Need in fo on army. Please Read.

Gio · 10-24-2005, 10:45 PM

I figured, with a forum full of bullet heads such as myself, at least half of you guys may be in the army or once was. So here is my question.

I was wondering if any of you guys know anything about High School to Flight School. I am a High School senior and college searching, and I want to Fly Helicopters in the army. I would apreciate any info you can give me. Even if it is only about the army.

P.S. No degrading comments about the military or government please. I will shove virtual shotgun in your !!! and pull the trigger. :flame: Im sure other ppl in the forum will help me tear you up too. :right:

7mmag6 · 10-25-2005, 12:02 AM

usmc semper fi

Shaun · 10-25-2005, 12:09 AM

All the Helo Pilots I know from Ft. Campbell who come out to my airfield are officers. Have you talked with recruiters to see what the requirements are. Yes coming out of High school your limited trust me I almost went USAF immediately out of HS and then I learned about the issue I needed to have a degree to fly.

You have a lot of good guys on here with Mil expereince Welcome to the board.

Dallas · 10-25-2005, 12:22 AM

The only service that will let you fly without a college degree is the Army. You can go through the Army warrent officer and aviation school programs and fly helicopters. You'll need to talk to a Army recruiter and be very specific in what you ask about. Tell them you want to FLY helicopters, not fix them or be a crew chief. Ask them about the warrent officer program. You'll have to take a couple of mental aptitude tests as well as pass a flight physical. If you don't have 20/20 vision or better plus pass all of the tests you probably won't be accepted. But you need to talk to a recruiter.

If you go to college you can go through the ROTC program, if you go to a college that has the program. You can then request aviation as a branch and try to get your wings that way. But having known several commissioned rotor heads when I was in, they always lamented that they spent far to much time behind a desk and not as much time as they wanted behind the stick.

No matter how it goes, good luck. And remember Army helicopter pilots are the toughest in the world. They fly by beating the air into submission.

Stopper · 10-25-2005, 03:08 PM

My friend flew Apache's, he had some college before joining but no degree. Went through warrant officer's school, then flight school and was flying soon there after.

I totally agree with Dallas, you MUST be very specific when talking to a recruiter, they get points for enlisting people, not for enlisting them properly.

Good luck, I still think you should jump out of them instead of fly them!!!

Gio · 10-25-2005, 03:09 PM

ROTC at Penn State was my first choice. But then I heard about High School to Flight school.
I thought you could be corrected to 20/20 for helicopters.

Otter · 10-25-2005, 05:25 PM

I started as an A&P mechanic, the Coast Guard recuiter made promisses that the Coart Guard wouldn't keep, even pilots won't fly without a degree. The Army Warrant Officer program is your only option. Study, get your FAA Medical Certificate, and study. Good luck.

"Life is too important to be taken seriously."

EOD Guy · 10-25-2005, 05:29 PM

I believe you have to be able to pass a class 1A flight physical. You have to meet all the qualifications for an FAA license to fly the specific aircraft type the Army trains you for.

You can have 20/50 uncorrected vision if it is correctable to 20/20.

See the link for more information.

http://www.usarmyaviation.com/lounge.htm

Ctwo · 10-25-2005, 11:36 PM

The AF recruiter convinced me to get a college degree before joining (i guess its the only way to fly?). I never made it and just worked a shovel ever since. I guess I missed the flight?

Shaun · 10-26-2005, 02:42 AM

Gio if you want a source in getting an FAA medical and to start working for a license get on the AOPA.com or FAA.gov websites and find a doctor that is certified by the FAA to give physicals. Then you will need to find out what the costs are class 1 medicals require i believe a 6 month or yearly recertification, Class II commercial are every two years and then your basic class III at your age is good for 3 years. Next step is learn to fly a plane first then make the transition. Try checking out beapilot.com and taking an intro flight at your local FBO. If you have any questions I will try and help on getting even a basic private pilots license.

Otter · 10-26-2005, 10:11 AM

Go to your local FBO, they will be happy to recommend an FAA flight Surgeon, First Class medical is every six months with an EKG if you're over 35, Second Class medical is every year, Third Class medical is every two years. If you're going to learn to fly before you join the military, Shaun is quite correct, do airplane first. Airplane is about 1/3rd. the cost of helicopter. 35 to 45 hours for private, another 100 hours for commercial, then 35 hours for helicopter add-on. You'll need a Second Class medical for Commercial and CFI. Good luck, let us know if we can help.

