(12/30/08)
Here is my second update on my progress with my Application for the Air Force. Like the first, I sent this in email form to those who are supporting me through this process:
Hello Everyone, 11/21/08
I'll bet you thought I've dropped off the face of the Earth by now! I'm writing this long-overdue update so y'all will be up to speed on my progress with the Air Force. With my previous update, I was still in the process of assembling my package. I've since completed my package and have submitted it. And at this point I'm at that infamous waiting period. And to be honest, that's all I have to report on my progress with the Air Force! I've been doing some things on my own to try and get myself ready, should I be accepted. If/when I'm accepted I won't likely start anything with the Air Force until April, but possibly as early as January. There is too little time to find any kind of real, even temporary, employment, and too much time to just sit idle, so I've been doing some miscellaneous things for my parents during the time. My dad has been working on a pilot for a TV show. It has been his dream for the past several years, now. He has always wanted his own TV show, and he has all the resources to do it, too. I've been helping with that a little. I'm also still flying and staying current. After this period of wait, only one of two things can happen: I will either A. get accepted, or B. not get accepted. My application is set up for a pilot position only. So, if the board that's meeting right now doesn't think I'm pilot material (at least compared to the other applicants), I won't be accepted into the Air Force. And if I'm not accepted, I will continue my flight training and go for a commercial rating before applying a second time (that should help out my chances considerably). I'm only permitted to apply twice. If I am deemed not-pilot-material on my first try, I can still try again: my second application will include a non-pilot contingency, should I be turned down for pilot a second time, I'll still have a chance at getting into the Air Force, hopefully, in an engineering capacity. Getting in for an engineering position has a high degree of likelihood; the Air Force is looking for engineers right now.
The whole
application process has been a headache to say the least. I went through three
different recruiters-- each one giving me different details on specifics and on
my options (they've even given me conflicted commitment times!). It's prompted
me to do some of my own research. The recruiters are really just salesmen who
get a little-something for each applicant they get into the Air Force. It's a
shame it has to be that way but the system is supposed to ensure incentive. Then
whole endeavor to assemble my package took about two and a half months. I took
two tests, had an interview (it went well, overall, but I feel like there still
could have been room for improvement), I accumulated letters of recommendation,
did a physical, gathered all my private pilot documentation, had to get a
second opinion on an eye exam, submitted an essay and a resume (in a very
specific format). All of which went into a manila folder that was submitted to Washington just a couple
of months ago. I got to meet several other applicants. Several of them had
similar interests. But, I did find a couple of things a little disturbing about
the experience: First of all, virtually everyone I talked to was also
interested in a pilot position. It seems that despite the fact that only 10% of
the Air Force is pilots, about 95% of all the applicants want to be pilots!
Also, there were people applying for the Air Force who didn't seem like they
should be applying. And I know it isn't my place to judge what these people should
or shouldn't do with their lives, but there were people I encountered who were
just starting families, and now they are applying for something that will
demand most of their time for the next several years! I also got the impression
from several people that they were just applying for the Air Force on a whim,
as if they don't really expect to get selected, but it might just be some job
opportunity. There were also people applying for pilot who had never flown
before; it has been my understanding that a private pilot license was a prerequisite
for even being considered (just another bit of conflicting information from one
of my recruiters). That is fine and-all, but if you haven't flown, how can you
know that that is what you want to do for the next 10 years of your life!?
I've been
preparing myself physically and mentally for the challenges that await, should
I get accepted. From my first talk with a recruiter about a year ago, I've lost
30lbs to get to my ideal weight, and I've hired a personal trainer to get me to
where I need to be, physically. I want to ensure I can do the pushups, run the
miles, do the obstacle courses and be at my top physical peak. I am in better
shape now than I have ever been. If I'm accepted I'll attend a 12-week officer
training school (OTS), which is like a boot camp, with rigorous physical and
mental requirements, followed by a couple years of specific training (pilot
training, if I can make it as pilot). The commitment time is 10 years total for
pilot. The Air Force will own the next 10 years of my life. After that point I
can decide if I want to stay with them or if I want a change of career. I
really do enjoy flying, and I can see myself making a career of it with the Air
Force, past those 10 years.
