Question for NFO selectees?

[Gooch]

Hello, I was interested in knowing what the particular stats are for those who have been selected for NFO, i.e. GPA, major, PRT, ASTB, etc. Also, how in demand are NFO's right now? Basically what I'm asking is if selected how soon could I get my ass to Pensacola? Thanks in advance for the help, I'm glad I stumbled upon this site as it has been a great wealth of information.
Gooch

 

[ryan77]

SNFO is almost full for FY03 - my recuiter said it'll be full in the next couple weeks. SNA is already full. I believe NFOs are always in demand. If you're not before the board right now you might want to prepare for 2004.

I got a Computer Science degree with a 2.8 GPA. I scored very well on the officer test - especially the math portions (I think that's a critical part of the test for SNFO candidates). PRT was not so great but significantly above the minimums. Not good enough to outprocess for OCS though.

 

[grouch]

I am lucky enough to have a feb 03 date. I have been told that the reason it is taking so long to go to OCS is because there is a backlog of pilots waiting for API. A friend of mine is at OCS right now and he told me that he will have to wait until jan or feb 03 until he goes to API. The waitn' aint over boys!
I have an aviation sciences degree with a 2.9 GPA. Scored well on my test and about died on the PRT. I'm going silly waiting for february I couldn't imagine how others with dates like august 03 feel!

 

[ryan77]

quote:
I couldn't imagine how others with dates like august 03 feel!


They probably feel better than people like me with a 2 Sep 03 date. Ugh, hope I can move up!

 

[DDriver]

Hello
(1.) What do NFO's do after the Navy? Can they fly in the Airlines?
(2.) Do they have to re-train again? Can they retain their NFO flight time outside as pilots?
(3.) After "paying" back 7 years as an NFO can somebody more than 31 years old request for transfer to Pilot training?

 

[Dave Shutter]

A NFO recruiter I worked with actually turned down a flying job with a small shuttle service recently, less money than I made as a cook. He'd always flown on his own and has a few thousand hours and a bunch of ratings. That is always an option (expensive though) and I'm sure the NFO experience doesn't look bad on your resume either. You don't have to wait 7 years before applying for a transfer, only two. So providing all the planets are in alignment you could go for it before your first tour is up.

 

[DDriver]

quote:
You don't have to wait 7 years before applying for a transfer, only two. So providing all the planets are in alignment you could go for it before your first tour is up.


Now I'm more confused. I always thought that you have to incur 7 years after NFO training, and 8 years for pilots. However, provided that is true, what are odds of realy getting a fixed wing?

 

[aoconnor]

I have recently spoke with my recruiter, who is brutally honest. I am heading towards an NFO billet, from which he told me is a 10 year commitment. I thought it was around 6 years, but he said that realistically after you figure in the time up to getting your wings, which is when the commitment begins, you will have around two years invested. Add the 8 years to that and you will have around 10 years.

 

[grouch]

aoconnor is right on the money. DDriver, don't be in too big of a hurry for the airlines. There is much bigger fish to fry like naval astronaught for example. The mission commander job with NASA is very similar to an NFO's job.

 

[Dave Shutter]

To clarify the transfer issue. You can apply for it after a min. of two years service as a NFO, what your talking about is your total commitment. You also need to be released from your community as well as command and then compete at a board for whatever slots they have that year against every one else going for it. Last year there were 30 openings. This is just what I was told by an NFO LT. who went out for it though. Info subject to change at any instant.

Many of my OCS classmates played musical designators all troughout school, you could always try for a transfer then. Apparently once in OCS you play by a different set of rules as far as crossing decks. I know SWO was closed out big time when I went in but lots of guys switched to SWO in OCS for various reasons. You could ask about it once there?

I'm still waiting to hear from my API classmate who applied for a transfer to pilot. He wasn't in the top 10% of the class but he was damn close. They made him go and get an SNA physical which says they're thinking about it. I won't be surprised to run into him at Whiting. Getting a transfer is rare but it does happen. My 0.02$. Good luck.