Navy or AF Helos?

[aviatormar]

How do you get these? Is it anything like the Army Warrent officer training? I know you have to be a commissoned officer to fly, but does that still hold true with the Navy and AF? Also how hard is it to hold a slot with one of these? Any chance of doing it by the reserves?

[calcapt]

Navy has no warrant program like the Army. You must have a bachelors degree and be commissioned just as in all other Navy planes. Helos is just a choice, or an assignment at some stage of your training. When I went through, Helos were everybody's last choice and I assume that anybody who wanted them today could get them. Perhaps someone may have updated information here. Don't know about USAF. BTW, as far as I know, all Navy Helo drivers are sea going units - no landlubbers I'm afraid.

[skywestseth]

Army has the best heli's...

[Zondaracer]

I'm in the AF. You have to be a commissioned air force officer to be a helo pilot in the AF, if you go active duty, you go to the same initial pilot training as all the other pilots and then in your drop if you find out if you get helos or not. Most guys in the Air Force don't want to be helo pilots, but some guys are dead et on it. Usually, not always the case, but usually, if you want helos in your class you will probably get it. If you go through the national guard route, you get hired by the unit and you will know what you fly ahead of time before you even go to pilot training so there is no pressure in your class' drop. You gotta contact the guard units directly and find out which ones are hiring new helicopter pilots to put through UPT. You can apply and you may get called back for an interview, and if you get hired then you go through the medical process. The cool thing about flying helo's in the air force is that most of them are flying Spec Ops and CSAR missions. The other helicopter job in the air force involves flying security forces guys out to missile silos in the midwest.

[Velocipede]

Originally Posted by calcapt

Helos is just a choice, or an assignment at some stage of your training. When I went through, Helos were everybody's last choice and I assume that anybody who wanted them today could get them. Perhaps someone may have updated information here.

Here's your updated info. Its not everybody's last choice. One of the guys in my first squadron wanted helos all the way and was even offered a jet transition with a guaranteed A-6 billet. He turned it down. Ended up highly significant in the Navy's Combat SAR development program.

Additionally, you can be a Naval Aviator now without 20/20 vision, but you are automatically slotted into helos or multi-engine communities. Generally speaking, intermediate and advanced billets are still assigned by primary flight grades. Unless there is a jet draft on (usually toward the end of the fiscal year) if you're the high man in the class, you can write your own ticket...to helos if you want them.

[aviatormar]

Ok, here is another quesiton. How hard is it to get a slot flying for the AF or Navy? I'm 22, almost ready to go the airlines (next month or two). I'm 18 credits short on time for my degree which I plan on finishing online, while flying the line (I know dumb to not do it while in school, huge mistake this california job turned out to be). I didn't do the best in school, about 3.0 GPA or alittle less, but that was due to boredom (scored very high on my SAT's). Should I just give up, and forget it? Or does flying for an airline help out in getting a slot? I just don't want to go through life being a regular pilot when I know there is more adventure in it somewhere out there. Also is there a list of contact emails/numbers or anything I can start calling around to figure out what units are in need of pilots? Thanks for the help.

[skywestseth]

Originally Posted by aviatormar

Ok, here is another quesiton. How hard is it to get a slot flying for the AF or Navy? I'm 22, almost ready to go the airlines (next month or two). I'm 18 credits short on time for my degree which I plan on finishing online, while flying the line (I know dumb to not do it while in school, huge mistake this california job turned out to be). I didn't do the best in school, about 3.0 GPA or alittle less, but that was due to boredom (scored very high on my SAT's). Should I just give up, and forget it? Or does flying for an airline help out in getting a slot? I just don't want to go through life being a regular pilot when I know there is more adventure in it somewhere out there. Also is there a list of contact emails/numbers or anything I can start calling around to figure out what units are in need of pilots? Thanks for the help.

You need to figure out what you wanna do...

Your original question was about military helicopter flying, but you say that your "ready" to go to the airlines in a month or two...and your 18 credits short from your degree.

1) Why would you start a whole new task in your life without finishing one your almost done with (college)?

2) Why would you just give up and forget it? Is that the same mentality you plan on having with a jet full of pax or a heli full of soldiers?

3) Define a regular pilot...

4)Yes, there is a list of NG units, you can find them at goang.com

Priorities, finish your degree, that will help you meet the min req's for the jobs you have mentioned as well as make you competitive elsewhere for other jobs...remember in the military you cant get bored and get out after you have made that commitment...

