Each community has their "hollywood" missions that everyone wants to do and then they have their "actual" missions that will you will spend most of your time doing.
HSC - Hollywood: SOF, ASUW, PR; Actual: Ass and Trash, Starboard D
HSM - Hollywood: ASW, ASUW; Actual: SSC
HM - Hollywood: flying a monster helo; Actual: ground turns
As someone close to wings, I'll say this thread has been very, very helpful. However, I know I'm going to sound like a moron here, but what's SSC?
The other question I have that's been touched on lightly here is about carrier life as a helo pilot. I originally came into the HT's hoping to select HSM, partially because I had heard in the VTs that being on a carrier is a bad time as a helo guy, but I've run across (the only) one HS instructor in my squadron who actually deployed on carriers and he loved it.
Can anyone shed (current) pros and cons about small boys/carrier life/amphib life?
For the most part, I think I'm leaning towards asking for HSC because the expeditionary missions sound sweet, the possibility of being in a det in Sicily or Bahrain, the HSC instructors in my squadron can't stop raving about VERTREP, the missions around Guam sound like a blast, etc. etc. As I said, I originally came in wanting HSM because I thought the maritime warfare (ASW/ASUW, small boys, the awesome avionics, etc.) component sounded sweet, but speaking with guys in the long, long, long FRS there who aren't enjoying it and the systems heavy knowledge (which, I'll admit, does intimidate me... while I've gotten by just fine, I never felt as comfortable on a systems test or brief compared to anything regarding flying) combined with the fact there are literally no HSM instructors in the HT's (just HSL guys), my opinion has at least started leaning towards HSC. The HSL instructors have, by any large suggested to select coast over platform, while the HSC instructors have 100% said to beg and plead if I have to to get HSC, suggesting to me they loved their mission while the HSL guys didn't as much.