figure out what job you might want to do, then ask about that. A .002 sec google search finds Officer Careers - Opportunities in the United States Air Force - AirForce.com. Take a look then come back. Keeping in mind this is a pilot forum, so you might not find anyone here with first hand knowledge of jobs you're interested in.

Good luck. I've enjoyed the AF.

KC10 FATboy

First things first ... why would you be wanting to switch careers and join the Air Force? Unless you've had the desire to serve your country, DO NOT join the military.

Second, what career field are you wanting? You can ask for a certain career field, but there are no guarantees. "The needs of the Air Force come first" will become a phrase that you'll become very familiar with.

Third, how are you looking to enter the officer corps ... ROTC, OTS? When I went through ROTC, you listed what career fields you wanted on a dream sheet. Then you were given one and it couldn't be changed. Some people got what they wanted, most did not. And it didn't make sense. A friend of mine was a corrections / law enforcemet major, but was assigned as a maintenance officer. Another friend was a civil engineer, and he told the recruiters that he would only go into the service if he was a CE. He ended up as a communications officer. Both did everything they could to switch career fields, but the "needs of the Air Force came first."

So ask yourself this question. Do you want to sign up for something that has the potential of causing you to spend long periods away from home, doing a job that you didn't want, with the real possbility of having your life put into danger?

SongMan

I have a degree in aviation and currently a flight insturctor at a local airport. I like planes and around planes I have spent most of my life after hig school.

Joining the Air Force will be via OTS(I belive) since I don't have prior ROTC experience.

Serving the country is nice and will gladly do so but in all honesty, it's job security that I'm seeking. I'm just kind of tired of having an aviation job that is not so stable and watching my son grow every day when I don't have clear future is scary. Afterall, I have family that I have to take care of and thought that Air Force will be great place to be around planes and have security for me and my family.

I have read and heard many people say "you join military to serve the country", and I agree to a point. However to be honest and with respect, this statement sounds cliche to me.

Thanks!

KC10 FATboy

Perhaps you don't get it. It isn't a cliche. And if you think it is a cliche, then you are REALLY missing the point and it is sure to hit you like a ton of bricks on your first assignment.

Once you sign the dotted line, they own you. And you must be willing to accept that. It doesn't mean much to you when you are 18yo or in your early 20s going through the Academy or ROTC. But trust me, at 33 years old, it will. Going through basic and walking around base as a 2Lt, you'll be treated like a kid. Seriously.

And although military life, espeically in the chair force, is very conducive to a family type of guy, you could end up spending up to and over a year away from your son. This is especially true since we are plussing up our numbers in the middle east.

I'm not trying to scare you, just giving you the cold facts.

Speaking of job protection, you need to find one of the 20+ thousand officers that were RIF'ed (reduction in force ... pink slips) just 2-3 years ago. They weren't pilots, they were non-rated folks. Although the threat is low, your job is still on the chopping blocks "if the needs of the air force come first."

I just think that if you are joining the service just to have some job protection, you're going to end up regretting that decision unless you have an actual real desire to be a combatant in the military.

rickair7777

Job security depends on there being an ongoing war (or threat of one). If the war continues (likely) you will experience increased workloads and more time overseas.

If the war ends, they will discharge many unneeded personnel, usually without retirement benefits. The navy does this by carefully screening the best performers and getting rid of those who are not.

I have heard, but not sure, that other services have simply fired everyone top-to-bottom in a disestablished unit?

With all that said, I still think the military will provide greater job security (if not QOL) than the airlines. But you will REALLY need to man up and develop a more motivated, aggressive attitude to do the military.

It sounds to me like you might also want to consider a non-aviation career.

liftr92

Almost missed wedding, Missed births - 0 thank schedulers, missed Christmas - 3, missed 1st birthday - 2, missed birthdays - too many too count, missed anniversary - 4, still being married and having a family that tolerates needs of the AF - still batting 1,000. Only those that have shut up and colored and those that have the desire to serve and not just earn a paycheck can put up with all the c**p required to be on active duty. my 2 cents. Just be prepared to say ciao to the family for the holidays and be happy with two 15 minute phone calls a week provided the morale system isn;t down.

Slice

If I were joining a service and not flying, or even to fly really, I'd look at the USCG...

MD10PLT

Does the military even take 33 year olds. Last time I checked 32 was the cut off.

GunnF16

Another option to possibly do the specific job you're trying to get is w/ the Reserves or Guard. You wouldn't be able to walk in the door as a full timer but in the meanwhile you could do your weekend a month / 2 weeks a year to supplement your income and have a few limited benefits. Depending on what unit you were with, there might be opportunities to work extra days as well. You'd still be vulnerable for a deployment to the Middle East and such and some of the negative aspects already pointed out on this thread.