# help me! please



## dinos7 (Aug 13, 2005)

ok i want to join the us air force, but i cant figure out which plane i want to fly. should i fly the F-22, F-16, F-16 or the A-10?


----------



## me262 (Aug 13, 2005)

sure, like they are going to ask you what kind of plane do you want to fly?
not all the persons that joint the air force fly a plane, you can be a mechanic, electronics tech, among others, so be realistic


----------



## dinos7 (Aug 13, 2005)

i understand. if i cant be a pilot i want to be a loadmaster. but id like to know which air force fighter is the best. so would somebody tell me what air force fighter is the best.


----------



## FLYBOYJ (Aug 13, 2005)

Hi dinos- nice to see you posting again!

I think the F-15 is the best fighter aircraft in the USAF, but when the F-22 becomes fully operational it will surpass it. Being an air force pilot is a huge commitment in education, discipline and dedication. If its a goal you desire, pursue it. If you don't get to fly a fighter, any flying job should be cherished.

If you choose not to fly as a pilot and enter the USAF as an enlisted recruit, a load master is a great position. You will probably have to train first in a maintaniance position. You have the opportunity to fly all over the world, but you will work long hours. C-130s and C-5s still have flight engineers, another position where you will fly all over the world. Remember, if you leave the air force, flight engineers are not used much in the civilian world.


----------



## evangilder (Aug 14, 2005)

Getting a flight crew position in the Air Force is tough. It is not unobtainable, but it is a carrot that will dangle in front of you throughout your training with the threat of yanking it away at the merest infraction. If you keep your nose clean and know your stuff, you will be okay.

To be a pilot in the USAF, you need to have at least a 4 year degree. So you can either sign up after college, or if you are lucky, you can go to the academy.


----------



## dinos7 (Aug 14, 2005)

well im already in the civil air patrol so i am being trained to get ready to join the air force so im most likely gonna get a job id like. either pilot or loadmaster. ive been talking to recruiters too.


----------



## FLYBOYJ (Aug 14, 2005)

dinos7 said:


> well im already in the civil air patrol so i am being trained to get ready to join the air force so im most likely gonna get a job id like. either pilot or loadmaster. ive been talking to recruiters too.



You got a good start dinos! How old are you and how far are you along in CAP?

I'm a CAP Captain, soon to be check pilot. 8)


----------



## dinos7 (Aug 14, 2005)

i woulnt tell you how old i am. i am soon going to be and airman first class. i got my curry and encampment ribbons soon to get my recruiters and arnold ribbons. im in the 31st pennslyvania wing and im in squadron 302. my brother was also killed in iraq.


----------



## DerAdlerIstGelandet (Aug 14, 2005)

Well dinos7 I wish you luck in your pursuit of being a pilot and I hope you obtain yoru goals. You have me standing by you. Just remember though in order to be pilot you have to have great grades and in the Airforce you have to have a college degree to be a pilot. Just about all of them graduate from the Airforce Academy. Good luck and I wish you the best. Also a lot of the times they do not let you pick you aircraft, it goes by your class rank. Only the top 10% get to pick there aircraft and the rest get put into available slots. Atleast that is how it is in the Army and I am sure it is the same for the Airforce.


----------



## FLYBOYJ (Aug 14, 2005)

dinos7 said:


> i woulnt tell you how old i am. i am soon going to be and airman first class. i got my curry and encampment ribbons soon to get my recruiters and arnold ribbons. im in the 31st pennslyvania wing and im in squadron 302. my brother was also killed in iraq.



That's ok dinos, the only reason why I ask is because if you start CAP at an early age (13-14) and get your Mitchell before high school, that will really help you should you decide to attend a high school that has JROTC. I've seen some JROTC programs accept a CAP cadet at their CAP rank. Imagine starting HS JROTC and you're already a cadet 1Lt.?!?

And I remember you telling us about your brother -


----------



## DerAdlerIstGelandet (Aug 15, 2005)

CAP was a great program. I did my private liscence through them and It was loads of fun. They used to take us up to Rammstein Airforce Base and let us play around in the jets and stuff. Was great fun and teaches good morals.


----------



## lesofprimus (Aug 15, 2005)

Whats the big secret about ur age???? Like anyone here really cares........

Im 39..... Big freakin deal........


----------



## Nonskimmer (Aug 15, 2005)

I'm younger than old man Dan here. 

Well ok, not by a whole lot.


----------



## dinos7 (Aug 15, 2005)

ok im 13.


----------



## FLYBOYJ (Aug 15, 2005)

I'm older than dirt!


----------



## plan_D (Aug 15, 2005)

I'm older than this bottle of vodka right here and the contents of the bottle of become one with me. 

dinos7, P-38 Pilot is your age. I'm 18. And ...what was I goin' to say, oh yeah, I noticed that USAF symbol in your avatar - this one is better...


----------



## dinos7 (Aug 15, 2005)

sorry plan_d but i like my avatar. thanks anyway


----------



## FLYBOYJ (Aug 15, 2005)

DerAdlerIstGelandet said:


> CAP was a great program. I did my private liscence through them and It was loads of fun. They used to take us up to Rammstein Airforce Base and let us play around in the jets and stuff. Was great fun and teaches good morals.



Listen to Adler on this one dinos!

Adler - I didn't know you got your PPL?!?


----------



## dinos7 (Aug 15, 2005)

i did.


----------



## cheddar cheese (Aug 22, 2005)

I wanna join USAF too. But thats a distant dream.


----------



## DerAdlerIstGelandet (Aug 30, 2005)

FLYBOYJ said:


> DerAdlerIstGelandet said:
> 
> 
> > CAP was a great program. I did my private liscence through them and It was loads of fun. They used to take us up to Rammstein Airforce Base and let us play around in the jets and stuff. Was great fun and teaches good morals.
> ...



I did not finish it through CAP, I just started it with them. I Solo'd later after I joined the Army. Have not been able to get flight time though since then. The only time I can get is in the back seat of my Blackhawk.


----------



## pilotman (Oct 4, 2005)

At your age, by the time you make the airforce you"ll most likely be seated in an F-22, Good luck and work hard!


----------



## Glider (Oct 4, 2005)

DInos. 13 is a great age to know what you want to do, as having an objective and an aim will help you with all your choices. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
Also don't be despondant if you don't get selected as a pilot. Like you I wanted to be a pilot but my eyesight let me down, so like a number of others on this forum I trained as an engineer. I was in the Fleet Air Arm not US forces but I suspect that the opperunities for learning and sport are similar. The Navy Gliding Club taught me to glide and being an inquisitive little youngster (I was called other things as well) had the oppertunity to do other things and fly in different planes and helicopters at land and at sea.
Its a great life, it demands a lot but delivers and you cannot ask for more than that.


----------



## DerAdlerIstGelandet (Oct 4, 2005)

I concur with you Glider. There are many different oppurtunities in the military and it is what you make of it. I used to want to go to Army flight school but after not going and being a Crewchief/Maintainer for a while now I have realized that is where my true passion is and I plan on doing that when I leave the service next year.


----------

