RocketDriver

Scroll up a few posts and you'll see my edited timeline with my orders dates included. NGB approval to OTS dates was about two months, with UPT dates following about 1.5months after that (or 3.5mos total from NGB approval)

You're doing all the right things then. My only advice would be to spend more time researching heavy missions before writing them off. Flying Herks or C-17s is a lot cooler than not flying for the military at all, plus you'll get a lot more flight time. If you're willing to go active duty there's already a very high chance you won't fly fighters, so it would be beneficial to look at some of the heavy guard units with interesting missions (e.g. HC-130 or MC-130) and weigh the certainty of flying those birds against the uncertainty of getting stuck with something even less appealing to you if you don't do well in UPT.

You're doing all the right things to get started. Work hard, score well on the AFOQT, and get as much flying time as you can. Then start applying to as many units as possible and put yourself out there. You're young and have a lot of time to get hired, and it sometimes helps to apply to the same unit a few years in a row to build a rapport with them. If you end up with scores over 80, combined with your background, you'll maybe get a few looks. If you can get scores in the 90s, you'll be competitive, and then it's a question of time and effort put into rushing. Also, consider heavy units. They fly great missions as well (especially Herks), and you'll get a lot more flight time if the airlines are in your future. The only red flag is your color vision, they run a separate test from the Ishihara at FC1 but there's no real way to know until you get there.

If you are absolutely sure this is what you were put on this earth to do, have you considered active duty? Or heavy units? Or enlisting in an ANG unit to gain experience and get to know the squadron better? You're self-selecting to the most difficult group to be hired into and you're already fighting an uphill battle compared to many of your fellow applicants. Having a PPL is 100% a gateway because the Guard loses the pilot slot if you wash out of UPT. They can afford to be picky with who they select, and they should be. If you wash out they don't get a chance to fill your slot with an alternate, that money is gone. Think about this from the SQ/CC point of view, are you willing to wager the one or two slots per year you get on someone with zero flight time? Especially when you're getting 100-200 applicants per year for each pilot slot, many of whom have 90s across the board on AFOQT/TBAS, great GPAs, and a PPL in addition to a good work ethic? Active duty is where the Air Force can afford to take chances on people because they own you and can send you down another career path if you don't make it. The Guard doesn't have that luxury. If you want to bump your chances with guard fighter units, find a way to make the PPL happen.

NGB approval was mid-October, OTS date assignment came early December for a mid-January start date. UPT assignment came in early February for a May start date.

Open your options to heavies and helos if you haven't already. Be realistic about what your options are with the time you have left. Age is definitely a factor as well, but sometimes it just comes down to personality and whether or not they like you. Every candidate applying to a fighter unit has a <1% chance of getting picked up - I've met people who are 5+ years in on the application circuit and still sticking to fighters only. At some point you need to ask yourself what it really is you're after - is it flying a specific airframe, or is it flying for the military?

Finally have UPT dates, headed to Vance. Completed timeline below, this is for a non-prior at a guard fighter unit. Hired: Aug 2020 MEPS: Dec 2020 (initial processing was delayed due to miscommunication on COVID protocols, had to go back for a vision consult in Jan 2021 which required a waiver) Enlistment: Feb 2021 FC1: May 2021 NGB Packet Submitted: July 2021 NGB Packet Approved: Oct 2021 OTS Orders Received: Dec 2021 (for Jan 2022 start) OTS: Jan-Mar 2022 UPT Orders Received: Feb 2022 (for May 2022 start) UPT: May 2022

My packet was submitted to NGB on 01 JUL 21 and was approved 19 OCT 21, so 3.5mos for me.

Update since things are finally moving. Off the street hire for a fighter unit, been playing the waiting game this past year. Hired: Aug 2020 MEPS: Dec 2020 (initial processing was delayed due to miscommunication on COVID protocols, had to go back for a vision consult in Jan 2021 which required a waiver) Enlistment: Feb 2021 FC1: May 2021 NGB Packet Submitted: July 2021 NGB Packet Approved: Oct 2021 OTS: Jan 2022 UPT:?

For some context on option A - it is still possible to get picked up at a fighter unit at your age. If it's really your lifelong dream, I wouldn't give up on it yet (provided you have a backup plan as brabus wisely suggested - given your background I don't expect this to be an issue). Also, consider heavies or rotary. You still get to fly awesome airframes and your mission is arguably much more useful to the military overall. I was in a similar boat to you - 90s across the board on AFOQT and PCSM, aero eng background, 6+ years at a reputable engineering company. I didn't even send in my first application until I was 28, kept at it aggressively for two years, and was hired in August 2020 to fly single-seat at the ripe old age of 30. If you want it bad enough and can make a good enough impression in your interview, you just may get what you're after.

