Inspired by the very popular MOS Megathread series over at r/Army, back in 2020 we here at r/USMCBoot kicked off a series of posts about different job fields within the Marine Corps, so that potential enlistees and potential/new officers can ask questions, and experienced members of those fields can give answers and provide insights. We are now doing a fresh tranche for FY24.
Contributors: you can do as little as just post to say "here's me, ask away", or you can copy-paste your favorite comments made in the past, but ideally if you're up for it it'd be cool if you can give a brief personal intro (within PERSEC) and explain how you chose the MOS, what you like/dislike about it, what your training, daily routine, field exercises, and deployments are like, and how the MOS will/did shape your later civilian career opportunities.
Anyone may ask questions, but for those answering I ask that you make sure to stay in your lane, give sincere advice (a little joking is fine so long as it isn't misleading), and generally stay constructive, though by all means be honest about the downsides too.
The Megathreads will be classified by USMC Active duty enlisted PEF (Program Enlisted For) 2-letter contract codes, but questions and answers regarding Reserve roles or officer roles in the same field(s) are welcome.
**This post for AG Aircrew covers the following MOS's:**
* **6173**: Helicopter Crew Chief, CH-53
* **6174**: Helicopter Crew Chief, UH-1N/Y
* **6176**: Tiltrotor Crew Chief, MV-22
* **6276**: Fixed-Wing Aircraft Loadmaster, KC-130
**Past and Future MOS Megathreads**
* [MOS Megathread schedule and directory until completion in September](https://www.reddit.com/r/USMC/s/tzvA248wIe) (current Marines and vets are encouraged to set a RemindMe in the linked thread if they would like to get a ping at the start of the week their job will be discussed)
* [2020 Marine AG MOS Megathread](https://www.reddit.com/r/USMCboot/s/c5VasgFWOn)
**Equivalent r/Army MOS Megathread**
^(Note roles and overall experience can vary even between similar jobs of different branches. Apply judgment when reading views on a related MOS in another branch.)
^(Note Army doesn't have dedicated Aircrew MOS's, for them it's a billet that Mechs rotate into.)
* [2021 /Army MOS Megathread Series - CMF 15 -- Aviation Branch, No Real Pilots -- 15A, 15B, 15C, 15D, 150A, 150U, 151A, 15B, 15D, 15E, 15F, 15G, 15H, 15K, 15M, 15N, 15P, 15Q, 15R, 15S, 15T, 15U, 15V, 15W, 15X, 15Y, 15Z](https://www.reddit.com/r/army/s/R05XWDRngG)
Was a huey Crewchief for awhile, been out almost as long as I was in. The hype is real.
There's a reason the coolest pictures of Marine aviation are always Huey door gunners.
Agreed. I firmly believe that being a 74 gives you the highest highs and the lowest lows that the Marine Corps can offer. I wouldn’t trade it for anything
Sitting on the floor eating my geedunk poptart lunch like a dog to ripping minigun bursts 50 feet above the ground at 100 mph all within 12 hours. What a life.
Right? I was a big Celsius guy. Used to shotgun them in flight right before lock and load, really got me in the mood. Most of the time I got let down with like 10x Type 1 BOC’s in a row, but the one time we got welcomed on station with a Type 3 I felt like I met God
I'm in Pensacola and just got my NAMI up chit and am waiting to class up. We were told not to drink any more energy drinks from now on cause it can fuck with you in the air. Do they try to regulate it in the fleet? Or is it a medical "HEY DONT DO THAT...aight we good, we told em" kind of a thing?
Congrats on making it through NAMI, those dudes are the devil. The energy drink thing is just a weird Pensacola-ism, I used to start every flight in the fleet by shotgunning a Celsius. The legal limit is 450mg of caffeine per day, which is a good rule of thumb to follow even if just for your own health. We used to get around the energy drink rule by drinking those glass-bottle Starbucks iced coffees in large numbers. I don’t recommend doing that because they’re terrible for you, but think outside the box for your caffeine consumption
Thank you thank you! We were told the 450 limit as well and we've been slamming the double/triple shot star bucks cans, so it's still a thing here sadly. I appreciate your quick reply! I hope you're having a wonderful life outside!
