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By the numbers: USAREC recruiting goal


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Yeah guys let's limit discussion of the 160th to former 160th pilots and even then we can only say good things about the unit. :rolleyes:

 

It's no secret that the 160th conducts very thorough mission planning. Sorry you didn't like brack's joke but his point is valid.

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Right now all you young guys are thinking you want to be stationed where you'll fly the most. Believe me, we were all like that in flight school. Once you go somewhere that flys a lot and deploys a lot you get tired of that lifestyle. All my friends that were 160th did their ADSOs and left. It wears on ya and as you get older aviation doesn't define you anyone. Other things such as wanting to be with family takes precedence. As we've said before, flying in the Army is a job. We all have a sense of patriotism and wanting to serve but at the end of the day that doesn't pay the bills. Those who serve in demanding MOSs should be compensated accordingly.

 

As said above, you don't have to be 160th to do swoopy things. Ive flown SEALS, SF, Ranger, and people who i had no idea who they worked for. You get an air mission request with just ranks and no names. Is a regular Army unit going to be picked for a Bin Laden raid? No but they still do a significant amount of special ops missions along with their usual A to B flights.

 

Being good at what you do has nothing to do with a patch on your shoulder. I've seen 10,000 hr NG guys that could fly circles around some 160th CW2. Being good is honing your craft no matter what unit you are in and when the opportunity presents itself, you excell. When you go to war you're in the enemy's backyard. It doesn't matter if you're 160th or some NG dude, the "opportunities" will be in your face everyday.

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Touchy subject for both sides apparently. Let us young guys be a little excited! Appreciate all the input, be it positive or sarcastic.

 

Right now all you young guys are thinking you want to be stationed where you'll fly the most. Believe me, we were all like that in flight school. Once you go somewhere that flys a lot and deploys a lot you get tired of that lifestyle. All my friends that were 160th did their ADSOs and left. It wears on ya and as you get older aviation doesn't define you anyone. Other things such as wanting to be with family takes precedence. As we've said before, flying in the Army is a job. We all have a sense of patriotism and wanting to serve but at the end of the day that doesn't pay the bills. Those who serve in demanding MOSs should be compensated accordingly.

As said above, you don't have to be 160th to do swoopy things. Ive flown SEALS, SF, Ranger, and people who i had no idea who they worked for. You get an air mission request with just ranks and no names. Is a regular Army unit going to be picked for a Bin Laden raid? No but they still do a significant amount of special ops missions along with their usual A to B flights.

Being good at what you do has nothing to do with a patch on your shoulder. I've seen 10,000 hr NG guys that could fly circles around some 160th CW2. Being good is honing your craft no matter what unit you are in and when the opportunity presents itself, you excell. When you go to war you're in the enemy's backyard. It doesn't matter if you're 160th or some NG dude, the "opportunities" will be in your face everyday.

Velocity you made a ton of great points but of course we know there are other top notch pilots that do what some consider the exciting missions. Obviously everyone has a different lifestyle and that changes over the years but newbies aren't burnt out so it could be good. Besides, wouldn't you guys agree that if this so called peacetime is around the corner then the 160th is going to be one of the few places to get that kind of "action"? I think a lot of these response have been geared toward "hey now, we do just as many SF missions as the 160th" but for new people do you really think those "opportunities" will be in their face everyday when their unit isn't deploying like it currently is? I say let the new people keep the pumped up I wanna fly attitude because someone has to stay positive and love the job a little or we will all be miserable. I've seen time and time again how one very negative individual can RUIN a deployment atmosphere single handedly for the entire unit because they don't like their own life so they bring down others... pure poison. My .02 cents

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Touchy subject for both sides apparently. Let us young guys be a little excited! Appreciate all the input, be it positive or sarcastic.

