WOFT in the Army Reserve
 

I am trying to figure out if it is possible to submit a civilian WOFT packet i the Reserve. I cant seem to find a definite answer anywhere and most of the recruiters tell me I have to enlist as a crew chief or smiliar and then try. The only thing I know for sure is the active duty Army will accept civilians. If anyone has any info, I'd greatly appreciate it!

Try APTAP - Army Pilot to Airline Pilot, it is an Army Aviation Forum. Someone will answer your question quickly there. Good Luck!

Fly Army

The Army Reserve has special Warrant Officer accessions recruiters. The other guys tell you that you need to enlist as a crew chief first because they are only trying to get their numbers up, and it doesn't help get you into WOFT.

Go to aptap.org to get good and current info. There is a recent post from someone who just completed the process and has been accepted.

Good luck!

Okay, I just registered for the forums, so maybe someone will know. I was told today by an active duty recruiter that if you were flying helicopters that you were either active duty or national guard, the reserve had no helicopters!

You need to go somewhere else, this guy is either misinformed or an idiot (or both). Go to this site, it will give you an overview of the entire program.

U.S. Army Recruiting Command's Warrant Officer Recruiting Information Site

Here is the contact info for the Officer Accessions Section for civilian applicants. She can give you the most up-to-date info. I would be careful using info from APTAP or other sites, it is not always accurate and mistakes entering the military take a LONG time to correct. You are going to need to know the correct info from the highest source, only rely on this and check back to be sure you understand. Ask many, many questions......or pay the price later. Don't miss the boat, but also don't get on the wrong boat either. Contact this person after you read everything on the site.

Stephanie R. Rausch
Officer Accession Section
1-800-223-3735 ext. 046777
CO:M 502-626-0467
DS:N 536-0467
FAX: 502-626-0944
[email protected]


Use the information from here if you go back to another recruiter, know your facts and you can cut most of the BS out of the picture.

Good luck,

Scout

To the OP: Typically, no, it is not possible to submit directly to a Reserve Component without being a "member in good standing." The USAR definitely has AV assets, but not nearly as many as the National Guard.

Your recruiter might be able to work some magic for you, but unless they are really "in the know" so to speak, you will have a serious uphill fight on your hands with a lot of brick walls. Still, it MAY be possible.

On a side note, there is nothing wrong with having to enlist first to get your foot in the door. So many good Warrant Officer pilots were a boot on the ground (me included) before flying. If you want a reserve slot, you may have to take the plunge and enlist first. Keep your goal in sight, work towards it a little everyday, and it will come to fruition.

CD

I'm going through the process right now, only for the Guard. My recruiter originally told me that it was impossible to go in as a civilian and tried to get me in as an officer, where I would submit a flight packet a long time down the line.
Even after the other recruiters were telling him that that wasn't the way it works, he was unable to listen. Finally, after talking to a few current and retired Guard helo pilots, I took a stand and told him I wanted to get in contact with an accession officer. He reluctantly put me in contact with the right guy and I got it fixed.
In my case, my state doesn't allow civilians to go directly to WOCS, so I still have to enlist for a year, but with the job I chose, (15Q which is ATC) by the time I get done with training, I'll be right around the time that I start putting in all my paperwork.

Good luck! Make sure you get WOFT candidate somewhere in your contract. They can't guarantee you a slot, but they can garuntee you a fair chance at one!