How to Become a Fighter Pilot
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The Training is Grueling
Fighter pilots fly high performance jet planes in combat. Their primary job is to defend our troops and positions against attacks by enemy aircraft.
To become a fighter pilot, you first must join the armed forces preferably the Air Force or the Navy as they are the ones in the U.S. who utilize fighter planes. The Marines have some attack aircraft but they mostly fly support for Marines on the ground. The Army uses mostly helicopters and the Coast Guard uses aircraft for rescue and neither of these two branches of the service engage in extensive air to air combat. For Americans, the only domestic employers of fighter pilots are the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Navy.
All pilots in both the Air Force and Navy are commissioned officers and all commissioned officers in these two branches must be college graduates. So the first requirement for a fighter pilot is to be a college graduate. The next requirement is that you meet the physical, psychological and intellectual requirements for admission to officer training. This process starts with completing a long and very detailed application which can best be described as telling them everything about your life to date. Don't lie or omit anything on this application as the application will be given to the FBI who will use it as the starting point for a full investigation of your background. This investigation includes going through sealed court records, so if you had any run ins with the law as a juvenile, include this information even though the court told you the record would be sealed and not available for viewing. Past transgressions, both as a juvenile and as an adult may not prevent you from being accepted for officer training but NOT disclosing them and having the FBI find them will almost certainly be grounds for rejecting your application. Even if the FBI overlooks the record on this first check, they will do a more extensive background check before you graduate from flight school and they will most likely discover the record that time and you will be removed from flight school.
Admission to officer training also requires the passing of a test which tests your knowledge (this part is very much like the Scholastic Aptitude Test or SAT, that you took to get into college) as well as having a psychological test built into it. The psychological questions are intermixed with the knowledge questions. In addition, the test is in sections and, once one section is completed you cannot go back and change answers in the previous sections, so, by the time you have figured out where they are going with the psychological portion of the exam it is impossible to go back and change answers in order to present the right psychological profile. In general, they are looking for people who are motivated, aggressive, have initiative and are team players; this is what the psychological portion of the test looks for. Finally, you will also have to pass a rigorous physical exam.
Pilot candidates usually also have to take additional knowledge and psychological tests as well as meet higher physical standards especially in the area of vision.
Assuming you meet all of the qualifications, the next step is officer training. All officer candidates, except those who received their commission through ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corps) in college or as a graduate of the Air Force Academy or the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis. While in officer training school you are not an officer and are treated much the same way as those in the enlisted ranks are treated in basic training. Physical training is a major part of the program as are the academics which are focused mainly on the history and traditions of the Air Force or Navy. Physical and mental stress play a big role in the training as one of the goals of the program is to weed out those who can't handle the stress and who are not fully committed to becoming an officer.
Continued After photo:Jet Fighters Flying Over HQ Bldg at Randolph, AFB (photo from Internet)
Flight School
Once you complete officer training and receive your commission you will be sent to flight school. As an officer you will be treated with more respect and have more freedom than a cadet in officer training. However, pilots are an elite fraternity within the service, especially the Air Force which is all about flying, so you will still be in a second class position as you will be both a student and one who has not yet earned pilot wings. Flight school is a combination of academics, this time dealing with more serious aviation related subjects such as meteorology, aeronautic theory, principles of flight, etc., as well as flying, both in simulators on the ground and in planes in the air. Stress is also a big part of flight school as they want people who can not only deal coolly with the stress of in flight emergencies, but the added stress of flying under combat conditions. The intent is to identify and force out those who can't handle the stress as well as those who do not measure up academically or whose flying is not up to standards. It is not uncommon for a number of people to wash out of flight school and not become military pilots. Flight school will take about a year and, if you successfully complete flight school you will be awarded your wings as a pilot.
Throughout flight school you will be continually evaluated and ranked. The rankings will be posted, so everyone will know where they stand in relation to everyone else. As the class progresses, the higher ups in the chain of command will review their needs for pilots and send a list of open assignments to the flight school. These assignments will be based upon the needs of the service and there will be no guarantee as to how many, if any, of the assignments will be fighter jets. Worse still, people are assigned to planes according to their rank in class with the top ranked person having first choice of assignments and the bottom ranked person getting the plane that is left after everyone else has chosen. Since fighter jocks are the elite of the elite, you can be certain that any fighter assignments will be taken by those at the top of the class. So, if you want to be a fighter pilot, you had better work hard to be at the top of your class in flight school.
