43 NSS needed to get into Primary

As a side note, the Air Force has something worked into their grading system to counter this which I thought was kinda cool. Its called "Flight Commanders Ranking." 30% of your grade is what the flight commander (flight leader) thinks of you. Basically, he gets together with the other IPs in your flight and they hash out, hey is this guy a good officer, does he help out his classmates, have a can-do attitude etc etc etc. It keeps the guys who are awesome in the cockpit but s!!t bags on the ground from getting ranked above the guys who give 100% all the time.

I am sure there are cons to the system, but from a merit stand point, I thought it was a good idea.

They do this at TBS, it's called your Leadership Grade. Basically the SPC give who he thinks his #1 guy a 100 and who he thinks his bottom guy is a 70%. It's pure bullshit. I'd rather see a douche bag get jets (edit: or rather finish in the top of his class) than a guy who has a wife and a couple of kids get tanked on the grading or attrited because he is there to learn how to fly and do his best while taking care of his family (which most likely means he is going to kids baseball games, or having dinner with family and not at your house helping you study). I saw a dude almost get dropped from our Company because his wife had a baby while we were at TBS. (The nerve!) He was told that he wasn't dedicated enough to his training or the Marine Corps when he took his paternity leave...

Meh. Considering how often I interacted with my flight leaders in flight school I don't think their impression would have counted for much. Then again, we didn't have to be at "work" regular hours, either.

You can't really judge a guy's work ethic unless you give him more responsibility than studying and showing up for a brief.

Study the ELOs and the test questions in the back of the chapters and you'll be fine. If you can explain why the answers are the answers then you're golden. Obviously some people don't have to study as much as others. If you understand that stuff quickly, then help the others out. The tests will suck for the first couple of classes that do them, but compile your knowledge and create the gouge for the classes behind you. If you just assume that someone else is passing on the knowledge and you hold on to it THAT is what makes you a douche.

I agree with everything that has been said above. API was a breeze compared to the FRS. If you can't handle the pace of API, it's not gonna happen here. However, I have seen several people who have struggled but still done well for themselves in flight school because they have evolved somewhat to meet the demands. In the end it is your drive and attitude that will get you through. But if you can't learn the material and depend on the gouge, then you aren't going to make it. Gouge is a supplement not a replacement for good studying.

Safe to say you are definitely in the minority on this one, don't really understand why you wouldn't be mad but alright. I didn't enjoy being locked down until 1500 Monday, didn't enjoy sitting in the auditorium for several hours the next day, didn't enjoy taking the survey (biggest waste of paper in history), didn't enjoy taking a brand new Navigation test and a brand new FR & R test either. I'm sure the dudes that had just taken the Aero test didn't enjoy their scores getting thrown out and I'm sure the staff and instructors didn't enjoy dealing with all the BS and rewriting all the tests. One Ensign looks just like another; this certainly didn't do the officer corps' reputation any favors. If this incident doesn't upset you maybe its time you sit down and consider why it doesn't.

...says the one salty Ensign to another.

Remember folks, as much as it may piss you off and make your lives harder, you can't stop stupid. You can only hope to postpone it.

Well said, it's probably for the best that the quality of his character came to light before he made it any further in the pipeline. It makes life more difficult for others, but at least nobody's life was put at risk.

Perhaps, I am able to simply say, "It is what it is...." From the stuff that I have seen in A-pool and API so far, all I can say these days is that if it wasn't this crap, then it is going to be something else. I really like to poster that is hanging in flight management's office. It reads something like: "MISTAKES..Some people exist to serve as a warning to others." Like I said man, It is what it is.

Had someone who overslept and missed about 20 minutes of FTU (RAG) class. He was bringing donuts for the next several days as penalty. Another friend did the same thing in A-pool and got a couple mornings of phone/desk watch duty. Not really in the same league as breaking and entering, damage to government safes, and theft.

seems like you are comparing apples to oranges.