SIE
I read that guy's journal. And after reading it, I felt his decision to SIE was the wrong decision. I spotted several examples throughout his website where it seemed he really did enjoy flying. But it was also obvious he did not enjoy SUPT. I don't know many who could honestly say they enjoyed being a SUPT student. There were times when it was fun, but there were as many if not more times when it was just alot of darn work and you got butterflies before you flew.
If you LOVE to FLY, then do not SIE. If you just don't like the SUPT environment, tough it out because it's only temporary.
I think his journal shows the dangers of only wanting to fly a particular type of aircraft or having preconceptions of what "successful" is in the eyes of SUPT. Those people who entered UPT having a very narrow view of what they would fly (ie those who say they only want fighters, etc) tend to do two things: they either excel really well and achieve their goal; or they don't do as well, see their goal slipping away, and quit or crumble and wash out.
Our class only lost one female student to an SIE. She got married, and that was her official reason for quitting. But we all knew her pretty well, and it seemed to me that she quit because she couldn't handle the fact that she wasn't going to live up to her own expectations. In other words, for all this time she had wanted to be one of the "elite" female fighter pilots, go to test pilot school, become an astronaut, etc. When she got to UPT, she discovered she was an average student, and was very likely headed to the T-1. Nothing to be ashamed of, but she took it hard and just quit.
Other people I heard of quitting (in other classes) did so, in my opinion, because they got depressed by all the unsats and fair rides, and felt they just couldn't compete. In my class, we had several folks who had more red on their gradesheets than a stop sign. But they made it through (saw it through) and graduated. Two are flying C-130s, one is flying UH-1s, and another flies AWACS. But I'd rather fly an AWACS than sit in an office wearing blues managing some pilot's personnel records.
A few key points to keep in mind to avoid getting to the point where you consider SIE'ing:
1. Don't focus on the whole program...keep trucking day by day. Focus intently on the next day's flight or assignment. Focus lightly on the next week (to help prepare you). Beyond that, don't worry about it...deal with it when it arrives.
2. You are probably doing better than you think you are. Just because you got a "U" on your last daily ride...don't worry. I was a Distinguished Grad from my UPT class and hooked a couple daily rides and even a checkride...it happens. Even if you're not DG, you can still find yourself in a position to get a great assignment. Also remember this: The worst guy to graduate from your class is still a rated pilot.
3. If you spend too much of your time obsessing about whether or not you'll get the track of your dreams, you'll probably choke under pressure and your worst fears will come true. Let go of your obsession to fly Vipers or C-17s or whatever. Accept the fact that you will fly whatever the USAF assigns you to fly. In the end, you'll have less stress and you may very well do better and get your preferred airframe.
4. If you DON'T get the track you wanted, don't get a bad attitude. Fly well, study and make yourself the best T-1/T-38/T-44/UH-1 student there is. You'll thank yourself in the end for doing so, and have more latitude in choosing an assignment YOU want.
5. Believe it or not, the Instructor Pilots are there to HELP you. Give them 100% of your effort, and they'll give you 100% of their help to aid you through the program. It's a good feeling for an IP if he can take a below-average student and turn him around and make him a great pilot by the time he's finished with the program.
6. Everyone will have low points in UPT. Some do very well in the contact phase of T-37s, but then struggle in instruments. Others do well in instruments but get bogged down in formation. And still others may do well in each phase, but have a string of rides that were bad. I had a couple strings like that. After my final contact ride (that I busted), I flew like crap for a few rides. Then I got over it. Again in T-1s, I flew a couple formation low-levels like crap...but you refocus and continue.
As one guy on the ufly.com board said, some people who SIE did so because they were disappointed with the reality of what it is to be a military pilot versus their preconceptions. That's true...but I feel that since all UPT students go through IFT, they have an idea of what it's like to be a pilot. And maybe their idea of what it was like to be a fighter pilot has changed, but THERE IS A FLYING JOB FOR THEM THAT THEY WILL BE SATISFIED WITH...if they make it through UPT and don't quit.
