ryleypav

Pretty darn good numbers if you ask me. Any previous flight experience? Most units these days want at least a PPL. Not a hard line in the sand on paper, but pretty much is. Get your packet together and start throwing apps together. I'd imagine you'd get an interview at a tanker unit with those numbers/work experience. With that said, get flight time if you dont have it. Even tanker units are getting a good amount of apps these days and they can be pretty competitive.

The dick kick that you just get used to eventually.

Second that. As the boat guy, make sure people give you gas money. Not sure what condition the lake is in currently. However, I loved Laughlin. Going in as a guard guy knowing I won't get stuck there was an added bonus though. Theres been a smattering of new businesses opening up in Del Rio, so you've got that. Mesquite Creeks membership (if they still do it) is a must if you enjoy some brews with the classmates. 2 free beers a day when you go in. They've always got some fun events going on, as well as downtown Del Rio. Laughlin itself is meh. The golf course is flat and dry, but fun enough. Used to be good fishing in its ponds. Not sure if they have water anymore. Club XL is too expensive. Not bad once in a while though. They have some fun events once in a while on base. Just take advantage of what they offer. A lot of times they give you beer for volunteering for stuff which is fun. If you can, get out of the dorms and get a house with some dudes from your class. Makes it way more fun in my opinion. Then, when several people in your class have houses, do a house crawl on a weekend. Great times. Austin and San Antonio aren't too far of a drive. Big Bend is, but I've heard it was worth it. Wish I had gone. As far as UPT itself. The others have nailed it. Always be ready for whats next, but dont reach too far with the studying. I usually stayed in the flight room for 10-12 hours everyday even though we weren't on formal release for T6s, because I studied better there, and didn't wanted to be available for my classmates. Most of us did, and we had a super tight knit flight room. I'll second that boldface advice. I did one every night when I got home to have ready, and to help study. Like the others said, if you use your time effectively during the day, you can actually relax when you get home for the night. Be a good bro and you'll be fine.

I mean, yeah. Why not? If you have the degree, go for it. However, you'll be applying for an entry level position. Do you already have an engineering degree/engineering experience? Are you already a mil pilot? There is no age limit to being an engineer, but it can be a tough gig depending on the industry. Space I'm assuming is in that category. Still, too many questions with your scenario to really give you any solid advice.

Guard guy, but one of my buddies at UPT did this. We graduated one year ago, so pretty relevant still. He had a BAH waiver (wife and kids at home as well), and got to live in the dorms for free. But like others said, if he wanted to live in on base housing, or live off base, it was all out of his own pocket. When I was in the dorms I only got Type 2 BAH. We had to get on a MFR from the student squadron to move out of the dorms and into on base housing. Then I went back to type 1 BAH. Basically they were running out of room in the dorms and had extra housing available. We also didnt have a choice initially. It was hotel until your dorm was available, then get on the letter for getting out of the dorms as they made them. So to answer your question, you can have on base housing (read Dorms) for free with a BAH waiver, but not an actual house on base for free. That you'd still have to pay for.

Probably business as normal-ish. T-38 delays dont affect T-1s. Different squadrons, instructors, planes, sims, etc....T-38s were delayed when I was at UPT. My classmates that went 38s just washed back classes and we kept on goin.

An engineer as in mechanical or electrical? Flight engineer? Engineer is a very broad term. I was a mechanical engineer for 5 years prior to flying. I could probably talk to it a bit having been in the industry. That is, if we're talking the same industry.

See one do one?

I do have an extra of both actually!

Everyone already hit the nail on the head. Biggest thing for me, and what I usually preach to everyone, all nighters dont work, and when you're tired, stop studying. You dont retain information when you're tired, theres no point in going on. Especially the night before a test/checkride. If you dont know something by 10pm the night before, you arent going to learn it. Give your brain a rest, and you'll retain what you know that much better. I always made it a point to just relax for a few hours before bed, the night before a checkride. Theres so much information to absorb there, and you can only learn so much. Knowing where to find things is sometimes more important than the information itself. Do what works for you. We had guys who just read stuff once and it stuck, others made thousands of quizlet cards (this dude was the real bro of the flight), others who hand wrote flash cards. Everyone is different man. We'd quiz each other on road trips to Austin or wherever we were going.

Laughlin 23-07 and 23-08 when they washed the whole class back in T-1s. The 23-07 patch originally said "No time for 2.5" instead of "the old fashioned way" but that didnt make it very far.

You'll have a lot more time than you think to enjoy the area you're in and explore.

Pfff, Laughlin was great.

I swore in about 8 months after I got hired. The "enlistment contract" had a line in it about being for commissioning purposes only, and supposedly didn't lock me if things went south during the process up to being commissioned. I wish I had signed it sooner, because thats 8 extra months on my pay date I missed out on.

Tons of good tips, advice, and answers to all your questions on here. Just gotta start digging. I'd start applying as soon as you have all the scores and application packet materials. No need to wait. The PPL will definitely help, but you may as well start slinging applications. Why take away 3 years of getting your name out there.