I was a commissioned officer until 1 FEB 2009. I served in two different units, I was platoon leader for 28 months in the first unit, a staff officer in logistics, staff officer in operations, and a company commander in the 2nd unit over an 8 1/2 year period. During that time, I attained Pilot in Command in the AH-64D due to my proficiency in the aircraft as a dual seat pilot. I was expected to exhibit good sound judgement and maturity while piloting the aircraft. Judgement and Maturity is what they are looking for in any aviator. Yes, Warrant Officers in the Army, especially aviation, are considered the voice, being technical and tactical experts at their craft. That does not excuse commissioned officers from exhibiting the same skills and judgement while in the aircraft, but unfortunately the Army places a big expectation on the commissioned officers to be a "jack of all trades" officer, acquiring responsibilities, all the other responsibilities besides flying. Yes, Warrant Officers are highly skilled, highly professional pilots, but that is what they are most proud of, and what they most like doing. The exceptional Warrant Officers do hold other responsibilities and other duties, and they do pull Staff Jobs. They do it when the Army best feels that they are fit to do so, when they are at the 10-15 year mark and have progressed to a level of professionalism and maturity beyond just in the aircraft and on the battlefield. I highly respected my Warrant Officers, and they respected me. I was a leader and proud and honored to have served in tense, hostile, and downright "not knowing you were going to make it" situations with them. I was a pilot in command, and I was an air mission commander in combat. Those are the two things in Army aviation I am most proud of. My close 2nd proudest job was being a company commander in an Attack Company. There is no better community, but all airframes and all missions are an absolute necessity on the battlefield and all of them are highly respected by all of those other soldiers around you, of whom you support. It is slightly luck and a gamble to try and guarantee Aviation out of ROTC. Nothing is guaranteed. There are many ways to try to increase your chances. Doing well in school with a good GPA and doing extremely well at Advanced Camp (LDAC) and on the AFAST (Army Flight Aptitude Selection Test) will never hurt your chances. If you want good jobs in the army as a commissioned officer that involve flying, you simply have to be the best at those jobs. If you are an average aviator, you will not be respected in the aircraft by the Warrant Officers that you went through flight school with side by side, and you will find yourself moving away from the cockpit earlier in your career. If you are good, humble, and exhibit good judgement and maturity, then you will be highly respected and damn near requested by name to be a leader, commander, pilot in command, and air mission commander due to your abilities and sound judgement. General Cody a 4 star general who retired out of the Army after his final job as Vice Chief of Staff, was also the 101st Division Commander, worked closely with 160th SOAR (Special Ops Aviation Regiment), was the 101st Aviation Brigade Commander and commanded at every level. His vision was that of the Navy in respect to, how can a pilot be commanded by a commander that isn't expected to maintain the same standards in flying as his fellow Warrant Officer. His thought process, in my interpretation, led to the first change to the Army Aviation Regulation in a long time. The regulation, AR 95-1 was changed to read that any Officer put in command, in order to maintain their position as commander, will be a pilot in command. In addition to that reg, it places a 180 day limit on this progression to PIC. It also states, that in order to be an Air Mission Commander, you must be a PIC and in order to be a Mission Briefer, you must be a PIC. There are a lot of responsibilities and a lot of duties that hinge on being a pilot in command, which means being a good pilot. Due to the operational tempo of the Army, below average commissioned officers as pilots make their way into command positions. This is where the timing comes into play. It is due to "officer being at the right place at the right time." Bottom line, you have to prove yourself, you have to do well, and you have to never fail as you progress through flight school through every job and maintain you proficiency as a pilot and also balance your duties and responsibilities beyond the cockpit. It is not easy, and it is not always fun. But the 10-15% and the 40% during combat, of your time spent flying the Ferrari of the helicopter realm, the Longbow Apache, is the best you'll ever spend flying Helicopters. Being a Warrant Officer flying any aircraft in the Army is a great job as well and I would urge you to look at all your options. I had a great career flying Apaches, and hope to fly them again someday when all of the Guard units become outfitted with AH-64D apaches. Until then, I have transitioned out of the Army and become a Federal Agent, flying for CBP Air and Marine. I left the Army with 1800 hours, and have also flown fixed wing on my dime, getting my Private Airplane Single Engine Land rating and will add it to my Commercial ticket along with my Rotarywing w/instrument that I received on Uncle Sam's dime. Best of luck in what you decide to do. Feel free to send follow on questions.
