Originally Posted by
Clue32
Federal military service commitment is 8 years total. Part of that can be active, part can be reserve, part can be individual ready reserve (meaning you live a normal civilian life until the military really really needs you back.
Army commitment is 4 years Active. After flight school you 6 more years Active, meaning you'll still owe about a year left to uncle Sam but could leave. Any time during that 8 years uncle Sam can change the contrat.
Army ROTC won't gaurentee you a flight slot, so you could very well wind up leading an Infantry Platoon. You can take ROTC as an elective to try it out and then apply for a 3 or 2 year scholarship. If you wait until you are already on campus, however, you may miss out on the chance to get free room and board. Flight time for Captains and Lieutenants could vary from 0 hours per year to 110 hours per year to over 600 hours. All depends on your unit, your "real job," and if you are in combat or recovering from combat. Fixed wing is possible, but a very low probability of getting it... I'd say 1 in 200.
If you want to serve your country, fly in the Army, earn a salary high enough to pay off your student loans, and gain valuable flight experience that WILL help you get into the airline industry provided the airlines are hiring, the you want to talk to a recruiter about becoming a WARRANT OFFICER. If you pass the aptitude test and physical you can go straight from Basic, to Warrant officer candidate school, and to flight school. If I could go back to my college days that's what I'd do. Captains and Lieutenants in teh army are aviation managers that fly, not pilots.
Oh, and Military Service is a Stepping Stone to a Civilian Career, regardless of what some Navy Studs would have you believe.
True, but we'd be doing young folks like d22block a disservice by advertising military flying as a means to an end. Too much pain involved to market it as simply a flight time building experience (you didn't but it was slightly implied).
We all leave the military for another career. It's just hard to think about the time in your logbook when you're sitting squadron duty officer at 0300 and you get a call about a junior sailor, airman, or Marine who has just performed -insert one of the following- (domestic violence, underage drinking, suicide gesture, DUI, life threatening motor cycle accident, other).
A few major character filters occur upstream of earning military wings. The trade itself attracts the personality that is required (this being the first stage, or course screen filter). The majority of people who say, "I really want to do that" and take action to make the dream reality, can actually perform the job. The percentage of them that aren't what military aviation is looking for are weeded out in officer and flight training.
It may be a good idea to paint the most realistic picture for those who are thinking, "I really want to do that". This may save them grief down track.
On another note, USN obligatory service is now 8 years after winging for pilots going to all communities.