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P-3 vs EP-3

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I'm sure it's happened, but not in a looooooong time. Orion/Aries Mafia likes to start ya and keep ya, if you get "the nod", that is.
 
phrogdriver said:
Curiousity from a rotorhead--do you guys ever switch between the two, or are you mostly stovepiped for the rest of your career?
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It happens, but not very often, you are almost always stovepiped. While I was in my VQ squadron we had 5 guys from VP land. Three of them did not make the cut to be VP department heads (they were actually not that bad) and were sent to us and 2 were pilots who wanted to fly instead of going to the boat and we needed pilots. Once they came to us though they did not go back, I guess they were tainted. There are actually some units where they mix but that is for later.

We were sort of a collection agency for just about every aviation community though. In my time there we had guys from F-14's, H-3's, E-2's, S-3's, H-1's, EA-6's and VRC C-130's. We had a bunch of A-6 types after their drawdown, ES-3's after theirs and some Antarctic support LC-130 guys. The reason we had so many different types was that we were such a small community and had an easier time absorbing them, culturally and manning wise. It was a great advantage because you had such a wide breadth of experience that helped you in your mission, and in trying to find the best liberty spots. All the helo guys were transitions and most of the Tacair types had their platforms go away, a couple had med problems that prevented them from flying their previous aircraft.

I know of no VQ types that went to VP personally though.
 
Keep in mind that we had a wardroom of over 80, about 65 were flyers. A lot of slots to fill.
 
I'm holding my nose here because it pains me to say anything remotely complimentary about the VP community, but I read a lessons learned report from the Afgan war that stated the Army would rather have a P-3C overhead then any other surveillance platform. BZ. As to the ASW, I hope there is a renewed emphasis. Who the heck is going to defend against the Iranian, North Korean and Chinese subs with the helos and P-3s off playing with their new friends.
 
webmaster said:
MMA (Multimission Maritime Aircraft) is the follow on to the P3, and is a fully funded program. The decision between airframes, Boeing 737 and Lockheed Orion21 (P3) will be decided ~28May. You will see new aircraft in the Fleet around 2010, first deployer in 2012. P3s and the community will be around for awhile to come.
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Did they make a choice?
 
Two cents from an EP-3E type at the FRS

I winged earlier this year out of Corpus, and made the decision to go EP-3's after talking to P-3 pilots from both sides. With just a few more weeks left at the FRS, these are the pro's and con's that I could come up with, from a No-P's point of view:

Pro's
1. More flight time.
2. New plane coming, hopefully sooner than the MMA.
3. Det's instead of deployments, no 24-month cycle.
4. Better opportunity for a flying billet after the first tour.
5. Flying one of only 12 such aircraft in the world, national assets.
6. Rota.
7. Well-defined and indispensable mission.


Con's
1. Neon sperm.
2. Not shooting weapons.
3. Crash landing in China.
4. Advanced SERE. Once is enough.
5. Taking incessant crap from VP guys (Is it jealousy?)
6. Whidbey.
7. Not getting to see the NAV try to manually open the bomb bay and keep his glasses on at the same time.

Let me reiterate that these are just my observations; definitely open to debate.

JMA
 
no rota for you! VQ-2 is moving to Whidbey. But from what my buddy says about VQ (he's in VQ-1) life is very good there. I like VP, though there are certainly some aspects that suck.
 
I'd heard that pilots were being sent to VQ-1 for the VQ FRS and then staying until VQ-2 gets here. VQ-2 is slated to start moving in Dec 04. Personally, i wish they'd stay in Rota, parking sucks here without another squadron!
 
VQ questions

I am flying T-44s now and I am still undecided (but leaning towards VQ). I just had a few questions to help make my choice.

1. How long is the EP-3 FRS and is there any holding pool? Webmaster, I know you mentioned that it was 3-4 months but I wanted to know if that included any delays.

2. What is the official word on VQ-2's status? Is it still slated to transfer to Whidbey? Or somewhere else? I have heard mixed messages on this.

3. Can somebody give me a little info on Advanced SERE? What does it consist of comapared to regular SERE, where is it located, how long is it, and when do you go?

4. I have read several posts regarding housing (non-govt) in Whidbey and have already begun looking at real estate in the area. But can someone tell me what areas most people live in and what is/are the farthest area(s) within 30 minutes of NAS? Also, is anybody aware of any newer construction homes within LTJG pay?

5. If I were to choose a non-flying shore billet (in order to remain in Whidbey) after my first flying sea tour, would this hurt my chances for promotion later?

These are most of the concerns I have right now and I apologize if I have rehashed a topic that has been discussed before. I tried to keep it to specific, pointed questions that I haven't seen thorough answers for. Thanks in advance for the info.
 
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