Sergrad - How does it affect your career?

[insanebikerboy]

I got into the T-38 at about 3,300 hours between helos and light and heavy fixed wing. I never failed a flight until the 38. It wasn’t the stick and rudder, I could fly the jet fine. What was tough for me was the mindset shift of having to do everything myself. Ironically the flights I failed were instrument hops because of the single pilot task saturation.

I say that to say, non-pointy nose types can learn fast jets, but I’d be willing to bet there will inevitably be a learning curve.

 

[Gatordev]

but I did hear the feedback that while it’s absolutely true some helo folks can struggle when returning to the FW mindset

I've mentioned this before, but for every NATOPS 1 event I did with a RW IUT in the FITU, I'd brief that for their first landing, they were going to try to kill us. I'd then brief why and how to counter it. And then on every flight, on their first landing, they'd try to kill us on short final at 50'. After the first couple of landings, generally speaking, the RW guys would progress normally.

The other struggle bus event (besides just getting acclimated to not getting airsick) was NATOPS 2 which consisted of shooting 7 approaches under the hood, mostly back-to-back. The intent was to do it single-pilot (although the IP would run tune the VHF due to it being up front). The event is a handful as an IUT, like IBB is saying, but it's a good introduction to understanding how as a future IP, you will be truly single-pilot...at best. Sometimes you might be even less than that with Junior.

 

[MIDNJAC]

Can confirm. My incoming PXO was a sergrad. He's had some pretty accelerated tours but he caught up to his peers and he'll be my XO this fall.

Easy to accelerate JO shore, second JO sea, and post-DH gigs. They make it work if they want it to work. Plenty of slop for those who made nominal progress through the VT's as students. Doubly so for any NFO types.

 

[FFW1034]

Greetings all. I am curious about how Sergrad affects the longevity of a career in the Navy, and how it works into shore/sea tours in jet-land. I am slowly (but surely) getting closer to the end of advanced, and there are several Sergrads nearing the end of their year at my squadron. Rumor has it that their replacements will be picked once they transfer out to the FRS about the same time I am scheduled to complete. I have gotten gouge that this opportunity to instruct right out of advanced is a career killer in the long run, and affects promotability, and screws up established timelines and milestones. Is there any truth to this? I recognize that this is outside of my control, I am just hoping to get a better picture of how this year commitment instructing prior to the FRS plays into everything. I don't know what I don't know, and the gouge seems a little too doom and gloom to be trustworthy. Appreciate it, thanks.

Do well during every assignment and it all takes care of itself. You can research it but fairly certain the current INDO-PACOM Commander was a SERGRAD, so there’s your answer.

 

[FormerRecruitingGuru]

Do well during every assignment and it all takes care of itself. You can research it but fairly certain the current INDO-PACOM Commander was a SERGRAD, so there’s your answer.

Welcome to the forum, Pappy.