Finally was fortunate enough to get picked up off the street for a fighter unit in the fall, starting my own timeline: Hired: Aug 2020 MEPS: Dec 2020 (initial processing was delayed due to miscommunication on COVID protocols, had to go back for a vision consult in Jan 2021 which required a waiver) Enlistment: Feb 2021 FC1: ? OTS: ? UPT:? Good luck to everyone out there, COVID certainly isn't making anything easier.

Yeah, this was my interpretation as well.

They did not clarify, and the email recipients were on BCC.

I also received the Wednesday email stating that we should expect to hear by Jan 2021. It appears they followed up quicker than initially indicated. Wednesday's note was from a (I presume) recruiter, while today's follow-up interview invite came via email from two of the pilots in the squadron.

FYI for all who applied to the 121st in DC, an invite for their second-round video interviews just went out this afternoon. It's a bit unclear if this interview is the final board or a video pre-screen for the final board, but things are moving again. There were 124 applicants this year.

There have been a lot of good responses in this thread, and I think they're all valid. I'll share one very useful piece of advice a friend of mine who is now at UPT for heavies gave me, and it proved useful for me in recently getting picked up for a fighter unit as well. "in the Guard they're trying to make a decision of 'This guy isn't even military yet, let along a military pilot, and I'm going to select him to be my wingman and trust him with my life for the 10 years based solely on his past achievements and his demeanor'" @Cherokeeflyer is spot on in emphasizing a focus on how you have overcome adversity and learned from mistakes. Everyone will be tested at some point in training, so if you show up talking about how great you are and how you'll sail through UPT, it doesn't make a good impression. If you can tell a compelling story about a time you failed or screwed up bad but rose to the occasion and bounced back, that'll help you stand out. You want them to see that you're humble, will be a good teammate, and won't quit when the going gets rough. @hockeydork hit the nail on the head when he said anyone who's made it as far as the interview has already been considered capable. If you've made it to the 10 or so finalists out of 100-200, they likely already expect you have the skills to make it through UPT. What they're looking for is to see how well you'll fit with the team, that you're excited to be there but not a fanboy, and that you're going to work your ass off to be the best teammate you can be. I am an engineer with scores in the 90s across the board. Can confirm from experience that they did not care about said scores, and were far more interested in the teamwork side of my professional career than the technical. A couple things I did for interview prep that were helpful: Don't let your answers come off as overly rehearsed. They don't want you to recite a canned response. Take a moment to think about the question you've been asked before you speak. Take the time to prepare so you know what to expect, but don't be a robot when you answer. Bring a team-first attitude. Once you're in the interview your academics and test scores aren't as relevant. Focus on sharing life experiences that were valuable and taught you important lessons Do your homework. Learn about the unit, the airframe, and be able to tell them why you want to be there more than anyone else. Be authentic. It's easy to tell the people who are trying too hard from the people who are relaxed and confident. I've seen a number of interview candidates try to talk like they're already military pilots, and it was obviously off-putting to everyone in the room. I can't speak to the Bogidope prep since I did not make use of it. I found the standard interview questions thread in this forum to be quite helpful. Best of luck to you.

Went looking through posts back to March and couldn't find an answer, sorry if this is redundant. Anyone hear any news from the DCANG (113th Wing)? The last update I got from them was in May saying to expect an update in mid-June. Curious if anyone's been called for an interview and they don't bother with the "thanks but no thanks" for the rest of us, or if this board is still on hold.

Check your DM, dropped you some notes about the VT unit. Can't speak to your specific situation regarding LoR from pilots in your unit, but off the cuff, would seem a bit strange and wouldn't necessarily fit the "know your character on a personal level" bit.

