Razor... any truth to the Air Force times story that the U-2s are gonna be going away? I have 4 buds out there flying the deuce, and they seem to love it. How has your experience been?

 

Correction to my post....others bring up the excellent point that I should've made in my original post....staying in the military these days is a valuable asset that makes the trials & tribulations of the civilian world a little less stressful. Consider all of those retirement benefits greatly....airline jobs will be around when you get out...they may look much different but certainly you'll walk away with hopefully some decent benefits....I stayed in 20 & had no regrets....if the Age 60 slips to 65 the ability to have a full flying career until then also makes sense to stay 20 since you'll have plenty of years afterwards also...the key is being current when you get out (if you wish to go to a major)...if you're not current then one should be able to get picked up by a regional or fractional possibly to get the currency back. I was lucky, flew for 20 & was current....good luck!!!

 

Bengal,

I didn't see the the AF Times article but the word is that the U-2 will be gone by 2011. The Dragon Lady has been slated for retirement several times in the past and is still going strong. It takes Congress stepping in and restoring the funding. We'll see...

I got here in 98 and have had a blast. Best job in the AF I think. I get to fly the U-2 and the T-38; from 70,000' down to 500', single seat hours from home to dual four-ship cross country, not too bad. I retire next year so I'll be gone before the Global Chicken takes over. Thank goodness...

 

Network, Network, Network. I got out of the Navy over 25 years ago and the big players were Eastern and TWA at the time. Been a great career, but if today if I had to do what you are now, I think I would stay in. Also see how long it will take to make what you are now if your can't get on with UPS, FEDEX or SWA. Most of the others will take some time, probably.
S1

 

For the guys advocating 20 years of active duty, just some thoughts...

I assume you retired recently and are familiar with the current ops tempo of fighting in OEF and OIF. With the reality of 240+ days TDY per year (often in chunks of 60 days or more at a time) being the standard for all mobility pilots for the forseeable future, is it still worth it to serve 20 years active duty?

Obviously everybody's situation is different, some may not mind being in the desert that much. I don't know of any other time in recent history where the AF has been so heavily tasked, and so much time away from home has been demanded. IMHO, it is asking a whole lot more of a guy to spend 20 years active duty flying now than it was prior to Sep 11th.

I think a good compromise is to finish out your 20 years in the Guard or Reserves. You will get the same retirement benefits (albeit delayed until you're 60). You'll have more control over your life. And best of all, you can get a date of hire with a major airline and start building seniority. For me, I would rather have the early years in an airline (sitting reserve, flying holidays, etc) occur when my children are young and won't remember, as opposed to when I am 42 and I am missing all their ball games, music recitals, etc.

For me and my situation, that is why it is better to get off active duty early.

GR

 

Well, the reserve retirement formula will not give you anything like the same monthly check as active duty...the only way to get a reserve retirement that is anything like significant money is to have 15+ years active duty prior to going reserve. Or retire as a reserve O-7+ with 35 years. And you still have to wait till you're sixty...

I look at it as beer money.

 

I hear you on that one Goddard!!! I just got back from a 141 day deployment to the sandbox!!!! I don't want to be doing this for the next 13 years. It doesn't look like the airlift guys are going to see an end anytime soon. Especially the Herc community. I totally hear you about the family thing too. That is why I am looking into it so I have that option when my time comes. How do you like the T-1??? You at Laughlin???

 

The T-1 is great. I'm at Columbus. I love the assignment. There is the petty AETC stuff to put up with, but you can easily get 500+ hrs of jet PIC every year here. Lots of former Herc guys here too. Lots of good family time, and best of all, a great Reserve unit here.

 

Goddard,

You're right about the current TDY situation, lots of guys doing lots of days away. I did 3 years in the AWACS at Tinker with many trips to the desert and Turkey. Then PCSed to Alaska where we stilled deployed but it was mainly to Panama (tough duty). Then I came to the U-2, one LDHD asset to another. Our standard line guy is gone 60 days then home 60 then back out again. As you gain seniority you spend more time at home and less on the road. I did a 1 year remote but it was as the DO in Cyprus, hard to complain about that. Now I'm an FTU IP so I don't deploy much.

You can take a break from the deployments if, like you, you get an AETC gig or if you get an FTU job. There are jobs out there that will keep you off the road. You can come fly the U-2 for a few years. It won't keep you off the road in the beginning but I the life seems more stable than lots of communities out there. And you get to fly the T-38 on the side. I sure wouldn't want to be a C-17 guy. The quality of life there is terrible.

 

Razor
I am a reservist, and I would love to fly the Deuce. I have 4 or 5 buddies there who love it... I think we've had this conversation... anyways... is there anyway for a reservist to fly the U-2? I would come onto active duty, but only to get the job I wanted... can you apply to the U-2 and do the whole application process and come on active duty only if you get selected?

Thanks for the info