 

Velocity you made a ton of great points but of course we know there are other top notch pilots that do what some consider the exciting missions. Obviously everyone has a different lifestyle and that changes over the years but newbies aren't burnt out so it could be good. Besides, wouldn't you guys agree that if this so called peacetime is around the corner then the 160th is going to be one of the few places to get that kind of "action"? I think a lot of these response have been geared toward "hey now, we do just as many SF missions as the 160th" but for new people do you really think those "opportunities" will be in their face everyday when their unit isn't deploying like it currently is? I say let the new people keep the pumped up I wanna fly attitude because someone has to stay positive and love the job a little or we will all be miserable. I've seen time and time again how one very negative individual can RUIN a deployment atmosphere single handedly for the entire unit because they don't like their own life so they bring down others... pure poison. My .02 cents

I wouldn't say it's a touchy subject. No one here is talking trash about 160th. Just trying to give a realistic view of the differences between Big Army and 160th. And no, none of us got a "kick in the ass" either. As an honor grad, 300 PFTer and my 60 IP being a former DAP guy, I was primed for a future in 160th. I just never applied.

 

When you deploy you realize a few things. First, there's nothing glamourous or heroic about being in OIF/OEF. It's not like I was fighting for "mom, apple pie and Coke Cola." Anyone who says they'd prefer to be in theater over being at home with family is probably screwed up in the head. I agree, someone who complains all day would be in for a negative experience. A professional warrior doesn't like it there either but they don't voice it aloud. You ignore the politics of why you're there, do your job as best ya can and count the days until you're home. That's not negative, it's just going into an endeavor as a professional with a job to do.

 

Another thing you realize while deployed is that Big Army is bearing the brunt of the aviation casualties. Just get on Armyaircrews.com and you'll see that. Doesn't matter what unit, if you're in theater, you're gonna get "action." There aren't areas where they say, well it's too hot for regular Army, send 160th on this one. Nope, we analyze the intel just like 160th and prosecute the war just as aggressively as they do. Also they use the same aircraft as regular Army. You can spruce up a Hawk all you want but it's still a Hawk. I can take an old A model 60, do an air assault with a 1:50 map and still arrive at the objective +-30 secs just like an MH with all the bells and whistles. One of my 160th friends was just telling me the other day "nothing wrong with an A/L. Light, fast, plenty of excess power."

 

Yes, in peacetime you'll get more hours in 160th than regular units. Once again, picking up and going somewhere every few months is going to be tough on family. I wouldn't exactly call it "the suck" though. It's not like you'll be living in a foxhole with it snowing out. It's TDY just like any other unit.

 

So, 160th or Big Army it's all good. When I meet someone who was prior 160th I look at them the same as someone from 101st or 82nd. As a section leader at Rucker I had a few prior 160th in the class. They don't stand out anymore than any other IP that I had working for me. When DES came down with no-notice tests, their grades were the same as everyone else. Their PFTs where just like all the other IPs. I currently work with a couple former 160th guys in EMS. They're not gods. They make mistakes just like everyone else.

 

What amazes me about these forums is no one talks about going XP. If I was to envy any pilot it would be those guys. Youre talking about pilots who truly know what makes that aircraft fly and are behind every upgrade your aircraft has. A year of attending the hardest school in Army Aviation and then going out to fly the Army's newest hardware is what it's about. No way in hell I could get through that course.

Edited by Velocity173
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In summary, deployment isn't fun and the 160th guys are human too. Sign me up. No matter how much they deploy, I'll probably be home more as part of that unit than my current gig. I've been in the U.S. less than six months in three years, life away from home needs no explanation here. Deployment is my home.

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In summary, deployment isn't fun and the 160th guys are human too. Sign me up. No matter how much they deploy, I'll probably be home more as part of that unit than my current gig. I've been in the U.S. less than six months in three years, life away from home needs no explanation here. Deployment is my home.

Having read your posts I'm sure you'll have no problem getting picked up. You've got just the kind of experience they're looking for. Good luck to ya. :)

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Having read your posts I'm sure you'll have no problem getting picked up. You've got just the kind of experience they're looking for. Good luck to ya. :)

Awe shucks... now you're just making be blush. I'm so far away from even being able to talk to them seriously about it, but that is what I'll be thinking about while rolling in the mud and making my way to the top of my OML.

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Awe shucks... now you're just making be blush. I'm so far away from even being able to talk to them seriously about it, but that is what I'll be thinking about while rolling in the mud and making my way to the top of my OML.