The Lucky Few Go On to Advanced Training as Fighter Pilots
In the case of the fighter jets, especially the newer high performance ones, the assignment is not to fly the jet but, rather, a seat in the school that trains people to fly these jets. While you are waiting for your fighter jet class to start, you will probably to sent to wilderness survival school to learn how to survive in the wilderness if you ever have to bail out and live off the land for a few days while waiting to be rescued. There will be a few days of class where you will learn which bugs, critters, roots and leaves are edible and then turned loose in the woods for a few days where you can immediately put this knowledge to use by living on these same creatures as you make your home in the wilderness. Disgusting as it sounds, this is actually the easy part of the training as the next stage is to continue to survive on eating bugs and whatever else you can find while, at the same time, evading capture by the enemy. Of course, you will be captured and will spend the next few days as a prisoner of war undergoing the same psychological and physical torture as you would receive from a real enemy.
The final stage is to attend and complete training in the fighter aircraft that you have chosen. You are now both an officer and a pilot so you are well into the ranks of the elite. Even if you fail to complete this school, you will be given another flying assignment, although not necessarily in a fighter jet. In addition to learning how to fly your chosen aircraft there may be additional training beyond how to operate the aircraft. Upon successful completion of your training you will be a full fledged fighter jock one most prestigious positions in the Air Force, overshadowed only by the tiny clique of test pilots and astronauts.
A Taste of USAF Fighter Pilot Training
Major World Air Forces Home and Pilot Pages
- U.S. Air Force Home Page
- U.S. Air Force Pilot Careers Page
- U.S. Navy Home Page
- U.S. Navy Pilot Page
- Canadian Forces Home Page
- Canadian Air Force Pilot Page
- UK Royal Air Force Home Page
- Royal Air Force Pilot Page
- Australian Defence Forces Home Page
- Australian Air Force Pilot Page
- Indian Air Force Home Page
- Indian Air Force - Careers as a Pilot Page
Indian Air Force Documentary
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Great post! It really helped me!
It's great! That was new for me!
Good job! Very informative!
It's great! I learned somthing new!
I am only a teen but i want to become a fighter pilot.So if you have any additonal info about being a fighter pilot plz message me?
Great post! Now i know what i need...thank you
Nice!!! in doin a report for school on this and it really helped me thanks!!!
Great information for people thinking of a career in flight, really has helped my home schooled son think about future classes and courses. Thanks!!
Cool picture! Fighter jets have always fascinated me.
Very informational and helpful. I learned a lot off of this website.
THANK YOU FOR THE STUFF NOW I CAN HOFELLY JOIN AF
I'm just now starting ninth grade so now I know I have to workout more and build endurance and try to work my way up to the top of the class
Great site , extremely facinating stuff
The part of physical torture, thats the first time I read something like it. Encouraging and discouraging at the same time. Bullocks.
Nice!! Even tho i was a Jarhead those guys were sure pretty to see going over. It makes you feel better being on the ground. Thanks... SEMPER Fi!
Thank you very much. I am 16 and needed something like this, very informative. This is definetly the path I am taking, not a doubt in my mind. Thanks again!
Thanks for hoping giving me an idea on how training is, now I can practic that here at home and get the general idea.
im 15 years old and cannot wait to join the navy and become a fighter pilot
What are you talking about??? "the only domestic employers of fighter pilots are the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Navy."??? The Marine Corps. has fighter pilots flying the F/18 Super Hornet and soon will be flying the F-35 JSF. Get your info straight "expert".
Lol, i'm guessing you're not even gonna post my comment since it has to be "approved" by the author. I wouldn't wanna look stupid either.
Enthusiast, Thanks for visiting my HubPages and for your comments. I have no problem approving both of your comments as my policy is to only deny spam comments and comments that are obscene or insulting to other readers. I make no claim to be all knowing and thus have no problem with someone correcting or expanding upon what I have written. I also don't have a problem with someone disagreeing with opinions that I post so long as the comment is civil.
Sorry, for overlooking the Marines. Being an ex Air Force flyer (navigator on a air refueling tanker, not a pilot or fighter pilot) I should have known that Marines fly combat as well a providing air support to their troops on the ground. However, this fact did not come to mind when I was writing this short piece. But I do appreciate your enlightening the readers as to the role of the Marines in the combat aircraft arena.
However, for the record, within the Pentagon the Marine Corps are a part of the Department of the Navy and the top military commander of the Navy (Chief of Naval Operations) and the Marine Corps (Commandant of the Marine Corps) both report to the Secretary of the Navy. So, technically, the only two U.S. employers of fighter pilots are the Department of the Air Force and the Department of the Navy. But, as the Marines have a distinct identity within the U.S. military establishment as well as a long and proud combat tradition on the ground, sea and air, they should have been listed separately as an American employer of fighter pilots.
