Considering Joining the Air Guard

I am considering joining the Air National Guard (after debating about it since I was 18), any advice brothers?

I commend you for looking into the service as many of us here are either serving or are Veterans.  What do you hope to accomplish by joining?  Is it for experience, education, or what? 

Next, do you have any college under your belt?If you have a 4 year degree you might look into the OTS (Officer Training School) for the Air force or OCS (Officer Candidate School) for other branches.  From what I remember when I joined the Army about 10 years ago and from what my brother, who I commissioned as a 2LT in the air force one month ago today, the Army is the easiest to get into if you want to go the Officer route.

With that being said, there is just as much to learn and gain by being enlisted, but I can only tell you what my basic training and OCS experiences were like as that's all I experienced as an enlisted man, myself.

Last, do some research.  I was fortunate enough to be a Navy Brat and knew the proper time to walk out when all the recruiters told me what I wanted to do instead of listening to what I wanted to do.  Make sure they listen to you and if they tell you what you want to do make them show you in writing the regulations and paperwork justifying their plan.  And a promise is usually no good,but the contract is binding. 

Best of luck and I hope you find what you are looking for.  Feel free to PM if you have questions about the military in general and more especially if you take an interest in going GREEN.  Hoooahhh!

Go for it.  Down the road if military service isn't for you, the skills you learn will translate well into the civilian world whether they be of the technical or leadership kind.

One of my best friends was in the Washington Air National Guard as a cable-splicer for IT networks.  It got him the job he has now.  The pool of really good fiber-optic splicers out there is pretty small, and the jobs available are pretty huge if you don't mind travelling.

Infinity Box wrote: aogop wrote: One of my best friends was in the Washington Air National Guard as a cable-splicer for IT networks.  It got him the job he has now.  The pool of really good fiber-optic splicers out there is pretty small, and the jobs available are pretty huge if you don't mind travelling. I was a Nuclear Mechanic in the Naval Nuclear Power Program on submarines.  With this highly technical training and the experience gained I was able to go start work at a power plant as a Mechanical Maintenance Manager making 3 times more than I was making in the Navy.  I was able to complete 2 degrees while in the Navy as well. All my travelling days were in the Navy, now I pretty much sit at a desk and try and figure out how to be the boss hehe.

When I was downrange in Afghanistan, my soldiers (who were quaalified) weren't allowed to splice any fiber.  We always had to wait ont he civilian contractors and that was annoying.  On the other hand, two of them figured out that there was more money for them as civilians, they got out of the Army, and then went right back as contractors.

Infinity Box wrote: LOL. I remember my dad almost killing the Army recruiter when he showed up to my house one day after I got out of school. My dad was a seargent major and a pretty tough drill seargent at the time. Needless to say I had a VERY structured childhood.

Same here.  high schoolw as a kind of a pain in the butt when I had to deal with a father who demaanded I act like I was a junior ranking enlisted man and dressed like one (not like that sailor fromt he village people).  i took a lot of crap, but turned out mean as hell for a kid my size.

One of the best times in my life, active duty army.. 24 aviation home of the taro leaf