Well, if they made the application process easy then everyone would get in. As far as OML, just get a 300 PFT and you can select whatever aircraft you want.

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Well, if they made the application process easy then everyone would get in. As far as OML, just get a 300 PFT and you can select whatever aircraft you want.

How does the extended scale factor in. I had a 363 at pickup. So according to the isap I would have 121 points. Does that sound right?
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How does the extended scale factor in. I had a 363 at pickup. So according to the isap I would have 121 points. Does that sound right?

I know they changed how the APFT is weighted recently. Pretty sure I wasn't able to use extended scale when I was there.

 

Only thing good about a 300 was not having to go to PT in the morning during flight school. Little more study time before class. :) It did seem like the TAC officers were a little more lenient on us during WOCS as well.

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I know they changed how the APFT is weighted recently. Pretty sure I wasn't able to use extended scale when I was there.

 

Only thing good about a 300 was not having to go to PT in the morning during flight school. Little more study time before class. :) It did seem like the TAC officers were a little more lenient on us during WOCS as well.

I didn't need another reason to get a 300 but I'm going to add these perks to the list! Get a 300 and have that bump you up the OML plus the one or two possible points from having more knowledge do to the extra study time, if things haven't changed much. Good thing I still have about a month of deployment left to keep the working out on high!

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I didn't need another reason to get a 300 but I'm going to add these perks to the list! Get a 300 and have that bump you up the OML plus the one or two possible points from having more knowledge do to the extra study time, if things haven't changed much. Good thing I still have about a month of deployment left to keep the working out on high!

The PT test is the easiest way to move up the OML. When it came time for the run all I kept in mind was that as long as I was the first warrant to finish, I would be the first warrant to select.

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I know they changed how the APFT is weighted recently. Pretty sure I wasn't able to use extended scale when I was there.

 

Only thing good about a 300 was not having to go to PT in the morning during flight school. Little more study time before class. :) It did seem like the TAC officers were a little more lenient on us during WOCS as well.

 

Question about the organized PT portion of Rucker...at what point where you able to not have to go to organized PT due to high PT scores? And was it only 300 level guys that were able to skip the organized PT? I thought I read somewhere around here that if you were a 270 and above you weren't required to do the organized morning PT. Thanks in advance.

 

Sincerely,

 

A former enlisted guy that hates organized morning PT

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I don't exactly agree with the OML weighing so much on the PT test but I understand it... I think the Army's priorities, especially at Rucker are skewed...

 

I'm not fatty either, I just think that the Army has focused away on pilot proficiency and become focused around soldier isms i.e. SHARP classes, haircuts, PT and uniforms. no doubt they are important but not as much as we focus on them. In my perspective if 300 is the standard then why are we rewarding people for it?

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Question about the organized PT portion of Rucker...at what point where you able to not have to go to organized PT due to high PT scores? And was it only 300 level guys that were able to skip the organized PT? I thought I read somewhere around here that if you were a 270 and above you weren't required to do the organized morning PT. Thanks in advance.

 

Sincerely,

 

A former enlisted guy that hates organized morning PT

There is no PT while you are in an active flight class. During the bubbles is when you will go to PT. IIRC, 270 with a 90 in each event means 3 days a week, not sure what meant 2 days, and 300s only came on Fridays for sports PT. I had to go every day and probably only went for maybe six weeks the entire time I was at Rucker.

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Question about the organized PT portion of Rucker...at what point where you able to not have to go to organized PT due to high PT scores? And was it only 300 level guys that were able to skip the organized PT? I thought I read somewhere around here that if you were a 270 and above you weren't required to do the organized morning PT. Thanks in advance.

 

Sincerely,

 

A former enlisted guy that hates organized morning PT

What Rob said above. It was different years ago when I was there. You had organized PT even during flight school. If it was a morning class (0800) then you had PT from 0530-0630. If it was AM flying, then we did PT in the afternoon. I believe that was from 1530-1630. Made for long days so exemption was nice. I do remember exemption was 285+. Looks like they changed that as well. Edited by Velocity173
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