Flying for the Air National Guard

[Almerick07]

can you guys not see what this thread is about? I was just providing some insight to my experiences, I am done justifying MY reasons for choosing the path I have chosen. So yea, loosen up.

 

[Oh-ryan]

can you guys not see what this thread is about? I was just providing some insight to my experiences, I am done justifying MY reasons for choosing the path I have chosen. So yea, loosen up.

I can't help but laugh (at you, not with you). Good luck with UPT.


Done and done.

 

[AIR2MUD]

I can't help but laugh (at you, not with you). Good luck with UPT.


Done and done.

DITTO!

No wonder we have such a problem with SNAPs. I gonna make dang sure my two sons don't grow up with similar attitudes and values, even if I have to send them to the R. Lee Ermey finishing school.

What is it with yewts today?

 

[ToiletDuck]

Almerick07,
You may have a desire to serve your country, but reading your post sounds like you are only willing to do the bare minimum. The military is about sacrifice my friend... active duty, ANG, or reserves. Do us a favor and go VFR direct to Airtran or jetBlue (wink, wink).

That just depends on the person. I don't think it's all about that. MANY people love the military. My father is one, the only reason he left was because of his wife who in turn won't let me go lol. Amazing how much pull she gets whe she paid for the education.

 

[Almerick07]

agreed, they think since I find benefits in it Im less of a person. Since when does a sense of duty require you to be miserable?

 

[SupaFly]

Almerick07,

I don't think Albie and the others equate a sense of duty with being miserable (sidebar discussion: duty, self-sacrifice, and their implications on the pain factor). I think what's rubbing a lot of the the military guys the wrong way is the perceived attitude of "I'll join the military to build my time until I can get to the majors." I used the word "perceived" intentionally, because without having a face-to-face dialogue with you I can't discern your true attitude. The important point is that you commit to the military, be it active, ANG, or reserve, because you feel you owe a service to your country and everyone in it, and are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for that. Until you come to grips with the fact that your fiance and mother may be holding an american flag on a green lawn some afternoon in the future and internalize that the sacrifice was worth it, you will be no good to the military. Even though I think that W.'s use of the guard has replaced the draft of the Vietnam era, it still bothers me that some grumble about deploying with the reserves or the guard, as if they expected the extra pay, benefits, GI bill, without having to actually point a rifle or a jet at a bad guy with the intent to launch ordnance down range. And that attitude, believe it or not, will be easily apparent the first day you start training and will follow you around until you change your tune or get out.

 

[Almerick07]

The comment about the majors had nothing to do with using the military for time, since reserve is my best option I will need a civilian job to make a living. I was mentioning Airtran and Jetblue because they are two of the best airlines right now and a future with them might be positive. I would love to be AD and am still pursuing those options as a back up plan. I love the military and everything it is about, but I do also love my fiance and respect the fact she doesnt want to marry me if i am AD. Now I apologize if I am wrong for loving my fiance more than a career, but that wont change. I feel lucky the reserves work in my favor, I am not joining them so Im not deployed or so I dont have to go to war. I am joining them for a higher quality of life in my fiances opinion, she just doesnt want to move every 3 years. If I wanted to fly for an airline only I would just flight instruct and call it a day. I probably should have worded my original post better, but I was under the impression people came to this thread for advice not to get prosectued.

 

[AlbieF15]

We are PERSECUTING you because you seemed flip about the obligations that are part of joining the military. Prosecute is what the JAG will do to your buddies who are banging your then wife when you get deployed for 180 days and get nailed under UCMJ for adultery. Although not always done, sometimes people ARE charged with crimes in the military for what in the civilian world would not be a crime. Again...this, the chance of dying, and the fact you give up your potential freedom for a part time job with no full time benefits are just some of the joys of serving you seem to have overlooked.

If you cannot join because your fiancee says you cannot, then I strongly suggest you follow her advice. In this case think she may be on to something and knows what is best for you.

