Naval Aviation Pipeline - Facing Long Delays

CrewDad

Annapolis 22 / Naval Aviation / NROTC 25
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Those seeking to become Naval Aviators will face a long delay. For Pilots entering after September 2022, 14-24 months wait or face indefinite wait. For NFOs entering after October 2022, 12+ months or face indefinite wait. Class of 2022 Pilots were recently told that wait time is indefinite if one's reporting date is October 2022 and later. Marine Aviation is no different, but may face less bottleneck than the Navy. Still, Marines can be repurposed from Marine Air to Marine Ground if demand continues to exceed the needs of the Marine Corp.

Pilot select may get NFO where it is currently facing manpower shortage. You may be the lucky ones to stay in Aviation! You will have to be in top shape medically, vision, and conduct to remain in Aviation to avoid being DQ'd and repurposed to other warfare communities where demands need to be met. There is even talk about early release from the Navy, don't think we are there yet. Class of 2023 may want to consider other great warfare communities as you plot your Naval/Marine Corp careers this month.
 
I wonder how this will get conveyed to 2023 in the next month or so as they put together their wish list. Perhaps no sub draft this year.
 
Covid also dealt a huge blow to flight training and really backed up the pipeline. The Marine Corps is still facing a shortage of pilots and in the coming years the Navy will still need lots of aviators in the air.
 
It's not just COVID. I'd say COVID isn't really making a big impact anymore. Flights are still happening, training is still occurring, and people are getting sick at a regular (pre-COVID) pace now. Even if you get it, you miss a week, then come back with a mask and you're back to business.

The Navy is facing a large pilot shortage because of the airlines hurting retention and operational, maintenance, resource, and weather delays within the TRACOM. The delay is because the pool to start class is so large in Pensacola. The Navy is trying to clear that up before taking in more people. It could be worse. USAF ROTC gets sent to the IRR (Commissioned on paper, but no pay) and they have to go civilian job hunting until their number gets called for UPT and they get called to Active Duty. The Navy gives you full pay and benefits regardless of commissioning source or training delays.
 
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Rotor too? Daughter ‘24 mentions Rotor pilot as her preference.
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If an aviation select has to wait 1-2 years before commencing training, where are they being stashed? And does that wait extend their service obligation?
 
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Rotor too? Daughter ‘24 mentions Rotor pilot as her preference.
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Yes, at least initially. Flight School is identical for all pilots until the completion of Primary. NIFE (the first phase) and Primary (the second phase) are where the delays are the largest right now. At the end of Primary, you are selected for your particular pipeline (Jets, Helos, Maritime, E-6, CMV-22, and E-2/C-2). It is like Service Assignment all over again, except more stressful. You don't know how many spots there are for X platform, how many people put it first, nor how you stack up against the others. There are grade cutoffs for certain platforms and grades that got platform X last week might not get it the next.

If your DD wants helos, the Navy will gladly give her them. They need a ton of pilots each year and not everyone wants to fly them.
 
If an aviation select has to wait 1-2 years before commencing training, where are they being stashed? And does that wait extend their service obligation?
They are getting permanent orders to USNA or NROTC units (ROTC grads). It does extend the service obligation. Aviation service obligations do not start ticking until one earns their wings (1.5-3 years). Pilots owe wings + 8 years and NFOs owe wings + 6 years. However, your time in flight school counts towards retirement.

There is a rumor that the commitment will become wings+10 for pilots in the near future. It is just rumor though. I also don't believe they can retroactively apply it, but I am planning on 20 anyway, so I am not losing sleep over it.
 
Your kind of stashed where you are per DS. DS comissioned in '20, was TAD in Annapolis till early October of that year and then moved to Pensacola to start flight school (pilot). He is currently in Primary now, about a third of the way through. He is estimating this autumn completing Primary and then getting his air frame assignment. Lots of delays (especially after NIFE), as'2019 says. We were just talking the other day about how airframes are assigned and again as '2019 says, it seems to change, and often, what is available. To my observations, weather is a big delay factor, which surprised me; bad weather around the airfields, no one flies it seems which is understandable. If your curious, go on Flight Aware website you can see how many T6's are buzzing around on training flights. Look for NSE and NDZ airfields and you can see all the planes and helos. If you click on a plane you can see its flight path - lots of squiggles in the sky is a good indicator of who is training. Fascinating to watch a live flight (at least its flightpath)!
 
