Not sure about the other services, but in the navy if you have a medical degree/certification they will ONLY allow you to serve in a medical capacity. This is because they are so hard hard up for medical types. In fact, if a reserve member even enters a medical training program, they will force-transfer you to the medical corps. Not sure about the other services but I suspect the army is the same.

Not sure if that applies to nurses, but you might want to check.

 

Yeah that's what I'm afraid of. Do you know anything about the ANG? I know most units hire within, so I take it that I would have to enlist and hold some random job until I could get a UPT slot? Also, does anyone happen to know what the contract time is for AF Reserve or ANG pilots?

CGFlyer, I was under the impression that you couldn't fly for the CG Reserve? Thought you had to be AD for 11 years?

 

Don't know about the ANG...not sure if they even have their own doctors? I would suspect that you might be able to join the ANG in a non-medical capacity. It might also vary by state, since the guard is a state institution (with strong federal ties).

100% correct. Unless something changed recently, you have to be a winged military aviator to fly for the USCGR and that would generally require about ten years of AD. You could get hired as a USAFR or ANG pilot, fulfill your obligation to that organization as a part-time pilot, and then transfer to USCGR.

It is also possible that if the ANG/USAFR winds up overstaffed that they would let you transfer to another service early. Even if they are not overstaffed they might let you do it, couldn't hurt to ask.

Be aware that the USCGR will bump you down one rank, so if you were an ANG major would be start as a USCGR lieutenant.

 

hmm that sounds like it could be a good option. I wonder how realistic it would be to start with ANG or USAFR then switch over?

 

Depends entirely on...

1. Can you get hired off-the-street as a part-timer?
2. What airframe do you get assigned? Helo's would be best, particularly the H-60 series since the CG flies a lot of those but C-130 should work too. I'm don't think the USCGR requires that you have experience in the aircraft that you want to fly, but they have a lot of applicants so it would help to have experience in H-60's, C-130's, or a Falcon Jet. They also fly the Dauphin and soon the C-144 but (with the exception of SOCOM) no other US service operates those.
3. Can you get out of your initial commitment early? Depends on manpower needs at the time.
4. Can you get hired by the USCGR? It is competitive, even amongst military-trained pilots.

If you have your heart set on the USCG, you might just have to accept an AD officer slot and take your chances on getting a flight slot after OCS. If you don't you can re-apply after a couple of years of just finish your four year (?) commitment and move on to something else in life. There are no guarantees as far as military aviation goes, your best shot is to apply for everything.

If you go that route make sure that...
1. You are medically qualified to fly.
2. Your aviation test scores are good (study before you take the tests).
3. There is a current need for USCG aviators. This one is touchy, because they may not give you a lot of options as to when you go to OCS and if the flight training pipeline happens to be backed up you might be SOL. At least verify that the flight training pipeline is flowing and that there are no USCG aviation downsizings on the near horizon. You will need to befriend a current USCG aviator to get the scoop on that when the time comes.

 

Thank for the info! I'm not completely sold on the USCG...I'd be really happy with a USAFR or ANG slot as well. The main thing is that I just want to fly.. It seems to be one of the hardest parts of applying for this stuff is the lack of information available on the official websites. I've considered finishing my nursing degree, picking up a USAFR Flight Nurse slot (I'd love that job too) then applying from within after I finish my private pilot also. From what I've been able to find, you're more competitive for those reserve flight slots if you've already got mil experience, have a private pilots license (at minimum) and have already gone through OTS, all of which I could in theory have completed by age 25 giving me 5 years to get a reserve pilot slot...

Am I off par from that theory?

 

Age cutoff varies between 28-30+. depends on the service and their needs at the time. Age waivers are possible, but uncommon although an in-house candidate would have good odds of an age waiver IMO. Just make sure that having a medical rating does not lock you into that field.

Also check out baseops.net

 

Zack, get that nursing degree!! You are up against a major time crunch, plus...our chief pilot in our rescue squadron has been a nurse for years and still pulls shifts at the local hospital on the weekends to keep his license up to speed So at least in the AF, a nursing degree should not keep you out of the cockpit. Best of luck!!

 

Terrific! Thank you for the info! Once I finish my degree, should I hold out for a pilot slot or do you think I should go in as an AF flight nurse and apply from within? If I did the flight nurse thing, I was considering using the pre-commission program while I'm still in school....Don't know if that would help me or ultimately hurt me?

 

I assume the flight nurse is an officer?

If you are enlisted, while not technically required to, the services have a tradition of ALWAYS allowing you to pursue a commissioning program in any service doing any specialty (unless they think you are a dirt bag). Even if you are in a high-demand skill-set, they will release will you.

But if you are already an officer in a critical skill, or even a non-critical skill with a training obligation, they have no requirement to let you transfer to a "cooler" skillset. Make sure you find out IF they will release a flight nurse for pilot training, and if they will require you to serve a certain amount of time. Each military skill community has managers who "own" that manpower pool...even if the squadron commander wanted to send you to flight training, he can't do it without the concurrence of the people who own your specialty.

I know in the navy a doctor, SEAL, or submarine officer who asked for pilot training would be told to shut up and get back to work...after they stopped laughing.

If you are enlisted, at least you know they will release you for pilot training.