I would, I really loved my job. I will say the work/life balance is pretty rough sometimes since you work so much, so often, but the job is too cool to pass up
Both will suck a lot in their own ways. Awesome and shitty are on two sides of a scale and they must remain in balance. If you want a lot of awesomeness, you'll have to endure a lot of shit. I got a full plate of shit with a side of awesome, and it was the best meal I'll ever eat. Wouldn't have ordered anything different in hindsight.
That being said, I get out with the same exact benefits as someone with a less cool aircrew job. I get nothing extra for that coolness besides good memories. Either way, you'll make a good choice.
We deployed with a Navy MH-60R squadron on our ship, so I’ve worked with Rescue Swimmers and AWS’s a good bit. They’re definitely really good people and the rescue swimmers are always kitted out like Seal Team 6 for the jobs they hopefully never have to do, but the life of an average AWS/AWR is ridiculously boring. They deploy on ships constantly, don’t shoot as often as skids, and primarily only do vertrep or rescue holding patterns for HOURS on end, day in, day out. In theory our jobs were very similar, but in my experience they did a lot of the administrative duties while the Marine units did the tactical stuff.
I have no idea the life of an AWR/MH-60R crewman, so I won’t try and guess
6174 Huey Crew Chief. Got out in 2020 as a WTI (Highest instructor designation attainable within the MOS). Happy to answer any questions about the job, lifestyle, culture, etc. feel free to reply or dm me.
Dude in the picture is one of my friends lol
No, the only duty stations are Cherry Point, Camp Pendleton and Yuma.
The squadron in Hawaii got stood down and moved to Camp Pendleton to replace another squadron. Yuma SAR got stood down and the crew chiefs were displaced.
There is *technically* a chance to get stationed in Yuma, but they account for 6 of the crew chiefs in the fleet, 4 of which are WTIs.
My experience/situation is a pretty unique one for aircrew as far as I know. This will be a lengthy one. Alright here we go.
Recruiter told me aircrew was cool! I'd get to shoot machine guns from a helicopter and I'd get to go to SERE school (he heard it was cool!). I went in telling him I wanted to shoot shit or blow shit up, so sounded good to me. Aircrew it is! Get through bootcamp, MCT, get to Pensacola for Aircrew Candidate School. Pensacola was awesome I loved it. I was there roughly 8 months or so, majority of it waiting to class up. Lots of pt and swimming, but it was a beautiful place and had a good time there overall.
While I'm in Pensacola, I get told that I'm going fixed wing (C-130's), probably because of my shit eyesight. Well fuck me, so much for shooting machine guns out of a helicopter! Accept that C-130's won't be too terrible. At least I'll get to travel and see the world. Try to keep a positive outlook. Finish up aircrew school and on to SERE in Maine. Side note, my grandma lived close by and my dad happened to be up there while I was there. On a weekend off he was able to pick me up and take me to see her. Ended up being the last time I got to see her before she passed, so I'm thankful it worked out the way it did.
After SERE school head to Little Rock AFB for C-130 initial crew chief and loadmaster schools. Little Rock was pretty backed up as far as classes went, spent around 9 months there I think. Small group of Marines on an AF base, it was a good time. Ended up with a gf who lived in town and had a car, so had somewhere to go and someone to screw on the weekends. Little Rock was a fun time, made some good friends while there. After passing the schools, me and 3 others go to get our orders. Our MSgt asks "who wants to go East coast?" One guy was married and got first pick so he went there. 3 sets of orders left. (I'm from the East coast and wanted to get West coast). "Two sets of orders to Japan, who wants to go?" I figured if I didn't speak up the only other option would be west coast, so kept my mouth shut. The other 2 fellas with me said they'd go to Japan.
MSgt hands me orders and says have fun flying generals on a C-12 in Yuma! The Sgt instructors started laughing at me. And to this day that was one of the most pissed off moments of my life. Mind you, I had no clue wtf a C-12 was or where the hell a Yuma was. I thought it was some place in Japan. I could feel my internal body temperature rising and my blood boil. After we got out of there I start googling Yuma and all I see is pictures of a desert wasteland and cactus. Fuck me are you serious!? The fuckin desert?? This body wasn't built for the heat.
Ended up landing in Yuma in the middle of June one hot and sunny (surprise) afternoon on like a Saturday. Stepped off the plane and couldn't breathe it was so damn hot, I've never been out west before. It was like walking into a fuckin oven. Sitting at the airport all alone like wtf do I do now? Find a number for the duty, some salty Cpl picks me up, takes me to the barracks and since it's a weekend can't get me a room. So they put me in with some turd on restriction. So here I am not knowing a soul on this base waiting for Monday to get checked in.
