bolterking
Member
Ah the age old question. The age ole answer...it depends.
Both locations have their pros and con's. It really depends on you. What activities do you like? If you like hunting, maybe south Texas is best...you like boating, lake life, Meridian might be your choice...blah blah you get the point. Do some research, look at the culture, because one might be a shock for you while other may not.
As for the towns...having lived in both, they both are not the metropolis type, so don't get your hopes up. Meridian has more green color while Texas is brown most of the time. Both places are hot and humid as hell in summer time. K-rock does on average, have better weather and less cancelled hops do to weather. As for personal life, it is really what you like. Corpus is 40 minute drive (and yes you have to live in K-rock). You have to drive further in Meridian to get to places (P-Cola 2.5 hours etc). It is easier to get a commercial airline out of Corpus then Meridian...have to drive to Jackson which is about 90 minute drive...something to think about for leave.
K-rock now has "C" models, and is now training students in "C" models so that is also an option. The squadron manning is smaller in K-rock then Meridian. That itself has it's pro's and con's and depending on who you talk to, each has their own opinion.
As for the rumor of attrition rate...that comes in cycles and has nothing to do with the location...rather the student themselves. Sometimes K-rock is higher, sometimes Meridian is higher, so don't base your decision based on that. It's a numbers game and it fluctuates. The time to train is less in K-rock. Due to weather and smaller classes and manning. So you won't have to spend too much time there if that is of concern. You may want to take your time...side bar if you want...but you really have no control over that. Sim instructors are sim instructors. Everyone has horror stories and some have had great experiences with the so called bad sim instructors. It is student dependent.
As for “A” students being better/worse than “C” students…that is up for debate. Personally I think you learn the basic piloting skills better in an “A” than the “C”. As for the F18 Rags seeing a difference, they do, I’m not going to say what it is because I don’t want to base your decision on that but it’s not what you think.
Your career path is in your hands. You can make or break yourself. I personally would not worry too much about which location is better and try to game it that way. Go where you will be happier. The program alone is stressful, and making a rash decision on which location will only make it more stressful. Both places have great spouses club, use them if it applies.
Both locations have their pros and con's. It really depends on you. What activities do you like? If you like hunting, maybe south Texas is best...you like boating, lake life, Meridian might be your choice...blah blah you get the point. Do some research, look at the culture, because one might be a shock for you while other may not.
As for the towns...having lived in both, they both are not the metropolis type, so don't get your hopes up. Meridian has more green color while Texas is brown most of the time. Both places are hot and humid as hell in summer time. K-rock does on average, have better weather and less cancelled hops do to weather. As for personal life, it is really what you like. Corpus is 40 minute drive (and yes you have to live in K-rock). You have to drive further in Meridian to get to places (P-Cola 2.5 hours etc). It is easier to get a commercial airline out of Corpus then Meridian...have to drive to Jackson which is about 90 minute drive...something to think about for leave.
K-rock now has "C" models, and is now training students in "C" models so that is also an option. The squadron manning is smaller in K-rock then Meridian. That itself has it's pro's and con's and depending on who you talk to, each has their own opinion.
As for the rumor of attrition rate...that comes in cycles and has nothing to do with the location...rather the student themselves. Sometimes K-rock is higher, sometimes Meridian is higher, so don't base your decision based on that. It's a numbers game and it fluctuates. The time to train is less in K-rock. Due to weather and smaller classes and manning. So you won't have to spend too much time there if that is of concern. You may want to take your time...side bar if you want...but you really have no control over that. Sim instructors are sim instructors. Everyone has horror stories and some have had great experiences with the so called bad sim instructors. It is student dependent.
As for “A” students being better/worse than “C” students…that is up for debate. Personally I think you learn the basic piloting skills better in an “A” than the “C”. As for the F18 Rags seeing a difference, they do, I’m not going to say what it is because I don’t want to base your decision on that but it’s not what you think.
Your career path is in your hands. You can make or break yourself. I personally would not worry too much about which location is better and try to game it that way. Go where you will be happier. The program alone is stressful, and making a rash decision on which location will only make it more stressful. Both places have great spouses club, use them if it applies.
