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NROTC/Aviation...NFO/Aviator vision??

B

Brfuga32

New Member
I am currently a high school senior and I plan on attending ISU for Aerospace engineering. I will aslo be attending the NROTC for the Marine option, and I want to go into aviation. I hope to become a helo pilot but my vision is 20/100... not so great. So my concern is that I won't be able to become an aviator. Is there any way that I can get laser surgery through the Marines to become an aviator, or will that disqualify me? Also, if so, when would the surgery happen? Even if I'm not able to become an aviator, I still wish to stay in the aviation field. I am also considering becoming and NFO if my eyesigt is an issue. There's another problem though... Are the NFO's becoming extinct? I still think there's hope for the glory of such people, like "Goose" in "Top Gun, regardless of technological revisions. I don't want to be stuck on the ground working on the planes/helos, I want to be in them!

-Thank you much for any help
 
Brett327

Brett327

Well-Known Member
None
Super Moderator
Contributor
Brfuga32 said:
I am currently a high school senior and I plan on attending ISU for Aerospace engineering. I will aslo be attending the NROTC for the Marine option, and I want to go into aviation. I hope to become a helo pilot but my vision is 20/100... not so great. So my concern is that I won't be able to become an aviator. Is there any way that I can get laser surgery through the Marines to become an aviator, or will that disqualify me? Also, if so, when would the surgery happen? Even if I'm not able to become an aviator, I still wish to stay in the aviation field. I am also considering becoming and NFO if my eyesigt is an issue. There's another problem though... Are the NFO's becoming extinct? I still think there's hope for the glory of such people, like "Goose" in "Top Gun, regardless of technological revisions. I don't want to be stuck on the ground working on the planes/helos, I want to be in them!

-Thank you much for any help
Click to expand...

Check out (through the search function) some of the threads on PRK. It's definitely an option for you, but getting it done through the service AND getting an air slot will be a challenge. As for NFOs, their long term future (2015 and beyond) is in question for the Marines, as their D model Hornets and Prowlers get retired, but NFOs in the Navy continue to have bright futures in a variety of platforms. If your true goal is to pilot helos for the Marines, I advise you to educate yourself on your options for PRK (which you'll probably have to pay for yourself), and go from there.

Brett
 
Zilch

Zilch

This...is...Caketown!
Welcome to the board and congrats on NROTC, and may I say you made the right choice with the Marine option. :icon_wink

Before anyone else here jumps on you, be sure to use the "Search" function up there on the blue menu bar. You'll find the answers to pretty much everything you just asked by doing so. Eye surgeries, the future of NFO's, and so on have all been discussed at length.

Marine NFO, though, is a great way to go if you want my biased opinion. If you think jets are your thing, I think Marine NFO is the only way to garuntee yourself a slot in a jet (provided you complete all your training, etc.) The Corps only puts NFO's in F/A-18D's as WSO's and in Prowlers as ECMO's. That's it, so your future is in less flux than it might be for another pipeline.

Anyway, for now just worry about doing well in school. Obviously, the better you do, the more options and leverage you have. That, and get in great shape if you aren't already. I know NROTC is a bit different than the 10-week OCS program I'm more familiar with, but either way the Marines don't play around with that stuff.
 
jfulginiti

jfulginiti

Active Member
pilot
None
The Marine Corps won't pay to fix your eyes so you can be a pilot. If you get it done yourself, then you'll just need a waiver, which I don't think is a big deal as long as you are 20/20 with no complications.

For everything else, including NFO, you just need to be correctable to 20/20.

There has been much debate on here about the future of NFO's in the Marine Corps. No one really knows for sure but I think we've all come to the same general conclusion. Do a search and you'll find some of the discussions.
 
B

Brfuga32

New Member
The Corps only puts NFO's in F/A-18D's as WSO's and in Prowlers as ECMO's.

I was just curious. What is a WSO or a ECMO?
 
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