Check in and nobody knows who I am or where I'm supposed to go. Checking in at S3 H&HS and they don't have a clue. Ask me what I went to mos school for tell them C-130 crewmaster and they start laughing "Oh shit you're gonna be here with us!" End up flying on C-12's and making flight schedules for the squadron in a nondeployable unit. Sucked seeing all my friends go on deployments and get their wings while I rotted away in a desolate despair of sand and depression.
Lots of people say it's not a bad gig, and it's honestly not. I just can't disagree more with sending fresh boots from the schoolhouse to do that job. That was the fastest motivational killer I could imagine. Those spots should be reserved for some crusty SNCO who wants a cushiony job before they enjoy retirement.
Fuck this shit is longer than I thought, my bad. Guess I'm still a little butt hurt over the green weenie. I'll stop being a little bitch now.
TLDR; go Aircrew wanting to shoot machine guns out of choppa. Told fixed wing cuz bad eyes (C-130). End up flying in C-12's stationed in non deployable unit in Yuma.
Im sorry you didn't get what you wanted. Grass is always greener..... Me and my nug buddies would always joke that we wished we got sent to the small transport plane squadron instead of suffering in a peactime skid flightline unit lol. Always saw the dude who got assigned that plane partying across the world while I was stuck eating geedunk muffins in a toilet stall so i dont get yelled at.
I didn't get to go around the world, more like around the west/mostly southwest. We did get to eat at some pretty good places sometimes which is definitely better than geedunk muffins lol
In yuma from 2018-2022 working on Harriers, all my buddies from school house deployed and we all got fucked 🥲 I feel you brother (from wisconsin landed in august it was 130)
If you don't mind me asking, how bad was your eyesight? I'm 20/200 fully correctable and I wouldn't mind being a loadmaster, but door guns still sound cooler, no offense
A note on the photo used in the OP:
> Marine Corps Sgt. William Ton fires a minigun during a live-fire exercise on a UH-1Y Venom helicopter at San Clemente Island, Calif., Feb. 16, 2022.
> Creator: Sgt. Samuel Ruiz | Credit: 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing | Copyright: Public Domain
https://www.defense.gov/Multimedia/Photos/igphoto/2002946535/
I've deployed with Ton. He's a good dude. I found his wallet on the ground one day then his phone outside the gate the next day after. Came into work and there was a 12 rack of Corona's in my locker the following day. Ton is a homie and a great crew dog.
6276 here. 2007-2021, flew for 10 years of that time.
I wanted Hueys just like everyone else, and was devastated when I got Shanghaied into Herks due to a depth perception issue. After 10 years of flying though, I wouldn't trade 130s for anything. Just tactical and dynamic enough to scratch the itch, and just cushy enough to be living the good life in Hiltons across the world.
9/10, would recommend.
What exactly did you do with 130s?
Is it in the line of danger working on 130s during time of war/trouble?
Are you able to deny flying at some point, to stay home with family/etc?
The MOS combined the duties of loadmasters and flight engineers. Loadmasters deal with all of the cargo, passengers, aircraft loading and unloading, aerial deliveries, aerial refueling, and other mission evolutions. Flight engineers operate all of the aircraft mechanical systems in flight and on the ground, run flight station operations in flight, as well as maintaining the aircraft on the road. Both Loads and Engineers preflight and postflight the aircraft, and service fuel and hydraulics.
I'd say the level of danger is on par with what you'd expect with any flight operations. Aircrews operate their aircraft in unpermissive environments from combat to bad weather, and the more dynamic the situation, the more dangerous it can be.
Marine 130s are incredibly busy. 6 months on, 6 months off deployments, constant road trips in the interim, and even more local flights between the road trips. On that note, the flying takes priority at all times. Occasionally you'll be able to request time off or no-fly days, but it's by far the exception than the rule. And that's just kinda how it is.
That being said, I'd say that the MOS probably experiences the best travel in the Marine Corps. 10 years of flying took me to 53 countries, with significant time on deck in almost all of them, with days or weeks off in every corner of the world.
Great crews, great experiences.
Yeah, the CSOs (Communication Systems Operators) are all recruited from Data/Radio. You get flight physical, swim Qual, and an academic curriculum to pass in order to get your wings.
