Zayghami

Hello,


I am currently a sophomore in college. I go to a community college and am transferring to a state school in the fall of 2010. I am interested in joining the Air Force. I was wondering what is the best way to get a pilot slot?

Would it be best for me to join ROTC, or after college try getting a slot through a recruiter? My biggest concern with joining ROTC is that I wont get a slot and am forced to do four years of something that I have no interest in. I currently have a Private with a multi add on and about 240 hours (70 multi) I will have my single engine instrument in about a month.

Thanks for your help,

Z

ryan1234

AFROTC... get a good PCSM, keep your grades up, volunteer at the det., you'll have an easier time getting a 'pilot slot' that way than OTS. At the AROTC det near here, people get pilot slots with far less PCSM and GPA than do the OTS candidates.

No other services interest you?

navigatro

Make sure you can pass the Air Force Flying Class I medical exam.

Lots of good info on the forums at Baseops.net

Zayghami

Its not that Im not interseted in other sercices, its just that id rather fly.

How many OTS candidates actually get the pilot slot? Are they chosen yearly? Would my pilot ratings and flight time increase my chances?

USMCFLYR

You do know that other services have aviation assests right?
Also - have you been following the recent events in UPT or the military in general?

USMCFLYR

Zayghami

No, I have not aware of whats going on in upt.

USMCFLYR

Search the forums for the keywords UAV.
It seems that the AF has plans to send many young pilots right into the UAV world. It might be that chances of actual flying airplanes in the AF in the future have just become much harder. Know what you are getting in to before signing on the line Zayghami.

USMCFLYR

Justin172

One thing to consider; the Coast Guard, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and Army all have different hiring tempos for flyers depending on the needs of the service (get used to hearing that phrase). The service with the best chance of giving you a flying slot will change from year to year and even month to month.


If you're looking to go Air Force, it wouldn't hurt to join the Guard or get to know people in a local squadron. Once you have your degree in hand, you could apply to an ANG hiring board at your squadron or elsewhere.

Within the Air Force it may be "easier" to get a slot through ROTC, but there's one difference that jumps out between applying to the ANG as opposed to an active duty or ROTC board. If ROTC says "no", it's a no-go (although I believe you can still apply active duty). If one Guard unit says no, there are probably 10 or 15 others hiring within the next year that may say yes. Some folks are hired at their 10th or 11th ANG interview board. I'm not sure how likely it would be for an applicant to sit before 10 ROTC or AD boards.

One more thing - Air National Guard slots are initiated with the squadron themselves. You don't seek out an "officer recruiter" unless the squadron directs you to.

Best of luck. Plenty of good info on the forums here and elsewhere.

JobHopper

My crashpad roommate's son graduated from UPT last year (Guard slot). He said the vast majority of active duty grads got UAV assignments! There are some beginning rumblings of making UAVs a separate career field, which means you might never see the inside of a cockpit after UPT.

I hate to say this, being retired AF myself, but you might seriously think about rearranging your priorities. Pursue Guard/Reserve slots, but if you actually want to fly on active duty, the other sevices may be your best bet.

Hacker15e

I wish people would stop over-playing the UAV assignments out of training.

They're going to about 10-20% of students.

The way it gets discussed on some of these boards, it is made to sound like the "majority" of dudes are being sent to unmanned assets, which is just flat out false.