Wednesday, 4 December, 2012
My recruiter convinced me that I needed to be an enlisted soldier before I could apply for flight school. This wasn't true, but I didn't know any better. I was the first in my family to join the military. I didn't have anyone mentoring me. My recruiter did do me one small favor. He gave me my choice of first duty assignments and recommended that I choose to be stationed at the home of Army Aviation and flight school--Fort Rucker, AL. He said that it would make it easier to put in my flight packet when that time came. Of course I had no idea how to know when that time came. I scored high on the ASVAB exam and had my choice of enlisted careers. I chose to become a helicopter mechanic or "crew chief". After Advanced Individualized Training, I was in fact assigned to a unit at Fort Rucker.
I immediately put in a packet for flight school with my unit's education officer. I later learned that my flight school packet never left his desk. Within a year a class position came up for the aeroscout-observer course when someone who was scheduled to attend the course failed to get his flight physical. I had completed my own flight physical for the second time because I was putting together my second flight school packet. By the way, after throwing away my glasses at age 12, my eyesight had tested better than 20/20 twice now. Anyway, I encouraged my platoon sergeant to allow me to attend in the lacking-student's stead. Granted!
The aeroscout observer school taught me how to fly helicopters, and I loved it! It was the best of both worlds. I had all the fun of flying, but as an enlisted soldier, I had none of the responsibilities that went along with the job. However, I wasn’t satisfied. I wasn’t a pilot. I finished the second flight school packet after the course and submitted it myself—going outside my chain of command. I do not advise that you do that. I burned a lot of bridges to get what I wanted. I did get what I wanted. I went to flight school in 1988.