Is dropping Army ROTC worth it to become a pilot?

[Calisurfboy1997]

Hey all I’m new to this forum but I have a question to ask since this forum seems helpful.

I am an Ms2 in Army ROTC noncontracted but the recruiting officer says that I will on scholarship for next semester since I have a good pt score and gpa.
However, I have been hesitant on this issue because I have aspired to become a pilot in the military for a while, preferably fixed wing. I have made good friends in Army rotc but not sure if being in the army on there ground is what I want to do. I live close to an Air Force base and every time I see a fighter jet flyby, I always think about why I joined Army ROTC and did not pursue being a pilot instead.
I have looked into several options if I were to drop ROTC and that would be Air Force OTS, Navy OCS, Marine PLC, and the Air National Guard.
I have a solid gpa of 3.6 in business management and score around 250-260 in the APFT.
I know that the route to a fighter pilot is tough, but I am willing to put in the hard work and dedication needed to reach this goal. I also wouldn’t mind being a transport pilot like C130s or C17s. Honestly as long as its the military and I can fly fixed wing then I will be happy for the rest of my life.
I wouldnt mind being in the Army but I just feel like that’s not what I want to do.
Any advice is appreciated.
My school does not have AFROTC or NROTC.

 

[Anguswarrior112]

There are many ways to answer this question but I think I can give you insight since I was in your shoes a year ago.
You need to ask yourself these questions.
1.Am I willing to put in 110% effort to becoming a pilot?
2.Will I be satisfied if I dont get a pilot slot but get a desk job?
3. Is this goal realistic? Am I physically and mentally qualified?
Here’s how its gone for me, I was in Army ROTC freshmen year on scholarship. I dropped the scholarship to pursue my pilot dreams and now I am doing PLC on an aviation contract. This route wasn’t easy and there have been times where I thought about if I stayed in Army ROTC things would have been easier. I dont know about the other programs but Marine Corps PLC is physically demanding even more than Army ROTC. Can you get at least a 260+ on a Marine PFT? I got selected while having a 290 pft which wasn’t easy.
I still need to make it through two 6 week summers then when that’s done, I need to go to TBS, then I go to flight school where washouts are high and have of the people get a rotary wing slot.
If I were you, I would check your eyes, ask a fighter pilot since you live close to an Air Force base, and make sure you can meet the requirements. You dont want to switch over and next thing you know find out you aren’t qualified and lose out on the Army ROTC scholarship.
I dont know about the other programs but understand fighter slots aren’t easy in any program.
There are requirements that you have to meet that may be beyond your control.
That being said, dont let this discourage you from pursuing your dreams, if being a fighter pilot is your dream, then go for it.
It’s not easy but never ever let somebody else tell you that you cant do it.
For me, even though the path to flying a fighter jet is long and high, I at least know I have a shot at it and will put in the effort to become one.
That also leads to another thing, if you find you aren’t able to be a fighter pilot or any sort of pilot, there’s nothing wrong with Army ROTC!

 

[Humey]

OTS/OCS is hard to get into as they only take in people if the academies and Rotc dont supply enough officers. From what I read in other forum that is made of mostly Air Force pilots is that the National Guard is really the way to go. Some push that over Active duty. You get to pretty much choose what plane you will fly, you will be trained with the ROTC and SA graduates at the same flight school and there is always possibility that your National Guard job will be full time job. You will be at the same National Guard unit pretty much for the rest of your live. You wont be sent to different bases around the world. The downside, you have to basically go to each guard unit and apply as an employee and compete against everyone else who wants a spot. The bigger issue is you are competing with guys who left the Air Force as a pilots and have experience. From what I read, the Guard however sometimes want new pilot and sometimes want older pilots. Also, most of the spots with the National Guard arent full time, so you will have to find another Full time job

 

[kinnem]

Even if you get a pilot slot you may not get a fighter platform. One needs to be head and shoulders above the competition to achieve that.
More importantly, need I say "A bird in the hand...."?
If you want to fly but are not absolutely dead set on fighters or fixed-wing, then Army has plenty of rotary craft for the aspiring pilot.

 

[Anguswarrior112]

If your just looking to fly in the military then I think the best way to go is Air National Guard based on what Humey said. Do more research on that.