Hi all!
I am interested in branching aviation. What is the time commitment? I would love to fly but am also cautious to extend my time in, given that at 20/21 it is a lot to commit to.
Thanks!
Both of my son's branched Aviation out of AROTC, one has moved over to Civil Affairs and the younger is still AV. The commitment for both of them was 6 years, some will tell you that the 6 years starts after you graduate flight school but for them that's not what was shown on their original orders.
The post above is correct in regard to Warrant vs Regular Officer if you plan on staying in the Army past your first commitment. WO's will fly for most of their career, RLO's will move more to staff, planning and command positions. You are correct in that you will fly as much as the warrants in the beginning, after a couple years you will most likely move to a staff job, you will still fly, how much will depend on your unit.
As a RLO in Aviation you'll wear a lot of hats, my younger son has been planning Pacific Pathways for the past few months, he has been to Thailand for two one month trips for planning Pathways that will start in Feb. He is approaching the 4 year mark in the Army and he still flys, just not as much as when he first reported. This summer he will be heading back to Ft. Rucker for the Captains Career Course for about 8 months, he will not be flying while there. The amount of flying he will do after that will depend on where and what he does next.
As was mentioned above, as a RLO you will spend more time on staff and have some opportunity for a command over your career, flying is not the main mission of an Aviation RLO, but you will gain a lot of experience in various positions you hold.