Job Responsibilities
- Provide safe, flyable helicopters to the operations department
in order to train aircrew and sustain military helicopter
operations.
- Supervise a department of about 120 mechanics and maintenance
administrattive staff including 2 officers and 6 maintenance
pilots to maintain 8-12 heavy lift helicopters.
- Instruct and evaluate junior aviators in standard flight
procedures, instrument flight procedures, night flight procedures
(including flying while using night vision devices), defensive
maneuvering, functional checkflight procedures.
- Act as mission commander for flights of mutiple aircraft
including other helicopters and fixed wing/strike aircraft.
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Job Requirements
- Any undergraduate degree qualifies for a commission.
- Marine Officers attend a six month Basic Course in Quantico, VA
then Aviators attend Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT, no
previous flying experience is necessary).
- UPT takes about two years, then graduate training occurs in
your 'fleet' (that is, the real thing) command.
- It took me about 3 years in the 'fleet' to attain those
qualifications and experience and be given the job. That was
about six years after being commisioned.
- You get paid the day you begin The Basic Course
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Uppers
- No suits, except flight suits.
- When you travel, you may spend some time on ship (cramped quarters,
seasickness etc) but you're not a sailor! But most of the time I spent while on
the road was five star resort hotels in the south pacific!! who knew the bad guys
liked the beaches?
- Also, per diem pay for staying at those hotels.
- Getting to fly huge helicopters around tropical islands every day (you pay
more than $400 an hour for those trips!).
- 30 days a year paid vacation that you can bank for later.
- The opportunity to help people in need (Thai tsunami victims, Philippino
typhoon relief).
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Downers
- You could get shot at.
- You are in the military, so some things that you say or do may
have worse consequences than civil law.
- Long hours when you are home, and frequent, long (excess of 6-
month) trips on the road.
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Lifestyle
- Lifestyle is akin to a college student. Some events are planned and scheduled,
some are event driven and you are at work until you are done.
- Work hours in the fleet while at home are typically 7 am to 5:30 pm. On the
road, could be longer.
- Business travel is frequent and often unplanned and deployments are long and
scheduled.
- Company social events are generally expected of you, but usually are actually
fun.
- Dress code: again, you basically work in a garage!!
- You'll not find an employer with a more diverse population who not only get
along, but work well together. Everyone is a volunteer and very professional
(usually, but you do have some knuckleheads, and you have to deal with them
legally).
- Equal opportunity regardless of ethnicity, gender and religion is the standard
and everyone is measured against a set of well-defined written performance
criteria. Even non-citizens can join and be granted their citizenship - all you
need is a green card and you get the same opportunity, benefits and compensation.
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Compensation
- no 401k, no stock options, few bonuses
- free medical for you and family (not just military medicine,
but free medical insurance to go to real doctors and hospitals)
- dental plan at about $5 per family member
- low cost life insurance
- pension plan if you stay to 20 years
- your pension qualification may be carried over if you transfer
to the reserves or guard or any other governemnt agency (ie spend
10 years in the Marines, then 10 with the US Customs Service and
you still get credit for 20 years of service)
- After certain pays that are tax free (housing allowance, family
sparation allowance) I make about $85k a year. Your housing
allowance is rated against the local economy, and tax free. So
not only do you get a tax deduction on your mortgage interest,
but you paid your mortgage with tax free money to begin with!
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Advice to Jobseekers
- Job outlook for the future is good.
- It is steady work regardless of the economy, you cannot
be 'fired' and lose your paycheck in less than about 12 months
unless you actually break the law.
- After a probationary period of 3-5 years you cannot be 'fired'
at all except for cause.
- Flight school is no garauntee.
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