Views on AAC
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Australia
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Stu,
I don't know how committed you are to service in the forces of the motherland but if you want to be an officer and fly then maybe Australia is the place you want to be.
In the Australian Army Aviation Corps(AAAvn) you can join as a Specialist Service Officer and have nothing but flying postings for your entire career. Presently the aircraft operated are the Kiowa, Black Hawk, Iroquois and Chinook. We just bought the Tiger and we're about to buy another lift squadron.
Alternatively, you can join as a General Service Officer, still have plenty of flying but then continue up the command chain. Of course then you take your chances on being assigned AAAvn out of the Royal Military College.
All front line flying postings are in Darwin (Frontier adventure) or Townsville (Tropical paradise). The weather generally is much better than Europe and plenty of flying.
Australia's anti discrimination laws now require that nobody can be rejected due age. This means there are no age limits for the flying course other than being able to serve the return of service by age 55.
Of course you will have to drink your beer COLD and cop a ragging now and then about the lack of prowess exhibited by your sporting teams but everything has a price.
All this is dependent on your willingness and eligibility to migrate. Contact Australia House in London for details.
I don't know how committed you are to service in the forces of the motherland but if you want to be an officer and fly then maybe Australia is the place you want to be.
In the Australian Army Aviation Corps(AAAvn) you can join as a Specialist Service Officer and have nothing but flying postings for your entire career. Presently the aircraft operated are the Kiowa, Black Hawk, Iroquois and Chinook. We just bought the Tiger and we're about to buy another lift squadron.
Alternatively, you can join as a General Service Officer, still have plenty of flying but then continue up the command chain. Of course then you take your chances on being assigned AAAvn out of the Royal Military College.
All front line flying postings are in Darwin (Frontier adventure) or Townsville (Tropical paradise). The weather generally is much better than Europe and plenty of flying.
Australia's anti discrimination laws now require that nobody can be rejected due age. This means there are no age limits for the flying course other than being able to serve the return of service by age 55.
Of course you will have to drink your beer COLD and cop a ragging now and then about the lack of prowess exhibited by your sporting teams but everything has a price.
All this is dependent on your willingness and eligibility to migrate. Contact Australia House in London for details.
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: uk
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Thom
You're absolutely right in what you say on two counts. Firstly, certain trades are 'protected' and no command can prevent your application. However, being as any application has to be staffed up through the chain of command, in some cases, you have to keep pressure on in order the ensure the application goes through. As a fairly junior soldier and not worldy wise, i didn't at the time hence my having to re-apply. Not all chains of command are the same i hasten to add.
Secondly, i agree there are many content to sit back with little ambition and if you want to progress, it's incumbent upon yourself to keep pushing for what you want and what you believe you are capable of. I did eventually and the rest is history!
You're absolutely right in what you say on two counts. Firstly, certain trades are 'protected' and no command can prevent your application. However, being as any application has to be staffed up through the chain of command, in some cases, you have to keep pressure on in order the ensure the application goes through. As a fairly junior soldier and not worldy wise, i didn't at the time hence my having to re-apply. Not all chains of command are the same i hasten to add.
Secondly, i agree there are many content to sit back with little ambition and if you want to progress, it's incumbent upon yourself to keep pushing for what you want and what you believe you are capable of. I did eventually and the rest is history!
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: UK
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Understood ADUX, and I hope your career is going the way you want it, as I won't begrudge a pitiful life in the Forces to anyone (except my next door neighbour, who keeps playing '80's New Romantic music around 6 when the Simpson's are on, barsstard!) 
Yeah, you hit the nail on the head with the young members of the Regt or Corps who can and probably still do get treated badly by their peers. Only when your 'older and wiser' does one push, beg, scream for whatever one is after.
Yeah, you hit the nail on the head with the young members of the Regt or Corps who can and probably still do get treated badly by their peers. Only when your 'older and wiser' does one push, beg, scream for whatever one is after.
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: uk
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Detrimento
Inspired. Call me thick, never saw that!!
Thom
Only one solution, crank up 'All the Young Dudes by Mot the Hoople,' nothing should stand in the way of the simpsons; Homer is an model father, if only life were like his!!
Inspired. Call me thick, never saw that!!
Thom
Only one solution, crank up 'All the Young Dudes by Mot the Hoople,' nothing should stand in the way of the simpsons; Homer is an model father, if only life were like his!!
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: roughly near Everleigh DZ
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One other option....
How about you keep the day job with the bucketloads of cash, buy a fun aeroplane, fixedwing or rotary depending on the size of your garden, and fly as much as you want, when you want (don't forget to go to work a bit too you'll need to keep the cash bucket full).
If you still fancy the uniform bit then the HAC has quite a nice one and they're on your doorstep.
Just a thought, although you'll probably tell me that there aren't enough hours in the week for work and hobby so join up and combine the two. I'll leave the colour of uniform up to you but the light blue has worked well for me- am currently in the desert for two and a half months doing a ground job and it will be the longest I've gone without flying for nearly 16 years so musn't grumble.
Best of luck whichever way you go, but don't end up looking back in 20 yrs and thinking "if only".
If you still fancy the uniform bit then the HAC has quite a nice one and they're on your doorstep.
Just a thought, although you'll probably tell me that there aren't enough hours in the week for work and hobby so join up and combine the two. I'll leave the colour of uniform up to you but the light blue has worked well for me- am currently in the desert for two and a half months doing a ground job and it will be the longest I've gone without flying for nearly 16 years so musn't grumble.
Best of luck whichever way you go, but don't end up looking back in 20 yrs and thinking "if only".
Stu, the best reason for choosing the RAF over the AAC or FAA is that of opportunity - depending on your ability and aptitude you could fly helicopters (obviously everyones first choice) in either SH or SAR roles, multi-engine (hercs, nimrods, tristar, VC10, C17s,A400?) or fast jet (Tornado, Harrier, Jaguar,Typhoon). Neither of the other services will offer you such a choice.
Most of the advice you have been given re the AAC is true but do not enlist as an NCO (just how much do you want to be f88ked about?) and definitely do not join another regt with the idea of becoming an E3 officer or nco - the AAC is becoming more and more 'true blue' with the advent of Apache and far fewer E3 chaps are being transferred.
Unfortunately you might have left it a bit late although I don't know if the age 26 limit on starting pilot training is still extant. Good luck.
Most of the advice you have been given re the AAC is true but do not enlist as an NCO (just how much do you want to be f88ked about?) and definitely do not join another regt with the idea of becoming an E3 officer or nco - the AAC is becoming more and more 'true blue' with the advent of Apache and far fewer E3 chaps are being transferred.
Unfortunately you might have left it a bit late although I don't know if the age 26 limit on starting pilot training is still extant. Good luck.
