On 22 Feb 2004 05:14:24 GMT, (BUFDRVR) wrote:

What are my
chances of getting a jet as opposed to the good old C-130?

If your question is comparing fighters to heavies, I'd say its 4 to 1 (in favor
of flying a tanker or cargo as opposed to a fighter). This is based solely on a
discussion I had a few years ago with an ol' BUFF pilot, then serving as a T-38
IP. Your chances of getting a bomber are about 5 to 1 (in favor of getting a
non-bomber).

A lot has changed over the years. Now, of course, there is SUPT in
which students are multi-tracked after primary, so quite clearly a CFI
would have a tremendous leg-up in getting choice of track and
proceeding to fast-movers.

The concern with age isn't a factor at 24. Max age for selection used
to be 26.5 and max for entry to training was 27.5. Waivers were
occasionally possible for older. Right now, he's heart of the
envelope.

Real factor is college grad and getting a slot in a commissioning
program. With low requirements there are few "after graduation"
opportunities for a pilot training slot. First priority is USAFA, then
ROTC and finally the excess commitments get an OTS opportunity. Dare I
suggest that an ANG slot for pilot training, particularly in a
fast-mover equipped unit, would be the only guarantee.

I've heard also if you don't have vision of
20/20 or close too it you will most likely end up with a prop plane.
Any truth to this?

None, your vision has zero impact on you assignment (or at least it shouldn't,
SUPT grads are no longer picking their assignments like we did in the 90's,
they're being assigned to them. Maybe Ed or Walt can give us some insight on
what discussions are involved behind closed doors when the IPs pick the
students assignments?)

I'm totally unfamiliar with the "closed door" program. When I
graduated it was strictly "merit assignment"--pick from the list of
available training slots in order of graduate standing. The only IP
recommendation at the time was acceptable or not for ATC IP duty. (On
UPT graduation I was not!--two years later on return from SEA, I was!)

When I ran ATC undergrad assignments, I returned the system to full
merit assignment. It had evolved to a system of "assignment groups" in
which similar aircraft were grouped in ten or eleven categories. Got
some strange combinations like A-1 and O-1 in the same FAC group, or
C-9 and C-7 in the same transport category.

Today, the SUPT split is the big decision point. Once in transport or
fast-mover tracks, the choices are pretty straight-forward and I would
think that individual preferences could get you where you want to be.
If someone wanted bomber over transport, I don't see much to
discriminate on beyond the availability of the slots to the class at
large and the individual desires. If one was in the fighter track, the
only real glitch would be getting routed to FAIP rather than fighters
upon graduation.




BUFDRVR

"Stay on the bomb run boys, I'm gonna get those bomb doors open if it harelips
everyone on Bear Creek"

Ed Rasimus
Fighter Pilot (USAF-Ret)
"When Thunder Rolled"
Smithsonian Institution Press
ISBN #1-58834-103-8