We have been told that we will most likely see them as senior Captains. Select officers will be able to take the advanced airframe courses on them to be prepared to receive them into formations.
@Casey will be able to comment on this better than I can--this is just what the Aviation branching representatives have told me.
Yea, this sounds fairly in line with what I expect if not even longer to see widespread proliferation through the force. Acquisitions, particularly with how expensive and how long it takes to get an aircraft off the line at the factory to the end of the user, takes a very long time.
To give some perspective, the UH-60M, which was not as radical of a change as these airframes will introduce into manning, maintenance, and force structure, first started being fielded around 2007. The last active duty assault battalion to get their Mikes got them in 2020, and right now it can take anywhere from 1-2 years to get an aircraft out of the factory, through the correct mods, and out to the force for actual use. Short of total war where we shut everything down and just make production a priority, I expect fielding for the new airframes to occur similarly where they are phased out into the force over a couple decades based on mission priority and ability to force restructure.
To that end, there are also a number of initiatives running concurrently to extend the life of the current airframes through this transition I would bet goes through the next couple decades. Look up the UH-60V project and some of the CH-47 block mods that will be fielded over the next decade if you’re interested
So odds are, I’d bet you end up flying legacy aircraft unless you work out some luck and timing that you’re in the right place, right time and the Army thinks it’s worth the investment to train you in the new airframe. Either way, it’ll be a fun time. Flying is cool