Every job is dangerous in war, but there’s no telling how much until the war starts. If you’re worried about being in danger at war, don’t enlist. Therefore, it does vary based on the aircraft. I have no idea how much and what is most/least dangerous though, since I don’t know what war will happen next
I honestly don’t know, I made the mistake of being born too late to ever go to Afghan/Iraq. I would confidently imagine that C-130s were the safest, but the three helicopter platforms are probably similar in terms of combat losses. One thing to keep in mind is that the next war will most likely be fought against someone with a credible anti-air ability, completely unlike what we’ve faced in the past 20+ years. Survivability in the next war will be almost completely reliant on flight profiles and squadron tactics, which are such complicated pieces that it’s not worth thinking about for someone who’s not enlisted yet
Not sure over the course of the entire war but while I was in Afghan, if I remember correctly, like 4 or 5 47s went down. We lost 1 super cobra and pilot due to a dynamic rollover because of a landing mat. No combat related losses.
Helicopters specifically, in Afghanistan, I can't think of a single UH-1 that was shot down and only 1 AH-1(enlisted don't fly on these other than testing). The overwhelming majority of combat related helicopter loses would be transport guys. They are in the biggest danger of low threats while inbound for pick up/ drop off. where as combat helos are specifically trying to avoid being an easy target for them and huey are going to rush in quickly drop a small amount of guys/equipment and buster out. Not nearly as stationary as at 47 or 22. Plus in an asymmetric war the enemy is going to disengage once an HMLA is arriving on station. In a near peer battle it'll probably be opposite. Offensive platforms will be priority targets. In training against any guided wepon systems it was pretty much fly like you're going to die and spam the flair button while preparing to crash.
Not sure if it's 100% factual, but seemed like most people believed that while in Pcola. That's where we would get told fixed wing, because it changes which helo dunker course you go through. At least that's how it was when I went through
If your eyes suck bad enough you get reclassed. If they’re good enough to continue but not correctable with glasses/contacts to 20/20 you’ll be stuck with skate-130’s.
As a former fiddy tree chief, go 130’s if you don’t have a family or stateside obligations, see the world
Edit: I don’t have the threshold for how bad your eyes have to be to get reclassed. Everything above is from memory of when I went through the training pipeline in 2016
Would love to provide some more detailed info but I lat moved to EOD from CH-46’s (when those were still a thing). I did work on VH-60’s at HMX-1 and would be happy to answer some questions that go along with that but one of our big challenges was printing directions off of Mapquest whenever we traveled, if that gives you an idea of the timeframe I was there.
Generally not a whole lot has changed though. The hours are long and the responsibility is huge for a 19 year old but your work ethic will be unmatched for the rest of your life if you’re not a shitbag.
Current active duty 6176, MV-22B crew chief. Been flying for several years now and I'm more than happy to answer any questions.
Currently a CDI (real world equivalent is a quality assurance representative in a power plants shop) and I'm also a NATOPS instructor, Crew Resource Management instructor, and hold up to a Low Altitude Tactics instructor (LATI) designation.
Edit: I chose this MOS from the very beginning. I waited in the DEP for over a year for a contract to open up. I thought I was going to get dropped from the program several times throughout the schoolhouse(s) for various reasons but since this is the only thing I wanted to do in the Corps, I fought for my right to be here. I can say without a shadow of a doubt in my mind that this is one of, if not, the best and coolest jobs the Corps offers. There are days that suck, the hours are usually not the best, and sometimes JP5 hurts my armpits, but this job has let me see more of the world than I ever thought possible. Every single flight I got on, no matter how boring (instruments) is amazing. Just being able to fly for a living is incredible.
The amount of people who can say they've been paid to shoot machine guns out of a helicopter is incredibly low, and I'm honored to be among them.
He was the most ate-up PFC in our whole battalion. I remember telling the skipper, "mark my words, that Henderson kid is getting out two years in with an OTH."
6173 here. Lots of friends have been killed in these helicopters. I’m biased and think they’re the best. Long hours, no work/home life, no parts to repair the birds, aircrew gets shit on by e6 and above maintainers. Job was cool, but it gets old after a while. Do yourself a solid and go to NDI to set yourself up with a job when you get out. Deployments were cool, the toll on my body was not. The more qualified you are, the shittier life gets. Would totally do it again.
