Hello everyone! I want to fly jets off of aircraft carriers, plain and simple. It’s been a dream of mine since I was a kid, so cool. I’m currently 18 years old, graduated high school in May, and I’m not sure what my best course of action is to even get my foot in the door with this. I’m currently not enrolled in a university or anything. My plan right now was to enlist in the military and go army reserves and then go to ROTC once I’m out of BMT and AIT. Is this a good idea? Or should I do active duty navy and try and get into one of their programs like STA-21? I’m not sure of anything currently, but I am medically qualified and got an 88 ASVAB. Could anyone direct me in anyway as to give me the best angle of attack on this thing? I really want to fly planes, that’s the main goal, hopefully in the navy as a fighter pilot.
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I want to become a naval aviator
- Thread starter 1ceman
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This would be becoming a Naval Aviator on extra difficult mode.
Read the forums, look up NROTC and the Naval Academy, look up OCS, and start with community college ASAP taking calculus, chemistry, and other STEM classes.
You graduated in May/June, what have you been doing this year since then?
Read the forums, look up NROTC and the Naval Academy, look up OCS, and start with community college ASAP taking calculus, chemistry, and other STEM classes.
You graduated in May/June, what have you been doing this year since then?
To become an aviator, step one is to earn a Bachelor's Degree. Step two is to apply to become an Officer.
While enlisting in the military is one path to earning a commission in the military, it's not the most direct and is fraught with peril. during my time in the US Navy, I've known people that had a degree, enlisted, and did not get a commission even after several attempts....they ended up serving and getting out. If you have the aptitude and grades, I'd recommend going to college or university.
Interning at a church, and trying to enlist. I’ve been living out of the US for almost 3 years until this summer. Doing online school was a breeze and I didn’t think about the future as much as I should have. So when April/May came up then I started looking into college and I realized I should have been doing this a year ago, honestly I felt discouraged and that I had fallen behind so I didn’t enroll into any university. I’m thinking about going Spring or Fall 2025 once I’m in reserves or guard.
Welcome to the forum. Search similar topics to your question, and read, think, and absorb.
Bottom line, I think you're due for a reality check on your gameplan.
Good luck!
Bottom line, I think you're due for a reality check on your gameplan.
Good luck!
Don't enlist if your goal is to become an officer. Get your degree, then apply for OCS, or try to get an ROTC slot.
Go to college, get commissioned via ROTC or OCS and compete for a flight spot. Do not enlist. Also, you’re statistically unlikely to select fighters, so be prepared to fly helos or P-8s.
FormerRecruitingGuru
Making Recruiting Great Again
Welcome to the forums. The “new guy” posts are strongly discouraged and there’s already information here for folks like yourself and the thousands of others.
Just like your peers, do the research. Welcome!
Also Iceman, if memory serves right, the poster above did it the other way (E to O). My older brother did as well. One benefit; he was able to get college on the navy’s dime, after enlisting sub nuke. And retire as an LT (@38!) His advice would echo the above though FWIW.
Just my perspective as an enlisted guy going up for board this fall; I would enlist as a last resort. About two and a half years ago, I decided to pursue this path, and going in from the outside would have been a lot easier. You'll probably be held back by at least three years waiting to become eligible for tuition assistance, and it'll be a lot harder to be a full-time student while AD (if not STA-21).
Some info on the Naval Reserve Officers' Training Corps to get you started: https://www.netc.navy.mil/nstc/nrotc/
Welcome. You’ve got some good advice so far, and you’ve got a lot of basic research to do. AW’s has a lot of wisdom on the process, particularly the stickied forums. Good luck to you.
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