Thanks again.
Chuck
Everything that you have written on the pilot training, air force/navy, fighter pilots is helping me reach and achieve what many people can not do. All though I am a teen and soon to make my choice for a career I personally believe that I will be able to be in what I know Ican do. So as much help as you can give me would be amazing.
Thank You
That is great! I can't wait till it's my turn to join up.
You got two killer videos on here... Well done
hey, can you still become a fighter pilot if you have your G.E.D.? any information will be helpfull, my email is, chrisfaith420@yahoo.com, thanks.
Amazing...It is my dream job and taught me alot!!! Thank's Chuck
Always dreamed off riding in a fighter jet. Thanks for the videos.
Great info - impressive photo of the arial formation!
Holy Cow - thank God for people who want to do this!!
Thank you so much. the information was so informative, and i now know the challenges that i hope to face someday. I really appreciate that. Thanks!
C/MSGT A.M.Riendeau
First Sergeant
Inter-State Composite Squadron
Civil Air Patrol
wonderful
THANKS great info chuck, really helped me a lot, but how long does this take after you have passed college until you are done with specific aircraft training.
Max - Assuming you do not get a commission through an ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corps) in college, you will need to enlist and complete officer training which is 12 weeks or more. Initial flight training is generally about a year, and training in your aircraft is probably three to six months or more. This, of course is for the United States. If you are in another nation the rules and times will be different. Time will also be needed for pre-enlistment physical exams, appitude tests and other paperwork.
If you are interested, you should get more specific information by visiting an Air Force, Navy or Marine recruiter if you are out of college or contact the ROTC unit, if there is one, at your college or a nearby one (you can sometimes attend ROTC training at a neighboring college or university if there is not a unit at your school).
I did post links to flying information pages on official U.S. and some foreign military recruiting sites which can be a good place to begin research and making contact for an in person appointment. Good luck.
THANK YOU chuck and about ROTC, other than it does not take as long, what are the advantages when you go through ROTC
Max - One advantage of going through ROTC is that you get a taste of military life while still in school. During your last two years you actually join the reserves and receive pay as well as college credit for taking the courses and attending the drills. There is also a summer camp commitment where you train on a regular military base. When I was in the Air Force ROTC you had the opportunity to sign up and take the physical and written tests for flight training and, if you qualified, were slotted for flight training after graduating and receiving your commission. Also, by going through ROTC you complete your officer training while in college and receive your commission upon graduation rather than having to spend time signing up and attending officer training after graduation.
I don't know if what I have told you above is still entirely correct as it has been a number of years since I was in ROTC but, again, if you are interested it would cost you nothing but some time to sit down with one of the instructors in the ROTC program at your college or a neighboring one to discuss the requirements, options and benefits of their program.
Chuck
Thanks people! I guess I will have to print it out to memorize it. That really HELPS me!
Thank you for the info, but I don't think I would pass the physical test.
it is my passion to become a fighter pilot.
plz, send me info about it.
i will always thanks u.
This info was awsome and gave me a great idea of what i need to fufill my dream of becoming a fighter pilot. Thanks alot.
This stuff is SO COOL!!
wait, why is being a test pilot more prestigious than being a fighter pilot? astronaut i can understand...but test pilot?
Nice write up, this is really detailed - thanks! I thought about applying to the RAF here in the UK, but the admissions officer pointed out that it was only the top few percent of each class who got to fly single seater jets - based on your performance during the courses the type of plane you would end up flying would be chosen for you. Didn't fancy cargo runs in a Hercules so never took the application any further ;-)
Thanks alot, I'm only 14 but, I've always thought about becoming a fighter pilot. And this was alot of help and informational for me. Thanks again, nice videos by the way.
Alex - I assume that being a test pilot is considered by some to be more prestigious is because there are both fewer of them and, absent combat, being a test can more dangerous since the planes are so new and cutting edge. As one old pilot once pointed out to me while I was in the Air Force, the manual for older planes is thick and contains all kinds of information about the plane, its problems and how to fix them. For new planes there are only a couple of pages and more are added each time one crashes and we get to study and learn from the crash. The test pilots are the ones whose experiences (and crashes) give us the first few pages of the manual.
i see. yes, i have done some research since i posted the question, and i will pursue becoming a test pilot one day (after i graduate from the AFA, and a few years of experience).










Jim says:
14 months ago
Thanks for your post! That's what I needed!