The pilots are not "agents." They do go through the same Fed Law Enforcment Training Course (FLETC), but they do not do investigations. Pilots start as GS-10s, whereas agents start as GS-7s. The guys who work the backs of helos are called Aerial Enforcement Officers; they're the ones who leap out and hook up bad guys. They also work the FLIRs. I don't know the background of the guys in the backs of the P-3s. They do have 3 breeds of pilots: P-3 (used to take any large f/w, now only take P-3 rated guys), aircraft (guys who fly both helo and f/w), and airplane (f/w only). Their website has the full skinny. THey just went through a big hiring blitz. I was thinking of doing it before I decided to stick around.