I work with both Pilots and FOs on my current platform. Pilots fly the aircraft, make sure the aircraft itself is good to go, ensure safety of crew, deal with maintenance control. FOs are like flying Intel Officers. They work in the back, mostly focused on using the aircraft as a tool to get their job done (i.e. sending messages, monitoring certain areas, communications, etc..) Both are obviously important and both get to fly, but Pilots are more hands-on with the aircraft itself whereas FOs simply use the aircraft to do a job that could theoretically be done on the ground or in a submarine.
My current rate is essentially an enlisted version of an NFO (minus the pay and full brunt of responsibility if things go south). For me personally, I love actually flying and being more involved with the aircraft (maintenance, checking fluid levels, etc...) which is why I'm applying for Pilot. Plus, there's more platforms that are available to Pilots than NFOs. Of course, NFOs also have different unique opportunities open to them because of the nature of their job.
