Helicopters or Fighter Jets? Be honest.

[TriViper]

Flying any aircraft is great, but I was watching some YouTube videos of Harriers, F-16's...awesome videos. I know we're all a little bias here, but would you rather fly a fighter jet or a chopper if you could only pick one? C'mon, keep it real. I'd have to chose the fighters myself.

[Yamer]

I like being able to land safely anywhere I want really... Helicopters for me. And only for that reason. Otherwise it would be a b2

Edited March 25, 2014 by Yamer

[Kink87]

Would love to fly A-10's

[TriViper]

The Warthog:

 

[ShaneWey]

 

Flying anything is flat out bada$$ but the Army mission is way more cool!

[brackac]

I recently transferred from the Apache to the C-12, and it took me less than 5 seconds to realize that flying a plane is a boring mundane existence. The only advantage a plane has over a helicopter is speed, but that advantage is null and void at 20K feet. It feels like I'm sitting in a cubicle with someone scrolling scenery outside my window. The life of a fighter pilot is exciting 2 times a flight; takeoff and landing. Give me a helicopter any day of the week.

[aeroscout]

The life of a fighter pilot, especially off of a ship is quite exciting. Typically it's takeoff, rendezvous, close formation flying, low level routes, acm, or a trip to the gunnery and bombing range, re rendezvous, in flight refuel and depending on weather an instrument approach.

[skyreaper]

Flying anything is flat out bada$$ but the Army mission is way more cool!

That video presents a reasonable arguement.

[akscott60]

They all have their perks. Helicopters are more fun short of a fighter doing BFM. I've been flying fixed wing for 16 years. I like helicopters a lot more.

[d10]

Before I knew better I would have selected jets. Fortunately they were never an option for me. They seem more exciting, and maybe they are, but I've done a lot of things most people would consider exciting, and every time the excitement fades with enough repetition.

 

If the question was which one would you rather take out for a single joy ride, I'll take the jet. If it's for a career, I'm legitimately happy to be a helicopter pilot. I've flown real live missions that actually had an impact on a lot of people. That kind of job satisfaction lasts forever.

 

When we get into a war that requires our jets to win dogfights to maintain air superiority let me know and maybe I'll change my answer.

[ShaneWey]

That video presents a reasonable arguement.

Reasonable was definitely not the intention here. It's a fun way to point out how much more helos can do, especially with a direct impact of guys on the ground. That said, fixed wing play a vital role but the top gun days of dog fighting had its glory days back in WWII.

[Eric Hunt]

I have about 1300 hrs on jets and 12000 hrs helicopters.

 

The jets were a hoot, speed, formation, low level etc but a chopper is LOW LEVEL, formation is dangerous if not done carefully, and I have achieved a lot more satisfaction by turning jet fuel into noise complaints than by drilling holes in the sky and always landing back at the same place I took off from in a jet.

 

The knucks always scoffed at the chopper pilots, and when I challenged them to a race to 1000' they took it on straight away - but then backed out when I told them it was from a standing start outside the (shut-down) aircraft, parked outside a hangar half a mile from the runway! Pussycats...

Edited March 25, 2014 by Eric Hunt

[brackac]

 

 

The knucks always scoffed at the chopper pilots, and when I challenged them to a race to 1000' they took it on straight away -

 

 

 

 

Something similar. Pad to 2k' back to the pad.

[TriViper]

Not that this is a major deal, but my curiosity about Army pilot gear has been tugging on me for a while. Are there any Army pilots that are still allowed to wear the one piece flight suits? And how high tech are those pilot helmets? -- how much do they cost?

[akscott60]

As far as I have seen, we all wear the A2CU, at least in the big army. Special Operations is their own unique snowflake.

 

HGU-56P is around $1600 or so.

The helmet the Apache guys use is like $10k.

[Yamer]

A2CU for the guard too

[TriViper]

I believe this was discussed a while back, but I can't find the thread. If someone is an Active Duty Apache pilot (who isn't deployed), how many hours they expect to fly per year? What's a high/low range? I've heard Apache pilots don't fly as much as other airframes?

[Jester2138]

C'mon, keep it real. I'd have to chose the fighters myself.

 

It's almost as though you expect folks on a helicopter board to secretly be bitter about not flying jets

 

I think helicopters are way more bad-ass, hence my presence on this board.

[TriViper]

 

It's almost as though you expect folks on a helicopter board to secretly be bitter about not flying jets

 

I think helicopters are way more bad-ass, hence my presence on this board.

