Originally Posted by
yeeeyeee
I’m about to take an ATP written exam. I was in the Navy for 28 days...yes you heard that correctly. I received an administrative discharge due to medical reasons during Officer Candidate School. I did receive an official DD214 for the month I was in. Can I still take the FAA written test at a military facility? I don’t consider myself a veteran or ever really “in the military”, but the test would be free rather than having to spend $165 at a civilian facility.
Length of Service Criteria for Veteran Status
For people who enlisted prior to September 8, 1980, no minimum length of service is necessary to be considered a veteran for most VA benefits. However, certain minimum length of service requirements apply to people who enlisted on or after September 8, 1980. The general requirement is the “full period” for which the servicemember was called or ordered to active duty or, if less, 24 months of continuous active duty.
Several exceptions exist to this rule. For example, service-connected disability compensation benefits are exempt from the length of service requirement. Thus, a veteran with a disease or injury incurred during active service generally may receive service-connected compensation for that disability.
Other exceptions to the minimum service requirements include claims for VA life insurance benefits, hardship discharges, and persons retired or separated from service because of a service-related disability.
If the former servicemember did not serve for the full period of active duty and served less than 24 months, and none of the statutory exceptions apply, then the veteran did not complete a minimum period of active duty and is “not eligible for any benefit under Title 38, United States Code or under any law administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs based on that period of active service.”
Not sure how the FAA judges veteran status. This is simply the VA definition.