Forum: Future F-16 crew

I'm extremely determined to fly for the military, but I'm really stuck on where to attend college (as in attending an academy, or ROTC). Will attending ROTC or an academy affect my chances of getting a pilot slot at all? Is either one better than the other, or is it all just how you want to spend four years?
Any help and information would be greatly appreciated Smile

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Rules have changed in that academy used to guarantee a slot if you met the physical constraints (eyesight, etc). Not anymore. That said, I still think the USAFA would give you better odds. That is, if you can get in The academies are the hardest schools to get into. ROTC can always be a Plan B.

Dude if you go to the Academy and aren't worthless (ie bottom 10%), you'll get a pilot slot if you're medically qualified. However, it's a hell of a long 4 years and the academics are pretty brutal. Rules and regulations are inumerable, and the leadership is often quite poor. Cynicism rages among cadets, as does hate for the institution which oppresses you much the way a prison would. Additionally, the atmosphere is changing to one where pilots and flying, especially fighters, is no longer cool and is even looked down upon. I remember cadets complaining when we had aces from Vietnam giving lectures because they couldn't stand hearing about flying. Recently their leadership announced at a briefing that flying wasn't the future of the Air Force.

It's a fantastic education, second to none. You'll learn an incredible amount academically. But if you're a sharp guy you can easily get a pilot slot out of ROTC, and possibly have fond memories of college rather than ones you try to block out. I kept a mental count of every single day until graduation starting a year out. Like a guy getting out of prison.

Pursue the dream of flying, absolutely. Just make sure you have some dear motivation to hold on to if you try get through USAFA.

flyboy22 wrote:

Dude if you go to the Academy and aren't worthless (ie bottom 10%), you'll get a pilot slot if you're medically qualified.

Pretty sure that went away years ago. About half the class will get flying slots. I don't know what percentage that is of folks who are "PQ" or pilot-qualified but I suspect it's well less than 90% (i.e. your comment that only the bottom 10% won't get a slot I think is way too optimistic)

Roscoe wrote:

flyboy22 wrote:

Dude if you go to the Academy and aren't worthless (ie bottom 10%), you'll get a pilot slot if you're medically qualified.

Pretty sure that went away years ago. About half the class will get flying slots. I don't know what percentage that is of folks who are "PQ" or pilot-qualified but I suspect it's well less than 90% (i.e. your comment that only the bottom 10% won't get a slot I think is way too optimistic)

Actually, only about 50% of the class is PQ on average (think mine was like 49%). That's about 500 people for about 500 slots. I only knew one or two people who wanted pilot slots (and were PQ) and didn't get them, and at least one of them eventually was able to get one anyway.

Between color blindness, depth perception, and random other disqualifiers like migraines, various surgeries, heart palpitations, scoliosis, etc etc, it's amazing how many people get disqualified. Thankfully laser surgery is authorized for near sightedness, otherwise I wouldn't be here today.

The only reason I would want to attend ROTC is to get a college life experience along with getting military experience. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I want to slack off or anything, but I don't exactly want to be stuck somewhere for four years, loathing my experience there the whole time. Is there anything that really sets the two options apart that will make an impact on my chances of getting a pilot slot? Is either one going to prepare me better for succeeding in Pilot training and getting on the fighter track (if I'm not mistaken, I've heard that the top students in pilot training get first pick at what they want to fly).

As usual, I'd like to give my plug for attending an ROTC via a senior military academy. You get a much bigger focus on the military lifestyle that you don't get from ROTC with the ability to have the "college experience" you might not get at the Academy. Best of both worlds, in my book! Though of course I'm a little biased...... The main thing is work hard so no matter which way you decide upon so you earn that pilot slot. And I second what flyboy said about laser surgery. If it wasnt for PRK I wouldn't be here either! Cheers!

kw949 wrote:

The only reason I would want to attend ROTC is to get a college life experience along with getting military experience. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I want to slack off or anything, but I don't exactly want to be stuck somewhere for four years, loathing my experience there the whole time. Is there anything that really sets the two options apart that will make an impact on my chances of getting a pilot slot? Is either one going to prepare me better for succeeding in Pilot training and getting on the fighter track (if I'm not mistaken, I've heard that the top students in pilot training get first pick at what they want to fly).

Without a doubt your odds are best at the Academy. But like flyboy said, if you're sharp you can get a slot through ROTC without too much worry. My class had people from every commissioning source and everyone worked hard and was prepared. IMO, no one source prepared anyone more or less. The guys who got fighters were from ROTC, OTS and the Academy. When it comes to being prepared I think that's more of a personal thing that YOU make a priority. My 2 cents!

If mil flying is your #1 goal for a career then you've gotta pick the Academy. When pilot training slots get cut they take them first from OTS then from ROTC then, if they still have to cut, it comes from the Academy. While Flyboy may have disliked it, and I have to agree that there is a whole lot of pain involved, I really enjoyed much of it. Your freshman year is extremely challenging, the academics are top-notch (and hard), but some of the things you get to do and the friends you make are worth it all. Yeah, you don't get to party every night and your social life can get stunted (but it'll be what you make it) - I'd still recommend it to anyone who is willing to put in the hard work. You'll have plenty of time to drink if you make it to fighters. There are few universities in the world that can match the quality & reputation from an academy. Just my Two Cents

Once you have your pilot slot, the differences between ROTC, Academy, and OTS disappear. In fact, Academy grads were in the minority for T-38s and the F-16 B course for me. A common sentiment that I hear from Academy grads is that they wish they'd had a college experience, and many (though obviously not all) regret not having that. One thing that I've seen, and goes hand in hand with my previous statement, is that a lot of the Academy guys get out at the first opportunity; they're just burned out after an extra 4 years of torture. Having made it to this point, I think I made the right choice with ROTC, and if anything, I wish I'd gone to college completely unencumbered by ROTC (i.e. gone through OTS afterwards)...but who knows...I might have never got a pilot slot, etc. etc.

The Blue Zoo is what you make it. Everyone develops a coping mechanism/escape in order to make it to graduation - traveling/skiing/whatever, or they don't and that's okay. While I still get a little uneasy the occasional time I get to drive down Monument Hill and see the Nike Jesus, USAFA provided me a wide open world of possibilities. While my USAF career was a bit checkered, I got 19 solid years of flying Rhinos and Vipers, a secure pension that's been paid for the last 15 years, and walked into an engineering job to take me to 66 that still keeps me working on Vipers. Getting that sand pounded up your posterior for four years was occasionally painful, but in retrospect provided a wide background that's served me well post-USAF.

ROTC requires it's own sacrifices - you ain't getting any money nowadays unless you're getting a technical degree (science/engineering) or you're brilliant. You also need self discipline, which some of us (me anyway), didn't have a great deal of at 18. The four years of external discipline made sure I made it to class and standing in the back of class kept me awake enough to graduate at the top of my half of the class.

Know yourself - understand your strengths and go with them. Its a lot of work whichever path you select. While I've got little interest in going to Assn of Graduate events, it's easy to say I would not change having gone the zoomie route, regardless of how much smack I take from our RO/OTS bros. Besides, once you're in Vipers, you'll eventually get to join one of the Korea fraternities - Phi Beta Panton, Juvat Xi, or the Puking Pups, and we're all one team there.

Forum: Future F-16 crew

ROTC vs. Academy for a pilot