Service Ccommitment

Karenof2

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Dec 2, 2022
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My DS is applying to USAFA AND USMMMA. To be honest we are an AF family so originally that was the only SA he was applying to. He went to his first Senator interview and one of the panel members was really impressed with his swimming skills and pretty much recruited my son on the spot to the USMMA. He came home that night, did some research and started his application. The more we research the USMMA we are really liking it. Now for my question, my son's (current) hopes is to become a pilot (we know this is not guaranteed in any SA assignment). If this becomes a reality, with the USAFA it is a 10 year commitment after graduation (with a minimum of 6 years for any other job). Everything we find on the USMMA reads there is a 5 year commitment after graduation. Would anyone know the actual years commitment after graduation from USMMA to any other brach of service for a pilot slot?
 
It appears from the content at PA150D Pilot and NFO MAR 2022.pdf that the term is 8 years after qualifying. Quoting section 11, "STA-21 Pilot Option officer candidates will incur an 8 year active duty obligation upon date of designation as a Naval Aviator (1310)."
 
The 4-digit community designator for Navy pilots is 1310, assigned when they pin their wings on after 2-ish years (pipeline back-ups, type of aircraft) in flight training. Before that, and at commissioning, they are 1390, naval aviation (pilot) under instruction. Pinning of the wings starts the clock on obligated service.

This is a good question for your son to ask of Admissions. I used to travel regularly there on business in the last 10 years. I met the Air Force Liaison Officer and the Army Liaison Officer at various times. I assume those roles still exist. They would know, of course.
 
My DS is applying to USAFA AND USMMMA. To be honest we are an AF family so originally that was the only SA he was applying to. He went to his first Senator interview and one of the panel members was really impressed with his swimming skills and pretty much recruited my son on the spot to the USMMA. He came home that night, did some research and started his application. The more we research the USMMA we are really liking it. Now for my question, my son's (current) hopes is to become a pilot (we know this is not guaranteed in any SA assignment). If this becomes a reality, with the USAFA it is a 10 year commitment after graduation (with a minimum of 6 years for any other job). Everything we find on the USMMA reads there is a 5 year commitment after graduation. Would anyone know the actual years commitment after graduation from USMMA to any other brach of service for a pilot slot?
Active-duty service obligations are dependent upon the individual service contract.

Reminder, there is no guarantee for serving on active duty from the Merchant Marine Academy. Active-duty slots are dependent upon individual service and MARAD's needs.
 
USMMA does not have the same “Active Duty” commitment as other service academies. The graduate would be commissioned into the Naval Reserve and they must also work in the maritime industry using their license (USGG) for 5 years OR be commissioned into one of the military branches (or Uniformed Public Health Service.) If your DS graduates from USAFA they would have the stated service obligation on active duty (plus reserve obligation after.) But, as others have stated, flight training or other contractual obligations to any service will add to or override previous obligations (such as from a SA.) Army has just increased their service commitment for pilots to twelve years!
 
The commitment at USMMA is to serve in the maritime industry on a U.S. flagged ship for 5 years, plus 8 concurrent years of reserve duty. If your son goes active duty after graduating from USMMA, his service commitment varies with the branch he is in and what he chooses to do. My son became a Navy pilot from USMMA, took about two years to get winged, then has an 8-year service commitment after winging. I believe that becoming an Air Force pilot out of USMMA would be the same. The only difference might be time between graduation and winging and how backed up the training pipeline is. If you elect to go active duty from USMMA after graduation and you serve fewer than 8 years, you would still have to complete your reserve commitment of 8 years (less time you have already served on active duty.)
 
USMMA does not have the same “Active Duty” commitment as other service academies. The graduate would be commissioned into the Naval Reserve and they must also work in the maritime industry using their license (USGG) for 5 years OR be commissioned into one of the military branches (or Uniformed Public Health Service.) If your DS graduates from USAFA they would have the stated service obligation on active duty (plus reserve obligation after.) But, as others have stated, flight training or other contractual obligations to any service will add to or override previous obligations (such as from a SA.) Army has just increased their service commitment for pilots to twelve years!
Do you have any documentation on that Army increase to 12 years for pilots? Didn't it just go to 10 in the past couple of years? I can't find any literature on the increase to 12. Harder not to stay for 20 once you're at 12.
 
It would be worthwhile to note that your chances are much higher to get a rated slot from the Navy than from the Air Force here at KP. Air Force treats KP as a ROTC program so you're competing nationwide with other AFROTC cadets to get a slot. They are very competitive. If you want to be a Naval or USMC Aviator from KP, it's there for the taking. USMC aviation contract is nearly guaranteed. I come from an Air Force family and applied to both schools. I chose KP over USAFA and couldn't be more happy with my decision. There is nothing at USAFA anywhere near equivalent to KP's Sea Year.
 
Army aviation (like most services) start the commitment period (currently 10 years) after training. Since training for pilot slots and initial training (with normal waiting periods between) is about two years, current aviators have an active duty service commitment of around 12 years now. There are ongoing discussions to increase that commitment even more.
 
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