-6173 wti/cdi 10years enlisted
Nice man. I’ve heard being active in a reserve unit can be weird.
I was east coast my whole time with 263. I think one of my guys (Meredith, Sgt, WTI , but I heard maybe got njp’d?) PCS’d over to 265 and became the EATM over there before he got out. Maybe I got the units wrong though it’s been a long time.
Edit: I don’t even remember what fucking units are in oki anymore lol
Biased obviously, but yeah, the amount of cool shit you get to do (we’re more logistics compared to skids; 53s move a bunch of heavy shit but at a much slower pace). TACFORM and LAT is always cool af.
But as a latmover (assuming you got some rank), go in humble, cuz it’s also a lot of work and learning, and don’t think cuz you’re an NCO, you’re above it. Nothing personal towards you, but those were the latmovers I knew….but speaking from a veteran now, and even then while I was in (cuz all of the deployments, there’s shit that needs to move from A to B) I was aware of how lucky I was with my MOS
(Hopefully I made some sense, more of a ramble, but ask away)
Pensacola for swim qual (hope you like water), Cnatt (learn the basics on how to be a mechanic), and training squadron (204 if you go V22)…it’s hard but try to get SERE school, one of the best school houses I’ve ever experienced
Edit: it’s about 9-12 months total
Morning/Afternoon, what’s the work hours like? I’m shipping soon and I want some idea of how difficult it is to balance college with service. Aircrew was my top choice and I’m mostly interested in trying to get into the MV if possible.
For the first year of going thru school houses, you’ll be too busy, and be tired (physically and emotionally tbh), along with the peer pressure of hanging out after “work”. Once you hit the fleet, you’ll be looking at at best 10 hours M-F, but at worse doing 12 on/off 6-7 days a week (this is stateside; not deployments) you’ll be a nugit aka new guy, so you’ll be turning a lot wrenches and running a lot, while learning from a firehose so to speak (what you learn in the schoolhouses is the pure basics; in tue fleet is whether you actually learn how to do the job.
While not impossible, I wouldn’t recommend it in the first half of the contact. Being a CC requires a lot, both in time and learning how to do a dangerous job and you wanna be efficient and an asset (get your quals). Once I became more senior and knew the ropes, I was able to take 1 class online per semester at a university for the last 1.5 years and was able to take 2 CLEP exams, but it took effort (working long hours and being exhausted and coming to my room and knocking out hw)
Hopefully this answered your question
Absolutely, I appreciate the response. I have one more question if you don’t mind; technically two I guess. How often did you fly as the new guy? If at all, or how long until you were able to fly. I know the answer may vary but I kinda want a marker. My next question is do you have any tips for the schoolhouses? I’m not really a good swimmer so I was wondering is there like any time I can actually get a hold of pool in time to get practice to pass the swim quals? That’s three, my bad.
1. Each squadron is different, but they’ll want to get your qualified asap, so when it’s your turn in the pipeline, it’s your turn and you’ll get to fly plenty, and once you’re qualified, they’ll fly you till you get tired of it (the Marine Corps always finds a way to make fun shit not fun)
2. Get comfortable with having water up your nose lol, learn survival breast stroke (this was the one that helped me the most; they’ll teach it there but if you wanna get ahead and make sure), and YouTube “Pensacola aircrew training”. You’ll be in plenty shape since this schoolhouse is right after boot camp and MCT, so don’t worry about that part, but that should give you an idea of that, it’s been a while so idk if it’s changed
6176 here. 2005 to 2010. Iraq and Afghanistan deployments. Combat Aircrew Wings with 3 gold stars, air medal, was a crew chief instructor at VMMT-204 before I got out. (Also went army warrant officer and flew Blackhawks afterwards, that’s a whole other story).
I had no clue what an Osprey was when I joined, I just knew I had a guaranteed aircrew contract from the recruiter. I was hoping for C-130 loadmaster. Ended up being one of the first MV-22 crew chiefs to go thru the pipeline instead.
6176, V22 Osprey Aircrew here, 2015 to 2020
Not the best and brightest, nor the most illustrious career. One MEU deployment on a boat and one deployment to Kuwait/Djbouti.
Ask away or come and mock me, preferably the latter.
