Brit43

Hey all, I hope you're doing well. I'm a 3rd year college student and I am a business major. I was originally a pilot major and I have about 50 hrs I just don't have a pilot's license. I halted flight traning because of the absurd expense s so now I plan graduating with my degree in business and going to OCS then UPT to become a heavy airforce pilot for about 10 years then I plan on applying to the cargo airlines after my time. I want to fly for UPS or FedEx one day. I'm 20 years of age , if I was to follow through with this plan I will be about 32 to 34 years of age when it's all said and done. Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you.

Otterbox

Go ANG/regional combo, cut about 6-8 years off of your timeline.

Brit43

How exactly do I find ang? Do I need previous licenses to be eligible for that? That sounds like a great path. How do I get started for someone in my position?

rickair7777

Yes ANG (or USAF reserve) is the way to go if you want to be an airline pilot eventually anyway. Bottom line, the sooner you grab a seniority number the better.

You have a lot of research to do to figure out how to get hired off the street in the guard/reserves, but it could pay massive dividends.

Baseops.net has a lot of info, but do a LOT of reading before you dare to post a question over there lol.

You don't strictly need any previous licenses for any mil program, but it typically helps to have a PPL to compete for a slot. Generally guard is more competitive since you don't incur a 12+ year active duty obligation. Their screening system tends to reward initiative, having a PPL would count along those lines.

Also at this point don't go too hard over on any particular airline or airline sector... who knows what the landscape will look like when you get there. Stay abreast of the industry so you're ready to make a good decision when the time comes.

BlueScholar

Good on you! As mentioned the guard/reserve path is ideal because A- you can get a civilian job aka a line number faster, which is a massive, massive deal, and B- when you are hired you know exactly what you will fly, where you will be based, and thus, the quality of life. The downside is it is more difficult to get hired off the street by guard or reserve units. Also, you aren't necessarily a full time employee in the guard or reserves. If you're a traditional reservist working 1 weekend a month + 2 weeks a year + flying 2x a month then you're getting paid for exactly 62 days a year. You can pick up full time orders if it's in the budget. If something outside of your control happens like military budget cuts, POTUS grabbing funds to build a border wall, or even the wing messing up their budget, then you are essentially unemployed for the rest of the fiscal year + 1 month for the money to trickle down again. The other downside is you might want to change your mind about what you want to fly. Going into UPT I knew top gun looked cool and wanted single seat fighters. I quickly realized that would be miserable, so good thing I wasn't hired by a unit that only flew the F-16.

Active duty will be a safe and secure job, but your job will be 90% admin/office work, you'll move around, and you don't know what you'll fly or where you'll go initially...or at several points in your career. Giving up 12 years to Uncle Sam will delay your entry into the airline world. MAYBE that will be a bad thing. MAYBE that will be the best possible financial decision you ever make. I graduated into the Great Recession and dodged COVID and never lost a night's sleep about paying the mortgage or keeping my job. Someone who graduated at the end of COVID and is hitting the airline market now is going to be in a far better position than me, people who hit the industry in 2001 had it far worse than me. Who knows what the future will hold. I did 13 years and went to the reserves, and I have a legit shot at a reserve or AD retirement and I got the best of both worlds. Some buddies had the opportunity to bail early, but they looked at their life and choose to do 20 years and then hit the airlines and they will be roughly 14,000 names below me on the seniority list, but they'll also have medical and a pension to fall back on if they get furloughed. But they certainly appreciated having the option to stay in or leave, which is a rare bit of flexibility.

Civilian track is a hard row to how too, I got my training for 0 dollars but I signed away 12 years of my life to get them. Is that better or cheaper than paying 150k for the ratings, taking out student loans and grinding away as a CFI for 20k a year? Who knows. But many, many, many people do that too. When it comes to the cargo/airline debate, well it's not even a debate until you get a choice. Base you options off where you want to live and which company is willing to hire you, in that order.

Timing is everything, but the best thing you can do is maximize your chances. Go to every manned guard or reserve unit you can to build relationships and apply. Apply to OTS, IDK if ROTC is still an option at your stage in the game. Apply to the regional airlines or other flying jobs. If AD or the regionals becomes the only option you have, then your decision is made for you. If you have options, come back here and weigh them. In the meantime, control what you can with good grades, good fitness scores, good AFOQT scores, and hopefully it all works out for you! Have a fall back plan with that business degree if the industry tanks or life changes.

sourdough44

Maybe you already signed up for OCS? If so, I’d continue on that path. Yes, a Guard or Reserve pilot slot is more coveted, especially planning a civilian transition already. It would help to have a private pilot license to apply to a flying unit, but not essential. Then you already have your 50 hours of flight time, helps.

It’s kinda a long road, flying active duty in the military, but it can be an interesting road. I’m a fan of the ‘shotgun approach’, when applying for military or later airline flying. That means, apply to everyone you ‘may’ want to work at, decide later.

I got my start enlisted in the National Guard, basic one week out of high school. After college I went to AOCS in Pensacola, keeping that fun meter pegged.