The point of my earlier rambling is that there are a lot of options out there for folks trying to pursue a career in aviation and many of them are in the military. I knew little to nothing about any of them but got lucky and stumbled into one. I don't expect that everyone will find the military route appealing, but it doesn't hurt to get all the info you can when you are trying to pick a road to head down.

WW, we are on the same page. That's great that your son is in a ROTC program, I wish him the best of luck. I was in the Corps for 12 years and just last year I interservice transferred to the Air Force - a huge cultural change but I'm still supporting the guys on the ground so the end result is the same. Having seen both sides now though I would caution your son to pay close attention to the direction the AF is going - they are really in love with UAVs and will soon be taking guys straight from winging to "fly" them. When I went through flight school, assuming you didn't wash out you would at least end up flying helos. I know UAVs are the wave of the future, but I would be seriously disappointed if I put all that effort into earning my wings only to get stuck in a cargo container with antennaes on it. For the time being the Navy/Marine Corps offers better odds of making it to a real cockpit.

Vick,
You said exactly why he is contemplating the other services. I still have friends in the AF at Hurlburt Field (SOC) and he has told me the same thing about pilots getting transfered over to UAV's. They are NOT happy.
Thanks,
WW

You know I didn't mention the military. That would be an excellant way to go too!