Interested in WOFT

[SBuzzkill]

Army small arms instruction for the "big army" is f*cking garbage.

 

A few of our pilots have attended some courses here that seemed pretty good from what I have heard and seen.

 

Anyways, to the OP, I get why jumping into a shiny 206 seems appealing. But if I were you I would use that money to double up on hours flying something with pistons.

Edited May 28, 2014 by SBuzzkill

[Velocity173]

I can't think of a single pilot in the last two wars that actually had to use any of their marksmanship in combat. Shooting at pop up targets in the prone position is a lot different than shooting out your door in a 58 or the window in a 60. I did feel the need to have a weapon (M-9) but I always thought bringing the M-4 with a crapload of ammo was a bit overkill. The odds of me being shot down and fending off 100 Taliban with my trusty M-4 were pretty slim.

 

Lindsey a lot of us who have never shot before do well at the range. In the Marines I shot Expert every year and early qual'd every year and never touched a rifle prior to going in. Good eyesight and followed instructions I guess. Of course the Marines do a week long all day long range as well where as the Army knocks it out in one day and a few hours.

[SBuzzkill]

You never know...

Edited May 28, 2014 by SBuzzkill

[skyreaper]

You never know...

It's happened before.

[Ardo09203]

I apologize for the derailment

[Velocity173]

You never know...

 

Yeah, I'm sure the pilots at Takur Ghar shot their personal weapons as well but I don't look at it as utilizing any marksman training that the Army provides. Spraying rounds at moving Taliban is much different than the controlled environment of the range.

 

It's like SERE. We train that as well but the last real E & E was Scott O Grady almost 20 yrs ago. Still important training, just saying the odds of using it (doctrinally) in the last two wars was slim.

[apacheguy]

I think if you guys were serving in a combat arms branch .....

 

Oooohhhh sweet attempted burn there.

 

Aviation is actually a combat arms branch, now called Maneuver Fires and Effects, same as Infantry and Armor.... refer to your HRC website for the branch breakdowns.

[apacheguy]

Army small arms instruction for the "big army" is f*cking garbage.

 

It's just nonexistent. Did you know that the STRAC manual requires all aviation unit personnel to qualify annually on the hand grenade assault course? When was the last time you hurled a grenade? Also the Claymore mine requirement and the AT-4 requirement. Most commanders don't even know what AR 350-1 is let alone how to train their troops.

[d10]

I can't think of a single pilot in the last two wars that actually had to use any of their marksmanship in combat. Shooting at pop up targets in the prone position is a lot different than shooting out your door in a 58 or the window in a 60. I did feel the need to have a weapon (M-9) but I always thought bringing the M-4 with a crapload of ammo was a bit overkill. The odds of me being shot down and fending off 100 Taliban with my trusty M-4 were pretty slim.

 

Lindsey a lot of us who have never shot before do well at the range. In the Marines I shot Expert every year and early qual'd every year and never touched a rifle prior to going in. Good eyesight and followed instructions I guess. Of course the Marines do a week long all day long range as well where as the Army knocks it out in one day and a few hours.

 

A pilot from my old company used his M-4 after his helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan and got a couple confirmed kills. But that's the only one I know of and he probably would have been fine if he had just sprinted to the helicopter waiting to pick him up.

[Joe_P148]

 

Oooohhhh sweet attempted burn there.

 

Aviation is actually a combat arms branch, now called Maneuver Fires and Effects, same as Infantry and Armor.... refer to your HRC website for the branch breakdowns.

Yeah thanks for tip...

[wm200]

 

Oooohhhh sweet attempted burn there.

 

Aviation is actually a combat arms branch, now called Maneuver Fires and Effects, same as Infantry and Armor.... refer to your HRC website for the branch breakdowns.

If you join the infantry you'll get plenty of small arms training. Hopefully you won't have to walk the streets of Baghdad as an aviator.

[apacheguy]

If you join the infantry you'll get plenty of small arms training. Hopefully you won't have to walk the streets of Baghdad as an aviator.

 

I'll have to forward this to branch. My last three deployments have been with SF or Infantry units....

[A-aron]

Damn this got derailed hard lol

[wm200]

 

I'll have to forward this to branch. My last three deployments have been with SF or Infantry units....

