Birdstrike
Atlantic City
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2002
- Posts
- 13,334
Here's a problem most of us never had to worry about in the Army. So the deal offered is eight years owed out of flight school, then five more for an extra $25K per year. By then it's the 13 year point, at least, and I guess the thinking is they have you then for the duration? What are you guys close to the eight year point gonna do? Buy that big new boat?
Norfolk Virginian-Pilot
February 20, 2006
Navy Pilots Debate Taking $125,000 Bonus Or Running
By Kate Wiltrout, The Virginian-Pilot
NORFOLK - Pin stripes or a flight suit? That's the bottom line in the choice Eric Perle must make. A C-2A Greyhound pilot with eight years in the Navy, the 29 -year-old lieutenant is at a crossroads: He could extend his service by five years in December, or he could put his pending MBA degree to work in the corporate world.
The Navy wants him to stay - and will pay him a $125,000 bonus if he decides to sign on for another hitch. It's a standing offer for young aviators: an extra $25,000 a year in exchange for a five-year commitment. Since October, the deal also has been extended to naval flight officers who operate systems aboard various Navy aircraft.
Perle said the bonus will play into his decision.
"I'm on the fence," he said. "Guys like us can make more money in the civilian world. Definitely the bonus will be a determining factor in my decision. Who doesn't hope they'll get more money?"
Flight officer retention has risen 10 percentage points in response to the bonus deal, said Capt. Mark Guadagnini at Navy Personnel Command in Millington, Tenn.
Retention rates had not dipped low enough that the Navy had to institute a stop-loss, which the military can use to halt critical losses during wartime.
Yet with conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq stretching forces thin, and a strong economy luring soldiers and sailors back to civilian jobs, it didn't want to see attrition get any worse.
Managing the market
The Navy often uses bonuses to keep niche jobs occupied. Special operations sailors, submariners and nurses are now in high demand, with big bucks offered to retain them or get them in. Within a $25,000 cap set by Congress, the Personnel Command decides how big bonuses will be, then alters them to keep retention rates and future manpower trends at a desirable level.
Guadagnini , the command's division director for aviation personnel, said since 1986, about 40 percent of Navy fliers have chosen to extend after their initial contracts expired. Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, retention has risen to about 50 percent, he said.
That might be because aviators who trained for combat are able to put their skills to use, he said. Yet it also means more frequent deployments and more pressure, both of which take a toll on retention.
If too many officers like Perle decide to get out, frontline squadrons pay the price. Young aviators quickly become middle managers who keep the workaday units running smoothly.
Guadagnini said the Navy needs between 284 and 350 aviation department heads - positions such as maintenance, safety, administration or operations officers. The jobs, which typically last about 18 months , require a combination of leadership and experience, and are assigned to officers at the O-4 level, or lieutenant commanders.
Once they've earned their wings, pilots must serve eight more years; flight officers are obligated for six , said Cmdr. Massie Hughes , an aviation officer community manager with the Navy's Bureau of Personnel in Washington .
Yet jobs as department heads usually aren't awarded until an aviator has a decade of service. To help the fliers reach that milestone, the Navy often has to sweeten the pot.
While taxpayers might grouse about $125,000 bonuses, Hughes considers it money well spent. It costs the Navy $1 million to $1.5 million to train each pilot or flight officer, Hughes said. The longer each one stays in, the easier it is for the Navy to recoup its investment.
Aviators thinking about leaving have lots of options, Guadagnini said, because they have management experience, leadership skills and technical proficiency. Even if commercial airlines may be shedding positions, other industries seek out Navy pilots. Many of them enter the business world, he said.
Lt. Jason Buckley plans to do that some day - but the bonus swayed him to stay an extra five years. A 30-year-old instructor pilot with Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 120 , Buckley already must serve three years in exchange for the MBA he's earning - remotely - from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif .So serving two years on top of that - with $125,000 for the complete five-year extension - was an easy choice.
