Ideal Military Pilot Career Path – Spelling it Out – Part 1
BogiDope readers, I continue to believe that a pilot can achieve the Ultimate Military Pilot Career Path by skipping Active Duty altogether and just joining…
Category: Rated Pilot Transition
Dear Helicopter Pilots
A few months ago, a TPN Hangar Fly in Tampa included an awesome discussion with a pair of Army aviators. Both are reservists, and both…
The Military Pilot’s GA Translation Guide
by Jason Depew, TPN Staff Writer As a person who writes about how to get hired by the airlines, I get a lot of requests…
Confessions of a Reserve T-38C IP
I have a treat for you today! I just interviewed a reserve T-38C UPT IP, whom we’ll call Star-Lord for the sake of anonymity. The…
Health Insurance Basics for Pilots
Welcome back to BogiDope! We’ve taken a couple weeks off to enjoy the holidays with our families. We hope you got to do the same,…
Palace Chase and Palace Front Explained
It’s easy to feel trapped as an Active Duty Air Force pilot. With years to go before your Active Duty Service Commitment is up, your…
Civilian Ratings That Military Pilots Should Care About, Part 2
Welcome back to BogiDope! Last week we looked at the civilian pilot ratings that a military pilot may need to know about. This week we’re…
Civilian Ratings That Military Pilots Should Care About, Part 1
If you aspire to a lifetime career as a professional pilot, you almost can’t beat getting your start in the military. Whether you fly tankers…
How to Rush a Unit
Lifetime has a show called Married at First Sight. I can’t even bring myself to watch it–it just sounds like a bad idea. I categorize…
Fighting Forest Fires From the Cockpit of a C-130 – Wyoming ANG
Many jobs in this world are just that…jobs. Thankfully, aviation gives us a lot of opportunities that amount to far more than jobs. They’re missions,…
Airline Pilot Salaries
How much do airline pilots make? That’s the real question, isn’t it? You’re trying to decide whether it’s worth taking on tens of thousands of…
Jumping Ship – A USAF Pilot Joins the Navy Reserve
BogiDope was founded by Air Force pilots and much of our work is Air Force-centric. We’re here to help pilots from all branches though, and…
Active Duty How-To: U-2 Pilot
Part of the fun of aviation is that there are many different types of aircraft that can be amazing to fly. In the 116 years…
Military Pilot Retirement – Guard and Reserve
Welcome back to our series on Military Pilot Retirement pay. In Part 1 we discussed retirement for Active Duty pilots. In this part we’ll discuss…
Military Pilot Retirement – Active Duty
Dear Fellow Pilots, Don’t ever take a job based entirely on pay. From tradition, to tax advantages, to social consciousness, most employers offer an overall…
Fighters or Tankers? Ask a Guy Who’s Flown Both!
I recently had the pleasure of speaking with “Flint,” a KC-135 pilot from the 161st Air Refueling Wing in Phoenix, AZ. Flint has flown both…
USERRA for Pilots
In many ways, Guard and Reserve military service seem like a dream come true. I consider them to offer the Ideal (or even the Ultimate)…
Whats Your Status?
Anyone who is new to the Air National Guard (ANG) can attest to this simple fact, understanding who you work for on any given day…
An Inside Look Into a Rated Hiring Board
Interviews suck. There’s no other way to describe them. Sitting in front of a panel of judgmental pilots and getting grilled for an hour while…
Active Duty to Guard/Reserve Transition
Leaving the active duty (AD) and transferring to the Guard or Reserves can be a scary time in your life. There is not a lot…