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Introduce Yourself
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Howdy,
Rowan here. Currently, I’m working as a veterinarian in Petaluma, CA. Exotics and small animal with occasional volunteering with wild birds. I have a great job, but the truth is I’ve always dreamed of serving in the military. However, I chose to pursue helping animals. A lot of my experience is in wildlife conservation and the like. I find myself with that desire to serve still intact.
Talked to an old buddy who flys F-16s in active duty and it clicked. I have to try and fly fighters. I’m an old man by Air Force standards, 30 yo. I know it hurts my chances, but I love a good challenge and don’t mind being an underdog.
Took the afoqt. 99 on the pilot composite, and 95 on the CSO. Taking the TBAS in 2 weeks. 14 hours into my PPL. I’m going to apply for fighters first. I love the wide range of missions the F35 can fly. I think the 154th wing’s location will be critical due to its proximity to China and who doesn’ want to fly the F22. And if the fighter squadrons don’t want an old man, I will gladly fly heavies or rotary. Just want to serve and defend my country, preferably while flying.
Thank you kindly,
Rowan
P.S. Or the sky warden. Looks amazing.
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@rowan-prown Thanks for sharing! Passion gets you a long way in this game. Age can definitely be a deterrent in some of these highly competitive UPT boards… However, I recommend reaching out to some units you’re interested in and seeing if they’d allow you to rush the squadron. There’s all kinds of material on rushing units on BogiDope… The bottom line is that getting out to these units for some face-to-face (if they’ll allow it) is crucial to upping your chances. Once you’re there you can share your story and they’ll let you know if they’d consider you for a UPT slot.
I hope this helps. Good luck!
-CHAOS
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Thanks for the advice! Will make sure to do that.
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Howdy, my name is Max. I have always wanted to be a military pilot like both my grandfathers. Instead, I went down the business path for a little while and now that I have my degree and some life experience, it’s time to follow that dream. I just turned 25, have a bachelor’s degree from UofSC, and am currently working on getting my PPL and scheduling the AFOQT. Recently moved back to Virginia to focus on flying/applying full time and have been making the most of the robust aerobatic flying community here by spending my weekends volunteering at the flying circus (and sometimes getting front seat time in one of the Stearmans).
I am determined to fly fighters and while I am open to myriad avenues to give myself the best chance at fulfilling that goal, I do have my sights set on going UPT for the guard. I’m also always open to gaining more insight / advice, and am extremely grateful for this community and the mind boggling amount of resources Bogidope has.
Blue skies!
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Hey, Max! Nice to see a fellow Gamecock interested in some Guard flying. If you’re interested in heading back to the Palmetto State, SC Air Guard has a fighter unit right outside of Columbia: the 169th Fighter Wing. I was a ‘traditional Guardsman’ there while attending UofSC, and it was a great unit. Thought I should throw that out there.
Cheers!🍻
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Max, great to have you on the team! Flying that stearman sounds awesome!
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Hey All,
I’m Christian Fitzgerald (or more commonly just “Fitz”), and I started my aviation journey in the Army Guard as a back-seater. I was a full timer 15T UH-60 mechanic and progressed to crew chief, dual MOSd into a 15F helicopter electrician spot as the avionics shop lead, then went to flight instructor school to become a UH-60 NRCM FI, and also got my airframe and powerplant. After volunteering for literally everything (ranging from HAATs multiple times to hurricane Harvey to air assault) for 7 years, I began to burn out and left the guard.
I tried my hand at Microsoft, and am currently a manager in a Class A datacenter. It’s an okay gig, and not a bad job at all as far as those go, but I fear I’ve been spoiled by aviation. This year I decided to get my handful of pilot licenses, and recently after a flight building hours for commercial I happened upon a group of T-6 Texans passing through. As annoying as it was being behind them in the pattern while in my stupid little light sport make 360 after 360 after 360 waiting for everyone else to have their fun before I can go home and sleep to prep for more desk work, when they landed it was something else.
Their group was laughing and joking and BSing around, having what was apparently a grand ol time before heading to their hotel, while I got to put away my plane in isolation since nobody else at flight school wanted to fly at night for the extra hours. I started to desperately miss military aviation, so I’m pursuing a childhood dream again. I’m relatively an old geezer at 29, but I’m in great physical condition and have my commercial checkride in a couple weeks while also enrolled in college classes (90ish hours complete so far). I feel like I’m pretty well qualified as far as credentials and experience go, but my first order of business after my checkride is getting a hold of a recruiter so I can take the battery of prelim tests, and then getting into the modules on here about how to rush units.
Anyway, long story short I’m glad to be here and looking forward to at least a few years of attempts! Good luck to all, and I’ll see you folks around.
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Welcome Fitz! Glad to have you. Are you looking to move to the -60 front seat? Or is it a bold new fixed wing future?
Cheers!
Husky
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Oh no, I’m happily reformed now and have left my rotary past behind. “If it ain’t fixed, it’s broke,” as they say. I’m supremely interested in fighters, but I do realize just how competitve that can be. Regardless, I’ll give it my best shot and the worst I can get is a “no.”
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Hi all,
My name’s Jimmy and I just joined up today and thought I’d poke around to see what people are talking about on here. I’m a USAFA grad, Columbus for UPT, then C-17s/C-40s on active duty. I’m currently in the final bit of my commitment and trying to figure out what to do when I grow up, whether that’s ARC, clean cut, or staying in. I’m not sure where I can funnel my (limited) knowledge, but I’m happy to share my experiences and info with anyone that wants them!