"I don't think it was an option of not taking it," Buckley said. "If you're going to do three, you might as well put in for the extra two." Buckley jokes that his wife already has spent the money. Actually, the couple plans to pay off bills with the first installment, then in coming years invest the money in their Norfolk home.
They might have some fun with it down the line, though. "Who knows ?" Buckley said. "Maybe we'll say 'Hey, we should get a boat!' " He sees the bonus not as free money but as a way of leveling the playing field between military and civilian salaries.
"They can't change the deployment cycle and the workload and all, but they can pay you more," Buckley said. "We've got a lot of smart guys here," he said. "They pay us well, and I think we're all happy. If there had been no bonus, I think you'd still have plenty of good guys here in the Navy."
No big-ticket buys
Individuals such as Lt. Michael McGlynn have their own version of cost and benefit analysis.Last week, McGlynn, an E-2C Hawkeye flight officer, completed his paperwork to stay in the Navy. The 37-year-old doesn't have any big-ticket purchases in mind. Instead, he plans to split the $125,000 between his retirement fund and his children's college fund.
"I'm going to have three in college all at once," said McGlynn, who lives with his wife and three boys in Chesapeake . McGlynn said he planned to extend his time in the service when the bonus for flight officers was $75,000 ; the increase is a happy coincidence.
Still, he has colleagues for whom even the bigger check won't do.
Folks staying in tease the ones getting out, he acknowledged, but it's all in fun.
"They've done their time, they've enjoyed it, and it's time to do something different," he said. "You can't do this forever. After a while, being away from home wears on you. ... Missing a lot of my kids' growing up gets to be tough."
Perle, who is single and lives in downtown Norfolk, doesn't have that concern. With no one depending on him for a paycheck or health insurance, he's free to consider life outside the Navy safety net.
If there were no bonus, Perle theorized, there'd be a 60 percent chance he would decide to try life on his own terms.With the money, there's a 50-50 chance he'll decide to stay. Ultimately, Perle will make his decision dispassionately, the way the Navy trained him to fly.
"Anywhere you go, you're going to find people who are dissatisfied with what they do, and people who love what they do," Perle said. "When the time comes, you have to sit down and make a call."
Norfolk Virginian-Pilot
February 20, 2006
Navy Pilots Debate Taking $125,000 Bonus Or Running
By Kate Wiltrout, The Virginian-Pilot
NORFOLK - Pin stripes or a flight suit? That's the bottom line in the choice Eric Perle must make. A C-2A Greyhound pilot with eight years in the Navy, the 29 -year-old lieutenant is at a crossroads: He could extend his service by five years in December, or he could put his pending MBA degree to work in the corporate world.
The Navy wants him to stay - and will pay him a $125,000 bonus if he decides to sign on for another hitch. It's a standing offer for young aviators: an extra $25,000 a year in exchange for a five-year commitment. Since October, the deal also has been extended to naval flight officers who operate systems aboard various Navy aircraft.
Perle said the bonus will play into his decision.
"I'm on the fence," he said. "Guys like us can make more money in the civilian world. Definitely the bonus will be a determining factor in my decision. Who doesn't hope they'll get more money?"
Flight officer retention has risen 10 percentage points in response to the bonus deal, said Capt. Mark Guadagnini at Navy Personnel Command in Millington, Tenn.
Retention rates had not dipped low enough that the Navy had to institute a stop-loss, which the military can use to halt critical losses during wartime.
Yet with conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq stretching forces thin, and a strong economy luring soldiers and sailors back to civilian jobs, it didn't want to see attrition get any worse.
Managing the market
The Navy often uses bonuses to keep niche jobs occupied. Special operations sailors, submariners and nurses are now in high demand, with big bucks offered to retain them or get them in. Within a $25,000 cap set by Congress, the Personnel Command decides how big bonuses will be, then alters them to keep retention rates and future manpower trends at a desirable level.
