31OCT22 SNA/SNFO BOARD

[elariosa95]

I wanna fly fast, talk trash, and eat ass

We need this on a shirt

 

[68Chev]

Since I’m relatively new to this message board and I don’t know if this has been discussed previously but we’re all in this together, what’s everyone’s draw to becoming a naval aviator/NFO?

I’ll start: after 5 years of working on fighters I got out to go to school as well as got a civilian aircraft maintenance job. Got so tired of working on them I’ve decided to fly them. And also being a pilot is a lifelong dream of mine but don’t have the money or time to pursue it privately.

My uncle was a maintainer aboard the Eisenhower. He showed me home videos of hornets that he took whenever he came back home. I was hooked that day. I worked hard for towards a mechanical engineering degree to have the chance to work on projects like the ones that gave us the Hornet, Tomcat, Blackbird ETC. But the combination of my first airshow recently and working at a machine shop that made parts for the Aerospace and Defense industry, I realized that I always wanted one thing every time we worked on a new job: The part that I've spent so much of my time working on, I want to know where it goes. So I decided I would chase that.

In summary... I wanna fly fast & talk trash

 

[ChandosT]

In summary... I wanna fly fast & talk trash

Don't we all brother

 

[Furnace01]

Since I’m relatively new to this message board and I don’t know if this has been discussed previously but we’re all in this together, what’s everyone’s draw to becoming a naval aviator/NFO?

I’ll start: after 5 years of working on fighters I got out to go to school as well as got a civilian aircraft maintenance job. Got so tired of working on them I’ve decided to fly them. And also being a pilot is a lifelong dream of mine but don’t have the money or time to pursue it privately.

I always liked aircraft since my family went to museums and air shows, but halfway through my aerospace engineering degree I thought since I'm working so hard to design aircraft and such I might as well take the plunge and fly the planes I always adored. After all, flying is more fun than working behind a cubicle.

 

[ChandosT]

I always liked aircraft since my family went to museums and air shows, but halfway through my aerospace engineering degree I thought since I'm working so hard to design aircraft and such I might as well take the plunge and fly the planes I always adored. After all, flying is more fun than working behind a cubicle.

Yeah I'm sorta similar to this in that when I was in as an enlisted maintainer I used to get so annoyed by how the F/18 was designed internally that it sent me down the path of pursuing an engineering degree. Now here I am about halfway done with that and I decided screw it, I'd rather fly them. Still have the passion for engineering but this is the pipe dream. If it doesn't work out then I'll be an engineer. Good problems to have.

 

[Furnace01]

Yeah I'm sorta similar to this in that when I was in as an enlisted maintainer I used to get so annoyed by how the F/18 was designed internally that it sent me down the path of pursuing an engineering degree. Now here I am about halfway done with that and I decided screw it, I'd rather fly them. Still have the passion for engineering but this is the pipe dream. If it doesn't work out then I'll be an engineer. Good problems to have.

Exactly, the worst that can happen is I can't fly, then at least I can still have a good fallback.

 

[BDavis11]

I’m retesting on the 7th. Caught up with my old department head. Turns out he’s besties with the admiral that needs to endorse my package for ISPP.


Good times are here again!

Not besties though! Lol

 

[ChandosT]

Did anyone here reach out to a government official for one of their references in their package? I'm considering trying to get one from one of my state's representatives but I'm not sure how to go about it, especially when they have no idea who I am. My recruiter said it would look really good though to have an endorsement from one.

 

[space_sailor]

I'm considering trying to get one from one of my state's representatives. My recruiter said it would look really good though to have an endorsement from one.

Fairly certain for the SNA/SNFO board they don't really care about references.
Most important: PFAR/FOFAR
Next: OAR & AQR
Next: GPA

References are pretty low on the list of importance. BUT you should have ppl who know you write your references. Get your employer (team lead, boss), college prof, former coach, former scout leader, etc; to give you a rec way before a government employee you do not even know on a personal basis.

Edit: again, to my knowledge references are mostly used not as a golden ticket but more as a way to make sure the Navy doesn't bring on someone who is bat shit crazy

 

[ChandosT]

Fairly certain for the SNA/SNFO board they don't really care about references.
Most important: PFAR/FOFAR
Next: OAR & AQR
Next: GPA

References are pretty low on the list of importance. BUT you should have ppl who know you write your references. Get your employer (team lead, boss), college prof, former coach, former scout leader, etc; to give you a rec way before a government employee you do not even know on a personal basis.

Yeah, I did think that was a little weird that they'd want to see a person in congress who I'll never meet give me a reference.

 

[elariosa95]

Did anyone here reach out to a government official for one of their references in their package? I'm considering trying to get one from one of my state's representatives but I'm not sure how to go about it, especially when they have no idea who I am. My recruiter said it would look really good though to have an endorsement from one.

A buddy of mine works for NASA and he gave me a reference. He’s an engineer though, not some upper management guy, so he wrote “professional peer” as his relation to me

 

[ChandosT]

I've also thought about reaching out to one of my old commanding officers (actual fighter pilots) from when I was in, but I'll have to reach out to other people to get their contact info because I don't have it

 

[BB Poison]

I've also thought about reaching out to one of my old commanding officers (actual fighter pilots) from when I was in, but I'll have to reach out to other people to get their contact info because I don't have it

This is a better idea, you’d want it to be someone who can actually attest to your character and work ethic, not some rando. I will say that I don’t think LORs hold a lot of weight for SNA/SNFO. I only had one LOR from a college professor and I was selected while other with worse scores but multiple LORs from high-ranking O’s weren’t, so take that for what it’s worth.

 

[Anthony2000]

This is a better idea, you’d want it to be someone who can actually attest to your character and work ethic, not some rando. I will say that I don’t think LORs hold a lot of weight for SNA/SNFO. I only had one LOR from a college professor and I was selected while other with worse scores but multiple LORs from high-ranking O’s weren’t, so take that for what it’s worth.

Yeah LORs don’t make a huge difference. One of mine was a Blue Angel (O-6), another was a General USAF F-35 and Thunderbird (O-7), and my other one is a current USN F-35 pilot (O-3).

Definitely want some but they aren’t a make or break type of deal. ASTB is what gets you in, specifically PFAR for SNA.

 

[ChandosT]

Thanks for the advice guys. Definitely vindicates my confusion from my recruiter just randomly bringing that up to me. I ended up emailing my district representatives office anyway just to see what they will say. I guess a congresswoman's LOR can't hurt me but it probably isn't necessary.

Edit: I do have LOR's from my boss (I'm a lead technician at my job so that should be a decent one), and I'm waiting to hear back from a math professor that I really enjoyed taking differential equations from lol