Jimmy
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Welcome, Jimmy! We’d all benefit from your insights, especially for the non-traditional mobility aircraft like the C-40. Where were you stationed?
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I’m at JBA right now! Certainly a busy place considering the upcoming elections…
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Hi Jimmy! Welcome. Are you planning to cross the street to fly the DC C-40s? You could even fly the 737 for AA out of DC and be flying one type and living in base for both. Awesome setup.
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The thought has definitely crossed my mind! I haven’t had a chance to fly with any of those guys yet (nor have I wanted to with how busy things are) but I’d love to go on a trip or two once things slow down. Flying the same plane in the AF and airlines is a HUGE perk as well! Are you over at the 201st?
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Hey, I’m Leah! I am currently serving on active duty in the Army as an H-60 MEDEVAC pilot. I’m a Captain with ~650TT, wrapping up my Master’s in Aeronautics and PPL. I am exploring transitioning to the Air Guard after my Army obligation is up (2026). Looking forward to the journey and learning as much as I can from you all along the way!
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Hey Leah, welcome to BogiDope! If you haven’t already I’d reach out to a couple of the units you might be interested in and see about starting the rush process. Gaining an in/building a rapport while you’re waiting to separate will be a huge leg up when it comes time to start applying.
Good luck!
-CHAOS
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CHAOS, thanks for the info! I’ll definitely start reaching out.
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Hi my name is Zion – I am from Newport News, VA born on Langley AFB into an Army family. I graduated at Camp Zama High School on Camp Zama in Japan and Virginia State University with my bachelor’s in Psychology. I recently just completed the ATP program with all my certifications (IR, Comm, ME, CFI-I, and MEI) at KJQF(Concord , NC). Now I am with one of the cadet programs for the Airlines looking for a job to build time to get there. When I found out that some Airline pilots currently serve in the Guard flying fighters, I immediately wanted to find out how to go that route in hopes of flying a fighter jets as well as serve. I’ve always love jets and probably have 5k hours playing Ace Combat. Looking forward to networking and connecting on here with you all.
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@TheEqualizer Welcome to the community. I recommned digging around on the website to the max extent. We’ve got all kinds of materials that should help you on your way. Reach out if you have any questions.
Cheers!
-CHAOS
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Hi everyone, Edward Rivera here. I’m a 22 year old college student, Raising Canes employee, and student pilot. Im currently in community college for Associate of Science degrees in Commercial Flight, Aviation Science, and a certification in Aircraft Dispatch @ Mt. San Antonio College, CA. In addition, I am also beginning a degree in Fire Technology @ Crafton Hills College, CA. My interests are primarily aeronautics, astronautics, music production, and firefighting. One fact I’ll share is, I have my Diamond eyes set on applying to the 185th for the opportunity to fly the OA-1K, but I’d be happy to fly any platform for the Air Force regardless of where my destiny takes me.
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Welcome Edward! Great to have you join. Ya the OA-1K looks like a hoot to fly, and you get to shoot rockets! With a degree in fire science are you looking to do the fire suppression mission? You can do it both in the USAF (CO, CA, and WY) or be a guard OA-1K pilot by night and the OV-10 firefighter by day.
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Hey – My name is Dirk. I’m 21.
I’m from an aviation family, my Dad is a 350 Captain at Delta, my brother is going through the regional airlines right now, but I am looking more at the military route to the airlines. I have my PPL and about 225 hours right now. I haven’t taken the AFOQT or TBAS yet, but I’m shooting to take it early next year.
I’m on track to graduate with my Professional Pilot Degree through UVU in August, and I’m wanting to go through the military for a couple reasons. There’s the cool factor, but beyond that I want to be able to fly for the Airlines and for either the ANG or AF Reserves as well.
I’d love to fly the F-16, but ultimately my decision is going to come down to the amount of time per month that I’ll have to spend in my unit. Family is going to be a priority for me and I want to be able to spend as much time at home as possible, so the airframe and location will have a lot of sway on my decision.
That being said, I have no clue what airframes require the most or least time commitment per month, and I understand it can vary between units. Any direction on this would be appreciated, I have the resources to apply and rush and interview pretty much anywhere nationwide, but as I said, my choice will be heavily influenced by the amount of time I’ll be able to spend at home. What’s the time commitment like for different airframes?
(I understand seasoning is pretty demanding, I’m asking more of what it will be like beyond that)
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Dirk,
Welcome to the BogiDope community! You’re in the right place to get the best answers and genuine information on all things military flying.
To start off, it’s great to have a family in an aviation background! Sounds like you and your brother are following in the family footsteps!
First things first, keep up the good grades until August and do your upmost best to have these last classes before graduation to be your best! Your hours ,flying wise, are in a good spot for UPT boards so no issues there! Your next step right now is to get the AFOQT scheduled and study for it. I have been seeing recently that it has become more of a challenge to get it scheduled and can take time so I would absolutely start trying to get it on the books now.
BogiDope has amazing tools to be able to prepare yourself for the test. Remember you can only take it twice, with a 3rd being wavered; but good news is it is super scored now. That means it takes the best scores either time you take it. Once the AFOQT is complete you can schedule the TBAS which is also difficult to get done so push hard to make it happen.
After you get the completed then you can start to rush and apply to units across the country. This is a competitive process so it’s best to start one step at a time. As we in the AF community say, “near rocks, far rocks”
Bogidope has a lot of information on lifestyles of different airframes that you can review, among other things, to help guide you! If you have anymore questions and really want to dive deep into your goals specifically I recommend a 1-on-1 general strategy session to kickstart your path.
STK!
-CAGE
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