And yet, theres a certain logic to questioning that 10-year commitment. Stans Active Duty pilot peers would have spent 8-11 years since graduating from college flying for the military full time. For the Army, the costs are much cheaper. Although its easy to feel stuck on Active Duty, there are also options for getting out early. Today were going to compare the more common Active Duty career path with the Ultimate one that Ive recommended so heavily. I crushed the SIFT, passed my flight physical, have a great OML standing, etc., so I should have a good chance of getting my top pick. Hes likely deployed at least 3 times, if not more, and has also spent many weeks TDY. Cookie Notice The 10 year ADSO was based on whether or not you pinned WO1/2LT by a certain date, not by when you started or graduated IERW. Because honestly put the lifestyle sucks nowadays. As long as hes getting a lot of flight time, Stan should have enough hours for a Restricted ATP rating and a shot at a regional airline job a couple of years before his Active Duty pilot peers. Before Army Secretary Ryan D. McCarthy signed a memorandum for the change in June, the Army had bumped up its incentive pay for aviators in January. That is completely and totally gone. , I worry that Ive done people a disservice by making the Active Duty pilot career path seem too unattractive. Branch of Choice: Your BRADSO obligation runs consecutively with your flight school ADSO and your commitment will run out to about the 10 year point. It's not exactly friendly but this is the military. If youre worried about frequent moves disrupting your family life, picking a community with few basing locations is a viable option for Active Duty. I want to do it for as long as I can. Currently in common core here and we still don't know if it applies or not. The 10-year service obligation is the result of a numbers-related calculus related to Army manning and will not address the problems that make Aviators leave. In the last decade, retention has always been a hot-button issue. His administration's definition of readiness was turning maximum amount of red chicklets on spreadsheets to green, sending people over and over to the field and CTCs without any break, and endless rotations to Korea and Europe. I dont think I wouldve taken the 10 Year ADSO, considering that Id just now be ALMOST complete with 10 yrs aviation service. If Stan becomes an engineer in the Air Force, hed probably have to attend some sort of training right after graduating from college. I wonder how this will effect street to seat recruitment for WOFT. A reduction in accessions will turn a long-term solution into a short-term problem. Just so we know I'm not a whiny do nothing: seven deployments, six combat for a total of 70 months and 66 months respectively. Although its less common to get more than 6-12 months of your ADSC forgiven under this program, that still gets you off Active Duty sooner than expected. Your previous content has been restored. There will always be external factors and organizations that draw quality talent from the Army, but the Army should have more flexibility in their ability and measures to retain quality talent. But, we want as many people as we can get to apply. I honestly don't believe that the way out of this is getting more people to fly that have less time available left in their military careers. The pay and benefits arent bad, and patriotism also factors in for most of us. However, after spending a few more minutes thinking about how these career paths might compare, I decided Stans idea might not be as advantageous after all. I think it would be a great idea to leverage senior NCOs to enter pilot training with a waiver. Does anyone know the current selection breakdown of street to seat vs prior service? The Army likes to have a balance between the two but they can change that over night. Privacy Policy. Service commitments are different for Warrant Officers in the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard. change without notice to me. Would they do it with a 12-year commitment? Your appointment to W1 is a conditional appointment until you graduate flight school so you will revert to whatever enlisted rank you held prior to WOCS. This means that a BCT that goes to a CTC once a year always demands CAB support. A RAND Corporation studyfound that even $35,000 a year would not be sufficient to stem the flow of Air Force pilotsthe study concluded a bonus cap between $38,500 and $62,500 would be necessary to make a meaningful impact. F-35s in feature image: https://www.dvidshub.net/image/3982524/f-35-sky. The U-2 and B-2 are both single-location aircraft, and they go through so much trouble getting their pilots that youd have to try to leave. It's a great time to apply to become a pilot, and [Soldiers] can get in with a high school degree. You must understand, the Army has an ace in the hole when filling the Warrant Officer aviation pipeline. More career Enlisted apply than street2seat on a yearly basis. However, I dont think its worth passing up a nearly guaranteed Active Duty. Your flight school ADSO is based on when you graduate WOBC and pin on your flight wings. Reading your first paragraph and skimming the rest I couldn't agree more. Ironically, the reason why Congress established a limit on entry into flight training is because the Army in the late 60's and early 70's started to funnel relatively large numbers of maneuver General Officers through flight school. Their workload is increased several fold versus the units that they are supporting. Not sure. Warrant Officer Candidate School is a five-week program. Do most of your fellow aviators love it? Anything and everything related to or affecting US Army Aviation. Why not allowing retired personnel to do what they always wanted? However, he missed out on that Ultimate Military Pilot Career Path and is concerned about a 10-year UPT ADSC. The UH-72 costs twice as much to operate as a TH-67. Once he identified some units in which hes interested in, hed need to start. In recent discussions with some USAFA cadets, Ive encountered several who actually turned down pilot slots because of that 10-year ADSC. The earlier you can, INTERVIEW PREP PACKAGE (eCourse + 1-on-1's), 1 HOUR INTERVIEW PREP