ANG ART vs airline career

[tedspal01]

I am a full time technician ART in the ANG right now and am looking into pursuing a commercial flying career. Just looking for some opinions on staying an ART vs. going to the airlines. I am 29, just got off AD with about 1900 military time.

Thanks

 

[Deuce130]

It depends. Do you like your unit? Will it be BRACd? Do you like where you live? Do you mind commuting two weeks a month? Are you married w/ kids? Lots of things to factor in. In my unit, the ART gig is a pretty good deal. Not much work, but long hours. The combined ART pay plus reservist pay puts an 0-4 well over 120K a year, plus the occasional TDY or deployment. At age 29, though, you've got a LONG ART career ahead of you. You could also have a long airline career ahead of you if you go that route. If you decide to do the airline gig, the sooner you get a seniority number the better. With the way things are going right now, however, if you don't get a job with FDX, UPS, or SWA I would stay right where you're at. Once the airline industry gets back to where it was, then I'd think about working some at some other airline. The grass isn't always greener - my vote would be to stick with the ART job for a couple or three years and see how things are working out.

 

[bssthound]

I've been in the Guard/Reserve over 20 yrs now. I'm sure you know the airline world is cyclical. Just yesterday DAL, UAL, etc were the places to be. Today it's SWA, FedEx, UPS. What'll it be tomorrow? Good luck guessing. I remember, pre 9/11, talking to a DAL Capt on the crew bus. He told me when he got hired he had offers from Braniff, TWA, and DAL. He just happened to pick the right one. If he's not retired yet, the "right" choice still ain't all that great.

The ART position can wear at you. Depending on leadership is at your unit you could be in for a very long ride. Trust me, if you have weak/biased "leadership" it will be a very frustrating career. Especially at Guard units, where "regimes" can last for decades.

I've been a bum, a traditional, and an ART. There's something to be said for and against all, except the traditional bit. It's nice to be removed from the petty day-to-day BS, coming in just to fly and pretending to listen to the childish nonsense that can dominate conversations about the unit. Geez, I hope you get some more opinions 'cause proofreading this, I ain't the most positive guy, am I?

Bottom line: it depends on the unit. A great Commander will make or break a unit. If you have a sorry Commander the ensuing sag in morale will ooze into and affect the entire organization.

 

[pony251]

There are pro's and con's for all. I'm a part timer and love not having to kiss A$$ for a full time job. Many of the Lt's in my flight ask me this same question. Most of the points have already been covered in this thread. But consider this, what is your chance of being BRAC'd in the next couple of rounds. Do you think you can keep your technician job for 20 years? Your unit can go away at the blink of an eye. Ask a lot of the former Viper drivers what happened in the last couple of rounds. The fighter units were decimated. There is no guarantee it won't happen to the rest of the fighter and heavy/tanker units next time. Our unit is being deactivated and we are giving all of our planes plus 8 more to the F-16 unit across the state who lost their F-16's. Our full time guys are fighting it out to see if any of them can get a full time job even though they have thousands of hours and IP quals. They are even going to have a difficult time filling the increase in part time slots. If you don't mind ever flying again, there seem to be plenty of follow on missions in UAV's and warfighting HQ's. The point is, it is becoming just as big of a gamble to become full time tech as it is to go with an airline and hope for employment long enough to get a retirement.

 

[Slim]

Being ART, I take it you are not AGR. Some in my last unit used technician and AGR incorrectly (I was ARNG!). If you decide to pursue the airline route, look at what will/will not happen to your military retirement. You don't say how many years you have in. If you are in the 8-10 year range, getting your 20 in is a consideration. When I hit nine years, I'd exercised all my options regarding military flying and it didn't happen. But, I decided to stick it out for 20. Given my current employer terminated what little retirement we had, via bankruptcy, I'm very happy I put in 20.

Good luck...fly safe!

 

[Captain Morgan]

My Father in Law was a P3 pilot in the 70's and 80's. He retired out of the reserves as a Captain. He is a manager for a large hospital supply company and he loves it. Hasn't touched a plane probably in 15 years. Every now and then, I get the feeling he wouldn't mind flying again but he has alot to show with his career. All of his friends took paycuts and side jobs as legacy pilots. I don't know what the answer is, but I guess you have to ask if you are in aviation because you love it and it flows through your veins or is it just something you chose on a whim, you thought if would be cool, etc. If it is in you, I don't think you would be happy doing anything else, I know I wouldn't. Good luck!

CM