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What do fighter pilots do all day long when there is no war?
It's somewhat difficult passing all the tests to become a pilot. They require a person to have exceptionally good reflexes. Most people aren't able to measure up to the lightning fast actions needed to man a modern fighter plane. Spend some time thinking about what you would do if you couldn't qualify.
Mikeymiles22, best of luck in your efforts to becoming a fighter pilot! You'll get a lot of good advice here. But I've got one more piece: When you "slip the surly bonds" with that jet; remember one thing: You're just borrowing it from it's REAL owners; the men & women who proudly maintain it!
Mikeymiles22, best of luck in your efforts to becoming a fighter pilot! You'll get a lot of good advice here. But I've got one more piece: When you "slip the surly bonds" with that jet; remember one thing: You're just borrowing it from it's REAL owners; the men & women who proudly maintain it!
Errr, bit of a correction, chief.
When its on the solid ground, yeah the owners are the proud maintenance crew but soon its up, it belongs solely to the aviator who straps the whole on their backs
@iknowftbll I'm more than ok with the 6 month Basic School and maybe settling for a gig on a C-130 or even in a rotary slot; but as far as grades go, I was kind of slacking off too much throughout my last couple years. My GPA is somewhere around 3.0 or maybe a little higher and that's really due to lack of effort. I've lately had some catalystic events happen so I'm praying that from now on that's not going to be a negative variable. So, I was wondering, do you think that my grades being mediocre and then shooting up vs. having solid grades all throughout will carry enough weight (now that I have my head straight) to the Embry-Riddle and NROTC admission people. And that's kind of directed to everybody.
Well I've never been on a selection board for NROTC, but I would guess a 3.0 may be a little on the low side. 3.5 is probably your magic number. It may be hard to raise your GPA that much by the end of your junior year. Remember, you basically have to apply on the strength of your transcripts as of the end of your junior year because you have to apply so early. Hopefully you can at least show an upward trend.
Also, if you do not get selected, apply again. Also, contact the MOI at the university you wish to attend (I believe you've received the link to the official NROTC web site which will have contact info? If not, I'll post it). Explain your situation and inquire about the "college program". I'm not sure if they still call it that, but it's very similar to a "walk-on" on a college athletic program. You show up without a scholarship, pay your dues, show that you are serious about earning your commission, and reapply, backed by the endorsement of the NROTC chain of command. So the show's not over if you don't get it on your first try.
When its on the solid ground, yeah the owners are the proud maintenance crew but soon its up, it belongs solely to the aviator who straps the whole on their backs
Yep, pilots indeed, do awesome things with that jet strapped on. But that's only 1.3 or whatever flying hours. The swings shift that inspects, services & repairs it. The weekend duty crew that spends 24 hours putting it back to FMC status and even the ground crew that launches you out have more claim to that jet...
Having been a Marine Fighter Pilot several years back I would not have had it any other way. The Marine Corps changed my life. OCS and TBS (Officer Candidate School and The Basic School) are unique to the Marines and is part of making EVERY Marine a ground Marine first. You cannot support the ground element effectively unless you know what they are up against and doing.
Marines are Naval aviators, I have heard that 1 in 300,000 make it to the final fighter stage. Between the physical requirements, (eyes as well as physical), School (College degree), OCS and TBS, then on to Pensacola. It used to be the top 10% in each graduating class goes to jet training. Unlike the USAF, the Navy/Marine Corps pilots are fully qualified fighter pilots coming out of the training commands. In the Air Force you are instrument qualified, to get Navy Wings of Gold you are not only instrument qualified, you have dropped bombs, fired guns, landed on carriers and only need to learn a new Plane when you get to the fleet.
The best part of the Marine Corps is the community, you will find life long friends in a fraternity that is like none other.
Semper Fi.
Ok, so, I'm a junior in high school. The plan is to attend Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) because of what I've heard about it; it sounds like a great college and the type of envrionment I could get into and everything. I am also very interested in the military and hopefully becoming a fighter pilot. So naturally, this led me to start looking into the ROTC programs. From what I've seen on their website and other sites, they have great ROTC programs for the 3 branches of military I'm interested in (Navy, Air Force, and the Marines). It's pretty much been a lifelong dream to be in the Marine Coprs, and for the last couple years my dad (once a Marine) has helped shape my ambitions towards being an officer regardless of the branch I go in. In summary, my biggest career goal is to basically become a fighter pilot, however, I still want to go into the Marines a LOT; I know both of these are possible but I'm not sure how probable it is that they will coincide . I'm pretty sure that Navy or AF would help me get to being fighter pilot a little bit better than the Marines - not positive but pretty sure. So assuming I can get into the ERAU ROTC program with my grades, extra-curriculars, etc., what branch do you think I should choose? And why? Any advice or comment is welcomed and greatly appreciated.
P.S. I posted this in education but someone said I should've asked it in military and I thought that was a pretty good idea.
You might also want to consider jointing CAP (Civil Air Patrol), which is an auxiliary of USAF. As a CAP cadet you can 5 free orientation rides in airplane and 5 free orientation rides in glider as well as train to become a glider and/or a small airplane pilot. See Civil Air Patrol - United States Air Force Auxiliary .
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. I'm pretty sure that Navy or AF would help me get to being fighter pilot a little bit better than the Marines - not positive but pretty sure. So assuming I can get into the ERAU ROTC program with my grades, extra-curriculars, etc., what branch do you think I should choose? And why? Any advice or comment is welcomed and greatly appreciated. 
