Transport Pilots

[Hopeful_Canuck]

Hi everyone,
I wont pretend to know much about flying or the military but i was wondering, does it matter what you fly before retiring from military life and applying to the airlines?

In other words, does it matter to airlines if you were a CF-188 pilot or a Hercules pilot?

[MikeD]

Not really. It sort of depends on the airline. Generally speaking, guys coming from tankers and heavies not only have the hours needed to be competitive, they have the quality of time an airline looks for....that is, the flying they were doing in the military was a near-carbon copy of the flying they're going to do at an airline. Most especially the guys coming from KC-10, C-32, E-4, C-9, C-130, C-135, C-40/T-43, or P-3 series aircraft ....who come out with DC-10, 757, 747, DC-9, L-382, B-707/720, B-737, and L-188 type ratings, respectively.

Fighter guys, on the other hand, aren't really doing anything related to airline flying. In fact, my A-10 time is pretty much the antithesis of what airline flying revolves around. Also, fighter guys don't get as much flying time as heavy pilots do (though many airlines factor that in), and heavy guys overall have a better quality of life in the military. My current 117 time is similiar only in the automation aspect of airline flying. Only Southwest Airlines seems to really like fighter guys, that I know of; though there may be more or less.

[Hopeful_Canuck]

Thank you Mike, that was a speedy response

[maverick2]

Hey MikeD, how'd you like flying the A-10? What were pros and cons of flying a A-10. I'm just curious.

anthony

[MikeD]

[ QUOTE ]
Hey MikeD, how'd you like flying the A-10? What were pros and cons of flying a A-10. I'm just curious.

anthony

[/ QUOTE ]

It was a good gig. One of the last of the old-school planes with a good air-ground role. Nimble as hell, good ordnance load, and good qualities for its mission. Downside is it's lack of engine power and the fact that there's not enough of them.

[scoobs]

Wow I have never heard a fighter pilot say that heavy pilots have better QOL.Mike is there a chance that you could go back to the A-10?And I hear lots of negatives about the F-117 especially flying straight and level,how do you like it?

[MikeD]

[ QUOTE ]
Wow I have never heard a fighter pilot say that heavy pilots have better QOL.Mike is there a chance that you could go back to the A-10?And I hear lots of negatives about the F-117 especially flying straight and level,how do you like it?

[/ QUOTE ]

It's true, heavy pilots have far better QOL. In terms of TDYs, pay, etc. For example, to qualify for tax free, you only have to have been in theatre (Iraq, Afghan, other middle east, etc) for one day. I talked to one C-141 pilot that told me she hadn't paid taxes in the past 4 years, since she'd been constantly taking trips each month hauling cargo to the middle east! Also, they always have the "hook up" for hotel accomodations, places to go, etc...at many destinations, since they go there so often and know the gig.

117 is cool, especially with the technology and automation. All F-117 pilots actually "belong" to the airframe they came from, so far as the AF Personnel Center is concerned. So for assignment purposes, I'm still considered an A-10 asset. That said, most guys do one or possibly two tours in the 117, then go back to their previous airframe. So we'll see where I go in about two years. There's many opportunities I'm looking at right now for assignment purposes (many of them "non-standard", if you get my drift), so we'll see how it goes.

[aloft]

[ QUOTE ]
Mike is there a chance that you could go back to the A-10?

[/ QUOTE ]

Nope, he's going to the Thunderbirds next.

[MikeD]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Mike is there a chance that you could go back to the A-10?

[/ QUOTE ]

Nope, he's going to the Thunderbirds next.

[/ QUOTE ]

You are authorized to put a round through my skull if I end up there......

[scoobs]

It really is a toss up.As a transport pilot your gone 200+ days a year.Or a fighter pilot who works long days.I guess it depends on the person.

[MikeD]

[ QUOTE ]
.Or a fighter pilot who works long days.I guess it depends on the person.

[/ QUOTE ]

And is gone at least 120-140 days out of the year. Also, the 200 days of the transport guy isn't all at once, it's broken down well, at least for strat-airlift guys. Tac-airlift guys have it a little different.

[scoobs]

Are you saying your gone 120 days?Didn't they chance it to 4 month rotations every year and half?I know the C-17 on his blog didn't like the 2 week trips,come home for 2 or 3 days and go another 2 weeks.That definitly can be rough.Mike are you glad that you went fighters and do 117's deploy the same as everyone else.

[GatorFC]

[ QUOTE ]
...and do 117's deploy the same as everyone else.

[/ QUOTE ]Check MikeD's location under his avatar.

[Galaxy]

As a C-5 guy, I was gone for 256 days last year. I was on constant alert, and although I was home often, It was 12 hours off and back on the road. Not a great deal when you consider you get off the jet at 3 in the afternoon after a 26 hour day, go home to a nice "honey-do-list", get to bed by 10 (yeah, right...) and get your oh-so-friendly alert at 3 in the morning to go play for another 2-3 weeks with a constant 24 hours on / 12 hours off. (Oh yeah...that doesn't include the 4 hours you'll spend running the mill-around checklist after your flight duty period ends.) The tax free is nice, except when you really have to earn it...by being shot at!

[Willdathrill]

[ QUOTE ]
Not really. It sort of depends on the airline.Only Southwest Airlines seems to really like fighter guys, that I know of; though there may be more or less.

[/ QUOTE ]

In my viper unit, everyone is fedex. i would say easily over 75% are fedex. this is due to the unit's proximity to MEM and once you get 5 or so guys there, then it becomes a hiring pipeline. although the glamour job is the AA 777 F/O who flies to buenos aires all the time.

[Willdathrill]

what about the fact that with the A-10 and the F-117 all your time is multi-engine PIC? I've been thinking about the A-10 as a good option for ANG/AFRC