If you plan on a career in aviation, the reserve can be a great help as you get PIC in bigger equipment faster (generally) in the Reserve. Not to mention all the great contacts you'll have in almost all the airlines.

My reserve unit requires 6-8 days a month but it's a fighter unit. Honestly I can barely keep up at 6 days a month and usually give more.

I'd say 3 years is the longest you'd have to spend essentially full time, but there's no way it would be less than 2.

6-8 days a month would be well worth it to fly fighters, in my opinion. And, while I'm a long way from making a decision, 3 years full-time service doesn't seem all that bad. It's not like I'll be making any less money than I am now as a grad student ($23K/year hurts, lol).

My end goal is not to get into the airlines.

If I have my way, one of two things will happen:
1. If the Air Force gig really works out great, I might try to go full time, and then apply to test pilot school, and if I'm really a rockstar there, astronaut training. (Hey, I can daydream, right?)

Alternately,

2. After I finish my degree, I'll take 2-3 years to go to OTS, UPT, and the works, and then afterwards get my civilian career going whilst putting in the necessary time with my squadron too. If I take a research fellowship-type position here at GA Tech, then I shouldn't have too much trouble making time for both. After my 10 years is up, I'll let the Air Force thing go, and really put 100% into my civilian career.

Also: Quasi-related question. I was told that 10 years reserve duty is the minimum for a Air Force Reserve pilot. Does the 10 years start as soon as I go full time (e.g. when I start OTS), or does the 10 year countdown begin after I finish UPT?

ARe you at GA Tech? I work at the World Congress center right up the road. i also have a friend that goes to Tech. He's in Army ROTC

When I signed 5 years ago it was 10 years from UPT Graduation, basically 12 years total.

Keep in mind, the reason the commitment is so long and people expect so much of you is that landing an AF Reserve pilot slot off the street is the Aviation equivalent of winning the lottery. Your training costs $1.1 Million per pilot, and you also get your Commercial pilot license, something that now costs close to $50,000-100,000 in the civilian world. For every pilot, there is on average 50 applicants after his slot.

The weekend stuff is bogus as it relates to pilots. In fact, unless you are on an out-of-town trip, you rarely fly a local training sortie on a weekend. Your weekend drill is usually for ground training, although you can "reschedule" and use those days to fly during the week.

Will,

Sounds like you have some great ambition, which is good. You may want to do some research but I'm not sure if Test Pilot School (TPS) is open to reservists. Here is the reg that may address that question: http://www.e-publishing.af.mil/share.../AFI99-107.pdf.

One last little tidbit before bed; Flying is a vice much like drinking, gambling and women of low morals. Once you have the taste it can be hard to just "let it go" as you say. In order to be respected and rise above the average mouth breather a good part of your life will be spent studying tech orders, systems, tactics, employment, mitigation etc... With all this time and effort comes addiction. Aviators like to fly, it's a chance to check out from the drudgery gravity provides. Also, most people dig flying into combat. Employing your aircraft to the fullest of its capability is what we all drool over, it's why we spend countless hours studying widgets and nit-noids. That opens up another whole debate as to why you're doing the reserves. Dig around and you'll find all the preachy posts about why to join the Air Force. Spot on, every one of them.

Best wishes!

Yeah, I'm at GA Tech.

If I thought I had a shot at test pilot school, I'd drop my civilian job in a heartbeat, haha.

I'm sure I'd enjoy doing air force full time, but if I can get a reservist position, it definitely seems like the best of both worlds....

Drinking, gambling, and women of low morals can all be taken care of with therapy or penicillin. Flying just pays enough to keep the vices.

Do they have to be in that order?

USMCFLYR

Not sure about TPS, but I do know that Guard/Reservists can get into NASA's astronaut program. There was a Texas ANG F-16 guy that went on a shuttle mission several years ago.

OK.... so in my mind it all boils down to one question:

AF Reserve pilot + Civilian career in academia. Can It Be Done?