Is there a job in the military where all you do is fly?

J

Justin

New member
Im in the military already so Im not new to this. Im a Crew Chief on CH-53s in the Marine Corps, but Im kinda getting over the maintance side of it. I really just want to fly, thats why I picked the job I picked.

Are there any jobs in ANY branch where you just come to work and fly?
Ok- maybe I wasnt clear. I fly already. Im not talking about being a pilot. I know what I have to do to do that. Im talking about enlisted Air Crew. The guys in the back, on the guns, that sort of thing. Ive been doing just that for the last four years. But I like flying (not piloting) so much that thats really all I want to do. I dont want to do the maintenance anymore. SO- to anyone in the military or with experience at it, what branch has a job that I can just crew the aircraft?
 
Nope. Even if you're a pilot, you still gotta log flight hours and fill out after action reports.

I wanted to fly Blackhawks, but I didn't have a chance in hell because of my academic grades.
 
Dont listen to anyone, both Officers and Enlisted fly.

Im a SrA (E-4) in the Air Force, and Im enlsited Aircrew as a Radio Operator.

Here are some jobs in the Air Force, on the E-side that has primary jobs of flying:

- Loadmaster (C-130's, C-5, C-17, etc): You are in charge of the cargo, pallets, and any personnel in the back on the aircraft on a PAX Manifest

- Airborne Radio Op: You fly, doing just that, scanning the radio air waves.

- Flight Engineers (C-5, C-17, C-130, Helo's): These guys have typically have a maintenance background. They sit up front in the cockpit with the pilots and Navs and watch the gauges of the aircraft. They basically ensure the safety of the aircraft mechanically.

- Boom Operator: You are usually in the back of a KC-10 or KC-135 and you do mid-air refuels to fighter aircraft. Pretty cool job.

- Airborne Gunner: You ride on the side of Air Force helicopters, shooting a huge machine gun on targets below. Typically these guys are involved in search and rescue missions.

- Flying Crew chiefs: These are a rare breed, and you must have EXTENSIVE knowledge of the aircraft prior to being put on these orders. But its a cool job for maintainers.

- Ravens: These are airborne cops, usually found on C-5's, and some other heavies. They are cops that fly and ensure the safety of the aircraft when at a remote location. Pretty B.A.

As for jumpers, they are primarily special operations personnel: SERE, PJ, TAC-P, CCT, Combat Weather, etc.



Again, don't listen to the guys above, go to your branch's base Personnel Flight and find out about flying gigs in other branch's and how to get them. I know that the Air Force has the most enlisted flying jobs as they have the most cargo aircraft. Again, check into it.
 
Uh....pilot?

If you'd done your research, you'd know that only officers can be pilots. Like the other answers, if you mean literally controlling the plane, you'd have to be a pilot. You need a Bachelors Degree, you need to become and officer, and you need to be able to secure a pilot's slot.

EDIT: You never specified if you meant "Flying" as in controlling the plane or "flying" as in being on the plane as it's in the air. If you mean the latter, there's definately plenty jobs in the Marine Corps for you to be in that allows you to do that. There are gunners, flight engineers, loadmasters, etc.

If you wanted to be a pilot, being a Crew Chief is not exactly going to get you there.
 
No, there isn't. Even the pilots don't fly every day. And for the guy that said "Army Air National Guard", it's Army National Guard OR Air National Guard. Air is the Air Force. Just FYI. If you want to fly every day, you would need to get a civilian job on a plane.
 
If you were in the military, you'd know that only officers who are aviators fly, and that enlisted will never fly

Unless you mean fly in the planes, which yeah, there are plenty, talk to the appropriate person about switching... Marines will need gunners in their helos, but all in all, Marine Corps probably has the lowest amount of aircrew needed since most of their planes are attack oriented
 
I know a guy close to home in the Army Air National Guard that all he does is fly every day and refuels aircraft in mid-flight from Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida.
 
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