Pat O

Hi everyone, long time reader first time poster.
I am currently enrolled at Swinburne University in Melbourne to begin my Bachelor of Technology(Aviation)/Business* in 2009. However, lately I have been considering the RAAF military option(two sort-of-friends have just joined, although I don't have any contact with them to ask questions).
So I'm posting this to ask for your opinions on the following:

--Pros and cons of the military/civil option. So let's pretend money isn't an issue: I know the obvious advantages and disadvantages of the military, but I'm more curious about job prospects when wanting to transfer into an airline once service is completed. Do airlines prefer military guys? Will it be a disadvantage if I don't have a Bachelor's degree?

--What are the typical qualifications/licenses/hours obtained from being in the military? Do you need more qualifications after the military when starting at an airline? ATPL etc etc.
That's all I can think of at the moment...

I will go into the Defence Force offices tomorrow and book an appointment to find out the nitty gritty, but I suspect they might not give good advice on the above questions.
I hope this is the right section of the forum to ask this kind of stuff.
Thanks in advance,
Pat O.

*degree includes flight training.

milky

I do know that the RAAF is very small (relatively speaking), so I don't know difficult it is to get into the cockpit there. The few guys that we've had over here on exchange have been totally great guys. Our guys that have gone on exchange over there loved it. Seems like a great place to be.

Here would be my advice to you: Get a degree in something besides flying. Let somebody else pay for your flight time as much as you can for the rest of your life. If that means you are military to do so, that isn't really a bad thing. The industry as a whole is not very strong, and having a ton of debt just to get enough hours to get hired for your first job just makes it worse.

Airlines overall seem to be very happy with military-trained guys. When you get to the point that you want to transition out, getting the equivalent civilian qualifications to be able to get hired is a relatively minor process.

Either way, you are a good ways from being a professional pilot either path you take. You should definitely get a good 4-year degree, then see what you really want to do. You can fly on the side while you go to college (like I did) without majoring in aviation. An aviation degree buys you very little, but a strong math/engineering or business-type degree tend to give you the most options including getting hired by the military.

Hope that helps some.

Pat O

Thanks mate that was quite helpful. Sounds like a degree is a solid investment. If I decided to do a math/engineering based degree like you suggested then join the RAAF, would I be at a disadvantage being those 3-4 years older(21-22 rather than 18)?

more opinions would be great!

Cooperd0g

Pat O, that is tough to answer for most of us in the States because virtually all officers who are pilots in Navy or Air Force have a college degree so we only compete with other guys of similar experience when starting training.

It sounds like you guys are like the Brits where you can join at 18 and don't need a degree to become a pilot. Of the guys I have known though it will effect you later in the military career for promotion. It seems they kind of expect you to get one eventually, but will give you the time to do it. That should only matter if you try and make a career of it though.

I agree with Milky, get your degree. Get it out of the way.