MASI,
First up, it's not two to three pilots out of 1,500 who get to fly FJ's, but two to three applicants out of 1,500 who get to fly FJ's. Out of a typical pilots course, 40-50% of graduates will be posted to FJ's with probably a third of those passing F/A-18 or F-111 conversion, so it is more like two to three pilots out of 15 who get to fly FJ's.
My information on the selection process is now six or seven years old, dating back to when I applied. Your best bet to get the current info is contact Recruiting and they will outline the process. Another good thing to do is arrange a visit to a flying SQN (Recruiting can arrange this for you) and talk to the junior pilots there as they can give you first hand information about their selection.
First, you have to ask yourself a whole bunch of questions. In no particular order, some of them are:
1. Why do I want to join?
2. Am I comfortable with signing on for the required 12 years?
3. How would I feel if the RAAF sent me off to a real shooting war?
4. What does my family think about my joining?
5. What do I know about the RAAF?
6. What do I know about the job of being a military pilot?
7. If I didn't get FJ's, would I be happy at, say, P-3's or at Hercs?
8. If I failed pilots course, would I stay in the RAAF and try for Nav or another category?
Next, at Recruiting, you will be barrier tested which involves:
1. Comprehension testing
2. Mathematical testing (you don't need to be a mathematical genius, but mental arithmatic is something you should be familiar with)
3. Psych testing
4. Physical co-ordination testing
5. Medical testing.
After that, expect a chat with the psych and then the recruiting officer. If you pass the initial stage, you will head off to Tamworth for Flight Screening where they put you in a plane to see if you can take instruction and not throw up (too much) during aeros. If successful at Flight Screening you will be put in front of a Selection Board and asked many of the questions that I mentioned above.
If successfull at the Board then it is off to Officer training for you which will either be three years at ADFA or three months at OTS.
Following Officer training you will enjoy three weeks of Combat Survival Training School and then a week of Aviation Medicine training before you end up back at Tamworth to begin flight training. Expect a month or two of ground school (aerodynamics, air law, meteorology, systems etc etc) before you get airborne in the CT4. At Tamworth you will cover basic flying, instrument flying, formation and nav. After Tamworth it is over to Pearce for PC9 conversion and the applied or military part of the course where you take the basics and turn it into, say, split RV formation, ToT, HiLo and all of that good gear. If successful, a senior officer will appear one day and pin Wings on your chest and then you retire to the Mess for Grad Ball and alcohol, pilots, for the consumption of. If posted to transport or maritime you'll be off to another base for conversion. If Posted to FJ's you will do a Hawk conversion with 79 SQN in Pearce, then head to 76 SQN in Willy to learn how to be a junior knuck on the Hawk and then to 2 OCU or 6 SQN for F/A-18 or F-111 conversion respectively. Pass that and then you start working your way up the category chain.
Simple really.
In terms of what you can do to become a FJ pilot, well, I fly Hercs, so I cannot tell you for sure, but:
1. Work hard on pilots course. You may be a natural, but if you are lazy they will hesitate before sending you there.
2. Be born with the right skills to be a FJ pilot.