The community is so small.

If I could have given one piece of advise to myself as a young aviator its this: the community is very very small.

While there are 10K-ish pilots in the USAF you tend to work day to day with similar types (fighter-fighter, airlift-airlift). and you tend to work with your same year group +/- 2 years. In my year group there were about 100 fighter pilots, 500 fighter pilots in that +/- 2 year band

I saw those 500 faces my whole career. You’ll fight together, work on projects together, support each other at RED FLAG together. Later in life that will be the pilot who gets your the internal rec at an airline, or checks your six as you cross into bad-guy land.

Always, always protect those relationships. That starts now here in Bogidope. While there are a finite number of slots, there are enough to meet the talent; and I’m telling you, when you’re the mission commander and you know your package commanders personally, that confidence wins.