"Life is too important to be taken seriously."

Charlie101 · 10-27-2005, 12:29 AM

You go. Kill em' ALLLLLL!!!!

7mmag6 · 10-27-2005, 01:04 AM

!!! is that supposed to mean-----? yore messing with the wrong guy here

jerry · 10-27-2005, 07:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ctwo

The AF recruiter convinced me to get a college degree before joining (i guess its the only way to fly?). I never made it and just worked a shovel ever since. I guess I missed the flight?

You may not get the stick time. However the AF has a lot of enlisted flying jobs.
Flight Engineers, loadmasters, airborne technicians (compas call/AWACS) Para rescue etc.

If you want to ease into it (AF that is) Go guard. Iv'e seen a lot of young guys join for the intial 6 yrs as enlisted, finish school and become pilots. Prior enlisted seem to make pretty decent 0's. I soppose it could work similar in the Army.

7mmag6 · 10-27-2005, 08:33 AM

by the way charlie im just messin with ya, used to mess with charlie a lot

jerry · 10-27-2005, 09:56 AM

Stand down Marine.
I don't think he's THAT Charlie.

OneInchGroup · 10-27-2005, 12:55 PM

Greetings from the BTDT school of hard knocks! Like Elmer Fudd used to say, "you need to be werry werry wary of Armed Forces recruiters".

When you sign up for an Army program that involves any specialized training, what you are being offered is the POSSIBILITY of getting what you want, not a guarantee. Went thru that myself back in Jurassic times, and wound up completing the courses and getting to where I wanted to go, being a hard worker, and lucky.

BUT also watched better than 70% of all student soldiers wash out of their specialty training and serve out the rest of their time doing stuff that was for sure NOT part of their plan. If you don't complete the training for your specialty, they don't say "OK, you can go home now." What they say then is "OK, you're a screw-up and your butt now belongs to US."

Smart thing is to go to college and maybe join the ROTC program, then do the military deal AFTER you have the degree. Going to sign up with your degree in hand gets you a big leg up on anybody else, and you can likely start with OCS, instead of going in as enlisted and having to work up from there. Also remember, if you don't make it through some college to get your degree, you can always take another shot with another college. Sign on for special training program in the Army and wash out, and you are stuck with whatever MOS they decide you are qualified for, most of which come down to primary: Infantry, sub group: Live Taliban Target.

Also the honest results of those "Join the (Insert Branch of Service here) and we'll help you earn money for college" programs are that only about 1/3 of folks that go for that ever wind up doing the college program, most do not follow through, and the college fund monies never get paid out.

Good place to get the skinny on the possible bennies and the pitfalls is over at www.Military.com, especially in their forums, where folks will have accurate, recent information to share.

Whatever you decide, advice from the "already did it" side is: Don't sign anything anywhere, ever, unless you are SURE there is an escape clause. A bad conduct discharge is not a good escape clause. Always ask what the worst case scenario can be, and if you don't get what feels like a good answer, make like a French General and RETREAT AT FULL SPEED TO THE REAR!

There are a lot of guys in Iraq right now who were expecting to do 3 or 4 years as file clerks in Missouri while doing their degree programs, and then take their degree and their Army skills to get their lives going in the civilian world. OOPS!

Johan Malan · 10-27-2005, 05:47 PM

Hey mate Never was in the army personally but my old man fought in South west Africa (Now Namibia) and Angola with 4 SA Infantry, and His advice to me was dont ever "volunteer" for the army, Police or any goverment agency, cause when they own your !!! you will be screwed.
My advice If you wanna keep out of Irak and by the looks of things Iran. Go to college and get a pen-pusher job after

Johan Malan · 10-27-2005, 05:49 PM

BTW A good Budy of mine was in Irak with the British army and it's not some place you wanna go

Gio · 10-27-2005, 10:40 PM

I know the whole deal on "based on the needs of the armed forces."
My father is a JAG officer in the arm. CW4.
He told me about the signing of contracts andd that whole deal..
I already signed up for PSU> and may go army ROTC there

10-24-2005, 10:45 PM	#1
Gio Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 805 Images: 8	Need in fo on army. Please Read. I figured, with a forum full of bullet heads such as myself, at least half of you guys may be in the army or once was. So here is my question. I was wondering if any of you guys know anything about High School to Flight School. I am a High School senior and college searching, and I want to Fly Helicopters in the army. I would apreciate any info you can give me. Even if it is only about the army. P.S. No degrading comments about the military or government please. I will shove virtual shotgun in your !!! and pull the trigger. :flame: Im sure other ppl in the forum will help me tear you up too. :right: __________________ Blow you up.

