Army?

[derf]

Originally Posted by fatbuckRTO

Speaking as an enlisted man; if this is your sole or even primary reason for joining the service, please do not become an Army or Marine Corps officer.

wow, I cant disagree with this enough. Plenty of people have joined for the wrong reasons, and gone on to have very successful careers. What you do before or why you made the commitment makes little difference to me, its how you handle yourself after that actually means something.

Originally Posted by fatbuckRTO

I've answered to Army officers throughout my career, though I was enlisted in the Marine Corps and the Navy (the Army is too fucking big to avoid them). There are too goddamn many officers in general who very obviously joined for the wrong fucking reasons and never once stopped to consider the fact that they might be leading men in war. The Army and Marine Corps are the absolute wrong services to blunder in to a leadership position half-cocked, and apparently officer training doesn't do much in terms of teaching leadership traits to those who don't already have them.

If you're just looking for a job, join the Air Force. Maybe the Navy, though the benefits are absolutely better in the Air Force. For instance, they get extra pay for staying in other services' barracks because they consider it sub-standard housing.

If you want to be where the buck stops, if you want to be responsible for the action and lives of 30 people or more right out the gate, then be an Army officer. If you think you can put the needs of your men ahead of your own needs, but above all put the mission first, be an Army officer.

Ok fair enough on the other stuff

[dReWpY]

no, this was just sooner then i expected to go. I had originally planned on the coast guard when i graduated. I am the first male to not serve on my fathers side of the family. Its about respect.

[Cutty72]

Just curious, have you thought about a Guard or Reserve component?
Still get to "play" but can stay civilian too. Generally get more time at home w/the wife and kids, and can get the same benefits medical wise, if your civilian employer does not offer them.

[OneSickPsycho]

Originally Posted by Drewpy

no, this was just sooner then i expected to go. I had originally planned on the coast guard when i graduated. I am the first male to not serve on my fathers side of the family. Its about respect.

I would think the Coast Guard would have more opportunities for you given your background anyway...

[derf]

Originally Posted by OneSickPsycho

I would think the Coast Guard would have more opportunities for you given your background anyway...

Not really, the coast guard is much more competitive, promotions are harder, and they are very selective as to who they let in.

[smileyman]

Originally Posted by derf

Not really, the coast guard is much more competitive, promotions are harder, and they are very selective as to who they let in.

An even bigger reason to sign up!

[Captain Morgan]

Originally Posted by wildchild

Capt I say this with respect. not to slam you or your relatives. i had a few friends who were AF they loved it and I respected their opinion.

that said, I was Army as said, I would rather be a homeless wino rather then have been in AF. That is just my opinion, not everyone would agree but I would never pick AF over Army for me personally.

No offense taken. As others have said, AF is more of a regular job. Everyone has their own personality and different things fit different people (as you pointed out when trying to get your son to go AF). I enjoy the outdoors, camping, hiking, etc., but not the Army way of the outdoors. I liked having a job and being able to go home after work. I liked the "freedom" the AF provided, as well as the quality of life. Sure, I can't share any "war stories" because I have none. But I really enjoyed the AF. To each their own. Maybe things have changed since I've gotten out, as Ebbs has stated the AF seems to be a bunch of whiny pansies these days. It didn't seem that way when I was in, though.

[Razor]

Originally Posted by wildchild

this is simply my explanation for myself. as i said I wanted to blow things up. only one way to do that in AF. Fly jets. if you can't fly jets you are a support person. you can work on planes or guard planes, or feed pilots, but overall, the guys that ARE the Air Force fly jets.
they do have very nice barracks. Very comfy jobs, seldom go to the field, if ever.
believe I took a lot of razzing from friends who were AF when I had to spend 30 days in the field while they went to work every day and came home.
you have to decide what kind of person you are. recruiters will all tell you that you are perfect for their team.
as i said i recommended my older son go AF. I knew he wouldn't like the field, the running, the Army basically. He hated it, not sure why he didn't do AF except because I said he should. LOL
personally I think your reason for joining is completely wrong but that's a different discussion. your GF gets pregnant so you want to sign up for a job that may cost you your life? may take you on extended tour away from home. Wives aren't always allowed and no military force cares if you're married.

yes there is a steady paycheck and a secure job BUT no one gives you that without a great risk of sacrifice. Make sure you can afford the "real" price you may have to pay for that check. My son is 100% disabled for life. it can happen.

I agree and disagree here... Most of what people see in the AF are pilots, AKA the pointy tip of the spear, but there are actually quite a few jobs in the AF where you dont have to be a pilot or support personnel. The AF has their own trigger pullers (who I think are much more "pointy tip of the spear" than pilots) from STS (Special Tactics Teams), JTAC (Joint Tactical Air Controlers), PJs (Pararescue Jumpers) to Combat Weather (trained riflemen who jump in to set up airfield operations in austere locations, maybe support personnel), Raven Teams and .50cal/minigunners on helos. Granted it takes people to serve as the cooks, personnelists, ammo troops, loggies, maintanence, air traffic controllers to make thw mission happen... and they probably account for about half of the AF.

