Delayed Flight School Question

[Usnavy2019]

SNA here currently in Advanced. 22 months is bad gouge. I can't remember specifically how long it is taking right now for people to get into a class, but it is certainly not taking two years. Closer to a year is my guess. I waited 8 months or so. Navy flight school always runs off the pool model (get people down to training, make them wait, and send them in when it is their turn). Delays happen because of the amount of students compared to the amount of resources (think of a freeway at rush hour), weather, maintenance, multiple syllabi, instructor manning, operations, funding, etc. Needless to say, there are so many factors that make the wait ebb and flow.

Your son should pick up a hobby, but getting a masters is a bit of a stretch. The advertised wait is an average and people getting called way earlier than expected does happen. Wouldn't be awesome if that happened in the middle of a semester/quarter.

The Navy has pretty much stopped pilot/NFO selections from OCS so they can work through the current backlog. So it could very well be better by the time your soon commissions. There is plenty of waiting though. I on month 4 of waiting for Advanced and I'll be in class next Friday. It is just part of being a flight student.

 

[nuensis]

Son is a 1/C hoping for a pilot slot. He heard from recently commissioned NROTC friends that the wait to start flight school is 22 months. What is up with that? Could it get worse by the time my son commissions in May 2023? Wonder if he could continue his education for a masters degree while he waits?

Depends on the actual length of wait and academic performance. Some recent grads were offered an accelerated one-year M.A./M.S. program at NPS. Not sure if this program will stay after the backlog is sufficiently cleared.

This has been done with other communities that were backed up at different periods in time; for example, some folks from my class ended up at DLI for a 6 month language course.

Taking courses off-duty is also an option. Reduced GI-Bill should be available after 90 days of AD; TA is available after the first year.