Air Force?
#41
There is no such thing as Air Force OCS...Army, Navy, and Marines call it OCS, but for some reason somebody decided to call ours OTS. OTS is where ALL Active Duty and Reserve Officers go before any other job related training starts (Unless they were in ROTC or the AF Academy). (Reserve non-flying officers may go to AMS instead of OTS). Think Basic Training but twice as long, with a million Powerpoint Presentations. This is not just for pilots...when I was there, there was about 1 pilot to every 8. I can't emphasize enough that you're an Officer first, pilot second; so the first few months of training you will not see an airplane, you will be fashioned into a Military Officer first...later in your flying career, you may be Squadron Commander, Director of Operations, etc.., if you lose your medical, you may have to take command of something not aviation related, so all officers in all career fields go to the same Military Education, OTS then later Squadron Officer School, Air Command Staff College, Air War College, you will get to know Montgomery, Alabama very well.
Last edited by blastoff; 05-17-2007 at 10:34 AM.
#42
So to summarize, to be a pilot you have to be an Officer. To be an Officer you have to attend a Commissioning Source. The Commissioning sources are:
1. The Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO (ActiveDuty)
2. ROTC at various college campuses (Active Duty)
3. Officer Training School (OTS) in Montgomery, AL (Active Duty or Reserve)
4. Academy of Military Science (AMS) in Knoxville, TN (Guard)
1. The Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO (ActiveDuty)
2. ROTC at various college campuses (Active Duty)
3. Officer Training School (OTS) in Montgomery, AL (Active Duty or Reserve)
4. Academy of Military Science (AMS) in Knoxville, TN (Guard)
#44
I will add my thoughts in because in 3 weeks I will find out if I got a pilot slot in the USAF. There are a couple things that aren't exactly right....
You can fly rotary, its an option after UPT. Most people don't want it. If you do go rotary you will either be flying special operations or missle support out at the ranges.
And I don't think there are any guard or reserve units flying helos.
* Normal color vision
* Distant vision – pilots, uncorrected to 20/50
* Near vision – pilots, uncorrected to 20/20
* Meet refraction, accommodation and astigmatism requirements
* Corrective eye surgery could be a disqualifier
* Have no history of hay fever, asthma or allergies after age 12
* Meet Air Force weight and physical conditioning requirements
* Have standing height of 64 to 77 inches and sitting height of 34 to 40 inches
PRK is really touchy right now. If you want it, let the AF do it.
You can fly rotary, its an option after UPT. Most people don't want it. If you do go rotary you will either be flying special operations or missle support out at the ranges.
And I don't think there are any guard or reserve units flying helos.
* Normal color vision
* Distant vision – pilots, uncorrected to 20/50
* Near vision – pilots, uncorrected to 20/20
* Meet refraction, accommodation and astigmatism requirements
* Corrective eye surgery could be a disqualifier
* Have no history of hay fever, asthma or allergies after age 12
* Meet Air Force weight and physical conditioning requirements
* Have standing height of 64 to 77 inches and sitting height of 34 to 40 inches
PRK is really touchy right now. If you want it, let the AF do it.
#45
OTS: 3 Months
UPT: 13 Months
FTU: 5 Months (FTU is where you learn your specific Airframe, the length varies depending on your Airframe)
Land and Water Survival: 3 weeks
Total I had 22 months of Formal Training before flying with an operational unit.
#46
New Hire
Joined APC: Apr 2007
Posts: 4
so i just talked to an air force recruiter. he told me if i was accepted into OTS (which is competetive) then joining the UPT would be easy. how much truth is there to this? he also said all pilots in the air force would be deployed out the country.
kind of sounded like he didn't know what he was talking about. what are your experiences?
kind of sounded like he didn't know what he was talking about. what are your experiences?
#47
Recruiters are below used car salesman on the morality food chain. There are some good ones out there but you won't know until it's too late if you get screwed. I was under the impression that you can get a guaranteed pilot slot prior to going to OTS. Btw, don't also check Nav on your app. Talked to a recruiter about flying before I got my guard slot. He recommended to do that just to "get in". Your odds of cross training to pilot are low, the AF is short on Navs! If you want to be a pilot, sign up as a pilot only!
#48
New Hire
Joined APC: May 2007
Position: E-3 Sideways
Posts: 7
Yes, don't check Nav! I work with a Nav now that wants to be a pilot and he's done nothing but try and try to cross over early and he could've done it if he had the waiver. He didn't get that in and they denied him. Now he just has to wait and try again (sounds like a big pain in the a$$) I also work with a pilot that used to be a navigator, so it can be done. Right now though he's a Capt co-pilot about to go up for his Maj board. I'm just a enlisted FE, but from what I understand it's pretty hard to move to the next level, especially Maj as a Co-pilot. So, try and avoid the whole a$$ pain and just check pilot. As for everyone else out there wondering about going to the desert, I've been in for coming up on 8 years and the only desert that I seen was while I was in New Mexico. It's all hit or miss on what you're on or where you're at and definetly timing. I just went through my AEF at homestation. Although it'd have to pretty improtant to pull us with Uncle Kim and his constant antics.
#49
Ya that's wrong. You get a UPT slot before you go to OTS...Once you get through the UPT Board, OTS is just a part of your training rip and is implied...that is, you're going to OTS. Everybody at OTS already knows what they're going to be in the Air Force. If the Recruiter is trying to sign you up for a job other than pilot and telling you to compete for UPT after, its bull******, I know guys that got tricked into being a Navigator who never wanted to be a Navigator, but the recruiter was just trying to fill slots that were undermanned.
#50
I would think that somebody with a couple ratings and certificates would pretty much be a shew-in (spelling??) compared to somebody with no time at all..
what is the deal with people entering with a couple certs and rats opposed to a total newbie?? is it just test results???
what is the deal with people entering with a couple certs and rats opposed to a total newbie?? is it just test results???
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