10-25-2005, 12:09 AM	#3
Shaun Super Moderator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Nashville, TN Posts: 8,619 Images: 1	All the Helo Pilots I know from Ft. Campbell who come out to my airfield are officers. Have you talked with recruiters to see what the requirements are. Yes coming out of High school your limited trust me I almost went USAF immediately out of HS and then I learned about the issue I needed to have a degree to fly. You have a lot of good guys on here with Mil expereince Welcome to the board. __________________ "Homeland Security is the responsibility of an armed citizen" ME http://webpages.charter.net/s.s.v/

10-25-2005, 03:08 PM	#5
Stopper Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Kansass Posts: 2,212 Images: 1	My friend flew Apache's, he had some college before joining but no degree. Went through warrant officer's school, then flight school and was flying soon there after. I totally agree with Dallas, you MUST be very specific when talking to a recruiter, they get points for enlisting people, not for enlisting them properly. Good luck, I still think you should jump out of them instead of fly them!!! __________________ They should have stopped at "Congress shall make no law"

10-25-2005, 03:09 PM	#6
Gio Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 805 Images: 8	ROTC at Penn State was my first choice. But then I heard about High School to Flight school. I thought you could be corrected to 20/20 for helicopters. __________________ Blow you up.

10-25-2005, 05:25 PM	#7
Otter Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Vermont Posts: 980 Images: 6	I started as an A&P mechanic, the Coast Guard recuiter made promisses that the Coart Guard wouldn't keep, even pilots won't fly without a degree. The Army Warrant Officer program is your only option. Study, get your FAA Medical Certificate, and study. Good luck. "Life is too important to be taken seriously." __________________ Life is too important to be taken seriously.

10-25-2005, 12:02 AM	#2
7mmag6 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Posts: 337 Images: 1	usmc semper fi

10-25-2005, 12:22 AM	#4
Dallas PUKHA DAWG Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Virginia, just outside of Washington D.C. Posts: 3,609	The only service that will let you fly without a college degree is the Army. You can go through the Army warrent officer and aviation school programs and fly helicopters. You'll need to talk to a Army recruiter and be very specific in what you ask about. Tell them you want to FLY helicopters, not fix them or be a crew chief. Ask them about the warrent officer program. You'll have to take a couple of mental aptitude tests as well as pass a flight physical. If you don't have 20/20 vision or better plus pass all of the tests you probably won't be accepted. But you need to talk to a recruiter. If you go to college you can go through the ROTC program, if you go to a college that has the program. You can then request aviation as a branch and try to get your wings that way. But having known several commissioned rotor heads when I was in, they always lamented that they spent far to much time behind a desk and not as much time as they wanted behind the stick. No matter how it goes, good luck. And remember Army helicopter pilots are the toughest in the world. They fly by beating the air into submission.

10-25-2005, 05:29 PM	#8
EOD Guy Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Concord, CA Posts: 34	I believe you have to be able to pass a class 1A flight physical. You have to meet all the qualifications for an FAA license to fly the specific aircraft type the Army trains you for. You can have 20/50 uncorrected vision if it is correctable to 20/20. See the link for more information. http://www.usarmyaviation.com/lounge.htm

10-25-2005, 11:36 PM	#9
Ctwo Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 344	The AF recruiter convinced me to get a college degree before joining (i guess its the only way to fly?). I never made it and just worked a shovel ever since. I guess I missed the flight?

10-26-2005, 02:42 AM	#10
Shaun Super Moderator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Nashville, TN Posts: 8,619 Images: 1	Gio if you want a source in getting an FAA medical and to start working for a license get on the AOPA.com or FAA.gov websites and find a doctor that is certified by the FAA to give physicals. Then you will need to find out what the costs are class 1 medicals require i believe a 6 month or yearly recertification, Class II commercial are every two years and then your basic class III at your age is good for 3 years. Next step is learn to fly a plane first then make the transition. Try checking out beapilot.com and taking an intro flight at your local FBO. If you have any questions I will try and help on getting even a basic private pilots license. __________________ "Homeland Security is the responsibility of an armed citizen" ME http://webpages.charter.net/s.s.v/

