In comparison to the other two major service academies, USAFA seems to send many more graduates to non-combat related fields. I believe it's about 50% at USAFA, whereas at West Point about 28% go into non-Combat Arms careers and USNA sends only about 5% to restricted line roles. Is the Air Force significantly weighted more towards these civilian-like officer careers (such as engineering, personnel, logistics, public affairs etc.) than the other branches, or is this just a reflection of how the services allocate slots to graduates of their respective academies?
Careers After USAFA
- Thread starter falcon25
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BuckeyeDad20
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The mission, role and capabilities of each service drive its posture, manpower and deployments. There certainly are roles in the USAF where airmen see combat. But for every aircrew, there are a huge amount of people behind them that handle the maintenance, logistics, intelligence, security and training. For every PJ, STO, CRO, there is an entire support team behind them. Keep in mind that there are many jobs that may not be what you think of as direct combat roles, but require individuals to deploy in combat zones - maintenance, communications, intelligence, medical, security, civil engineering, etc. Even in Space Operations, you can be involved in hazardous operations such as spacecraft fueling or pad ops.
However, there are a great number of roles in the USAF that do not occur in a combat zone nor involve hazardous ops. Sometimes jokingly referred to as the Chair Force or as those of us in SPOs were called sometimes - Chairborne Rangers. It's in fun and we gave it back when needed since we were smarter and had quicker wit than the flyboys anyway.
So allocation to graduates is a function of USAF manpower needs, not an Academy specific situation. While I do not have the stats, I imagine USAFA sends more people to "combat related" fields percentage wise than AFROTC or OTS.
However, there are a great number of roles in the USAF that do not occur in a combat zone nor involve hazardous ops. Sometimes jokingly referred to as the Chair Force or as those of us in SPOs were called sometimes - Chairborne Rangers. It's in fun and we gave it back when needed since we were smarter and had quicker wit than the flyboys anyway.
So allocation to graduates is a function of USAF manpower needs, not an Academy specific situation. While I do not have the stats, I imagine USAFA sends more people to "combat related" fields percentage wise than AFROTC or OTS.
This is recent and GREAT!!!
This is a great example of what @buckeye10 is saying....accounting, anyone?
Jose Sarduy, Preventing an International Incident
Non-Pilot = Second Rate??
Good afternoon folks! I was hoping someone with experience in the Air Force, or dealing with the USAF, could tell me if what everyone's been telling me is true. If you are not a pilot, do others in the AF look down on you and treat you as a second rate citizen? Thank you.
www.serviceacademyforums.com
This is a great example of what @buckeye10 is saying....accounting, anyone?
Jose Sarduy, Preventing an International Incident