Hey everyone - I wanted to leave a detailed review of my experience with initial CA ANG recruiting through my first UPT interview. I recently went through the process of getting my PPL and taking all the required tests to apply for pilot boards (AFOQT and TBAS). I encountered a few pitfalls along the way that seem unique to my area (Southern California) and I wanted to share those with others who might be doing the same thing. Hopefully this helps anyone who's just starting out on the adventure. Feel free to PM me for more details if you want. To get right to it, here's a list of the specific things I ended up having trouble with. I put a summary of my background and path to interviews below this section for context. If you're trying to schedule testing in the Southern California area, you may run in to a couple of issues that will drag out the process. TL:DR - start scheduling everything 2 months before you intend to submit applications to give yourself time for testing and to accommodate the inevitable delays. I fumbled my way through the process and missed a few application deadlines because things took longer than expected (note - this was entirely my own fault for not being prepared enough, hopefully you'll read this and do better than I did). Many of you may read this and think "this kid is an idiot" - you're correct, but my idiocy may be useful for others. At the end of the day, I got it all done well enough to be selected as an alternate at a fighter unit and I'm continuing the push for a primary slot. Call CAANG as soon as you can and fill out their initial forms. They will assign you a recruiter, and then the guy you originally talked to will no longer be useful for you CAANG had me work through the 129th Rescue Wing at Moffett Field for initial recruiting tasks. This posed a number of challenges, as I live in Los Angeles and was not applying to that unit My recruiter was not local and was sometimes difficult to contact They were not familiar with the procedures for scheduling TBAS testing at LA MEPS You probably won't be able to avoid this issue, so build in time to deal with the delays. Seems like most officer recruiting goes through the 129th I ended up scheduling my AFOQT test date myself. It took me a long time waiting for return phone calls to realize this was something I could take care of on my own As soon as you have your recruiter, find the closest AFROTC detachment to where you live and call them yourself. Ask to schedule the AFOQT. There are tons of ROTC kids who take this every year, and I jumped in with a bunch of them. I waited for almost a month for info from my recruiter, only to find that I could call LMU AFROTC myself to get scheduled that day and take it 2 weeks later Your scores should be available in 1-2 weeks. I cost myself a month of waiting to take the AFOQT by not being proactive The single biggest hiccup came with scheduling the TBAS. In short, every MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station for noobs like myself) has different rules, and not knowing the small details caused me a ton of headache LA MEPS is super busy. They get a ton of throughput and don't have time for BS. This means when your recruiter goes to schedule you for the TBAS, he can't make mistakes. The day I took the TBAS, they probably swore in 50 eighteen year olds. You're going to stick out like a sore thumb The testing guys claim I was only the second person to ever take the TBAS at LA MEPS. Sounds like they didn't offer the test until Dec 2018. Most people there had no idea what it was, so expect to get some strange looks and possibly some confusion regarding how to get the test set up properly Your recruiter must schedule the testing for you, and he/she must provide at least 2 business day's notice I tried to schedule it myself and was promptly shut down The first time I went to MEPS, my recruiter had informed me that I had been scheduled for testing. I did not follow up with LA MEPS to confirm, and arrived to find that we had not given sufficient notice and I was unable to take the test. Attempt #1 ended in failure and I had to go back a week later Your recruiter must leave the signature slots on the test forms blank for you to sign in person. Electronic signatures are not permitted. I had to re-print all my documentation day-of-test and physically sign it Your recruiter must submit the worksheet documenting your flight hours. This may seem obvious to everyone on this board, but was not obvious to my recruiter. Not having this info forced a reschedule of my second test attempt Follow Reagan's advice to "trust, but verify". I would have saved myself a lot of trouble if I followed up with LA MEPS myself Once you get over these hurdles the rest is on you - find the units you want to apply for, make your pretty application packets, etc. I haven't needed anything from my recruiter since completing the TBAS and receipt of my PCSM, and it's been much smoother. My background: 29 years old Degree in Aerospace Engineering 7 years of industry experience My path to interviews: Decided to start seriously pursuing a UPT slot in Sept 2018 Completed my PPL between Sept and Dec 2018 Contacted CAANG in Jan 2019 Took the AFOQT in Mar 2019 Took the TBAS in April 2019 First interview in May 2019 I missed two application deadlines in Feb 2019 because I dragged my feet on scheduling testing. Don't let this happen to you

Board was in Jun 2019. They took 5 primaries and 3 alternates. Next board is forecast to be 2 years from now but dates aren't confirmed. The unit is currently transitioning to the 35 and will get their jets in late 2019/early 2020, they just sent the last of their 16s to the 177th in Atlantic City.

Having just gone through this in the last year, here's my take. I used the Trivium and Test Prep Books AFOQT guides (PM me and I can send you the links). I found them to be useful to an extent, though if I were taking it again, I'd add in some outside content. I'll second what others have said earlier - SAT prep guides should be helpful for you. The math and verbal concepts are pretty much the same as the SAT, so spending time reminding yourself of all the useless vocab and facts you learned in geometry in 10th grade will go a long way. My background is in aerospace engineering, but it didn't really do much for me since it had been so long since I learned the math concepts covered. I took the test 6 years out of college and 3 months after getting my PPL. If I were to do it again, I'd put more effort into studying on a regular basis - 30-60mins every other day would have been much better than the level of effort I put in. The test prep and SAT guides will ensure you study the right topics, so with a healthy amount of preparation, you'll crush it.