Your kind of stashed where you are per DS. DS comissioned in '20, was TAD in Annapolis till early October of that year and then moved to Pensacola to start flight school (pilot). He is currently in Primary now, about a third of the way through. He is estimating this autumn completing Primary and then getting his air frame assignment. Lots of delays (especially after NIFE), as'2019 says. We were just talking the other day about how airframes are assigned and again as '2019 says, it seems to change, and often, what is available.
stashed_ens__73328.jpg
I was stashed after getting winged. The RAG (Repacement Air Group) for my airframe, known as the FRS (Fleet Replacement Squadron) today, was in Pensacola. I worked for Manpower out in town waiting for my class to start. My first job was unloading boxes of bottled Reunitie wine from packed 18 wheelers. The procedure back then was to call the office for available jobs but Manpower kept calling me with job offers. I assembled furniture at senior centers and worked other odd jobs. I turned down late night, and after midnight jobs in areas I ddn't think were safe. One job assignment was at the Naval Air Rework Facility cleaning out the pits where aircraft were paint stripped. Lots of Hazmat and challenging manual labor. I got to talking with the rough fella I was paired. Interesting seeing other people that needed work and were willing. He asked me what I did aside from this line of work. I told him I was a Navy Pilot. He looked at me and said "yeah, right" and kept on shoveling the sludge. I bought my first color TV with the money I earned.
 
Greta story 'WT.......I'll be seeing DS this weekend - I'll show him this post. Not sure if he will laugh or cry......
 
Greta story 'WT.......I'll be seeing DS this weekend - I'll show him this post. Not sure if he will laugh or cry......
Your son might not have time to laugh or cry being in the thick of primary training. His plate is full right now. He needs to show dad a good time in P-Cola. If you remain after the weekend, the Blue Angels have a practice show on Monday and Tuesday. I hope your son gets the airframe and ultimately the duty station he desires. As a “nugget” (newly winged aviator) there will be much more awaiting him at the FRS and ultimately his fleet squadron. The Navy has a way of getting back all that free time back once in the fleet. He’s going to get worked hard. After your son gets his wings, let me know via PM. I want you to pass something on to him to celebrate his achievement. I have a soft spot for the Class of ’20 Grads. They were the T-Court virtual graduates.
 
Thanks, 'WT, will do.
Yeah, that 2020 commissioning week was a big letdown, especially for us parents. A 4 year build-up and then......poof.....
My wife and I stood outside gate 1 with two other sets of parents waiting for our newly minted Ensigns to appear. We were the only ones around besides the guards. DTA was a ghost town! We went back to our place we were staying and they changed their shoulder boards as soon as we got there. That was a good memory. I'll keep you posted.
 
Any rumors on how this actually impacts service selection? They have already nicely forced us to put subs on the list by allowing us to put only one SWO option? So are they gonna take less pilots and more NFOs? Or just less in general?
 
... They have already nicely forced us to put subs on the list by allowing us to put only one SWO option? ...
Wait what? I assume that is to block people from filling out all 5 slots as SWO-intel, SWO-ocean, SWO, SWO-cyber, SWO-anything else to guard against subs?

That sucks for folks who truly want one of those add-ons, but regular SWO as a #2.
 
Wait what? I assume that is to block people from filling out all 5 slots as SWO-intel, SWO-ocean, SWO, SWO-cyber, SWO-anything else to guard against subs?

That sucks for folks who truly want one of those add-ons, but regular SWO as a #2.
Thankfully we can put down normal SWO and one SWO option, and yea it really hurts those who actually want to be a SWO. Doesn't make it easier for us aviation folks either. Has anyone else heard this at their NROTC commands
 
Keep in mind ...the pipeline isn't static... It's backed up now, but could change significantly in next 10 months. There is of course the fixed portion, if you count up the time period of each phase of training, but plenty of variable surges and delays caused by weather, demand, aircraft maintenance . I never considered the pipeline as having any real impact on service selection (now assignment). I will admit, it was pretty cool being pooled in Pensacola the summer after graduation -- we had to report daily, some would get assigned Schools Command desk watch or other duties, but most of the time we would be released . I learned to play golf, and had a lot of time hanging by the Apartment pool (Apartment complex had many student Naval Aviator and NFOs, so often a good time.
 
Wow, SWO-Cyber sounds pretty cool. When I served as a CT my officers were LDOs or CWOs. Our CO though at NSGD Norfolk, CINCFLT HQ was a Captain. Good times.
 
Thankfully we can put down normal SWO and one SWO option, and yea it really hurts those who actually want to be a SWO.
Those wanting to strictly be SWOs shouldn’t be putting the SWO options down as a choice…because the point of those is to go to their designated communities (without lateral transfer board action) after 1-2 JO tours and no longer be a SWO. It used to be you could decline the option portion and stay SWO, but then that just ended up hurting planned officer community numbers for the Officer Community Manager (OCM). In recent years, officers were required to exercise their option even if they preferred to stay SWO. Bottom line…don’t pick an option if you aren’t serious about it…it doesn’t end up increasing your odds of getting SWO and it could make you more miserable if you are forced into a community that you truly did not want.
 
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