Care to attest to the "If it ain't leakin don't ride it!" motto? Lol, good ole 46's are pretty reliable birds regardless of their wierd habits.

But yeah, Join the Marine Corps and be a close air support pilot. You'll gain the admiration and respect of all us 'grunts'. I make it a point to buy a beer for any Cobra driver I happen to be lucky(unlucky?) enough to be around. Now in what other service will the enlisted PRAISE their officers? Even if it is only the flyboys

 

The 46, 53 and even the new MV-22 tends to leak hydraulic fluid all over the place; kinda like the 727 and oil. When it stops leaking, then bad things are sure to happen. I have been in many emergency landing situations where all we needed to do was fix a hyd line and add more fluid and then press on with the mission.

One of the best thing that I experienced so far was that our ground forces really do the hard work . When I rescue my Marines out of a hostile place after weeks or months of combat (or casevac) and look back at thier faces, I see comfort in their being aboard and taking them home. This brings any pilot a great sense of pride.

 

Better look harder, that's not a look of comfort. That Devil Dog is about to spew all over your pretty little birdie. I don't know if you guys are just really hard on the stick or if the 46 just rattles that much, but I think every grunt pukes on his first -real- helo ride

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJR_

...are there any Warrant Officers that have college degrees?

Absolutely. I am a Warrant in the Army - have been one since 1996 and earned my BS while serving on Active duty. Like many of my peers, I am in the process of pursuing a Masters as well.

Like Spartan said, most Warrants posses the drive to be more and learn more than your average soldier - that’s why they moved up to becoming a Warrant.

BLACKHAWK - great description of Warrants and Commissioned Officers.

Bottom line - What ever path you choose - be committed to it and don't concern yourself with what the other guy is doing. 99% of the young Commissioned Officers I come in contact with are disgruntled because they don't "fly as much as the warrants do." And definitely not as much as they thought they would. All I can say is choose your path wisely and know what you are getting into so you don't have sour grapes about your chosen profession.

 

I'm a Army Guard Warrant Officer. I went to flight training in 1986 and have been active in the Guard ever since. My education was interupted by Basic and flight training, but I finished my degree in English and work for a semiconductor manufacturer as a communications manager.

I have flown many aircraft including UH-1H Hueys, UH-1M Huey Gunship, OH-58 Kiowa, UH-60 Black Hawk, and C-12 Huron (King Air). I have over 3000 hours of experience including a Comm AMEL/rotory wing /Instrument rating that I didn't have to pay a dime for. I have a retirement through the Guard that will supplement my other retirement plans at about $1500 per month.

I think that the Guard is often overlooked by guys that want to fly for the airlines and would like to have another source of income, additional professional flight training to develop more experience, stability and a sense of pride and belonging to a great organization. It is the only part-time job that allows you to get time off from your current job. I have also got some great vacation packages through them too: Canada, Alabama, El Salvador, the 02 Winter Olympics, and Southwest Asia.