Serious! Commissioned officer or warrant?

Question

I AM GOING TO GO TO COLLEGE.
Bachelors in Aeronautical Science

i dont want to enlist i want a commission.

i want to fly the apache, chances are slim, i know.

I don't care if more apache pilots are warrant officers.
I just care about what equiptment i fly in, not everyone else. What do i need to join as?

i want more flight time in general.

My fathers telling me i need to go as a commissioned officer.
everyones else says different. its 4 years from now, but still!


Please someone help me... i need the facts about both fields... please!!!

i've already flown in an MD520N im 17 landed succesfully and took off twice, hovered etc., all i have done so far!
I think i have the confidence and to do whatever it takes.


If i have an education background. Should i enlist or get a commission?

i dont want to go in military for many years just to become a pilot. as long as i am able to go stright to flight training for the apache after OCS and BCT then i'm fine with that.

Another words, i dont think i want to enlist, but get a comms and fly the apache. i want to do that, my worry is that i won't be able to fly the apache.

Answer 1

Comissioned Officers (2LT through General) Also called Real Live Officers (RLOs) by Warrants....

Pros: The pay is pretty good, only a 6 yr committment unless you decide to resign earlier. Everyone salutes you. RLOs run the military. Period.

Cons: Politics, Politics, Politics. Once you get promoted to Captain the pay is REAL good and if you stay, then it is for the LONG term (can you say 20+ yrs?)


Warrant Officers: WO1 through CW5

Pros: Above ALL enlisted ranks. About 99% have Senior NCO experience. Can tell RLOs to Pound Sand (Sometimes)

Cons: Less pay and recognition as compared to RLOs. The pay gap is tremendous but is closing.

Promotions in either Officer Branch is guaranteed unless you do something very stupid (commit war crimes, or felonies) Warrants go from WO1 to CW2 in 24 months as from 2LT to 1LT. The average time for Captain is about 4 years time in service. CW3 comes about 6-8 yrs in service.

Listen to your dad and absolutely DO NOT ENLIST. If you must join, then be a RLO or a Warrant.

If you want to fly, then become a Warrant Officer. They can fly almost indefinitely until CW5. The Comissioned Officers are limited to flying until 'till about Captain. Upon reaching Major, flight time is extremely limited. If you really want to fly, then you must Graduate the Warrant Officer Candidate School in the top 5% in order to get your airframe of choice. Flight school is 1 yr long or longer at Ft. Rucker, AL. Since you already have some flight time in the aforementioned aircraft, you should not have any problem in flight school. Become a Warrant. You can also do the "High school to flight school" option. When you graduate, go to the Army Recruiting station tell them you want to fly and they will see what they can do for you. In my Warrant Officer Candidate class, we had three of those guys and they went on to become Warrant Officers and are flying as I write this...Just another option.

BTW, flying Apaches isn't so slim because of the war in Iraq, so you never know what will happen. Blackhawk/Chinook pilots get the most flight time, so you will have to weigh your options.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

For starters the Army NEEDS pilots. Every time you turn around its the fixed wing aircraft people want to fly and not the rotar wing craft. ROTC cadets who want to fly have to pass the MIlitary Flying Aptitude test (or something like that) their Junior Year, if you want to fly and get your first choice as a newly comissioned Lt. you must have a good GPA, good LDAC scores, good PT scores, and good word from your cadre, have all those and chances are you will fly, the better your stuff and the more you want it the more likely you are to get what you want. But remember combat fly is almost always with a formation and therefore 10x more tricky then taking off and flying, there's a lot to it. And it doesn't end for you if you get selected to get aviation because thats just the beginning because at Ft. Rucker where they will train you as a pilot you can spend up to a year training depending on what piece of equipment the army says you qualify for. Not to mention once you leave flight school as what ever kind of pilot you will be you will also have to manage some kind of office of men who repair your helicopter not to mention any pilots under you and their men.

Good Luck, there's a lot to it, but it's all worth it.