 

Like I said, I'm grateful to have the opportunity to fly anything.

[Fliesbecauseracecar]

I believe this was discussed a while back, but I can't find the thread. If someone is an Active Duty Apache pilot (who isn't deployed), how many hours they expect to fly per year? What's a high/low range? I've heard Apache pilots don't fly as much as other airframes?

I can tell you that we are not deployed and there are more hours available to fly at the moment than we have pilots (PCs and IPs) to fly them.

 

64s have 70 hour mimimums semi annually of which 12 can be sim hours. So even at the bare minimums you will be getting 116 hours a year. Everyone here is currently on track to do better than that.

 

All brand new Army pilots in general should expect to fly about minimums, regardless of airframe at least initially. Rookie fresh out of flight school pilots are the last priority for flight time. Get your minimums, stay current, stay in the books, these things will lead to more flight time, a PC ride, and a track which will lead to more flight time.

 

If you are joining the Army to build your logbook, in a non deployed environment, be prepared to be patient, pick 60s and track IP. Otherwise, pick the airframe that has the mission you want.

 

In a deployed envrionment, if you want flight time, pick 64s, you will fly more than you want.

[TriViper]

I can tell you that we are not deployed and there are more hours available to fly at the moment than we have pilots (PCs and IPs) to fly them.

 

64s have 70 hour mimimums semi annually of which 12 can be sim hours. So even at the bare minimums you will be getting 116 hours a year. Everyone here is currently on track to do better than that.

 

All brand new Army pilots in general should expect to fly about minimums, regardless of airframe at least initially. Rookie fresh out of flight school pilots are the last priority for flight time. Get your minimums, stay current, stay in the books, these things will lead to more flight time, a PC ride, and a track which will lead to more flight time.

 

If you are joining the Army to build your logbook, in a non deployed environment, be prepared to be patient, pick 60s and track IP. Otherwise, pick the airframe that has the mission you want.

 

In a deployed envrionment, if you want flight time, pick 64s, you will fly more than you want.

 

Appreciate the insight. I've read AD may be getting the Guard/Reserves Apaches. How likely is this to happen? If it does happen, it almost seems the airframe selection for flight students would be mostly Apaches?

[TriViper]

I can tell you that we are not deployed and there are more hours available to fly at the moment than we have pilots (PCs and IPs) to fly them.

 

64s have 70 hour mimimums semi annually of which 12 can be sim hours. So even at the bare minimums you will be getting 116 hours a year. Everyone here is currently on track to do better than that.

 

All brand new Army pilots in general should expect to fly about minimums, regardless of airframe at least initially. Rookie fresh out of flight school pilots are the last priority for flight time. Get your minimums, stay current, stay in the books, these things will lead to more flight time, a PC ride, and a track which will lead to more flight time.

 

If you are joining the Army to build your logbook, in a non deployed environment, be prepared to be patient, pick 60s and track IP. Otherwise, pick the airframe that has the mission you want.

 

In a deployed envrionment, if you want flight time, pick 64s, you will fly more than you want.

 

Also, curious how much it costs the Army, in total, to pay & train an Apache pilot over an initial 8 year AD enlistment? I've heard flight school alone could cost almost $1 mill? Sorry about all the questions; recent WOFT selectee here.

[Yamer]

Stay on topic here. If you have questions post your own thread

[Flint950]

At the end of Primary Flight Training (T34C) at NAS Whiting Field several of us were in a room filling out our "dream sheets". This was a form on which you indicated which type of aircraft you wanted to fly and on which coast. The choices were props, jets or helos, east coast or west coast. Everyone wanted to fly something fast and inverted. After a few minutes the Student Control Officer walked in and informed us, "The Navy only needs helicopter pilots this week". One guy immediately got up and walked out. He had flown commuters previously and wasn't about to fly anything without an ejection seat. I ended up flying helicopters out of San Diego.

 

I was a little disappointed at first but I literally had no place else to go. Now I consider myself lucky to have left the Navy as a dual rated pilot. At my first aviation assignment with my current employer I was flying a BO-105, AS-350B2, MD500 as well as a C-206, C210 and a PC-12. Since then I've also spent a few years flying a King Air all over South America. I haven't had the pleasure of ever flying a jet though. Long story short, there is definitely something to be said for being a dual rated pilot. Helicopters will always be my favorite.

[DaveC]

I would rather fly a fighter jet, but I prefer my mission in the UH-60.