Looking for any info regarding transition from AD USMC RW to ANG FW. Last "credible" information I saw looked to be from 2006 timeframe, from which the best gouge was all about who you know. Looking for anyone to elaborate on the process and provide details or stories of success/failure. This is a surprisingly un-talked-about topic. xoxoxo
-
Please take a moment and update your account profile. If you have an updated account profile with basic information on why you are on Air Warriors it will help other people respond to your posts. How do you update your profile you ask?
Go here:
Edit Account Details and Profile
XFER to ANG ??
- Thread starter VAmookie
- Start date
This may help in looking for jobs: http://guardreservejobs.com/
Also, BaseOps may be able to provide a lot more information. http://www.flyingsquadron.com/forums/
Also, BaseOps may be able to provide a lot more information. http://www.flyingsquadron.com/forums/
No personal experience with it, but one of my IP's from advanced who I went on the road with, told me all about it......he was a USMC Hornet turning KC-135 ANG guy at the time. Sounded somewhat like rushing a frat......he had dropped into several units in the area he intended to settle down in, and kind of felt them all out before being offered a job with one of them. If you want some good insight on the process, aside from what a few AW'ers might have to add, I'd check out www.jetcareers.com board. Quite a few ANG folks over there who should have tons of info/gouge on the process, with a few of them being in similar shoes as you (experienced winged types from other services that is)
yeah, guardreservejobs and baseops really arent that helpful all. I'm looking for something a little bit beyond "what are my chances." I'll try the forum though at jetcareers, thanks MIDNJAC for that gouge. Ideally I'd like to get some input from usmc (or navy) rotary wing who've successfully made the transition or at least looked into it.
When I was looking into the reserves and ANG I looked at a few websites. www.airforceots.com and www.wantscheck.com. Both of these had a bunch of valuable info with respect to the ANG and reserve backgrounds. Also www.baseops.net has a ton of info if you look in the right areas... Honestly though it is all about who you know with respect to the ANG and AF Reserves. If you don't know someone or have been 'pledging' a unit for a while now it will be harder to get in... Seriously the info above about pledging a unit is completely accurate. If you have any more questions I will be happy to answer as I have interviewed with a few units so I have a little idea of what they are expecting.
phrogpilot73
Well-Known Member
I know a former USMC Phrog guy, who's now flying KC-135's out of Seymour Johnson in the ANG. I wish I still had his contact info to pass on to you, but at least you know it's possible. He did exactly what MIDNJAC said - he dropped in on a couple of local units and started rushing...
Full time Guard jobs are not easy to just hop into from active duty or the civilian world. They are usually reserved for proven performers already in the Guard. I was in the Guard for 3 years part time (M Day) before a good job opened up. And then,if I hadn't been one of the only people qualified for the job, it would have been more competitive.
Our unit, and I am sure most others, have been burned by self proclaimed superstars from active duty. When they come from another branch of the service, it can be hard to sniff out the BS without another former branch guy to lend a hand. For instance, I ran into some friction because a former Navy guy had ungreased the skids for further Navy acquisitions. He spouted his BS and sold the Guard on it hook, line and sinker. By the time I came along they looked at me with a skeptical eye. It turns out the guys was a loser who failed to make HAC in the Navy.
While doing the part time thing may be a financial inconvenience to active duty flyers trying to go Guard (Air or Army), you almost have to leave active duty, do the part time thing, then earn a full time position. The Guard loses a lot of good AD flyers because of this, but it provides a good filter for the posers. In my experience, if you prove yourself part time, the interview process for a full time job can be as simple as, "Do you want the job?"
That is why 'pledging' works. You can remain active duty, meet and spend time with your future coworkers, and give them a chance to see who you are. You MUST put in the extra effort. That is what the Guard is about. Even full time guys are really holding down two jobs.
Our unit, and I am sure most others, have been burned by self proclaimed superstars from active duty. When they come from another branch of the service, it can be hard to sniff out the BS without another former branch guy to lend a hand. For instance, I ran into some friction because a former Navy guy had ungreased the skids for further Navy acquisitions. He spouted his BS and sold the Guard on it hook, line and sinker. By the time I came along they looked at me with a skeptical eye. It turns out the guys was a loser who failed to make HAC in the Navy.
While doing the part time thing may be a financial inconvenience to active duty flyers trying to go Guard (Air or Army), you almost have to leave active duty, do the part time thing, then earn a full time position. The Guard loses a lot of good AD flyers because of this, but it provides a good filter for the posers. In my experience, if you prove yourself part time, the interview process for a full time job can be as simple as, "Do you want the job?"
