Hello everyone. I have received an appointment for the class of 2018, but I have a few questions regarding flight training. I have done a lot of reading on UPT, so please do not assume I have not done my own research. This will be kind of long winded, so don't feel like you need to answer everything. Thank you!
1. Would going the AFROTC route with a Type 2 scholarship to UC Berkeley significantly lower my chances of getting selected for UPT? (Engineering major) Also, which school would you recommend?
2. Is it true that UPT washouts need to pay back the entire cost of the Academy? This prospect scares me. Would it be better to do 5 years of non-rated to finish the commitment, then try to get into UPT? Is this possible?
3. Is it possible for someone who tracks heavies to go to test pilot school, or do you need to track t-38? On another note, if you track t-38, do you need to get a fighter slot to go to test pilot school?
4. What is the current landscape of UPT looking like? (Are there a decent amount of fighter drops? Are they planning a lot of cuts in the future? Is it extremely hard to get the t-38 track?)
5. How often do pilots switch their aircraft assignments? If a heavy pilot is assigned an aircraft, will he/she be flying that plane exclusively for their career, or does he/she get to fly a lot of different aircraft? I noticed that one of the AFA graduates on this forum mentioned he had gotten to fly heavies, fighters, and trainers, but in all the threads I have been reading, the plane you get on assignment night seems like the plane/type of plane you will be flying your entire career.
6. Last question, and this does not relate to UPT. I have been hearing conflicting things about grad school after AFROTC/USAFA. If I graduate from one of these commissioning sources, do I need to be at the very top of the class to get to go to grad school? If this is the case, is it easy to get to go to grad school after serving AD for a few years?
Thanks to anyone who answers. Again, I have done research on my own on these topics, but I either can't find answers to these questions, or I have been hearing conflicting answers.
1. Would going the AFROTC route with a Type 2 scholarship to UC Berkeley significantly lower my chances of getting selected for UPT? (Engineering major) Also, which school would you recommend?
2. Is it true that UPT washouts need to pay back the entire cost of the Academy? This prospect scares me. Would it be better to do 5 years of non-rated to finish the commitment, then try to get into UPT? Is this possible?
3. Is it possible for someone who tracks heavies to go to test pilot school, or do you need to track t-38? On another note, if you track t-38, do you need to get a fighter slot to go to test pilot school?
4. What is the current landscape of UPT looking like? (Are there a decent amount of fighter drops? Are they planning a lot of cuts in the future? Is it extremely hard to get the t-38 track?)
5. How often do pilots switch their aircraft assignments? If a heavy pilot is assigned an aircraft, will he/she be flying that plane exclusively for their career, or does he/she get to fly a lot of different aircraft? I noticed that one of the AFA graduates on this forum mentioned he had gotten to fly heavies, fighters, and trainers, but in all the threads I have been reading, the plane you get on assignment night seems like the plane/type of plane you will be flying your entire career.
6. Last question, and this does not relate to UPT. I have been hearing conflicting things about grad school after AFROTC/USAFA. If I graduate from one of these commissioning sources, do I need to be at the very top of the class to get to go to grad school? If this is the case, is it easy to get to go to grad school after serving AD for a few years?
Thanks to anyone who answers. Again, I have done research on my own on these topics, but I either can't find answers to these questions, or I have been hearing conflicting answers.