Staff Jobs

[Physicx]

Since its pretty much impossible to stay in the cockpit for 20 years what are considered good staff jobs?Also do most people only leave the cockpit once?

 

[Physicx]

bump.

 

[wink]

In a 20 year career you could leave the cockpit 2-3 times. By staff do you mean non-flying jobs? There are hundreds of non-flying jobs but being on a staff is rather specific. If you are talking staff officer then it depends somewhat the importance of the staff, who the admiral or Commadore is and what staff positon you held. In general, being on a staff is a good career move. It can be very high viz. An admiral can sign your fitreps. I was in the Navy for 17 years and was an O-5 when I took a job on a four star staff. I worked in N3, current ops, so it may have been different in other shops, but I found it kinda heady. Make no mistake, it is admin work. But you can have direct input into the decision making of an indivual that makes a real difference in a big part of the Navy like right now! There were O-3s on the staff that were particularly impressed in their first few weeks on the job. When you leave messages, people call right back. You are as good as the admiral for most of the people in the fleet. You can really make things happen when there is a star standing behind you. As to the hundred of other non-flying jobs, you will get lots of opinions. Try to stay close to you warfare community if you can, ie VF/VAW dudes close to AAW stuff, VP wants to stay with ASW/Maritime issues, VAQ will work in IW. If you can't do that stay as operational as you can like CV ships company, CARGRU (do they still call it that or is it STRIKEGROUP?) staff etc. Anything in the educational field is ok. Leaving the cockpit for a grad degree or War College is very good these days. Anything not within your warefare community, not operational of any sort and not on a major staff or educational opportunity should be looked at carefully. It still may be a good deal. Just mind the red flags and don't be afraid to talk to the CO or XO about what they think. One more thing. A single bad choice of shore duty/ non-flying billet will not ruin your career if you do a great job and don't snival about it. You are filling a vital job for the Navy. Someone has to do it. That is all.

 

[Schnugg]

A great psuedo non-flying job is Air Operations on a CVN. You can bag a hop once in a while...but you run the show around the boat at night and inclement weather. Got a hotline phone to the Air Boss and CO, COD drivers are your friends, you know every pilot in the airwing and see the COs and XOs of the squadrons almost every day. You can really get well known. I did this for 2.5 yrs on the Stennis. Next to flying, my most rewarding tour to date...and that's saying a lot.

r/
G

 

[wink]

CAG staff is a good route too. Chances to fly and you are in on all the operational planning. Don't know about some of the other guys, but every CAG ASW Officer I knew did very well later, including an admiral.

CV Strike Ops didn't seem like such a good deal despite the cool sounding name. Seemed like it was a giant version of a squadron schedules officer, a job I am very familier with. Any opinion on that Schnuggapup?

 

[Schnugg]

Really depends on the air wing. Some wings have their Strike Ops in a more pro-active scheduling role, other wings leave that more up to CV Strike Ops bubba.
I was also AW Ops on a CVW staff. Flew all the time (The F-14 and other CVW aircraft) and worked with some phenomenal officers that have all made flag rank. That is a choice assignment if you can get it.
r/
G

 

[Physicx]

Thanks for the help.