That is why 'pledging' works. You can remain active duty, meet and spend time with your future coworkers, and give them a chance to see who you are. You MUST put in the extra effort. That is what the Guard is about. Even full time guys are really holding down two jobs.
ryan1234
Well-Known Member
What airframe / location are you looking at? Based on the information at my unit... they won't really pick up anyone normally that is an O-4 or above because they try to keep the unit from being too top heavy - but that's just them, right now. Each unit is different. There's a unit in the North East that's commanded by a former Navy guy. All of those websites are great, but the best gouge is just to go into the unit and talk to them face to face. You may get a good gouge by someone who has 'rushed' a particuar unit/airframe... but it may be totally the opposite social climate at the next unit down the road. A lot of units are more sympathetic to guys who have been BRAC'd trying to find a new home (as far as already winged guys go)... just keep that in mind - but you'll never know until you actually go to that unit and talk to them. I don't know too much about full-time slots at other units, but at ours (from what I understand) the younger guys get somewhat priority of full-time spots (after the 500 days of seasoning following the b-course) vice older guys that already have airline jobs, etc. I think that's more rare though.
NKAWTG
New Member
I am a Navy 04 (for another 12 days before becoming the newest Major in the AFRC) that made the jump from Navy Helo's to AFRC KC-135's. I should say that Ihad a C-12 tour after flying Helo's but have also been out of the cockpit for 5 years. I got off of AD, went to grad school and rushed VR squadrons with no luck. I started looking at ANG and AFRC units. My best advice is to call the units, ask to talk to the DO and don't put on the full court press. DO NOT just show up at a unit, that is bad form and you need to try and meet as many guys in the unit as possible so I would try and figure out a drill weekend when you can meet the majority of the squadron. They took me out to lunch and it really is like rushing a fraternity. Just be a good dude and odds are you will get asked to drop an application. My new squadron had a pilot selection board made up of 3 tradition reservists and they were basic fit questions i.e. what do you know about our unit mission, det cycles, how much time can you give us etc. I had a 10 min office call with the Squadron CO and then waited to hear. That is the basic process to get hired, now I'll tell you about how the sausage is made and trust me it is painful. Before my board, I had to submit about 40 pages of documents everything from SERE paperwork to an AFRC application to security clearance stuff to PFA scores etc. Luckily I had most of it from my VR apps. Once I got hired, the really painful part started, working with your AFRC recruiter. Essentially all the same stuff that was submitted to the squadron gets submitted to the recruiter again, only this time little things like putting a check mark on your DD2808 instead of your initials, it will get rejected. All my paperwork was finished and submitted in Aug and in Dec, I finally had to work a drug deal with my AF flight surgeon to sign off on calling an up chit and a DD2808, a FC II flight physical. All the while I used the gold to blue gouge that is out there. There is a lot more to the process, too much to write here, the best advice I can give you is to be a good dude and be PROACTIVE in pushing your paperwork through once you get hired. Also you are a fixed wing qualed pilot so you do not need to go through an ARB, put in for a ARB waiver which can be done at the local wing level and will save a lot of time. Good luck.
I am doing the USN FW to ANG FW right now, and agree with everything above. Once you get hired it gets a little painful, most of the pain for me came from going from USN medical to AF medical, almost like they don't speak the same language. The more frustrating part is that most folks that handle your paperwork are reservists too, so I've found myself waiting for a month on 1 form until the squadron's next drill. Feel free to PM me if you want, I can give you my experience and what worked for me, I got picked up by the first and only squadron I "rushed".
I was the Fixed Wing Qual Flight Commander at Vance AFB a few years ago so I knew several of the Army/Navy/Air Force/Marine helo pilots who got picked up for AFRC and ANG fixed wing units. They all said the above info was how they got their slots; i.e. learn about then rush the unit. But the big thing that was true then that will be true again now and for the next several years is that BRAC has a huge impact on the existence of AFRC/ANG units and their missions. I knew guys who had spent 2-3 years busting their ass for their slot just to find out at the end of FWQ training that their destination unit either transitioned to Predators or worse yet, disbanded completely. Here's a link to a report from that time frame:
http://www.ngaus.org/ngaus/files/ccLibraryFiles/Filename/000000000409/bracrelease051705[1].pdf
With 2 additional BRAC rounds looming, I would make an EXTREMELY informed decision in rushing a unit with the expectation that anything could happen, up to and including the disappearance of said unit.
http://www.ngaus.org/ngaus/files/ccLibraryFiles/Filename/000000000409/bracrelease051705[1].pdf
With 2 additional BRAC rounds looming, I would make an EXTREMELY informed decision in rushing a unit with the expectation that anything could happen, up to and including the disappearance of said unit.
With all these ANG units transitioning from F-15/F-16 to UAS, who is picking up the slack in terms of intercepts/national defense/whatever it's called?