Yes it does help. They have a rating system on applicants. If you have XX amount of hours you get XX amount of points. It does help. I'm about to go fly so I couldn't read everything but hours help out quite a bit. If you didn't have your PPL the airforce would send you to someone like me where you would do IFS (Initial flight screening) to see if you even have the ability to be a pilot. However with your license you can dodge this step which is favorable.
Duck