A tale as old as time, NPQ in the pipeline

[exNavyOffRec]

I was enlisted in aviation for 5 years and in my experience...MY experience, I have been approached quite a bit from quite a few of the three letter federal intelligence government agencies. They didn't really seem to care about the specifics of what I did in the military, as much as just being a veteran, having dealt with things in the Middle East and Europe, having held a clearance and having taken some leadership positions and handled personnel from a young age (e.g. I was running line shack when I was 20 yrs old, and was in charge of 20 kids). I got several really appealing and well compensated offers ever since. I might be completely off about it, but that's what I've seen.

Government agencies understand better how the services work, I should have specified civilian employers.

 

[AllAmerican75]

Good Evening,

I have found much information on this and many opinions but as many come and go, titles change, users get wiser, experience has grown, and there is someone like me who may be put in a situation you have the answer to. I am the first admit I did not event the wheel, nor will I recreate it and I appreciate those that have rolled them before me. This is for all those of those people actually living this scenario.

Lets say, its 2021 and hypothetically you get to the end of OCS and you have NPQ'd from aviation over the suspicion of a degenerative eye condition. The letter from NAMI takes all the way to week 12 before you have officially been released from your flight opportunity. You left your wife, a great job, and an entire career, to fly for the Navy; all for you to be told you have an eye issue that COULD cause a problem later so they will not take chance on pushing you down to Pensacola, but currently you see 20/30 uncorrected and 20/20 corrected so you qualify for all other designators.

Lets say, the only offer on the table is SWO. Are those 4 years of your time in your 20's worth it? Looking back on your careers and your goals, would you do it? Would you do it differently knowing what you know now? This isn't a question of whether or not you want to be a Naval Officer, because that is with any designator at OCS. If the designator was trash man, people will go "well at least you are a Naval Officer," yeah that still picks up trash. I will have held a similar title prior to going to OCS and the clout isn't what I was chasing, rather the chance to command an aircraft and honestly above all, work with a group of people who I felt have a mindset much like my own. The aviation community is one of the biggest things I admire of the Navy. I always wanted to "be like those guys" growing up. This scenario could be all to real for many people and with someone I know approaching that, I don't think there are many resources to turn to other than those who have come before.

I appreciate any and all feed back. No disrespect intended to SWO's. Many candidates just have 0 intention on doing that job for any part of our life prior to arriving at OCS. Personally, I would be more interested in Intel (closest to my background) or Crypto, but there is mixed gouge as to whether there are even options or its just "SWO or get out." Which is irrelevant to this forum. I just am looking for your mixed bag of experiences.

Thank you,

SM816

Boy, this is a question tailor-made for me to answer. A little background: https://www.airwarriors.com/community/threads/need-some-swotivation.38497/. If you want more, just dig through my post history.

I spent my whole life wanting to be a Naval Aviator. I ate, drank, slept, and breathed it for the better part of 23 years and met road block after road block (Just check my post history). I applied to the Academy 3 times, ROTC twice, and OCS 4 times. I got picked up for an Aviator slot only to be medically disqualified within my last week of OCS for something they couldn't even determine I had. I then dealt with a first DIVO tour on a ship that was the epitome of every negative SWO stereotype you've ever heard and some you haven't. Somehow, by the grace of the Almighty alone I managed to piece together everything I needed for a lateral transfer package -- LORs, letter request, CO's endorsement, etc. -- and submitted it on time. And you know what happened? NAMI responded to my flight surgeon by saying that they (the NAMI waiver board) knew exactly who I was and that they would NEVER let me in a cockpit that had Navy or Marine Corps stenciled on the side.

But, let me tell you, my life didn't end there and neither did my career. I've had some fantastic adventures in the Navy, some that I never would have had if I had been in Aviation and I love what I'm doing now. There are fun, rewarding things to do in the Navy other than fly planes and there are great Americans that you will have the opportunity to serve under and besides and even lead. The Navy is less an employer and more an adventure. There are options after your minimum time as a SWO, and if they won't offer you anything but SWO, ask if you can be a SWO option, e.g. SWO-IP, SWO-Crypto, SWO-Intel, SWO-EDO, SWO-METOC, SWO-FAO, etc. Those will mean that you do 4 years as a SWO and then transition into another community automatically. Also, those communities do a LOT of recruiting through the lateral transfer/redsignation process. I went through it and am now an EDO and enjoying it immensely. This is really a matter of what YOU want in YOUR life. What will leave YOU fulfilled and satisfied at the end? For me, even though my career hasn't turned out exactly as I thought it would, it has still been fulfilling and fun. I also knew that if I accepted the medical discharge they offered me, I would always have the nagging doubts in my mind about "What if?" and what could have been. I didn't want to live my life with those regrets haunting me in the twilight of my life.

And if you are still looking for some motivation think about this: Yes, you will have hard, boring days as a SWO but, then you will also have days where you get to re-enlist one of your hot running Sailors. You'll have times where you're in charge of fighting the ship and directing air and surface assets to hunt a foreign submarine at night, while preparing for an Underway Replenishment. You'll have a fresh cup of coffee and a hot cinnamon bun (It's good to be friends with the cooks and FSAs) while watching the sunrise over Malta and knowing that in a few hours you'll be sitting in a cafe drinking cappuccinos and exploring ancient ruins. You'll be entrusted to take a boarding team onto another vessel over the horizon and bring them home safely. You'll have stories to tell your grandchildren and then be able to pull out the mementos to prove that you were there. You'll be able to be stationed in foreign ports and take your family around the world. You'll have something to look back upon proudly and know that you did something significant. You get one shot to live the adventure and embark on the Grand Campaign. Don't pass it up just because it's not working out exactly as you thought it would.