Originally Posted by
Phantom26
Yay, congratulations, good for you!
I was going through this thread and was about to ask you for an update before I scrolled to the very end.
I personally am in a similar although not identical situation. I am a non-US citizen (European) living with my family and working a staff job in the US on a temporary assignment (NATO visa). Despite everything going on, we have come to really like it, but my air force will of course not let me stay here indefinitely. So one option I am looking into is retiring and becoming an airline pilot. I have wanted to do this for a while, but airline jobs in Europe are *******.
Anyway, I do not have a formal degree either (I have something that is equivalent to but not accredited as a bachelor), so I am happy to learn that this requirement may have been relaxed.
I am somewhat older than you with 3.000 hours on fast jets. But I keep hearing from people I talk to that it is not too late to make the move. Now the big hurdle is figuring out if/how I can get a Green Card or whatever is needed to live and work here in the US.
I would be very interested in hearing more about your transition and how it works out for you. Maybe you could provide another update at some point.
Good luck!
The green card will definitely be the long pole in the tent for you. If you already have family with US citizenship, it may be a bit easier. At my airline we have more than a few guys who flew for other nations’ air forces. You may want to see if you are burning a bridge with your Air Force by putting in an application for a US Green card. Good luck!