ADD-ON (Add'l 1-on-1 Coaching for eCourse & Package Customers), 1 HOUR APP REVIEW ADD-ON (Add'l 1-on-1 Coaching for eCourse & Package Customers), https://www.dvidshub.net/image/3982524/f-35-sky, https://www.dvidshub.net/image/4798866/f-22-europe, https://www.dvidshub.net/image/5765915/b-2-and-boom, https://www.dvidshub.net/image/491088/deployed-civil-engineers, https://www.dvidshub.net/image/6100141/c-17-air-drop, The Ultimate Guide to Earning a Pilot Slot in Air Force ROTC, Part 1, As Stan would be finishing up his 5-year ADSC, hed need to be shopping for Guard and Reserve UPT board announcements on. Time will tell. That's the Army's ace in the hole. We need better leadership courses that foster problem solving, the importance of critical thinking, and using surrounding talent to identify the cause of issues/solutions. But ifonline discussions are any indication, this ADSO will turn away a lot of prospective pilots. I at least expected a survey or something from the Aviation branch to ask why I was leaving, but again, nothing. Must be a volunteer just like airborne. It doesn't matter that the WOFT contract I signed this week states that it is a 6 year ADSO - the Army can do and change what it wants. F-22 crew chief: https://www.dvidshub.net/image/4798866/f-22-europe. While there are some top performers that will elect to pursue the branch because they plan on a career from the beginning, there are far more that may be hesitant or undecided about committing to a decade of their professional lives to a niche field when they're only 22 or 23 if they aren't already passionate about everything aviation. My talk with Stan covered all of these, so my next question was, How long were you planning on being involved in military aviation then? I'm in better shape today than I was 10 years ago. Why or why not? As several others have said, this policy fails to address the root problems high OPTEMPO, poor quality of life, irrelevant mandatory training, etc. Given the pandemic's direct and indirect effects on the aviation industry, is that even going to a concern going forward. For example, its the only service that allows people to go into flight training with only a high school degree. That is not a good thing. Other branches have had 10 year ADSOs for a long time. The first step the Army must take is to implement exit surveys for pilots to determine why they are leaving. Army and Air Force use this pay. He is the author of thejumo brief, a free weekly newsletter for Army leaders. Were looking at troops selected for flight training in the fiscal year 2021 and beyond.. Branch of Choice: Your BRADSO obligation runs consecutively with your flight school ADSO and your commitment will run out to about the 10 year point. So here I am, considering branching aviation when all of a suddenBAM! positivism constructivism or interpretivism and pragmatism army aviation 10 year adso. C-17 formation from the ramp: https://www.dvidshub.net/image/6100141/c-17-air-drop. The service obligation begins on the date an officer attains an aeronautical rating of Army aviator or is removed from attendance, whichever is earlier.. The Army has had pilot shortages off and on ever since I can remember. Often times these decisions being made do more harm than good, and cause a tremendous amount of work (just look at our administrative packet processes). Holla at yo boy and lemme know what y'all are thinking. Gen. McCurry also said, People still want to fly. review for a restaurant or somethingonly those who either #LOVEDIT or #hatedit:( ever write reviews, so it's hard to know what the experience is like for the average man. Cadets, who have not experienced the Army for even one day as an officer, are now asked to commit up to eleven years for the opportunity to fly for six yearsif they are luckywhile spending the rest of that time on staff, in professional military education, or in broadening assignments. I got out because I wanted to fly, but kept getting stuck in staff positions where I either couldn't fly, or had limited opportunities to fly. Up to $15K per year payable to officers drawing Optometrist Regular Special Pay who have completed initial ADSO for education and training, and who execute a 12-month active duty service agreement. Im in shape, arguably intelligent, and have at least ten good years of service left in me yet an age waiver will not be considered for aviation for either OCS or WOCS. If you want to. I don't want to mess with my retirement, but would love a chance to fly for my country. It explains how to perform well in your training, I dont hold back when people ask me the best way to become a. is to get hired directly by a Guard or Reserve unit and let them send you to UPT. Yes, , and its important to get there as quickly as you can because, . I wouldnt put it past B Co to drop incorrect information and later say we didnt say that.. Extra 4 years would NOT make a difference. Also get's a TS which is money, but dealing with army IT infrastructure is frustrating. Then 10 year service obligation put me right at 20 so Im not too worried about that. Ive also called this the, Stans idea (Do 5 years as an engineer, then fly for the Guard or Reserve), Looking at these side by side, its clear why #1 is the Ultimate option. The. The impact on warrant officers may be as severe as the impact on would-be aviation lieutenants. This means keeping up with at least two airplanes and dealing with two potentially very demanding bosses. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. I remember similar drama during my Fourth Class (freshman) year at the USAF Academy as we were forced to sign a paper accepting a similar ADSC increase in case of getting an Air Force pilot slot. If you, the seasoned army aviator, were still a senior in college and told that to become an aviator you had to sign for a 10-year + flight school ADSO, would you do it? Graduate School Program: Only 20% of the. Moving to a random Air Force Base for less than 1 year while Awaiting Pilot Training (APT), Moving to a base for 6-10 months for initial aircraft qualification. Is a 10-year Active Duty ADSC so terrible that its worth passing up? ADDED QUESTION: What, in your opinion, is the average view of Army Aviation within the perspectives of your peers?