As a standard job, the AF is probably the most stable day to day. Unless you are a cop, aircrew, transportain troop or spec ops you are on an AEF cycle (Aerospace Expedionary Force) which means you deploy 120 days out of every 2 years. If you are one of the above mentioned career fields then all bets are off, you could deploy anywhere from 60 days on-60 days off (AC-130 gunships and a few other aircraft types, due to flying hours) to 90 on-90 off, to 6 or months at a time.

Personally I think the AF has the best benefits for the individual and the dependants as well as taking the best care of said individuals. It has the best overseas assignments, even a few deployments that are nice instead of desert-suck.

Drewpy, just be sure to take what a recruiter tells you with a grain of salt and if they make you any promises be sure to get it in writing bc they will bend the truth or out-right lie, been there and done that.

Depending on your career field, you may start off being in charge of several hundred people (maintanence squadron) or you may not have any under you (except your wife) until you are a Captain or Major (some flying squadrons). Also depending on your career, you may end up being in a squadron where there is a definate class deliniation between officer and enlisted or if you ended up in some of the flying squadrons, you will find yourself working and playing side-by-side with your enlisted guys. Most C-130 squadrons (my experience) its the latter. Just depends on your career choice...

[Dave]

Originally Posted by Razor

I agree and disagree here... Most of what people see in the AF are pilots, AKA the pointy tip of the spear, but there are actually quite a few jobs in the AF where you dont have to be a pilot or support personnel. The AF has their own trigger pullers (who I think are much more "pointy tip of the spear" than pilots) from STS (Special Tactics Teams), JTAC (Joint Tactical Air Controlers), PJs (Pararescue Jumpers) to Combat Weather (trained riflemen who jump in to set up airfield operations in austere locations, maybe support personnel), Raven Teams and .50cal/minigunners on helos. Granted it takes people to serve as the cooks, personnelists, ammo troops, loggies, maintanence, air traffic controllers to make thw mission happen... and they probably account for about half of the AF.

As a standard job, the AF is probably the most stable day to day. Unless you are a cop, aircrew, transportain troop or spec ops you are on an AEF cycle (Aerospace Expedionary Force) which means you deploy 120 days out of every 2 years. If you are one of the above mentioned career fields then all bets are off, you could deploy anywhere from 60 days on-60 days off (AC-130 gunships and a few other aircraft types, due to flying hours) to 90 on-90 off, to 6 or months at a time.

Personally I think the AF has the best benefits for the individual and the dependants as well as taking the best care of said individuals. It has the best overseas assignments, even a few deployments that are nice instead of desert-suck.

Drewpy, just be sure to take what a recruiter tells you with a grain of salt and if they make you any promises be sure to get it in writing bc they will bend the truth or out-right lie, been there and done that.

Depending on your career field, you may start off being in charge of several hundred people (maintanence squadron) or you may not have any under you (except your wife) until you are a Captain or Major (some flying squadrons). Also depending on your career, you may end up being in a squadron where there is a definate class deliniation between officer and enlisted or if you ended up in some of the flying squadrons, you will find yourself working and playing side-by-side with your enlisted guys. Most C-130 squadrons (my experience) its the latter. Just depends on your career choice...

We always used to laugh our balls off when that afn recruitment ad would come on for the weather guys. Buncha dudes with all the tacticool junk, all painted up and throwing hand signals like helen keller....inflating a giant bright red balloon

[Phenix_Rider]

Definitely agree that starting a new family and a military career at the same time is a BAD idea. Right off the bat you'll be gone for basic or OCS. NO FAMILY at all. I was always told that's something you do well before you get involved, and then you better be damn sure your woman can deal with the travel and risks.

Depending what your degrees are in, you could catch a fast track for officer. I looked into AF- figured I would either get Pilot/Nav or Research Engineer, since I have an in-demand degree. For me, there was no other choice- Dad was AF, and the others just woulsn't do lol. Did great on the AFOQT, but was told to wait a year and try again because of medical crap. Obviously, I couldn't wait that long. So what do I do? Get a defense contracting job... with the Navy.

The fast track thing wouldn't have worked with Pilot/Nav- still have to wait something like 6 months for the (officer selection) boards, and then it's extremely competitive. But for engineering, and a host of related positions, they set up some sort of ad-hoc board to get you in.

And the PJs are BAD ASS. My AFJROTC MSgt had some war stories about Pararescue Jumpers... And the Colonel flew in Korea/Vietnam.