Flyguy4723

So I've recently been thinking of applying for a seat at OCS and in turn for a pilot slot for the USN. I've done a lot of research on sites like baseops and air warriors but I wanted to see what the guys over here had to say about it. I'm a junior at a collegiate aviation program and have about 200 hours with my CFI.

mainlineAF

If you want to fly off boats then go for it. If you just want to fly for the military I'd absolutely go the guard/reserve route before any active duty.

OrionDriver

This.

Former Navy pilot here, now flying 121 and a Air Guard pilot. I liked a lot about my Navy career, most especially the flying. However, flying isn't your primary duty as a Navy officer and you really won't fly that much unless you're pretty lucky. There are a lot of non-flying jobs you're supposed to do in order to keep moving up the food chain.

That being said, by the time you're done with you're initial commitment (8yrs in Navy, vs I think 10yrs in the AF), you'll be very employable at a major airline - of you're able to get back to back flying tours, which is not even remotely guaranteed.

As much as I liked aspects of the Navy (our uniforms are far cooler than the air force!), if I could go back in time and do it all over again I'd go Air Guard and try to get a few years of active duty flying, then guard bum for a while until I needed the money from a full time job (married, kids, etc), then get hired on at an airline.

One nice thing about being a guard baby is you KNOW what you'll fly following UPT. Going AD Navy, AF, or Marines could result in flying helos (which are AWESOME, but hard to get on with a major at the end). Some AF guys get tagged to fly drones, but I don't know how many.

Just depends on what your end goals are. I can't speak highly enough of military aviation training and I did get to do a lot of very cool things that I'll never get to do at my 121 gig (at least not and keep my job).

PM if you have Navy specific aviation questions.

Packrat

Orion driver said it all. Find a Guard Unit that flies the plane you want. If your goal is the airlines, try to get in some kind of transport category plane. Tankers would be my first choice followed by a passenger (737?) unit. After that cargo i.e. C-17/C-130.

Any of those would be a good choice. I was Navy myself, but Orion said it all about the active duty side of the military.

Peacock

What do you want to fly? What attracts you to the military and to naval aviation? The answers to those questions are pretty important. A lot of people here will give you answers based on quality of life and getting to the airlines. I joined the Marines because I wanted to fly jets and blow stuff up. I did that, and now I'm starting at a major airline and flying something with a high QOL in the reserves, and I'm pretty happy with how things have worked out so far.

Flyguy4723

Could you expand on this a little? How much do you guys actually fly?

Flyguy4723

I am fine with flying anything other than a drone. I'd probably prefer fixed-wing but helo's sound awesome too. I think I'd like to get on with an airline after my time but it's not a must. I've always liked the navy and I think I'd fit in best there.

FlyBoyd

Don't forget about Coast Guard aviation. There's some interesting flying....especially on the helo side.

Second to the Guard comments above, the Coast Guard was next in line for what I wished I had looked into.

Flyguy4723

I've heard from a lot of navy guys that the navy is a better way to get into military flying because air guard is extremely competitive and they like to hire from within the unit. Also, most of these navy guys recommend guard after their navy career as they can get on easier with some AD experience.

e6bpilot

Most of the airlines don't count helo time and if you go gold wings, you have about a 50 percent chance of going that route.
The comments above are spot on. I was Navy and wouldn't trade the experience for anything, but the Guard is hands down the best way to go if you can pull it off.