10-26-2005, 10:11 AM	#11
Otter Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Vermont Posts: 980 Images: 6	Go to your local FBO, they will be happy to recommend an FAA flight Surgeon, First Class medical is every six months with an EKG if you're over 35, Second Class medical is every year, Third Class medical is every two years. If you're going to learn to fly before you join the military, Shaun is quite correct, do airplane first. Airplane is about 1/3rd. the cost of helicopter. 35 to 45 hours for private, another 100 hours for commercial, then 35 hours for helicopter add-on. You'll need a Second Class medical for Commercial and CFI. Good luck, let us know if we can help. "Life is too important to be taken seriously." __________________ Life is too important to be taken seriously.

10-27-2005, 12:29 AM	#12
Charlie101 Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 54	You go. Kill em' ALLLLLL!!!!

10-27-2005, 01:04 AM	#13
7mmag6 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Posts: 337 Images: 1	!!! is that supposed to mean-----? yore messing with the wrong guy here

10-27-2005, 08:33 AM	#15
7mmag6 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Posts: 337 Images: 1	by the way charlie im just messin with ya, used to mess with charlie a lot

10-27-2005, 09:56 AM	#16
jerry Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Posts: 11,199 Images: 9 Blog Entries: 1	Stand down Marine. I don't think he's THAT Charlie. __________________ Joe the plumber is screwed

10-27-2005, 12:55 PM	#17
OneInchGroup Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 123	HS to FS? Greetings from the BTDT school of hard knocks! Like Elmer Fudd used to say, "you need to be werry werry wary of Armed Forces recruiters". When you sign up for an Army program that involves any specialized training, what you are being offered is the POSSIBILITY of getting what you want, not a guarantee. Went thru that myself back in Jurassic times, and wound up completing the courses and getting to where I wanted to go, being a hard worker, and lucky. BUT also watched better than 70% of all student soldiers wash out of their specialty training and serve out the rest of their time doing stuff that was for sure NOT part of their plan. If you don't complete the training for your specialty, they don't say "OK, you can go home now." What they say then is "OK, you're a screw-up and your butt now belongs to US." Smart thing is to go to college and maybe join the ROTC program, then do the military deal AFTER you have the degree. Going to sign up with your degree in hand gets you a big leg up on anybody else, and you can likely start with OCS, instead of going in as enlisted and having to work up from there. Also remember, if you don't make it through some college to get your degree, you can always take another shot with another college. Sign on for special training program in the Army and wash out, and you are stuck with whatever MOS they decide you are qualified for, most of which come down to primary: Infantry, sub group: Live Taliban Target. Also the honest results of those "Join the (Insert Branch of Service here) and we'll help you earn money for college" programs are that only about 1/3 of folks that go for that ever wind up doing the college program, most do not follow through, and the college fund monies never get paid out. Good place to get the skinny on the possible bennies and the pitfalls is over at www.Military.com, especially in their forums, where folks will have accurate, recent information to share. Whatever you decide, advice from the "already did it" side is: Don't sign anything anywhere, ever, unless you are SURE there is an escape clause. A bad conduct discharge is not a good escape clause. Always ask what the worst case scenario can be, and if you don't get what feels like a good answer, make like a French General and RETREAT AT FULL SPEED TO THE REAR! There are a lot of guys in Iraq right now who were expecting to do 3 or 4 years as file clerks in Missouri while doing their degree programs, and then take their degree and their Army skills to get their lives going in the civilian world. OOPS!

10-27-2005, 05:47 PM	#18
Johan Malan Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Saskatchewan Canada Posts: 302	Hey mate Never was in the army personally but my old man fought in South west Africa (Now Namibia) and Angola with 4 SA Infantry, and His advice to me was dont ever "volunteer" for the army, Police or any goverment agency, cause when they own your !!! you will be screwed. My advice If you wanna keep out of Irak and by the looks of things Iran. Go to college and get a pen-pusher job after

10-27-2005, 05:49 PM	#19
Johan Malan Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Saskatchewan Canada Posts: 302	BTW A good Budy of mine was in Irak with the British army and it's not some place you wanna go

10-27-2005, 10:40 PM	#20
Gio Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 805 Images: 8	I know the whole deal on "based on the needs of the armed forces." My father is a JAG officer in the arm. CW4. He told me about the signing of contracts andd that whole deal.. I already signed up for PSU> and may go army ROTC there __________________ Blow you up.