Do you veterans miss the military?

[Gorilla]

I do... I freely admit it. In 1991, I was instructing in the AT-38B at Holloman AFB, fighter lead-in training when they still had that program there. Gulf War #1 was over, and we (the IP's) had all missed it. Didn't matter how good a stick you were, or how many hours you had, none of us had that Mother-bleeping gold star on our sleeves.

How stupid was that... sleeve stars? Talk about isolating people.

Anyway, the basic question was "When it comes time to command a squadron, who is going to get the job? Those of us who were IP's here, or those who were blowing up tanks and MiGs in Iraq?" We felt isolated and uncompetitive. We had no war stories for the bar. The airlines were hiring like crazy, the pay was awesome, and the rest is history.

Fast forward 16 years - most airlines are dying a slow death of a thousand cuts. The pay is gone. The fun has been engineered out of the job by bad schedules and overworked crew. I was holding 78 hour 12-day months in 1993. Now, I am struggling to hold 15 day lines and avoid reserve as a 16 year FO at AA.

Hindsight - Leaving the Air Force was stupid. I miss the challenge, the awesome hardware, and above all I miss my buds. It always comes down to the people you worked with, and my old squadron pals were the best. Yes there was a lot of Mickey-Mouse stuff, but if I could go back in time, I'd not resign.

Does anyone else have any regrets about leaving the military? I'm curious... I don't believe I'm alone in this.

 

[Bluto13]

Times change. You can hardly compare what it was like in 91 to how it is now. Except for your bro's and the camraderie, things are not that great.

 

[ExAF]

Rarely

Rarely do I miss it. I do miss the lifelong friends, comradery and job security. I would love to take a Rhino or Viper out for a spin again. After 20 years, I knew it was time to go. The AF I started in was a thing of the past. Too much political correctness and the BS level just got too high. I felt there were too many managers/@ss-kissers and not enough leaders. The old heads that broke me in always said I'd know when it was time to go and they were right. No regrets about joining or leaving. Had a great time, made great friends and flew great airplanes. Miss the friends, not the AF; and still love to reminisce.

 

[Bill Mostellar]

Yes! I do miss it.

 

[Deuce130]

I'm still a reservist, so I'm not really out. I can say, however, that I probably won't do it much longer. I realized the last 10 years of my career would in no way compare to the first 10 years. Schools, leadership positions, staff jobs, etc would've taken all the fun out of it. So, for all of you guys who punched at the halfway mark, just remember that the second half you missed likely wouldn't have been as rewarding or fun as the first half.

 

[tomgoodman]

Nostalgia

Our memories tend to be selective, biased in favor of what we loved about the past. But things probably weren't as great at the time as they look now, and they would have changed anyway.

"You always said
The cards would never do you wrong...
The trick, you said,
Was never play the game too long..."

---Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band

 

[Some guy]

I left in 2001. I miss the people, I don't miss all the b.s. I'm glad I went in and served my time, but I'm glad I got out when I did.

SG

 

[HarryShadow]

My last 6 weeks in the AF were spent flying in our wing’s ORI…chem flights, ground chem, 100 degree heat, long flights, diving in bunkers, brief after brief after brief, and almost 50 straight days with no days off. All of this after a 90 day deployment with min time in between. My last 5 years I was TDY 7 months/year, some good some not so good, and office work that never ended. But my answer is yes, I miss it every day. I echo what Deuce said and that was my sentiment exactly…the next 10 wouldn’t compare to the first 10. I didn’t do the Reserve gig which contributes to my missing it even more. But I decided that now was the time to pursue a grad degree that I’ve wanted to do for the past 15 years, so the timing was right for me. No fault to the AF, but their interests just didn’t allow me to pursue this goal so my decision was fairly cut and dry! No regrets, I just miss the hell out of it!!

When I fly with that fat, POS captain who congratulates my job at the majors and finally getting a real flying job, I miss it even more!!! Those who have never served just don’t get it. There are few things nobler than serving your country…to each their own I guess!!!

Fly safe!

 

[737ski]

Don't miss the AF, but I miss the pro's (99% of them) I flew with everyday. My new employer talks the talk & walks the walk in every way. I got alot of promises, but not much delivery in the AF. However, I would do it over again in a heartbeat--maybe I'm a glutton for punishment!

 

[GenericPilot]

Can't compare today's military to the 80s or 90s

I'm 1.5 years from getting my 20 letter from the Air Guard. 13 years of active service.

I've had some fun, but the first 8 years were the best, and they had some lousy times thrown in...tailhook, TQM management theory, less than ideal assignments, etc. My buds were great and the planes were a lot of fun. Marine Corps. It was a time when men still ruled the military and one could get away with some rowdiness and individualism. I worked with guys that would fight to the end.

Then I joined the Air Guard. The Guard was changing when 9/11 hit. Deployed constantly for 24 months and now it's all new mission qualifications for the Herk and constantly being asked to fly on overseas trips (i'm not an airline guy.my employer needs me). Way too many holy rollers in the USAF trying to push their ideas upon the "morally corrupt." Guys trying to shirk out of dangerous duty and not watching out for each other.

I joined the military to fly planes, drink beer, chase women, help kill our enemies (our mission), and build job skills to make a good living. It worked for the first half of my career.

I would not join another military flying unit in today's environment. I'd go work with some stand up guys in a reserve ground combat unit and fly for my day job.

If you want to go to the war, I am sure someone would let you. Everyone should do it once. the grunts need air force tactical air controllers. Apply.
great job. I used to do it.