 

[Almerick07]

I am joining them for a higher quality of life in my fiances opinion, she just doesnt want to move every 3 years.

That is her sole reason for not wanting me AD, she wants to have a career of her own.

sometimes people ARE charged with crimes in the military for what in the civilian world would not be a crime. Again...this, the chance of dying, and the fact you give up your potential freedom for a part time job with no full time benefits are just some of the joys of serving you seem to have overlooked.

These are NOT my reason for not wanting to go AD...goodness

 

[JungleJett]

War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.

 

[Almerick07]

Bottom line is we are all here doing the same thing, you are doing it full time. I will be doing it part time. There are pros and cons with either side, its just what makes the better fit. Will I be less of a man because the only way I can do it is part time? This is stupid to argue who is right and who is wrong; I dont think reserves are better than active duty and I hope you dont look down upon everyone who is involved in the reserves. War is a nasty thing but I am willing to do whatever I can to make sure my kids and your kids grow up and live life with complete freedom.

 

[AdlerDriver]

And y'all stomped on me like a f$ckin' piñata on cinco de mayo? WTF
But, I digress. I'll take the advice of Mud Eagle to heart and go receive-only mode until I've actually done anything of consequence with my life ....like when (IF I meant IF!!) I'm FTU complete or the like....

Just a minor point from a former FTU instructor: FTU complete might be a tad early to come out of receive only mode. It will take you at least a year after FTU to have developed into a fighter pilot worthy of "transmitting". Other than that - sounds like a good plan.

 

[AIR2MUD]

I love the military and everything it is about, but I do also love my fiance and respect the fact she doesnt want to marry me if i am AD.

What about the active duty time you spend jumping through the hoops for three years while you are on your way to the reserve job? Is she not going to marry you because of that?

Is she going to travel with you while you're on active duty? Or is she going to stay home, so you can come back to her in a few years to find her as you left her...freshly f#@*#$.

Is she going to divorce you if/when your unit gets activated, because you are then on active duty?

Sounds like the military doesn't fit into her gameplan at all.

What if later on you get on with Airtran or JetBlue and then get furloughed, and the only job you can get is on the other side of the country? What if that job isn't an airline job, so no jumpseat bennies, but a corporate or charter job? No commuting from a home that is close to the Reserve unit...nope, you're moving, buddy. Of course, instead of moving, you could bum at the unit and flip burgers at Wendy's the rest of the time.

If you want to be successful in aviation, you better come to the realization that whether it's military or civilian, you better be mobile. I've moved 15 times in the last 10 years, and a lot of that was for civilian jobs!

Here's a plan for you: dump the broad, go active duty Marine Corps with the guaranteed aviation option. Whatever you do in the Corps, you'll be working with some of the best individuals you'll ever know in your life. You will experience a transformation at OCS. TBS will give you a new insight into the life of a grunt. You will learn to fly in the grand traditional of all those naval and Marine aviators who have come before you. Additionally, women will go insta-moist when you are in your dress blues, you'll get to kill lotsa bad guys, see the world, convert your bloodstream into an alcoholstream, and pay homage every 10 November. The Marines' Hymn will give you goosebumps, and you will be part of a brotherhood that really means something, especially when it hits the fan.

And if you bump into the ex-fiance 10 years later, you'll be proud to show her your girlfriend who is ten years younger than her, bisexual, a complete hammer, and is a nymphomaniac.

Here's another hint for you: embrace the suck.

 

[Almerick07]

Thanks for all the advice, but.....she is willing to make some sacrifices as well. If I have to move across the country we will just cross that bridge when it gets here, why speculate on stuff like that? As far as AD goes both I know and she knows there will be a move every 3 years.

Now I apologize if I am wrong for loving my fiance more than a career, but that wont change.

Did you miss that somewhere in the last post?

 

[AdlerDriver]

.......Additionally, women will go insta-moist when you are in your dress blues, ......

LMAO!! "insta-moist" I love it!!