Lots of good responses. The overall trend in Naval Aviation is less flying. H-60's and P-3's are flight time limited to extend service life. Individual Augment billets to the desert are a new reality. Both of these issues translate to less time in the cockpit.

Also, the straight to reserve flying (VR C-9's, C-40's, C-130's) was only for year group '04 student naval aviators. It is no longer an option.

If you want a real good shot at herks go Coast Guard. Most Coastie students want helo's. If you do o.k. in Primary (don't need to be an ace, but not a plumber), you stand a very good chance of getting assigned a fixed wing asset (they also fly Falcons Jets).