Flight School wait steady at 2 years

[WT Door]

@WT Door hi friend! If a Navy pilot select completed their solo during USNA powered flight, how does this affect or change flight school? If at all?

@Ivy22 gave a much better response. I was thinking that the two weeks not in NIFE meant more beach time and fun in the sun. Silly me. Maybe he and a buddy can make a run to the Big Easy. Young SNAs also like McGuire's. As an alternative, he could also use his time studying . He'll have his hands full when he starts school in P-cola. Even more so when starting primary flight training. Continued good luck to him.

 

[Ivy22]

@Ivy22 gave a much better response. I was thinking that the two weeks not in NIFE meant more beach time and fun in the sun. Silly me. Maybe he and a buddy can make a run to the Big Easy. Young SNAs also like McGuire's. As an alternative, he could also use his time studying . He'll have his hands full when he starts school in P-cola. Even more so when starting primary flight training. Continued good luck to him.

They don’t get more beach time They skip to physio and then straight to Milton, Corpus, or SNFO-land after physio is complete

 

[Skipper07]

Depending on weather, the two weeks saved could be more like 6-8 weeks saved for PFPers.

Weather and backups have been making NIFE 2 a slooooow process.

 

[Ivy22]

The couple weeks saved or not here and there do not matter too much in the bigger picture. Everyone kind of ends up moving through at their own pace in primary. You could skip NIFE flight phase, get a couple weeks or 1 maybe 2 months ahead, and then randomly get assigned to the slow VT squadron at Milton and now you're at least 2 months behind your friends who are in the fast squadron even though y'all checked in the same week (seeing this exact thing happen at Whiting rn...). Maybe your scheduler forgets about you for a week or two, keeps putting you on the watchbill instead of flying, and now you're behind again because you need to do a warm-up before you can advance to the next event. Maybe you get back-to-back days with 2 flights a day, and you zoom through the syllabus. It gets more random as you move to primary.

I know it seems like a huge deal when you're going through that long wait (that was me in 2022 and 2023), and all you want to do is get started, but then you get to primary, and suddenly it changes.

 

[Heatherg21]

Thank you all for the insight.

 

[Ivy22]

To add, I'd suggest to take one thing at a time. Alligator closest to the boat. Before you get to the flying stuff, you need to pass NIFE academics. Yes, it's "just" 5 multiple-choice tests, and then you get your flight suit, but each class will usually have a couple people fail too many of these and get rolled back or dropped completely. Don't let this be you! NIFE academics fails, even just 1 test, also go permanently into your training record, and will count towards your cumulative "pink sheet" (what you get if you fail something) total throughout flight school (same with a pink sheet from a speeding ticket or missing muster while in A-Pool... don't let this be you!). Then, it's the Cessna for most flight students, you can fail flights during this phase too. Once again, make sure you're in the books and chair flying (practicing your procedures on the ground). This phase culminates in a "check ride" with a military instructor.

Made it past NIFE? Now you're onto primary! But there's stuff you need to pass before you even get your first flight in the mighty T-6. Ground school with all your systems and procedures, if you're at Whiting, you have some extra procedures to memorize too. Then it's onto the simulators. Study study study. Practice practice practice. It's a marathon, not a sprint.

Oh and make sure to take time for yourself too. If you're ever in a pool waiting for something, take some time off for yourself and relax a bit. Burn out is real, and I've seen it happen.

 

[NavyMom2027]

What if you already have a Private Pilot License? How does that affect things for a new SNA?

 

[Old Navy BGO]

What if you already have a Private Pilot License? How does that affect things for a new SNA?

Not at all... in fact it can be a negative if Navy training has to overcome bad habit. By all means, don't show up at Pcola with an "I've got a private pilot license" attitude. Nobody really cares.

That said, the one advantage I experienced as a student NFO a long time ago is that I was comfortable in the air ...some of my classmates really had never been in a small plane and it takes some adjustment. On the other hand, I was already acclimated and viewed the aircraft as a platform to do the job, and did well in my first few hops.

 

[Herman_Snerd]

What if you already have a Private Pilot License? How does that affect things for a new SNA?

If you have a private cert you can test-out of some of the NIFE flights by taking a proficiency check ride to demonstrate your skills. This can shorten your time to start physio/ "graduate" NIFE but it's a short phase, so not much difference. My DS loves flying like Forrest Gump loves running, so he just took all the flights/ enjoyed flying in some new areas of Alabama. His instructor at NIFE would let him demonstrate some of the manuevers (two pilots go up together to train with the instructor - rotating seats). Some of the academic details too were learned during PPL - weather in particular so that can help. I think too the foundations of flying are with you and you can hit the ground running during your time flying the plane - maneuvers, landings, takeoffs, etc.

On day 1 of NIFE the group went around introducing who was from what commissioning source, undergrad / SA, and in at least two groups they were asked if their prior training might help them? My DS is a CFI and a couple of his students are in the pipeline with him. So he stated his background and said "Will that help me? I hope so" and told his flight instructor but otherwise agree with post above to keep it on the down low as it presents as silly /sophomoric when people make too big a deal about having completed the first steps in a flight training journey.

I was a road warrior for work and it always made me laugh when someone would say "I'm a gold member" when in the company of platinum/ premier colleagues. "Wow" was always a fun response. Having learned to fly with a solid foundation imo will likely help you, just pay attention to ensure you follow the Navy way of flying/ procedures else it's a hindrance.

Good luck.

 

[Ivy22]

I’ve seen those with prior flight time do well, and those with prior flight time do poorly…

I’ve seen those with 0 prior flight time do well, and those with 0 prior flight time do poorly…

It doesn’t matter too much, military flying is a lot different than civilian flying. A 1,100 HP turboprop aircraft with ejection seats is quite different from your average Cessna. Please don’t tell your IP “well in the civilian aviation world, I did _______” when they tell you you’re doing something the wrong way (I’ve heard of this happening)… just say “yes, sir/ma’am” and do what they want you to do

And the T-6 is really good at getting SNAs airsick during the first couple flights