How To Become A Fighter Pilot - Part Two (The First Steps) 

You've got a great story, bud. Maybe one day we can get you on the channel.

@@CWLemoine So you would know what you would end up flying in the air national Guard?

You would fly whatever the guard unit that hires you flies.

I think that can be said by all vets. I flew Puma’s UAV’s being a combat engineer doing route clearance. I would not trade time with my brothers for anything.

Valid. Thanks!

Do I do these test in Rotc?

Ill be 20 in a few months and have a degree in aviation with a commercial pilot license 250+ hours.. so is this hugely beneficial for me? or not so much? I'm hearing mixed answers on where to turn. I've talked to 2 people who flew in the USAF and said talk to a recruiter. Once I get my degree I'm planning on "applying" for all of this, any info anyone has will help a ton. Thanks!

Colin Reid I agree. My point was more geared toward those that feel the need to explain themselves and provide an excuse matrix for everything. If an instructor asks “what were you thinking here?” Then by all means, let’s chat. Or even if you have a question, framing it that way is totally valid. “When this happened, I thought this. How can I fix it?” But what I want to impress upon young aviators is that it’s important to own up to your mistakes and not try to provide excuses or argue. Perhaps saying “no one cares what you were thinking” might be a little old school and slightly harsh for someone just starting out. Good point. Thanks!

Unless they prove the instructor wrong...

that really comes down to ships for 6+ months or not 😂

Good quality of life vs poor quality of life

I really hope I'm not to late but go to college first then join the military. Your career path will bet set as an officer for next 20yrs and if you decide to retired before 20 yrs. You'll have your college degree, plus military experience. However if you go the enlisted route pick any military occupation that rates a top secret clearance you'll have better job opportunities after the military. Whatever you do AVOID open contracts at all cause!!!! PS Recruiters are not your FRIEND they have monthly quotas and they sucker you into a shitty occupation with zero job opportunities in the civilian sector!

Glad it helps! Good luck!

Humble. Credible. Approachable. Add those to rule #1 (Don't be a douche) and you'll be successful no matter what you do.

C.W. Lemoine Thank you sir for the advice and inspiration. Really appreciate that you take time out of your day to respond to comments.

Happy to help pay it forward. I've had many people help me throughout my career.

Good luck! I hope it works out for you. Make them tell you no! But I also think you're at the age I talked about in the video - apply everywhere and take a job with the first unit that hires you.

@@CWLemoine I will for sure be doing that, and love that motto by the way. "Make them tell you no" has become my motto now as I begin my journey to set out on finding a unit that will hire me

Thank you for your service. Good luck!

howd it go?

@@nikelinq2899 according to plan

Good luck!

How you doing

Ha! One of my most loyal readers sent me a whole box full of shirts from Lockheed. I think I'll wear the F-35 shirt for the next video. Haha.

ROTC is a bit out of my wheelhouse, but I will have a video in the future on how to rush a squadron and get through a fighter squadron interview, which may help.

C.W. Lemoine Awesome, looking forward to it, thanks!

ASVAB has nothing to do with becoming an officer or pilot.

@@CWLemoine Hmm weird when I was ROTC they told me I had to have at least a 90 on my ASVAB that was back in 1990 though. Wonder why they made such a big deal out of it I studied hard to get that 90 lol.

@@ComdrStew Possibly the AFOQT?

@@CWLemoine Been so long I can not remember but I do not remember them talking about the officer test.

Incentive flights were always my favorite.

4hockeyskate how do you get incentives?

Lots of things! Some fly for the airlines, write books, start their own business, go to law school, keep flying fighters as contract red air, become doctors, buy their own warbirds, or any number of things. Being a fighter pilot is a great way to serve your country, but there is so much more to life than just being a fighter pilot.

Jonathan Mitsuda did he reply? I wanna know what to do too

Once you get I go college, KEEP HIGHEST GPA AS POSSIBLE. That just shows that you’re worth being invested in. Maintain a good physical physique, and do extra curricular activities. Also major in a technical degree.

While that's a valid option, I think the quickest route would be to go to college first.

Like Mover said four years of college and you can go into the military as an officer. Better rank and pay grade right out of school.

MrAscendancy I would suggest going to Air Force ROTC to become an Officer

quickest route is definitely not to enlist after highschool I hate to be a hater but the chances of you making it while enlisted are far slimmer but hey its been 4 years reply and prove me wrong

@@F-15C_Eagle. anything is better than what I did, I joined the Army and am a Blackhawk mechanic, regret it every day. 😂

Not necessarily. The standard fighter pilot answer of "it depends" would apply here. It depends on where you live, where you want to apply in the guard, how competitive you are, how many slots your ROTC det has, etc.