Guadagnini , the command's division director for aviation personnel, said since 1986, about 40 percent of Navy fliers have chosen to extend after their initial contracts expired. Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, retention has risen to about 50 percent, he said.
That might be because aviators who trained for combat are able to put their skills to use, he said. Yet it also means more frequent deployments and more pressure, both of which take a toll on retention.
If too many officers like Perle decide to get out, frontline squadrons pay the price. Young aviators quickly become middle managers who keep the workaday units running smoothly.
Guadagnini said the Navy needs between 284 and 350 aviation department heads - positions such as maintenance, safety, administration or operations officers. The jobs, which typically last about 18 months , require a combination of leadership and experience, and are assigned to officers at the O-4 level, or lieutenant commanders.
Once they've earned their wings, pilots must serve eight more years; flight officers are obligated for six , said Cmdr. Massie Hughes , an aviation officer community manager with the Navy's Bureau of Personnel in Washington .
Yet jobs as department heads usually aren't awarded until an aviator has a decade of service. To help the fliers reach that milestone, the Navy often has to sweeten the pot.
While taxpayers might grouse about $125,000 bonuses, Hughes considers it money well spent. It costs the Navy $1 million to $1.5 million to train each pilot or flight officer, Hughes said. The longer each one stays in, the easier it is for the Navy to recoup its investment.
Aviators thinking about leaving have lots of options, Guadagnini said, because they have management experience, leadership skills and technical proficiency. Even if commercial airlines may be shedding positions, other industries seek out Navy pilots. Many of them enter the business world, he said.
Lt. Jason Buckley plans to do that some day - but the bonus swayed him to stay an extra five years. A 30-year-old instructor pilot with Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 120 , Buckley already must serve three years in exchange for the MBA he's earning - remotely - from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif .So serving two years on top of that - with $125,000 for the complete five-year extension - was an easy choice.
"I don't think it was an option of not taking it," Buckley said. "If you're going to do three, you might as well put in for the extra two." Buckley jokes that his wife already has spent the money. Actually, the couple plans to pay off bills with the first installment, then in coming years invest the money in their Norfolk home.
They might have some fun with it down the line, though. "Who knows ?" Buckley said. "Maybe we'll say 'Hey, we should get a boat!' " He sees the bonus not as free money but as a way of leveling the playing field between military and civilian salaries.
"They can't change the deployment cycle and the workload and all, but they can pay you more," Buckley said. "We've got a lot of smart guys here," he said. "They pay us well, and I think we're all happy. If there had been no bonus, I think you'd still have plenty of good guys here in the Navy."
No big-ticket buys
Individuals such as Lt. Michael McGlynn have their own version of cost and benefit analysis.Last week, McGlynn, an E-2C Hawkeye flight officer, completed his paperwork to stay in the Navy. The 37-year-old doesn't have any big-ticket purchases in mind. Instead, he plans to split the $125,000 between his retirement fund and his children's college fund.
"I'm going to have three in college all at once," said McGlynn, who lives with his wife and three boys in Chesapeake . McGlynn said he planned to extend his time in the service when the bonus for flight officers was $75,000 ; the increase is a happy coincidence.
Still, he has colleagues for whom even the bigger check won't do.
Folks staying in tease the ones getting out, he acknowledged, but it's all in fun.
"They've done their time, they've enjoyed it, and it's time to do something different," he said. "You can't do this forever. After a while, being away from home wears on you. ... Missing a lot of my kids' growing up gets to be tough."
Perle, who is single and lives in downtown Norfolk, doesn't have that concern. With no one depending on him for a paycheck or health insurance, he's free to consider life outside the Navy safety net.
If there were no bonus, Perle theorized, there'd be a 60 percent chance he would decide to try life on his own terms.With the money, there's a 50-50 chance he'll decide to stay. Ultimately, Perle will make his decision dispassionately, the way the Navy trained him to fly.
"Anywhere you go, you're going to find people who are dissatisfied with what they do, and people who love what they do," Perle said. "When the time comes, you have to sit down and make a call."