You were out doing patrols as a WO aviator?

[01CelicaGTS]

Alright, getting back on topic...LOL

 

I think you should get those hours with the GI Bill if you can. Sure, get the turbine transition. I don't know if it will help you any, but it can't hurt. Will it help when you get to Rucker IF you are selected? Not really. You'll just be more bored because you already know a lot of the stuff they are going to teach you. You may need to learn it a different way, but that's fine. I think that having flight hours definitely helps when you get to Rucker. I had a little over 200 hours and I had the best score in my class on both Primary checkrides, and almost all of the academic classes. To be honest, it just makes things boring if you come here already knowing what to do.

 

I don't know why people think it's so hard to learn to do something a new way...the Army way. It's easier to learn a new way to do a complicated task, than to completely learn it from scratch. The biggest reason I think that you should continue to get flight hours is because there is no guarantee that you will get selected. You need to work hard to get selected, but continue progressing in your career or schooling while you are working on getting selected. Also, if you do get selected and decide to get out after 6 years, you will be better off than those who didn't have any time before. A few hundred hours might make the difference in getting a job. Then again, it might not.

 

The problem is that nobody really knows the right answer. Most people are just very passionate about their opinions. It sounds like you've made up your mind to get the transition before even posting on here, but you were just looking for some other people to tell you to do it as well to feel better about it anyway. Good luck man.

[A-aron]

The thing I think I'm most concerned about is the program being closed for when I want to apply. Anyone have any idea how much time there usually is from applying to being sent to basic?

[Diesel5187]

The thing I think I'm most concerned about is the program being closed for when I want to apply. Anyone have any idea how much time there usually is from applying to being sent to basic?

 

From taking the ASVAB to switching recruiters to getting my medical and everything done, it took me 1 year, 38 weeks, 1 day to get enlisted into the WOFT program. Your millage my vary.

 

NOTE, my recruiter, nor anyone in the Company had little to no experience on how to get a WOFT in since it had not been done for the last 3-4 years.

[A-aron]

 

From taking the ASVAB to switching recruiters to getting my medical and everything done, it took me 1 year, 38 weeks, 1 day to get enlisted into the WOFT program. Your millage my vary.

 

NOTE, my recruiter, nor anyone in the Company had little to no experience on how to get a WOFT in since it had not been done for the last 3-4 years.

Damn thats a long time. I kinda figured from being selected at most maybe 9 months.

[Lindsey]

Damn thats a long time. I kinda figured from being selected at most maybe 9 months.

Hahahahahahahaha.

 

I mean, if you're lucky.

[Diesel5187]

Damn thats a long time. I kinda figured from being selected at most maybe 9 months.

If everything gets fast tracked for you and you don't have to wait for anything you can do it in 3 months tops.

 

ASVAB

MEPS Medical

SIFT

1st Class Medical takes 2 - 3 weeks to comeback if you are 100% healthy.

LoRs

DA Photo

 

Everything else is paper work that your recruiter and you can blow through in a days time.

 

The thing is your recruiter has to request every little test and that is what can take a LOONNG time.

[A-aron]

If when you apply you are still in college but have one semester left, will they take that into account at all and make sure your orders are after graduation? I thought I saw something, somewhere around here, about putting down how much college you have left or something.

[skyreaper]

If when you apply you are still in college but have one semester left, will they take that into account at all and make sure your orders are after graduation? I thought I saw something, somewhere around here, about putting down how much college you have left or something.

Yes. You can go to your registrar or your major degree counselor and have them type up and sign an expected graduation letter listing the courses remaining and expected graduation date. Doing so and including in your package will likely allow you to claim your degree before graduating.

[apacheguy]

You were out doing patrols as a WO aviator?

 

There are WO's assigned to BAE's. Real fun job, you should volunteer for it.

[SBuzzkill]

...........

Edited June 1, 2014 by SBuzzkill

[A-aron]

Well I'm probably going to go talk to a recruiter tomorrow to at least let them know I'm interested and start scheduling test dates. I am hoping the recruiters here seem as nice as the one I met back home. I already met with one recruiter back home and he actually seemed pretty interested in helping me at the time but since I am only home a few months of the year it just makes more sense to work with the ones out at school.