Have you flown a plane before? I suggest you try that for a few hours. I got sick my first few hours in a Cessna 152 and we weren't doing anything crazy. After that you can look for some deals on group-on for aerobatic intro flights to see how you handle that. It's mostly your inner ear that causes problems when flying. When you are new you can feel spatially disoriented because of how you are moving in a 3D axis. Simulators are good, but they don't accurately simulate this feeling as well.

It's just something you get used to. It's mostly mental. That's why UPT allows you to get sick the first few rides without much of a penalty. After that, it's called "Manifestation of Apprehension" and grounds for being washed out. I was nervous about it for the first couple of flights, but never got sick. You're way too busy in the cockpit to worry about that once you get going.

Uhmm.. marine corps doesnt have fighter jets man

Filkz They have the F35

@@filkz4530are dumb?

You should look into Civil Air Patrol. It’s an auxiliary of the Air Force that you can join when you’re around 13. It’s a fun program and it looks really good for any of the academies or ROTC. As for grades you probably want a 3.5 or higher. The academies all have around a ~10% acceptance rate ( the Air Force Academy has a 12.3% acceptance rate). You should try and play a sport or two and get involved with student government. You may be shy but if it’s your goal then you will need to do it. Good Luck!

I agree. CAP is great!

Alright i will try to, the only problem is that the nearest one is nearly 4 hours away, so how would that work?

Kiloom Bana 4 hours is quite far, and I don’t think it would work. Make sure to double check that that is the closest, and if it is I would say it isn’t worth it. CAP isn’t the end all be all but it’s a good program. If it can’t work then it’s not a huge deal, but all of my other advice such as Student government, grades, sports, volunteering etc still goes. I would also try and do interesting things during your summers. Try and find a cool job or a camp that teaches leadership. Something that sets you apart from the average person. Finally start showing interest in the academy. Visit it if you can, and look into whether you have a local representative (the Naval academy has Blue and Gold officers, no clue about the Air Force). Take as many AP and honors courses as possible, they want to see you challenge yourself. You’ll need to really want it to get in, but if you have the determination, then all of the work you need to do will be easier (not easy just easier).

Air Force has ALOs - Academy Liaison Officers. www.academyadmissions.com/admissions/outreach-programs/find-your-admissions-liaison-officer/

Any advice for me?

Most of this advice is pretty generic and applies no matter what you fly.

C.W. Lemoine thank you so much

Jack Bell I flew 1000 hrs in the Viper in four years. It was around the same, if not a little more, than my active duty buddies. I don’t know what the current tempo/comparison is though.

C.W. Lemoine they’re still fairly equal. If you happen to deploy you’ll fly more hours than those who don’t in that particular year. In the end they’re similar in terms of hours.

Ha! It's not that easy. Only you can answer that. Why do you want the job? What got you to this point?

I have got many reasons, but if you ask me to give 1, I would just say I got a passion. A strong unexplainable feeling I want this. Think I will manage the interview well, but just nervous because we get one chance. ;)

Paul Heineman did you become a pilot?

Are you a U.S. citizen?

A requirement is to be a natural born citizen of the United States in order to become a commissioned officer. It might be better to become a RAF pilot since RAF do joint exercises with the EU and the US

@@joeyenochs9469 False. You do not have to be a natural born citizen to become an officer.

Why not RAF?

Yup.

@@CWLemoine 🤔

I don't even care to be a fighter. I just love aviation and then adding on the aspect of helping people both directly and indirectly makes it seem much more rewarding. I feel like a lot of the cocky guys haven't experienced aviation before the military and it's such a wonderful thing. I'm actually about to leave for a flight lesson at one of the first military airports in the country (KMIV) :D

Cello Face no not at all. The benefit of getting one in a technical field is that it would become very useful to have that knowledge when you transition to flying.

Does Ireland even have fighters?

daOrangeDoom Ireland does not, but I’ll find a way to get into the RAF

@@jamesadams7600 Hey even of you are 6 5 you may still be able to get a Typhoon slot, but if not you should still be able to get a Tornado since it's a bigger jet. Over here in America I met a B-52 pilot much taller than my, I'm 6 1 and he was dead at 6 5 and had no problems getting a T-38 fighter trainer. Just remember there are waivers for everything, even in the RAF.

I’m Irish and I’m and also looking to be a fighter pilot but would not go near the RAF I would much rather move to America and become a US citizen to join the Air Force

Yes, U.S. Citizens may apply.

+@@CWLemoine What about non-citizens with a green card? Can they become commissioned officers in the USAF?

Nope. It is a requirement to be a U.S. citizen.

Waii you need mathematics and stuff like that to be a fighter pilot ?

Yes, but you'll have to be naturalized first.There were pilots that weren't American born

Air Force Man if it was easy, the US wouldn’t win wars.

Nothing...

I haven’t seen any pilots at Taco Bell so I don’t think it happens

Wrong.

your not killing innocent people at least thats never the intent and with precision munitions thats just not common anymore you follow to much media and propaganda