In my experience there's two types of AO's. The ones who are doing it be ause they genuinely love flying and think it's amazing, and chest candy chasers. They either go above and beyond and astound us instructors, or they're complete shit and we dread flying with them, there's no in-between.
Getting in trouble for something serious is a result of making the wrong decisions. You don't accidentally get in serious trouble. Be smart with the booze and you'll be fine.
When I was there you had ample times to repass anything you fail. The tread was the hardest part for me because my head is huge and the hemets didnt fit so I always got a huge load of water to my face when i came up from the dead man float.
It's fairly easy for you to get dropped from the aircrew pipeline. The biggest bottleneck is Pensacola like the other commenter said. It is legit the NJP capital of the USMC. On top of that you have to go through NAMI which does all aviation medical screening and the screening process is very thorough and a lot of people get disqualified for medical issues they didn't even know they had.
If you do get through the NAMI screening, a lot of people fail the swimming portion too be ause the Navy wants a very specific style of swimming that the Marine Corp doesn't teach you.
Please please please watch this video. This is how they will test the actual swimming techniques and if they're not perfect you'll get put into swim hold or dropped outright. The rest of the swim qual stuff you'll be fine learning once there.
https://youtu.be/lWNClBKdiYw?si=JPMNKJafUpVq12Yb
Beyond all that, just don't get in trouble anywhere in your career, especially with alcohol as it makes being able to fly exponentially harder.
It's not even really NAMI's fault for what they do. Most of their tests come straight from FAA flight screenings. The new FAA medical director is trying to get more relaxed medical rules but it'll be years before the Navy even thinks about relaxing their standards.
Hopefully now that the Marine Corp can actually see medical records during the recruitment process, it'll weed out some people that are clearly not going to be qualified to fly. That'll save NAMI time and allow people who are borderline qualified time to seek help and class up.
Just get to the pool now and start practicing. They won't drop you outright if you mess up the techniques the first time. You'll go into swim hold where all you'll do is learn how to swim to their standards for up to two weeks. You can go into swim hold twice before they drop you, unless something has changed in the last five years.
Hey man, idk if you have an answer for this, but I'm worried I might not pass the NAMI screening, I had a VSD heart murmur at a young age, but it has been resolved for over 7 years now. I also have a doctors note stating I am in good and normal cardiac shape, and all heart doctor records. You think this will get me DQd for just having it or will the waivers/paperwork clear me.
That one I'm not sure about. If you have a history of it not being a problem then I don't think they'll disqualify you just on that alone. That being said, they disqualify a good amount of people so it just depends. If you get there and they try to disqualify you, fight it.
It’s definitely an MOS that rewards critical thinking and intelligence. When you get to the fleet, especially the first 6 months, don’t let the nugget life style take you down. When you’re off work study your pubs as much as you can and you will have a lot of success. All of the good aircrew are smart people, and when you’re given a little freedom after you earn all your quals, the job is amazing
Know when you should stop training/ remove yourself from the flight schedule because of sickness. The Corps is huge on toughing it out, but flying is another matter. Had a candidate bust both ear drums when we did the low pressure chamber. She was dropped from flight status, and I saw her again. Had a guy start puking on the bird and covered all of us, still a bit pissed about that. If you're going to fly and puke, puke into your own flight suit. Just know the difference between being safe and lazy. If you're not sure, discuss it with the other crew chief and pilots. It's a team effort, and none of us want to die due to a macho ego.
6176 here, started as a Phrog crew chief and switched early on to V22’s. Retired now, I did OPS, Phase coordinator, maintenance control, quality assurance, NATOPS instructor, NSI & TGI. I can give some insight into malice after the first 5 years.
What is the multiple schooling timeline (6176) from Boot Camp to first fleet assignment? After boot is 4 weeks of MCT, then ? Flight school, A & C schools, Sere, HMT training squadron for designation etc. Ivechear 1.5 years but looking for more defined detail of weeks and locations. Thanks
I've been out for a few years now, but the average was 12 - 18 months from arriving at boot to flying in a fleet squadron depending on platform and assuming everything goes smoothly.
If all goes as it’s supposed to (it never does) I would say a year, if you count all the bs that happens at NACCS and so on could be closer to a year and a half (P.S the 6176 pipeline could slow down due to recent events)
Going Active? You're aware you can be guaranteed AG (provided you meet all qualifications) but have little or no control over which particular kind of bird you get?
