Joining national guard and regional airlines
 

I am currently time building. I estimate I'll be around 1500 hours sometime in Fall 2020.

I've always wanted to serve in the military. My intentions are to work for the regionals and simultaneously serve in the infantry in the national guard. My state offers many advanced training opportunities for infantrymen and each opportunity would see me sent away for months at a time.

How should I approach this with the regional job? Should I mention during my interview what my intentions are? Should I join before hitting 1500 hours so they already know I'm in the guard and can expect I'll be gone a lot?

I don't want to start my career off on the wrong foot and it seems like I'd put a target on my back if I got hired and then dropped military leave right away as a surprise.

I'm an Air Guard pilot... I would definitely not tell them. They aren't legally allowed to make hiring decisions based upon your military status, so why bring it up?

Also, at the airline, you're a number and that's it. You drop Mil Leave, they find someone who walks/talks/looks like/flies like you in two seconds and put them on the schedule.

I've been at my company about 2 years and four months, and at least a year of that has been Mil Leave (deployments/training/etc.). I use the automated submission page, and I have NEVER talked to anyone about my leave (except when coordinating re-qual after coming back from a 7-month deployment). It's an easy process, because if they raise a fuss, they deal with USERRA, and they lose... Ask Delta.

If you want to serve, good on you... Go do it. It can be the best and worst part of your life, from moment to moment. Enjoy the good parts.

Good luck.

What is your state and do they have any flying positions in their guard or reserve? I have to admit, I’ve never been an actual infantryman, but I’ve seen enough of them on deployments in my previous job, and can’t say I see the allure.

That said, USERRA:

https://www.esgr.mil/USERRA/What-is-USERRA

Gives you rights to reemployment. That said, it’s kind of regarded as ‘dirty pool’ to sign in at indoc and then immediately leave on orders. It starts your seniority, but it also kept someone out of that seat and sort of wasted that slot. And the further along you go the worse it gets economically. Unless you can stay around until consolidation (100 hours after award of your type rating), they are essentially going to have to retrain you from the start if you have any prolonged absences.

That being said, I’d still try to get the first slot available at your regional and try to put off military orders until after consolidation. But That would also give you substantial clout applying for an ANG or Air Reserve flying slot. That would be a whole year away, but your regional seniority clock would be running the whole time.

Thank you. It's good to know that it works facelessly like that and that it shouldn't be a problem. I am aware of USERRA, but just wanted to make sure there won't be any "in between the lines" type of pushback against me.

There won't be.

Massachusetts.

Thanks for the suggestion with the ANG. I am actually familiar with that as I applied for UPT for years and years. I wasn't able to get selected and once I hit 30 years old I moved on.

The Army guard offers all sorts of opportunities. I am excited about the various schools and training you can attend and also find it appealing to have diversified experiences in things outside of just aviation. Of course, if a UPT slot presented itself today I would go but after some thought I am pretty excited about the infantry route as well. Just the way I am I guess.

The bolded part is somewhat concerning. If I understand you correctly, it seems like it is mitigated by sticking around until consolidation? I wasn't even aware of the consolidation milestone, so I will certainly aim to stick around at least until then.

A regional airline will lay you off with minimum legal notice. Don’t place your needs or those of our country below the hiring manager for a bottom tier subcontractor. Be safe. Good luck.

currently out on MIL leave, no issues

but to "piggyback"(<-get used to hearing that phrase in the MIL) on what someone else said....

Infantry ?

Bruh.

God Bless you if you do that.

With your age being beyond the limit now, once enlisted put in to fly with the Army Guard as a Warrant. You can hit two birds with one stone, since you want to enlist anyway. I think their cutoff is 33 and they like priors. That being said you might have to be in the unit to apply...the Army Guard does not take WO off the street as far as I know. The Army Resrves will as a commissioned officer, but even that's a tough nut.

Infantry is a young man’s game. Just getting started in your 30’s sounds terrible.