O Face

I am in the guard now, yes. I’m really not trying to dissuade anyone from taking their shot in the ANG. I just want folks to be aware of what’s actually going on. Most AD people (earlier self included) think the ANG is some sort of weekend flying club and certainly second rate. Of course it took about 10 mins of talking with my new ANG buds at UPT for me to learn I made a huge mistake. I got picked up because I was deployed with my ANG unit, as well as exercises. Get to know the bros I strongly suggest any interested in how to get a ANG UPT slot wander over to the ANG/Res section and you’ll find a lot of answers and advice.

Ask absolutely anyone who has done AD and ANG and they’ll tell you the Guard is infinitely better, 100% of the time. Having said that, ANG slots are much more competitive than AD. We get many, many hundreds of applicants for 1 UPT slot usually. I’m not trying to discourage you from applying, but wanted you to know what you’re getting yourself in to. Best of luck.

Thanks again for chiming in Doc! I thought this was the case, but wanted someone to verify, so I called back to my squadron to get SOF_CSO a solid answer this morning…All the full-timers must still be at lunch. Anyway, I would most certainly put proof of the waivers in your packet somewhere, even if the ANG decided you needed to do them all over again, for some reason only NGB could dream of, it would make the folks on your board feel more confident in selecting you.

That curvy symbol at the end of my sentence was a question mark. That makes the sentence interrogative. I’m very pleased they didn’t ask you all that. If you actually believe these things are not considered, I have a bridge I’d like to sell you.

Glad to hear that.

Were those lower strat folks, that you know, selected because of some all important factors that you could do nothing about ie, race, sex, and or sexual preference? You know the really critical things to consider when selecting pilots??

Sorry to hear that you weren’t picked up AD, however if you do get selected by a Guard unit, you’ll be forever grateful you weren’t selected AD. Having said that, it’s gonna be a bit tougher considering your age. Declining an RPA assignment won’t hurt you in the least. The fact you already have your waivers will help a lot in the interview process as well. So now the process is like anybody else out there. Go find the units you’re interested in. Get to know them, and start applying. You do have also have the advantage of being a C-130 Nav and there’s lots of H model guard units out there still who are perpetually short on Nav’s. You could always roll the dice and get a Nav job and hope they’ll make you a pilot. It’s a bit of a risk though as they may want to keep you as a Nav. Either way, I’m certain you’ll be much happier. Best of luck.

Could not have asked for more than that!!

That was how I read it as well. Males do not enjoy equal protection under the laws we have passed.

Some damn good football games today! Hoping tomorrow’s are entertaining as well!

Absolutely. There’s tons of dudes who rode out the whole lost decade bumming at their guard unit.

I agree but, more than likely, Trump will not win the GOP primary over DeSantis and will then run as a 3rd party candidate and will bring enough votes with him to ensure a Biden (or whoever) victory. Trump certainly isn’t capable of just quietly walking away.

Normally if I’m quoting you it’s to shit all over your political views, but I must’ve missed this gem from a year ago. Absolutely beautiful; nearly pissed my pants!!

Serious question here, not trying to be a dick, but what advantage, other than cost I suppose, does the lightning carrier offer over other carriers?

Maybe work on your gifs as well!!

Those two bros pretty much said it all. Only thing I’d add is to do what it takes to score very well on your AFOQT.

If you’re like me, this time of year is quite depressing. Not because of the holidays or anything, but rather because college football is coming to its annual letdown of a post season, and we’re staring at the realization that there’s nothing worth watching on tv for the next 8 months. The FCS playoffs on ESPN2 is some really good football however. Semi finals are this Fri-Sat.

Best of luck to you all!!

Ooohhh. I’m such a prude.

For certain! In the meantime, let’s continue to capitalize on our progress here while sticking with what we have technology for currently (looking at you New Zealand, Holland, and CA). Maybe not banning gas powered farm equipment before we have a realistic alternative. As much fun as this recent inflation has been, I’m thinking farming via horse drawn plows and hand picking is going to lead to a few more shortages.

Sounds like something a real sick bastard would say. Did someone have to unchain your arms and unzip your gimp mask to allow you to type this??? Just kidding, but seriously, take that gag ball out of your mouth every hour or so, and get a drink of water to prevent dehydration!

I will say, I think you guys won the coaching carousel this year!

Happy to answer your questions the best I can: 1. Yes they are binding, and no you cannot take your commitment to another branch of service. (There are some very limited opportunities to serve on a joint assignment with another branch, and some even slimmer chances of an inter-service transfer, but this is not something you should really even consider at this point) But if you were flying HH-60’s in the AF you cannot (nor would you want to) walk over to the Army and finish your commitment flying their UH-60’s, for example. Also, know that if you go AD, ANG, or Reserve it’s 10 years AFTER you get your wings. UPT is a year long, tack on your OTS and time sitting on casual waiting for class dates, medical, etc and you’re realistically looking at 12 years of service before you can separate. However, I would reiterate what others have said, you’re going to know, before you go, whether you’ve been selected for pilot or not. So, back to your original post - Uncle Sam isn’t going to trick you into something here. If you aren’t selected for a pilot slot you can still walk away from the recruiter, but once they send you to flight school, the AF owns your ass. 2. Yes I took all the tests, I’m currently a pilot in the Air National Guard. Albeit an older one now, hell the TBAS was still called BATS when I took it. 3. There’s a max number of points you get on your PCSM for flight hours. I thought 200+ Hrs was the top, but that could’ve changed. I’ll do some digging and ask some of the new guys in the squadron. I’m sure there’s some folks here who are currently in the process, who have tested recently that can answer that too.