bunk22

For the most part, those I've seen stay have been happy but stayed because they wanted either command, O-5 and the retirement. Of the folks I know who stayed, I'm the only one who didn't want to stay and did. Just took input from family and the wife and everyone felt the bonus, retirement, was a better deal than unemployment for a few years. So far, it hasn't been bad, my DH tour went okay, gone for 7 months out of 24. A lot of BS from deployment and the weak front office during my time there but it's over now. However, if it wasn't for this shore tour, I probably would be miserable. Great flying tour while I'm my own boss (OIC of a prep school for Saudi pilots). Bad for career but at least I'm having a good time. First time since flight school I've enjoyed the Navy. It's my last three years that I dread, the Navy usually pays you back for good deals.

H60 guy

bunk-

Sounds like your timing has worked out well. I am at the 10-year mark and I know guys who have skated through their career and hit all the right assignments and I know guys who have been deployed over three years. It is all about the timing.

I am very hesitant to take advice from others at this point in my career because very few generations (if any?) are in the same situation. I am not talking casualties or dedication or any of the other stuff, I am talking specifically deployment time. As a service member you could of very easily spent 20-years...anywhere from 1975 to 2001 and never deploy a day in your life. Exceptions...Special Operations, Panama, Grenanda, and Desert Storm. Granted you may have done the occassional 1-year unaccompanied or TDY trip, but no where near the amount we are deploying. I am an Army guy and have deployed over 26 months in the last 5-year and I am doing good. In my future I have at least another 3 out of the next 6 years and potentially a 15-month rotation in there. Retirees who constantly beat the "never get out past ten or your experience is priceless.." drum have never been faced with the same situation as us.

When I wake up at 65 I would much rather say.."I wish I had that military retirement" and not "I wish I would have spent more time with my children"

With our AAA type personalities we will always provide for our families and most likely offset any retirement through hard work.

c17heavy

Along those same lines...I got this from my old commander on our squadron message board:

"For those of you moving on to the post-AF life, I want to give you some
confidence. The more I work with people in the outside world, and the
more I interview people, the more I appreciate how really together
people are in the AF. The worse of us are better than average in the
outside world. If I ever leave this job and start interviewing again,
that is information I will take with me. So, basic message is...know
your value."

Toejam

Good! Advice is a seasoning best used sparingly. I retired after 24+ years in the AF and am waiting for a class date (Feb 18) at Delta. Many of my friends got out around the 11 year point. I loved my job and the people I worked with, so I stayed in. I always wanted to do the airline gig, but figured I could wait a bit. At 20 (2003) all the airlines were bleeding to death, so I stayed in and figured the airline deal was gone.

An opportunity opened for me and I jumped. Timing, luck and a lot of other forces are involved in the formula. What I learned from my experience is that about 95 % of what most people (including myself) thought the future was going to be like was wrong. These same people, including myself, will look forward to the future and try and guess what that will be like, with probably the same erroneous conclusions. What served me best was to strive to enjoy what I was doing in the present and keep options open for opportunities as they appeared.

ugleeual

ToeJam,

You will like your time at Delta... will be a nice change of pace from AD. Even in the bad times (like now) the airlines are still a good career... but not as good as before!

Cheers,

Toejam

Thanks, looking forward to the change. Really looking forward to getting back into the flying game. The later stages of the military your flying becomes a second job and not your primary, which is leadership/management. Back to being a crewdog...

oldboyroy

I am just getting back from almost 6mons in Baghdad as an IP in the T-1A at KCBM. I was not flying but wearing kevlar, MP5s, and riding in amored HMVs and PSD vehicles for the Iraqi Gov. I was voluntold by a recent retired commander that has never, absolutely, never deployed once in his career. He is now waiting for an Air Tran class in April. But, beside that, I can't see getting out now since leaving this IP job for a lifestyle away from family and wife. I will not look forward to retiring and being junior to the airlines lifestyle. Retirement should be a nice chapter in my life, not a sentence to being away again. I think I am going to see about starting a charter snorkling company with my uncle down in Antigua and St John's. Much rather live the vacation than be one's wanting to go on vacation.

webecheck

my apologies old boy roy. dont you hate those f'in voluntolds!