Raising the service commitment ignores the actual root causes. The earlier you can Palace Chase, the less difference there is between a regular Active Duty pilot and someone following Stans plan. Excerpt from your enlistment contract which every one of has (or will, if selected) signed. Although 10 years of Active Duty feels like a long time, its not that much longer than the alternatives. Although I like to poke my Active Duty friends in the chest by asking, What do you love about military aviation that you cant also get in the Guard or Reserves? Ill admit that there are some benefits to Active Duty military service. I ended up not joining because they increased the ADSO. This means that aviation formations get screwed doubly they have to support everyone's demands, while being vastly outnumbered. I still don't understand how this ADSO extension is going to fix any of those issues, though it may act as a "gotcha" to get people "over the hill" in their Army career where they wouldn't feel like a transition at 10-12 years of service would be a good decision. After all, it is the warrant officer exodus to the airlines that has driven the Armys pilot retention focus. If you want military aviation to be a part of your life for more than 10 years, possibly even 20+ years, you should pursue any path that will get you there! I would have stayed in for another 10+ years if I had the opportunity to revert to Warrant Officer and fly more, but that opportunity doesn't exist. For example, if there are 100 ROTC Aviation slots, only 20 can . Hah oh good catch. Given the pandemic's direct and indirect effects on the aviation industry, is that even going to a concern going forward. I ended up discovering that Stan was most worried about frequent moves and long deployments stressing his family during an Active Duty flying career. The pay raise was the first in two decades to help balance pilot numbers at all ranks and stay competitive with the civilian market. New ADSO order goes into effect 03JUN saying: "Hey, buddy, you wanna fly? This means keeping up with at least two airplanes and dealing with two potentially very demanding bosses. Before Army Secretary Ryan D. McCarthy signed a memorandum for the change in June, the Army had bumped up its incentive pay for aviators in January. Privacy Policy. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. All in all, this track has the potential for less family stability than his Active Duty pilot counterparts. The Army likes to have a balance between the two but they can change that over night. No one knows somehow, my S1 doesnt know either. The increase in the ADSO will have profound affect on USMA/ROTC cadets. Full disclosure, I was a street to seat Warrant that served for 24 years. Ultimately, the Army needs to focus on the retention of quality talent; not on retaining mediocre talent for a longer period of time "because they can mandate longer ADSOs.". Cadets, who have not experienced the Army for even one day as an officer, are now asked to commit up to eleven years for the opportunity to fly for six yearsif they are luckywhile spending the rest of that time on staff, in professional military education, or in broadening assignments. Stan figured that even spending 5 years in a non-flying job, this track would make him a military pilot well below the USAFs current age limit (33 years old), and would actually get him to the airlines sooner than his Active Duty pilot peers. This mindset is far from universal, but its prevalent enough that the Academy actually had pilot slots go unfilled a few years ago! I want to do it for as long as I can. I'm about to retire from the Air Force as an engineer, O-4, mostly dest and staff job. I'm very healthy and fit, I would like to fly helicopters. One of the reasons for the increased ADSO was related to demand from the private sector for pilots. What are a few of the issues which the Army could resolve for aviators? Aviation: dude it's a 10 year ADSO, so I hope you like aviation, cuz you ain't going anywhere else. I believe you must pass SERE and another leadership course before phase 1 flight. Branch of Choice: Your BRADSO obligation runs consecutively with your flight school ADSO and your commitment will run out to about the 10 year point. They used their experience to mentor and groom all the other warrants around them including myself. Your email address will not be published. I will still try to join but maybe that's because I'm retarded, Guess my packet will go back on the share drive. Note: The waiver authority for this requirement is the Commanding General, U.S. Army Aviation Center, Fort Rucker, AL 36362-5000. . Holla at yo boy and lemme know what y'all are thinking. Army Pilots put up with less Army BS and get paid more. (Yes, they say ADSO instead of ADSC because the Army and the Air Force refuse to do anything the same since they divorced back in 47.) The upper age limit to enter flight training is established in law and requires Congressional action. That was the last straw for several senior pilots in my battalion and the majority of them retired after/because of that deployment when they had intended to stay in for at least a few more years. And finally, the Army will likely find that it should increase flight pay beyond what has already been offered. Thoughts anyone? Many aviators got tripped up by it in the last few years in the push to get to the airlines. The extended ADSO is intended to increase Army pilots' retention in the future. The USMA/ROTC graduating cadets will make the decision on the 12 year commitment in 2021. Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy recently signed a memorandum that increased the ADSOor active duty service obligationfor Army pilots. There is no down time, no time to build family and relationships and the team. So got word that it only affects WOs that complete WOCS after 1 Oct 2020. What if Stans 5-year ADSC runs out as the next SARS/Swine Flu/COVID-type pandemic puts hiring on hold? I spend almost 20 years missing opportunities due to family, deployments, school, and fear to change. You get to the airlines sooner, and you spend more years at a major airline. You'll be a WO for three-ish years. The Army lowered the max TIS to 8 years for WOFT applicants a few years ago without a waiver. Posted on . More career Enlisted apply than street2seat on a yearly basis. During this time, Stan would at least need to obtain his Private Pilot Certificate. Proponents of the new ADSO have suggested that the Army is catching up with the Air Force and the Navy by matching its pilot obligation with theirs. Then 10 year service obligation put me right at 20 so Im not too worried about that. Your previous content has been restored. The Army can increase this to 100% with no problem whatsoever if needed. Yes, , and its important to get there as quickly as you can because, . All of military aviation is what you make of it. Theres a two word solution to this, age waiver. I honestly don't believe that the way out of this is getting more people to fly that have less time available left in their military careers. 10 years after flight school graduation. If the civilians don't want to join, not a problem. Yes, most of us eventually plan to move on to the airlines. Initial assignments should be in table of organiza-tion and equipment (TOE) rather than table of distribution and allowances (TDA) units. Often times these decisions being made do more harm than good, and cause a tremendous amount of work (just look at our administrative packet processes). Sometimes that's necessary, but there's got to be some balance. Anyone who does a modicum of research will quickly discover that our aviation culture is objectively inferior to the other services. Even just a year or two of delay erases any possible advantages of this career path. Due to the extreme demand produced by the GWOT, ground formations are insatiable with their demand for aviation support. amp, 10 year ADSO started FY21. I just want to stop leaving my family all the time! Looks like I'll be doing 10 years insteaddang. reenlistment document. Getting in just under the wire. It was not a wild decision to take a small hit to accession to make sure you have mid careerists. (USASOC) Commissioned and warrant officers who enter flight training starting in October will incur a 10-year service obligation once they become rated Army aviator s, according to guidance. While I continue to assert this is far better than becoming an Active Duty pilot through the. Back then the Army had a hard-on for pilots. At least in the early 2000s, there was the ARFORGEN cycle. However, has he really had a better home life than them? Hed probably get 2-3 years at that assignment, but if he did a good job the Air Force would offer him the chance to get a Masters Degree through the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) at Wright Patterson AFB. The US Army is missing the boat by not letting seasoned professionals into flight school. So the recruitment piece has not historically been our challenge, it has been capacity and production. But what if the new ADSO invalidates this assumption? Apache course end? One year dedicated to reset, one to training, one to deployment. This puts you right at your commissioning ADSO plus the three-year CSP ADSO. If you havent already read Part, Part 1: Air Force Reserve Officers Training Corps (AFROTC) Table of Contents What is AFROTC? While I completely understand the desire of people to fly, there is more to it than that. Aviation has always been a highly desirable branch, and gaining a slot has been a matter of performance or differentiation from peers (whether OML or via a competitive application process). Unfortunately, it will likely not have the opportunity to do so due to the negative impact it will have on retention in the near term. However, I dont think its worth passing up a nearly guaranteed Active Duty UPT slot in hopes of possibly getting a Guard or Reserve slot 5 years from now. Look down many of us are after something a little more challenging than the admin tasks of a 1SG or CSM. Can't be branched aviation. Why not allowing retired personnel to do what they always wanted? Your appointment to W1 is a conditional appointment until you graduate flight school so you will revert to whatever enlisted rank you held prior to WOCS. They might be stuck on Active Duty slightly longer than Stan, but hed have to spend at least a couple of years at a regional airline to even start competing for major airline jobs. The Army may producean averageof 1200 Warrant Officers pilots annuallyincluding the Guard and Reserves. There are many complexities in these advanced helicopters, which translates to increased costs in flight hours, maintenance, and training requirements, Kearns said. If I am branched Aviation, this ADSO will begin upon completion of my flight school ADSO. NG will have 10 years. Such changes may affect my status,