I'll pass this to my guy applying for DCA, wish I could get a TIS waivor and would be switching over in a heartbeat!
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USCG flight school questions (stupid & otherwise)
- Thread starter bjb83
- Start date
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Hellbringer
New Member
Looking for advice on how to start the crawl to be a Coast Guard Helo Pilot
Hi,
This is going to be kind of a basic question but my mom always said you have a crawl before you can walk.
What is the best and fastest way to get into the helo aviation program with the Coast Guard?
Thanks Mike
Hi,
This is going to be kind of a basic question but my mom always said you have a crawl before you can walk.
What is the best and fastest way to get into the helo aviation program with the Coast Guard?
Thanks Mike
My mom always told me to keep my eyes open and mouth shut (i.e. search).
ba dum chh
But seriously, your question is a bit general. The fastest, easiest way for me to get into the CG helo aviation program is way different than the fastest and easiest for others.
What's your situation? College finished? Prior enlisted? More info is needed before anyone can offer guidance.
Hellbringer
New Member
yeah i guess it would help if you knew a little more about me.
i am 21
high school grad
little college (i am going back)
no prior military
i also just realized there are alot more then 3 posts in this forum (dah) and i have questions about Blue 21
the program you dont have to be a minority you just have to come from a school with 25% or more minority population right?
and i searched the school that i want to go to on the site the CG provides and as long as the white population is not more then 75% that would mean that more then 25% would be minority right?
Thanks Mike
i am 21
high school grad
little college (i am going back)
no prior military
i also just realized there are alot more then 3 posts in this forum (dah) and i have questions about Blue 21
the program you dont have to be a minority you just have to come from a school with 25% or more minority population right?
and i searched the school that i want to go to on the site the CG provides and as long as the white population is not more then 75% that would mean that more then 25% would be minority right?
Thanks Mike
If you've got questions about a specific school- you probably need to talk to a recruiting office. They provide that site to give you an idea- but before you make any choices it's worth getting some documentation that affirms your choice from the CG.
There isn't really any best way. Fastest would probably be to get your degree (with high grades) and apply for OCS and perform well there- and get selected into a flight billet. Go thru flight school and you could be a Coast Guard aviator on or around your first promotion.
Your dedication to the program is probably the most important. You have to commit now and do everthing you can to get into the program. If blue 21 doesn't work, or your school isn't accepted or you don't get into OCS the first time but what you want to do is fly for the Coast Guard...Might be worth considering enlisting (they can help pay for college) and working on some time in service to try for OCS again
Good luck!!
Hellbringer
New Member
thanks Brunes
the 25% i dont think i will have a problem with this is the make up o the college i want to go to
White non-Hispanic:30.1%
Black non-Hispanic:9.0%
Hispanic:28.7%
Asian or Pacific Islander:12.5%
American Indian or Alaskan Native:0.4%
Race-ethnicity unknown:14.0%
Non-resident alien:5.3%
but how hard is it to get into the blue 21 program? i know of the army WOFT program and i have thought about it but my ultimate goal would be to fly for LA county fire or LA county sheriff doing rescues. so the coast guard would give me better experience doing that type of flying.
Also i have read that after you get out of flight school you have a 7 year commitment to the CG. how long are the deployments? right now i am trying to get hired as a deputy sheriff to pay my way through college would i be able to still work as a sheriff and fly for CG??
Thanks
Mike
the 25% i dont think i will have a problem with this is the make up o the college i want to go to
White non-Hispanic:30.1%
Black non-Hispanic:9.0%
Hispanic:28.7%
Asian or Pacific Islander:12.5%
American Indian or Alaskan Native:0.4%
Race-ethnicity unknown:14.0%
Non-resident alien:5.3%
but how hard is it to get into the blue 21 program? i know of the army WOFT program and i have thought about it but my ultimate goal would be to fly for LA county fire or LA county sheriff doing rescues. so the coast guard would give me better experience doing that type of flying.
Also i have read that after you get out of flight school you have a 7 year commitment to the CG. how long are the deployments? right now i am trying to get hired as a deputy sheriff to pay my way through college would i be able to still work as a sheriff and fly for CG??
Thanks
Mike
If that is your ultimate goal, did you ever think of Army National Guard? You could enlist and do crew chief/medic in one of their units while you go to college. That could get you into flying for them and allow you to have 2 flying jobs at once. More than one way to skin a cat.
I can't speak to how hard it is to get into Blue 21...OCS is selective, but any military OCS/OTS type school is.
As far as the commitment- Mine will be 8 years...plus the 5 I owe for going to the Academy. I think you would most likely have a hard time doing both a Deputy Sherriff gig and flying for the Coast Guard. While you aren't in the cockpit all day every day- You will have other jobs, duty days, and responsibilities at the Air Station- so you would have a HEAVY demand on your time to stand shifts as a police officer and work for the CG. I know there are people who do volunteer fire work and do hold other jobs- so you might be able to do it.
As far as "deployments" Our schedules are far different from the other services. There are some air stations that might deploy one helicopter for 2 months...and then go for another years without sending anyone. There are some deployments that are 2 week trips to outlying duty stations. I think the longest deployments are for the helo crews that go with the polar cutters.
If you are thinking about getting a job to pay your way thru school- Have you thought about enlisting?? You can use Tuition Assistance, GI Bill, military tuition rates, and online classes to get your education, you can get started in the aviation field and get a feel for the Coast Guard.
Hope that all made sense....I know I typed alot....and it's just one (junior) officers view of how things are.
I'm going SWO->Pilot lateral (at least as close as the Coast Guard has). We aren't quite as structured about communities/specialties for officers as you guys are.
However, up until about 4 years ago everyone went to a cutter first. The class of '04 was the first class to have flight school billets open direct form the Academy...so there are some Academy fresh ENS' running around PCola/Milton.
kparrott154
New Member
Hello everyone,
I'm new to this board and was wondering if anyone could inform me a little more about the USCG fixed-wing aviation program.
I will probably go through OCS, but was wondering if getting a flight slot is difficult?
Any help would be nice.
Thanks a lot.
I'm new to this board and was wondering if anyone could inform me a little more about the USCG fixed-wing aviation program.
I will probably go through OCS, but was wondering if getting a flight slot is difficult?
Any help would be nice.
Thanks a lot.
You'll probably have better luck on this site:
http://www.coastguardocs.org/portal/index.php
From what I've gathered, it is more of a challenge to get an OCS slot than it is to go to flight training, and even if you're not picked up then most Officers apply and get accepted after a few years (2-4)
Edit - Wow! fast reply
http://www.coastguardocs.org/portal/index.php
From what I've gathered, it is more of a challenge to get an OCS slot than it is to go to flight training, and even if you're not picked up then most Officers apply and get accepted after a few years (2-4)
Edit - Wow! fast reply