B-BILLETS

[46Driver]

To show how everything is connected in the Corps, when those Harrier pilots received orders to flight school the odds of a helo pilot going to flight school and getting T-34C's dropped considerably - many more suddenly got orders to teach in the TH-57's.

 

[Laerg]

Do B-Billets apply to NFO's and NA's, or just NA's?

 

[46Driver]

B-Billets apply to every MOS. Grunts, pilots, SWOs, everybody.

 

[wink]

Not a Marine, so I'm assuming B billet is what we used to call a disassociated sea tour in the Navy. For the guys looking at options might I suggest a TACRON. Does that fit into the B billet option? Also curious how the Marines view it. Always had one ot two Marines in the TACRON, sometimes an Army Aviator for good measure. I was in a Reserve TACRON as a supporting arms coordinator and found it interesting and moderately challenging. Got to talk about airplanes and think tactically. Didn't bomb anything but SACs got to manage a great deal of death and destruction. The Marines on the active duty side seemed to like the job. Good deal or bad deal?

 

[esday1]

The way I understood it from my uninformed civilian perspective, the point of B-billets is to make sure that by the time they get promoted to field grade rank, every officer has served in a different type of role, and thus has a better idea of how the Corps as a whole functions. Can someone with a little bit more experience tell me if this sounds right?

"Peace on earth to men of goodwill. All others stand by."

 

[EA-6B1]

How many sea deployments could one (pilot) expect in a standard 8 year term? Assuming peace time.

"There were many airplanes, but it was the skinny bird that scared us the most."
- Iraqi POW on the AH-1W Cobra -

 

[EA-6B1]

bump

"There were many airplanes, but it was the skinny bird that scared us the most."
- Iraqi POW on the AH-1W Cobra -

 

[EA-6B1]

See if I have this right after winging...

-Start first tour-
FRS
Fleet Squadron
B Billet

-Start second tour-

I don't know how the rest of the timeline goes. Anyone able to revise and show me how the timeline (8 year committment) works for Marine aviators?

 

[phrogdriver]

Speaking from a helo perspective:

Graduate flt school--clock starts on 6 yr helo committment
FRS ("Rag") 10wks to 6 mo, dep on platform
First squadron tour--approx 4 years/two deployments with squadron, whichever comes last. The deployment cycle is all hosed now, but you need to get an "overseas control date," by spending about 1 yr of deployed time.
B-billet--about 3 years. IP, staff tour, etc.

Your initial obligation usually won't be satisfied by your time at the squadron. You'll probably move to the b-billet. One catch is that if you take PCS orders (req a move >50 miles) you owe 2 years, served concurrectly. So, if you stay 5 years, then PCS, you've just added a year to your contract.

Do your B-billet, then hopefully rotate back to a fleet squadron as a junior major and get a department head tour.

 

[BigWorm]

http://www.matsg.com/Marine%20Aviation%20Pipeline.doc
This is a pretty picture of the pipline, the only new difference is that intermediate and primary are combined into one.
After your fleet tour, it sounds more like a choose your own adventure story. The previous posts spell out a little better what will set you up for commmand, airlines, etc... Good luck!

 

[Crowbar]

1) That is correct.
2) Yes. All the training will be at Pensacola until you go to the FRS, which for NFO's your choices will be MCAS Miramar for Hornets or NAS Whidbey Island for Prowlers.
3) No. Supply makes sure you all the stuff you need. Logistics deals with taking all of said stuff, combat loading it, getting it where it needs to go, and making it available to those who need it.

 

[towbubba]

Does FAC qualify as a no kidding B billet? Is it possible for you to get a FAC tour with a garantee for a float while on that duty? Once done with FAC tour can you return to the cockpit in a desired duty station ie accompanied overseas? Can you come back to be IP at a VT and fly the sh*t out of the Texan off a FAC tour if you're a helo pilot?

 

[phrogdriver]

FAC is a B billet, but since it's only a year, you'll usually back is up with something else before coming back to the fleet, unless you got crap-canned to it between deployments at a sqdn. If you complete a full sqdn tour, then FAC, you probably want to either hit a school, e.g. EWS, or another non-fleet billet before going back to a flt sqdn. Most savvy captains would ask for flt school. Of course, why do FAC, if you can get IP right out of the sqdn, anyway? Like everything else, do well, and opportunities tend to present themselves.


As for your ?

Overseas is not hard to get--the monitors usually have a hard time filling those

You can definitely come back and fly primary for SNAs or SNFOs as a helo bubba, FAC or not. You only have limited choice as to whether you go VT or HT, however.

 

[Killer2]

Ok I might just be missing this because I am not in the Fleet yet.
phrogdriver you said "If you complete a full sqdn tour, then FAC, you probably want to either hit
a school, e.g. EWS, or another non-fleet billet before going back to a flt sqdn."
Now when you say "want" do you mean like I actually have a choice as to whether I go to a school or back to a flt sqdn? Also for us NFOs are the same opportunities for all b-billets avaiable to us as the pilots? Confused!

 

[phrogdriver]

As always, "having a choice" is a relative term. The monitors try to get as close to what you want as they can while still filling the slots they need to fill. Usually they won't send a senior captain right back to the fleet--it's just a weird spot to be in. You're senior to all the company grade bubbas, but not senior enough to be a department head. Providing you've already given your sqdn 3-5 years, you'll want/will probably spend 2-3 years out of the fleet, at least until you're a major. This is speaking from general observation/personal experience, not empirical data.

NFOs have similar B-billet opportunities; i.e. any job that doesn't require actually manipulating the controls of an aircraft.

Although I understand the curiousity, most of you can relax and stop worrying about B-billets until you get a year or two into your first flt tour.