[Zondaracer]

Originally Posted by aviatormar

Ok, here is another quesiton. How hard is it to get a slot flying for the AF or Navy? I'm 22, almost ready to go the airlines (next month or two). I'm 18 credits short on time for my degree which I plan on finishing online, while flying the line (I know dumb to not do it while in school, huge mistake this california job turned out to be). I didn't do the best in school, about 3.0 GPA or alittle less, but that was due to boredom (scored very high on my SAT's). Should I just give up, and forget it? Or does flying for an airline help out in getting a slot? I just don't want to go through life being a regular pilot when I know there is more adventure in it somewhere out there. Also is there a list of contact emails/numbers or anything I can start calling around to figure out what units are in need of pilots? Thanks for the help.

Right now word on the street is that Marine Corps pilot slots are pretty much 100% as long as you meet the requirements. Navy ROTC selection for pilot slots was around 80%. I did AFROTC and selection was just under 60% of applicants. There are less slots in the air force if you go through OTS vs. ROTC. FY06 they had over 500 slots and close to 850 applicants. My GPA was a 3.0 and my PCSM score was 70 and i was barely in the top third of cadets and i was a shoe-in for pilot slot. www.baseops.net and www.wantscheck.com have good info if you are thinking about going air force or air national guard.

If you decide to go guard, they really like highly upon prior flying experience, it makes you very competitive. I was even told by one unit that some of their pilot selects had airline jobs before they even had a UPT slot.

Originally Posted by aviatormar

I just don't want to go through life being a regular pilot when I know there is more adventure in it somewhere out there. Also is there a list of contact emails/numbers or anything I can start calling around to figure out what units are in need of pilots? Thanks for the help.

As far as other exciting jobs, Customs and Border Protection (the newly combined customs and border patrol formed the largest law enforcement aviation wing in the world) have exciting jobs www.usajobs.gov . If you have a science or math degree, or a degree in weather, consider the NOAA. You become a commissioned officer and get the same pay as a military officer and wear the same rank (many people don't know that). NOAA is one of the seven commissioned services, (AF, Marines, Navy, Army, CG, NOAA, Dept of Public Health). The NOAA flies P3's into Hurricanes, just like the reserve unit out of biloxi in their C-130's. Go directly to the NOAA website about this, I think you have to do a ship tour with them before you can apply.

DEA also has pilot jobs for agents, US Federal Marshals hire pilots for their "con air," US Forest Service has some cool jobs. You can find them on www.usajobs.gov. Don't feel like you have to just limit yourself to the military for exciting flying jobs.

[aviatormar]

Originally Posted by skywestseth

You need to figure out what you wanna do...

Your original question was about military helicopter flying, but you say that your "ready" to go to the airlines in a month or two...and your 18 credits short from your degree.

1) Why would you start a whole new task in your life without finishing one your almost done with (college)?

2) Why would you just give up and forget it? Is that the same mentality you plan on having with a jet full of pax or a heli full of soldiers?

3) Define a regular pilot...

4)Yes, there is a list of NG units, you can find them at goang.com

Priorities, finish your degree, that will help you meet the min req's for the jobs you have mentioned as well as make you competitive elsewhere for other jobs...remember in the military you cant get bored and get out after you have made that commitment...

Ok, here we go

1. I plan on finishing college, but I made a dumb mistake, took a dumb job in california. I'm from MA and thought, hey that sounds nice, cali, nice weather, women, why not, dumb mistake. I left school, and I'm kicking myself. Already enrolled to finish things. So no worries man, I'll have my degree before I even think of applying to anything.

2. I've flown many different people in my life, never have said ohh forget it. Now I've been in the ground and thought, well maybe I should think this out first. That is my point on posting here, maybe I should think things out first before I take a step and make a mistake. Just getting info, like a good preflight.

3. To me a "regular" pilot is someone who works for a regional or someone who does the same thing every day, day in and day out. Sorry but I have come the understanding that flying straight and level eight hours a day is boring. Heck I do that now, but with the add benefit that my students try to kill me anyways. So I sit there bored outta my mind. I want something more, I want something to do. I figured that maybe the military has something to offer. Maybe so, maybe not, I'm gathering information on what to do.

4. i've looked there, and was hoping someone on the inside could point me to specific people to speak too.


Thanks for the help, I don't mean to sound cocky, but looking for info.

[usphsfnp]

Originally Posted by Zondaracer

NOAA is one of the seven commissioned services, (AF, Marines, Navy, Army, CG, NOAA, Dept of Public Health).

It's semantics, but we're the US Public Health Service. We're under the US Dept of Health & Human Services. No flying jobs though.
Currently, I'm a Program Manager for them. (O-4).

Good for you for even knowing about us, though!

bri

[H46Bubba]

Originally Posted by calcapt

Navy has no warrant program like the Army. You must have a bachelors degree and be commissioned just as in all other Navy planes. Helos is just a choice, or an assignment at some stage of your training. When I went through, Helos were everybody's last choice and I assume that anybody who wanted them today could get them. Perhaps someone may have updated information here. Don't know about USAF. BTW, as far as I know, all Navy Helo drivers are sea going units - no landlubbers I'm afraid.

