Originally Posted by
TankerDriver
With almost 70% of the eligible AF pilots taking the bonus in the 2012-2013 time frame to stay in for 5-9 more years, I honestly don't think the amount of mil applicants outweighed the civ applicants from regionals. The AF has 13,000 pilots and only a small fraction of those are even eligible for separation and/or retirement. I do think the amount of mil pilots taking the bonus is going to plummet drastically over the next 5 yrs though.
I think you're right about the bonus take rate continuing to drop. From last year to this year, the take rate dropped over 10%. In the fighter community it was less than 50% of eligible pilots signing up. My guess from conversations around work is that those percentages will keep dropping. It's been the same $25k/year for at least 10 years now. With the climate not getting better and the bonus getting relatively smaller every year, more Mil guys will be putting in apps every year. Or they won't, just my gut feeling.