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Looking for an Air Force Contact for my Son

lr172

Well Known Member
Yesterday I learned that my son is interested in joining the Air Force, likely as a Pilot. I have seen many posts with folks mentioning their sons or daughters in the Air Force and was hoping that I could make a connection or two for my son. I would really like him to get a better appreciation for the details of that life and the best way to do that is with speaking with someone on the inside.

If your Son or Daughter would be willing to take a phone call from a like minded young adult, it would be greatly appreciated by my son and myself. He is a college graduate and has been working in the business community for the last 1.5 years.

Thanks for your consideration.

Larry
 
Guard or Reserves?

Don’t know what your son is thinking about down the road, but if he is at all interested in an airline career - the Air National Guard or Air Force Reserves is an outstanding way to get the training he is looking for, serve your Country and be back in the civilian workforce in just a few years.

I did that 40 years ago (AFRES C-141) and it was a great way to get where I ultimately wanted to be.

Good luck to your son and thank him for considering serving his Country. I wish more young people would do that.
 
City? Does he like his day job?

Heaven is living and working in your Guard/Reserve area, with either a very fixed or very flexible work schedule.

Does he have a PPL? Has he had a great aeromedical exam screening for any issues or waiver needs?

Those are the starting points even before getting to know local mil flyers.

I was active duty before AFRES, I do not suggest active duty.
 
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City? Does he like his day job?

Heavenis living and working in your Guatd/Reserve area, with either a very fixed or very flexible work schedule.

Does he have a PPL? Has he had a great aeromedical exam screening for any issues or waiver needs?

Those are the starting points even before getting to know local mil flyers.

I was active duty before AFRES, I do not suggest active duty.

He is currently in Dallas, but that is not long term at the moment. He is questioning his career decision.

No PPL, but I would send my 6 down there so he could get one relatively quickly. Health is good and he is very athletic. 20/20 corrected, but needs glasses.

Would you be willing to speak with him to share your experiences?

Larry
 
20/20 corrected, but needs glasses.
Larry

When I was young (50 years ago) the ‘needs glasses’ was not acceptable for new applicants. Maybe things have changed. Should be easy enough to find out - just call a recruiter.
 
He is currently in Dallas, but that is not long term at the moment. He is questioning his career decision.

No PPL, but I would send my 6 down there so he could get one relatively quickly. Health is good and he is very athletic. 20/20 corrected, but needs glasses.

Would you be willing to speak with him to share your experiences?

Larry

To add to moosepileit's comments, medical eligibility should be the first things to check off. Guard/Reserve units usually won't even consider someone without a PPL unless they are already in the unit. So consider that in the decision as well.

When he does talk to a current (or fairly recent) AF pilot, I would encourage him to ask about all the negatives and hardships that accompany the job. it may look like a killer job on the outside, but as a former AF pilot and good friend once told me, "It could be the greatest job in the world, but it isn't...". Yes, being a Guard or Reserve pilot provides a much better lifestyle than active duty, but it still requires a significant commitment just to maintain currency, not to mention TDY's and deployments. I think our unit (C-130s) requires something like a minimum of 4 day and 2 night sorties per month, plus sims, alt chamber, etc. If you fly fighters, increase that committment exponentially. You can definitely have an additional civilian job, but it's not easy. If you want to make a decent wage as a part timer, you'll have to pick up a lot of trips and extras. Depending on which airframe you fly, it could take some time to build up enough hours even for the regionals.

If you have no other goal than to become a professional pilot, going the military route is as good as it gets, but it's not necessarily all it's cracked up to be.
 
You might check out CW LeMoines website and YouTube channel. Interesting career trajectory. He started out flying the F16, then joined the Navy and flew the F18, then finished his military career back with the Air Force flying the T38 in an Aggressor squadron. Interesting guy. Now he flies for American Airlines.
 
PM'd my info.

No eye surgery before being approved for the procedure is the modern day key for eyes, I think. The right folks in the right place are what you want to find in a unit.
 
I’m in

Larry,

I’d be glad to chat with your son. PM inbound with my info.

While I’m not a USAF pilot, I come from a family with 2 of them (F-106; T-37 FAIP/KC-10). I also volunteered to be a fighter flight doc for 6 years, deploying with and getting to be (the nerdy) part of one of the most awesome communities around. Kind of like this place. :D.

The flt doc role also provided some good perspective on pilot quality of life considerations, realities, etc.

Everything has pros & cons but with the right mindset (many unknowns & aspects out of your direct control), it’s a valid option. I’ve complained my share, but look back more thankful as I approach 20 active years with a variety of unique firsthand experience and 4 different AFSCs/career fields.

Sounds like he has no known medical clearance issues, but I can help clarify that process a bit as well. The required tests can at times uncover some issues, but turns out many “normal” people still exist.
 
PMs full

Seems like you’re getting a solid response by PMs. Shoot me one when you have room for more to provide a phone option.

As for corrected vision, things have changed from decades ago. Correctable to 20/20 is key, with some reasonable limit (not in front of me right now) to the prescription required to reach that. BL, can’t have borderline useless vision without corrective lenses. True depth perception or steropsis is required and lacking by approx 5-10% of the population.
 
Being an Air Force pilot is the best job in the world! Sure there’s the periodic move, long hours, even longer TDYs but every job (that offers the benefits of an Air Force career) has its detractions, frustrations and challenging assignments.