Answer 4

Let me correct all the wannabes. There are NO enlisted pilots in the U.S. Military. The last enlisted pilots retired in the 1960s. They were dual status officer/enlisted who had served in World War II and were reverted to their enlisted grade either voluntarily or involuntarily. WOs and CWOs are not enlisted. There is no such thing as a CWO1 it is WO1. A WO1 does not hold a commission they hold a warrant. CWO2, CWO3, CWO4 and CWO5 are commissioned officers and hold a commission which states that they serve at the pleasure of the President of the United States just like any other commissioned officer. I should know I have my original commissioning certificate and two others framed and hanging on my wall. In the Army WOs, CWOs and other commissioned officers fly helos and certain fixed aircraft. In the Navy, at this time, CWOs do not serve as pilots, however, a program is being planned which will train and place them in the pilot's seat in helicopters and certain fixed wing aircraft. The Air Force did away WOs and CWO in about 1969, and the last one serving on active duty retired about thirty years ago. The key difference between WOs and CWOs of the Army and the Navy is that the Army has a direct procurement program which brings civilian personnel straight into the service as a WO1. The Navy selects her CWOs directly from the applications of senior NCOs who meet specific paygrade and time in service requirements.

So you have a variety of ways to go You can visit with an Army officer recruiter and see how quickly you can qualify to enter as a WO, you can ask about ROTC programs which might allow you to attend flight train during your summer cadet tours, you should discuss reserve programs, etc. Remember that selection for any aviation program requires you to meet strict physical and mental standards and selection for ANY military program is based on the "needs of the service." Go for your goal with everything you have. If anyone says you can't - show them that you can. Always keep that inner drive going and stay focused on your goal. I hope that all of this clears up any misconceptions you had about the enlisted and officer ranks. Keep building up those flight hours and, if you haven't already, get your pilot's license. It's hard not to select a proven pilot for military flight training. Now for the all the wannabes take your scuttlebutt and misinformation and stick it in your flat hat (that is if you even know what a flat hat is). . . . .

Answer 5

the chance of you flying is there, but it is NOT set in stone.

can you live with being an Army Officer if you DON'T fly? because when all is said and done, you are an Officer first, and a pilot second.

The physical requirements for Aviation are more stringent than the Ground Army. The educational requiremenst are also more stringent, and they expect more from you in the training pipeline. so what will you do if something that is ENTIRELY out of your control causes you to NOT be selected to fly? then what?

In other words if you cannot accepot and commint entirely to being an Army Officer..Warrant or Otherwise in the event that you do not get selected for Apache( or even Aviation in general).. then don;t join. simple as that.

Answer 6

Coming from a Marine Corps standpoint, I have seen both the enlisted and officer side of things. Officers are treated much differently than enlisted. But if you are a commissioned officer who was prior enlisted, you will of earned the respect of your Marines, both as an officer and a Marine, Parris Island is a much different place and atmosphere than OCS.

Secondly take the ASVAB to see if your score will give you a pilots bid and be ready for even more school and testing once you get into the military regardless of your major. My boyfriend got a pilots bid and he received his undergraduate in history.

Best of Luck!!!!

Answer 7

As a vet allow me to tell you that Warrants get to fly longer however in a reduction in force they go before commissioned officers. Commissioned Officers fly the Apache too.

Answer 8

The Army has a Flight Canidate program. You get out of basic as an E5(flight canidate) you go to Ft Rucker,Al for flight training and when you graduate, you will be a pilot and a CWO1. With a degree, you have a better chance of being selected into the program and possibly a chance to get promoted early.

Answer 9

If you want to fly you need to go to school-things have changed. Do ROTC and go academy-academy-if you get in your are almost guaranteed a pilot slot-as the process to getting in is so rigorus-you have to be the best of the best. If you want to be an officer-then stay in school-and over all stay in school-you'll have more chances to do what you want. That is my goal as well, not to fly but to be an officer-you need your bachelor's degree-and although you can enlist and go to school-it'll be 10 times harder and you'll have to work your way up. You seem to not know a lot about this, and it's kind of crucial that your age you know more, because if you want to be a pliot-it's tough road-so you have to be ready before hand. Research the information on being a pilot in the military. You have to excel in mathematics and in science-your grades have to be the cream of the crop-if you want that pilot slot-they don't accept anything but perfection. Sucks that you have to wait to get there, but hell so do I-and i know unless I don't have another choice-I will stay in school.

Answer 10

Warrant officers are more suited for people who have been in the military for many years, as it is a specialist position. It's also very tricky to pass the exams and show leadership qualities at such of a warrant officer.

Commissioned officers are more of a political type military person.

Id say for a pilot I would go with warrant officer.