Weekends?

[SergioMartinez]

Ok, so I'm in a tricky situation... (deep breath) My fiance and I were all set to have our wedding over the Christmas holiday between OCS and API (OCS class date 18 AUG 2007), except we just found out that her brother who is in Iraq won't be back until January, and since we already made deposits on the locations, we were able to talk them into changing the reservation date for us as long as we tell them within the next month. The short story is that we're probably just going to have to take a shot in the dark and pick a random weekend in the spring/summer to have the wedding...
Anyway, my question is, as a SNA, will we have weekends off for Primary?

 

[kmac]

I'm sorry I cannot comment on any specifics (since I'm not in the know), I will add that it's pretty much standard procedure across naval aviation to snivel for any events, regardless of when they occur. For example, if I were to have family come into town, I would still snivel on the weekend even though it looks as if we would have that particular weekend off. Help your skeds out in any way you can.

Let me also add though that it's risky to plan a date like that to occur soon after OCS. What happens if you don't get through in the 12 weeks (injury or other)? Since you've already made the reservations though.... damn that's tough. How do you know where you'll be in January?

You're rolling the dice, that's for sure.

 

[Cavt]

Where are you planning on going to Primary at? And are you planning on having the wedding where you think you are going to be at primary? This opens a can of worms, assume you make it through OCS, 12 weeks, cool, then what happens when you get pushed back a week or two at API, or fail two tests and get rolled a week, or worse you have to move to Corpus or Vance after API and check in the monday after your planned wedding. Like kmac said its a total roll of the dice. If it means that much to you to get married, have a small cermony, with some close family and friends, then plan a big party for a time when you know you can actually do it with no problems, you could even renew your vows there to get a "wedding" feel from it...

 

[SergioMartinez]

I figured that winter holiday would be pretty safe, regardless of what happens at OCS. (Ex: since OCS breaks for the holiday, even if I were injured/rolled, I would get those weeks then just go back.) But now, since we're pushing the date past that window, I am aware that I would be rolling the dice. The plan now is that I may just have to fly in for the weekend, have the wedding, then fly back the next day. Sucks, but it is what it is.
I am aware that nothing is 100%. I was wondering if there are any holidays from training across the boards, like Memorial Day? If there are, then that would be the safest time to plan it.

 

[ArkhamAsylum]

There's no guarantee that you'll even start API by Jan if you're attending OCS in Aug-Oct. 4-day holiday weekends, like Memorial Day, are also no guarantee. For example, I had 3 days of non-sked the week prior to Memorial Day, and then had to fly a double on Sunday of the 4-day weekend. As long as you ask your flight leader and on-wing the day after you check in, you "should" be OK. They're usually not that sadistic.

 

[SergioMartinez]

Thanks Arkham, that's what I'll probably have to do. I'm already getting a taste of the unpredictability of military life.

 

[Gatordev]

What Arkham said. Generally, once you check in back to the squadron (after ground school) and you lead the target w/ your flight leader and Stucon, they'll do their best to work w/ you. You may have to work weekends (in addition to duty), but if you snivel for something ahead of time, and especially if it's your wedding, you've got a shot. Of course, that's assuming you're in Primary by that point.

 

[Junior]

But they will probably say the old "Primary flight training is not the time to get married" line. Apparently, the only time to do so is on your first shore tour/B billet. But getting back to your question, definately make your wedding one of the first things you tell your flight leader. To add to Arkham's post: snivel, and then politely pop your head into skeds a couple of weeks before to remind them. They'll make you feel like it is a huge pain in the ass, but that's pretty much standard.

 

[ArkhamAsylum]

You have to understand, it's the flight leaders' and Stucon offiicers' job to act like a jerk to set young occifers straight, but I think they legitamitlly (?) want to have your best interests in mind (at this point), and there's nothing about and orange-and-white aircraft important enough to jeopordaize your (potential) marraige. I'm a firm believer that truth and motivation will win in the end. But then again, I spent 6 minutes working out the typos on this message....