Actually the Navy has begun to reinstate the flying Warrant program. My buddy got picked for the program. It's still not like the Army's where you can just apply right into the program as a civilian. The Navy wants to let the warrants do all the helo, antisub, and COD/AWACS flying. Line officers will still fly fighter/attack and VAQ as well as the other platforms above, but they'll be more like how the Army uses their aviation line officers. But for now the best way is still the regular commisioned line officer route.

I've heard from some of my officer buddy's( I can say that now since i'm no longer enlisted and out of the Navy) in the HSC communtiy, is that more guys are requesting helos, since the HSC community is starting to arm it's MH-60S like the Army's 160 SOAR (Nightstalkers). They're in final testing before outfitting the fleet. This package includes the rotary guns, and the stores system that allows the use of the Hellfire missile system, aux tanks, and GAU rocket pods. A FLIR is going to be incorporated and the last piece to be installed will be an inflight refueling boom. Once the HS guys are finally incorporated into the HSC community, they'll convert to SPECOPS/CSAR as their primary mission and Vertrep will just be secondary. Lots of changes going on and are going to happen for Naval Aviation.

[Velocipede]

The Navy has needed the Warrent Officer pilot program since the '80s. Give the guys who just want to fly a career path. Regular Officer programs are contingent about the quest for Command at Sea. Flying is secondary. WOs can serve not only the fleet units, but the Training Command during their shore rotations.

Its about time...

[H46Bubba]

Originally Posted by Velocipede

The Navy has needed the Warrent Officer pilot program since the '80s. Give the guys who just want to fly a career path. Regular Officer programs are contingent about the quest for Command at Sea. Flying is secondary. WOs can serve not only the fleet units, but the Training Command during their shore rotations.

Its about time...

I guess the Navy's having internal issues in the officer community. My buddy was a SWO and they really did a number on him, so he bailed when his time was up. He did a PCU and a maiden deployment on the USS Chafee. That took him from Bath Maine to San Diego, to Pearl Harbor the ships homeport. So when he comes up for orders he asks for shore duty in San Diego. The detailer told him the only way he could get him to San Diego was on another ship that was decomming and when it came time for orders again, they would give him choice oders. So he trandfered to the USS Ogden as the Repairs Officer. He did a another westpac, and as soon as the ship came back it would begin to decomm. So when it was time to pick orders for his shore tour they gave him really ###### picks like SIMA Norfolk and some other crazy stupid duty stations. He said no thank you and bailed. His commanding officer pleaded with him to stay in and really tried to help him, but BUPERS was stickin to their guns.

So my guess is they're trying to keep the officer ranks deployable as much as possible and aren't gettig the required staff duty, admin/training duty tickets punched, or guys are either leaving due to the prolonged deployments. With the cosolidation of aircraft paltforms and squardrons, the amount of shore billets is decreasing. The flying Warrants in the Navy will now allow the commisioned line officers to go to those reuired ticket punch billets, such as staff or the disassociated tours on the LHD's and CVN's so they can eventually command at sea.

[BE19Pilot]

Hello,
I'll have to read up on this new Warrant Officer program for aviators. If it's anything like the previous tried and failed attempts to fill gaps in the ranks it will be a career dead-end. The NAVCAD and LDO Aviator programs were attempts at the same solution, but the Navy is going for a halfway solution rather than adopting a tried and true solution like the Army.
The WO Aviator will be a great program if you are more airline minded, because if you use past events events to predict the future. WO Aviators are going to bail when they get the experience to move onto other jobs in civilian aviation. I would really have to look at the career path, and forgive me if I am ignorant of some of the facts. I hope that the folks they are able to pull into the program make the most out of an opportunity to get some awesome training and experience...However, I think it will be a short-lived program and the guys left will be stuck in crap billets after the dust settles.

Regards,

ex-Navy Rotorhead

[Velocipede]

If the Navy WO program would have been viable in '79 when I went in, I would have gone that way in a heartbeat. Why? I'm all about flying. All that other Officer B.S. held no interest for me.

[H46Bubba]

Originally Posted by Velocipede

If the Navy WO program would have been viable in '79 when I went in, I would have gone that way in a heartbeat. Why? I'm all about flying. All that other Officer B.S. held no interest for me.

Like the urinalyisis program coordinator!

[Boom Boom]

Why? I'm all about flying. All that other Officer B.S. held no interest for me.

AMEN.. More drama than on a Springer episode!!!

[Velocipede]

Or the Nuclear Weapons Training or Safety Officer. Talk about your paperwork nightmare!