Frankly, the opportunities far outweigh the negatives. Is it for everyone? No! You have to have a commitment far greater than the average civilian job requires to make this your career. You need to “have integrity and believe” in service above self. As an Air Force officer and pilot you will enjoy opportunities few citizens will ever experience but at the same time you will be called upon to sacrifice more of yourself than the average citizen will ever be called upon to do. Your bonds of friendship will be greater than any civilian family will ever experience and those friendships of shared service can last a lifetime.

Guard and reserve pilots do, in some ways, have it easier but from what I’ve seen it’s hard to maintain two careers and a family life at the same time. Your being pulled in multiple directions too often.

A retired colonel told me when I was trying to decide between two great opportunities (becoming an USAF pilot or an accountant for a major oil company) said: “you have this one opportunity to become a military pilot, you can always be an accountant - frankly I’d choose flying - the office window is so much better!” He was right!

I’ve had both careers and believe me, the military was definitely the best!
 
Larry, as others have mentioned, I would have your son investigate the guard and reserve. A big advantage to being sponsored in pilot training by a guard or reserve unit is knowing what aircraft you are going to fly ahead of time, what the mission is, and where you'll be based. Be aware though, that if the unit has tactical aircraft, he will have to be in the top tier of his class to get qualified to go into training for those aircraft. In my class only about half got fighter, attack, recon qualified, and that was after half the class had washed out. That was in the 80's, so it may be completely different now, but I'm sure it's still competitive. Bottom line is that only 25 percent of the students who started class were qualified to go into fighter training. A couple guys in my class had to scramble for new guard units because they didn't qualify to train in the aircraft of the unit that sponsored them. A very good insurance policy against that is to have some flying experience before hand. I went in after getting my CFII, and while I wouldn't say it was easy, it was certainly a huge advantage to have those ratings ahead of time. If he could get as far as an instrument rating, he would be way ahead of most of his class and I think would go a long way to ensuring a successful outcome. If you don't get through pilot training, you're still in the military for whatever time period you committed to, so you need to be ok with another career path in the military if you can't complete pilot training. Something to really consider, especially if it's an active duty commitment.
All that being said, joining the USAFR was the best decision of my life and I would highly recommend it.
 
Larry,
Retired not too long ago out of the AF/ANG but still connected with todays pilots. I also have two sons pursuing aviation careers. One is going strictly civilian, the other is in the middle of the military process. Completely their decision. Any of us would be happy to talk to your son. I’ll give him the good, the bad, and the ugly. PM if he’d like to talk.
Vr
Brian
 
Thanks so much for all of the great information here, very helpful and much appreciated. I have sent my son a link to this thread and I apologize for the full PM box. It is cleared out now and would be great if you could try sending the PM again, if you tried yesterday.

Larry
 
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Fly Navy!

Hey, what about Naval Aviation?!?! :) In all seriousness, if he wants to get into military aviation and isn't dead set on the Air Force, there are other options. Some folks default to the Air Force thinking it's their best chance to get a pilot slot. If he goes the Navy OCS route he can secure a pilot slot pre-commissioning. The Navy doesn't have the flying Guard/Reserve slots that the Air Force has but then again the AF doesn't get to land on the boat. :D

Happy to help if I can.
 
Hey, what about Naval Aviation?!?! :) In all seriousness, if he wants to get into military aviation and isn't dead set on the Air Force, there are other options. Some folks default to the Air Force thinking it's their best chance to get a pilot slot. If he goes the Navy OCS route he can secure a pilot slot pre-commissioning. The Navy doesn't have the flying Guard/Reserve slots that the Air Force has but then again the AF doesn't get to land on the boat. :D

Happy to help if I can.

I am sure he has nothing against the navy and honestly I have no idea where this idea came from. Appreciate the input and rest assured that he and I have just as much respect those who serve our great contry in the Navy as those in other branches. Landing on an aircraft carrier certainly seems like an exciting prospect. As if 30 knot cross winds are not challenging enough, I can't quite imagine the runway moving around as well.

Sounds like it is worth investigating as well and thanks for the tip.

Larry
 
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IF the NAVY, I think their SELRES sees more individual activations AND they have more rotor than fixed wing overall.
 
8.5 years active duty. 20 years ANG and airline. If I had to do it all over again I would have started with the ANG.
 
8.5 years active duty. 20 years ANG and airline. If I had to do it all over again I would have started with the ANG.

The Guard and Reserve are a great way to go.

I was able to get to the airlines way faster than most of my peers. In fact, I gave my T-38 instructor his FE checkride at the airline.
 
The Guard belongs

Was blessed to fly the F16C Block 30 for 25 years, numerous deployments and lots of adventures, Air Force and ANG. Email me anytime and I’ll share my dos centavos and help any way I can!
V/R
Smokey

[email protected]
 
I'm the Psychiatrist (MD) at Sheppard AFB, where we train the bulk of fighter pilots, as well as all of the maintainers and a good bit of other professions to-boot. Send me a PM if you want my phone number.
 
Be a part-time fighter pilot!

Former Active Duty Navy (Hornets) and currently a Navy SELRES (F-16). If I were to do it again, ANG + Airlines would be my chosen path. The boat is fun, but anymore the airplane does all the work, and at the end of the day, once you’re done with the cat shots and traps, you’re still stuck on a boat! Go guard!
 
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