Currently: I'm
still working on getting my instrument rating. In all honesty I thought I would
have had it by now, but it has been a slow process, especially here towards the
end. I've always had a hard time with at-your-own-pace studying, so it has been
slow. But where it lacks in speed, I feel like I'm developing a good
understanding of the instrument flight system. I've done all the flight
training and I took a stab at the instrument written test, but I didn't pass. I
will take it again, but this time only after I feel completely sure about
myself. I got the concepts, but I get a little fuzzy on terminally and
specifics. And I found myself second-guessing much of the problems. Here is an
example of the kind of thing I'm faced with on the test: In order for
precipitation to form, what must happen? A) temperature and dewpoint must be
equal, or B) water must condense? Well, the obvious answer is that water must
condense, but I also happen to know for a fact that the temperature and
dewpoint must match! So, what is the answer? B. is the answer. I put A. The reason
A is wrong: though temperature and dewpoint must match, you must also have
condensation nuclei (dust particles or smog) for the water to condense onto. So,
yes they must be equal, but there is more to it. I have a better study guide
now and I spent a good 5 hours studying over example problems with my
instructor after the test, and I think I'm much better prepared for it now. I'll be retaking it soon.
I've been very blessed to have all
the resources I need to pay for my flight training (especially with the economy
where it is). I have made some incredibly fortunate trades on my stocks at just
the right times and God has provided me with what I need. I've been training at Spinks Flight
Center, in Fort Worth. I'm impressed with their
instructors and their planes. A year ago I got my private pilot license from
American Flyers at Meacham International Airport
(also in Fort Worth).
American Flyers is a bigger flight school but they lack the level of
professionalism I found at Spinks. Spinks
Flight Center
has all the community feel of a small FBO but their facility is very nice and
their instructors are incredible. I've been flying Cessna 172's with the Garmin
G-1000 glass cockpit. The way I describe it to non-pilots is an airplane that
has computer screens for instrument panels (which is really exactly what it is).
The system is GPS based but also has traditional navigation equipment, with a
database on all the various instrument approaches to all the airports. All you
have to do is talk to the controller, select what you want from the menus, then
set the autopilot to "Nav" and it will pretty-much fly itself! I'm making it
sound simpler than it actually is, but it is an AMAZING learning tool for
situational awareness-- something I've had to work on in the past. The MFD is a
large moving map that even shows other air traffic depicted as diamonds with
tails. It will overlay holding patterns and procedure turns and fly them for
you! And the rates at Spinks are cheaper than those at American Flyers who use
planes with the traditional "steam" gauges.
Also, during this waiting period I vacationed in Alaska for a week. My aunt has a house there, and it is a fun get-away. She invited me and my brothers to visit with her there. There were nature reserves and hiking trails. We also panned for gold (between me and my brother, Jordan, we found about 15 cents worth!). We also did some white-water rafting. Which was a tremendous amount of fun! I fell out of the boat, at one point, too! Actually, it was a good place to fall out if any. We went over a 2-foot drop over the rocks and the raft tipped, with me at the lower edge. Having never rafted before, I thought it looked like the raft was going to flip over on top of me (not accounting for the fact that a rubber raft bends) and I slipped out, partially because of the awkward leaning attitude of the boat, and partially because I didn't see a need to do everything I could to stay in a boat that was about to tip (which it didn't). I was the only one who fell out, but luckily we were in an eddy behind the rock, so there was very little current at that spot. My little brother, Micah, helped me back in the boat (he seems to think he saved my life). We were all wearing dry-suits (on account of the cold water temperatures), so I never actually got wet! I was amazed at the wild life there in Alaska. The scenery looks a lot like Colorado, but with more wild life and an ocean. If you ever watch those discovery channel specials with salmon jumping up stream, a bear trying to catch one, a moose on the other side of the stream, and a bald eagle parched up above looking down on the scene… that's what it is actually like! We saw bear, bald eagles, moose and streams filled with salmon even outside of the nature reserves. And inside the reserves there's an even greater multitude of animal variety. Sometimes you can even see whales, too. But, I didn't happen to see any when I was there. I don't understand how there can be so much life in a place that is so frigid during the winter months; It seems to defy logic.
So, between my Alaska trip, my working on my instrument rating, doing miscellaneous stuff for my dad and waiting to hear back on this Air Force thing, I would like to say that I've been keeping busy. But, unfortunately, I have had quite a bit of dead-time. I'm sorry it's been so long since an update, but there is something about this long waiting period that instills a feeling of no-rush on anything I intend to do! The big day on my calendar is Nov 25th, but in actuality, it can be give-or-take a week before I know anything. It's actually coming up pretty soon! And like I said, if I am accepted, it will likely be April before I actually do OTS. So I'll probably be here for a little while yet. I'll let "all y'all" know when I hear the news!
Justin Rimmer