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Showing content with the highest reputation on 09/07/2017 in all areas

  1. I also had my LORs written generally and no one seemed to mind. I applied to like 20 units, I'm not going to bother my letter-writers a total of 60 times just to update the heading and re-sign.
    1 point
  2. Hey, Pakistan's had a whole one electoral transfer of power not get derailed, they're definitely up there with Athens and the Continental Congress in terms of democracy. Pay no attention to the fact that their intelligence agency is basically a terror organization.
    1 point
  3. There are 13-14 classes a year - so roughly every 3 weeks of the FY. My unit always ends up at Laughlin it seems - from what I've heard from ROTC dudes Vance is the most requested - so if you preference Laughlin or Columbus you'll probably get it easier. I don't know though. I lived at Laughlin ages 1-5 when my dad instructed there, and my grandpa flew U-2s there so I'm gonna be requesting Laughlin first. Thanks! And wow - I've been reading through that blog (airforcejourney.com) somebody shared. I thought I read all I could about OTS and watched enough videos to get an idea... that was an information overload/gold mine! Gonna have to keep biting off chunks of that night by night.
    1 point
  4. Classes are definitely a mix of AD/prior service and civilians (and Guard/Reserve accessions and AD accessions). I'm slated for 18-06 and there's a bunch of AD people on the Facebook group. It's all TFOT now -- there's no more AMS. TFIT (the first week) has been chopped and there's a computer course prerequisite instead now.
    1 point
  5. Networking starts with what type of Bro you were on active duty. I am FAR from perfect but always tried to take care of everyone around me and be a team player. I mentored and helped people whether they were career types of one tour and out. In short, I did my best not to be a douche. When I dropped my papers I told a few folks who put the word out for me. My suggestion would be to call your friends, tell them you are getting out and ask for input. You will be shocked at the positions that are out there and word of mouth and reputation drives the key jobs.
    1 point
  6. The only reason Cleared Hot made it to where he is is because of his rank and position. It had nothing to do with his talent, drive, or personality. Nor with his ability to think big. Plus, it's not possible to network with others until you get command and/or O-6+. As someone who also never made SQ/CC, I recommend you give up and accept something less.
    1 point
  7. Every person has a unique situation and at the end of the day I strongly encourage each person to follow the path that provides the most happiness and satisfaction to both you AND your family. Honestly I did not put as much thought into the “after” plan as I should have. I’ve invested well and don’t need to work, but as I got closer I decided I still wanted to avoid becoming a sloth and do something meaningful, at least for a few years. I hit the button a year in advance and the airline gig was really heating up, with over 4,000 hours TT and 2500+ IP time I thought it was a no-brainer, I could work part-time make decent cash and have the travel benefit for my family. I obviously have many bros at Delta and Fedex and they shared the good and the bad, so I decided to make that plan A. My plan had two basic flaws that were mistakes on my part, not insurmountable, but still limitations I needed to overcome. 1. I had been sitting at a desk for the last two years NOT flying. 2. I had not completed my ATP and now had to do the ATP/CTP course. I started flying private again and signed up for the CTP deal (what a complete waste), and built my application on airline apps. I hit the apply button with the written complete and provided updates with the CTP complete, new hours flown and finally added my ATP practical two weeks after my retirement ceremony. When I hit the last update button with the ATP complete I thought, “ok the phone will ring any day now”…it did not. Luckily I talked to a lot of folks (including Rainman), and I had a plan B that I was also working. There are MANY resources for vets and Rainman walked me through several I had never heard of which, one really really helped (https://www.acp-usa.org/). In very short order I was contacted about several positions, I had not applied to any of them, all word of mouth through my network. I made it to the final two for a very senior job and was a bit relieved when I did not get it (location). Over the course of a month I interviewed with several major defense contractors, with Google, with one of the largest food production companies, and with a major university. I don’t want this to turn into a dissertation but I learned some valuable lessons. 1. Industry is STARVED for leadership. 2. Industry professes to love Vets but in reality they are very concerned about them. Many think every Vet has PTSD. 3. Most jobs come from contacts and networking. 4. Industry has all the same problems and BS the military has. As a SQ/CC, Grp/CC, Wg/CC I had to deal with DUIs, Rapes, theft and other buffoonery. I have encountered many of the same issues at my current level in Industry. After a flurry of interviews things went quiet for a while which was EXTREMELY frustrating. Industry hiring moves at a glacial pace and I began to contemplate outright retirement. I was REALLY shocked the airlines hadn’t called and am honestly still somewhat perplexed by that fact. I have since learned how important recency is to the majors, I get it they are the pros, but it does not make sense to me. When I returned to fly as a O-5 it took two weeks to requal. When I returned as an O-6 I was scheduled for 10 rides, I did three rides and proficiency advanced to my checkride as a mission IP. I was flying civilian but still had less than 100 hours in the last six months…oh well it is their ball and their game, they get to make the rules. Four months later I got the call from Delta, over nine months after I first hit apply. The next day I got a call from a company I interviewed with early on…the made me an offer (turns out they were waiting for a senior dude to say yes and he didn’t know he had to say yes.) I sat down with my family and we had some long deliberations. Every situation is different and my family was tired of me being gone all the time. My son was established in school so taking a position with Delta was going to mean commuting and sitting reserve in a crash pad for at least a year. I must say after going through all the asspain it was not easy to call Delta and say "no thanks!" In the end I was able to parlay the industry position into a remote position working from my house. My company flies me to the home office once a month and I generally leave on Monday morning and return Friday night. The other travel has ramped up a bit but some of that is seasonal, some was unexpected because our company is GROWING, and the rest is self-imposed. I ended up starting at about 7-8 year airline pay, well over that with my annual bonus which means I can do this for a few years and walk away with another chunk of $ to add to my portfolio. We bought a few new toys but I have managed to save every penny of my retirement check. It was not a simple choice but it works for me and most importantly my family.
    1 point
  8. I fly a little Titan Tornado S now and it is a blast. It's a full light weight metal aircraft with only 80hp (Rotax 912) but it will do a loop, actually more of an oval ellipse since it barely gets over the top and kind of falls off the back side. It cruises at C-172 speeds and has 2 seats in tandem and a stick rather than a yoke. A fun little experimental that carries about as much (600 lbs - that includes the 15 gallons of fuel) as its empty weight (~620lbs). The reason I chose it is that the front seat height is pretty much even with the seat in my wheelchair (I'm paralyzed now so can't use feet/legs) and the rudder and brakes were easy to modify so that I can use my hands to operate all flight controls. Never consciously thought about how much I would miss flying until it was taken away for a little while. The first picture was when I test flew one before I bought mine, the second shot is my plane shot from a friends plane.
    1 point
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