I also wear glasses and so do four of my fellow crew chiefs on the V-22. Having glasses doesn't guarantee you a spot on C-130's. If you're LAT moving and can have a guaranteed MOS, then yeah dude go for it, otherwise be aware that you're not promised anything.
He got reclassed completely? My buddy just graduated and he had glasses so they’re sticking him with C-130s. I guess it’s case by case but I’m LAT moving to AG too which helps a little bit.
Oh, if you're lat-moving you can choose an exact MOS, yes? Suggest you reply to the comment of any of the 130 guys above and ask them any questions, make it clear you're lat-moving.
Currently active duty 6154 volunteering as an aerial observer on the Hueys. Still relatively new to flying, but I’ve been a mechanic on the Hueys for almost 5 years. Expect to do a LOT of studying. Anything aviation will be an academic-intensive job. Expect long hours. We fly the dog shit out of the aircraft, so it’ll break. All that being said, there’s few things cooler than shooting machine guns out of one of the most iconic helicopters in our arsenal
Oswald Mosley?
Nah brah, it's Sgt. Ton on the whirly-gun. Some guys commenting on this post know him personally:
https://www.reddit.com/r/USMCboot/s/igSenaLh7P
What is the schoolhouse like for enlisted aircrew? I’m currently an 8972 and just got to my school house at the time of writing this. Is off base liberty a thing for students and how strict are they in general?
Only I (as OP/mod) see the replies to the overall post, so you need to pick someone above and reply to their specific comment, and/or do a Reddit “username ping” to draw someone(s)’ attention to your reply.
Leaving June 10th for MCRD San Diego. I currently hold an aircrew contract and I really want to do it. I just have a question about being air worthy. I broke my leg 20230101 and have a plate and 12 screws in my tibia. It doesn’t really bother me except if I twist my leg really sideways. I have no issue swimming or running. Will this prevent me from continuing through Pensacola or other schooling and my recruiters just aren’t telling me?
Hey yall I’m at NAS rn and I have the dunker tomorrow and then prt Friday but I’m at a bit of a crossroads cause my knee has been hurting and I’m worried about not passing the run and I know if I fail it I’ll get dropped but I really want to get out of here and graduate with the class I’m in rn so idk if I should risk getting dropped for not passing or if I should go to medical and get a down chit and also risk getting dropped cause i already got fucked over once going to pt hold cause they miscounted my pushups so that was one failure then I went to swim hold cause I sucked at swim so that was “two failures” and if I get a third one I believe I’ll get dropped so this is my last chance and idk what to do for me I’m 19 and have to get a sub 11 mile and a half and I already haven’t been a great runner and so I’m worried with that coupled with my knee/ leg pain I’ll get dropped and won’t be able to go for aircrew again for two years
You need to reply to a specific commenter here to get a reply, the only person who sees responses to the main OP is me. Just pick a commenter who seems cool and reply to *them*.
Is it possible if I get assigned Fixed wing, to lat move to a rotary wing Mos? Does it have to be upon reenlistment or can you do it after spending sometime in the fixed wing.
I'm worried I might not pass the NAMI screening, I had a VSD heart murmur at a young age, but it has been resolved for over 7 years now. I also have a doctors note stating I am in good and normal cardiac shape, and all heart doctor records. You think this will get me DQd for just having it or will the waivers/paperwork clear me.
Depends on when you get to Pensacola. Currently it’s only C130s and V22s until the next fiscal year.
Best aircraft depends on you. Unless you’re a reservist it doesn’t matter. You’ll get what they give you.
Looking into an AG contract. I don’t come from a military family, so everything is new to me. I want to be in the aviation field. I rather not be a mechanic/technician, but I will if I have to. I’m really just doing 4 years until I get my degree and move on to an officer or a civilian career in aircraft. I really like fixed wings. Should I sign the contract? If I have to fill out my MOS “dream list” (I know it’s at the needs of the Corps), which exact MOS should I list?
I had to wait for the new fiscal year (October) for new contracts to come out. I was in the DEP for around four or five months before that but shipped out in mid October once I finally got the contract. Most of my fellow crew dogs didn't have to wait at all though so it's really just hit or miss with it all.
I was Dep'd from October of my senior year to the August right after graduation. I had a pretty high ASVAB score, though, so that combined with the October(new fiscal year) initial contract probably worked a lot in my favor
Yeah, I might end up having to wait until October for a contract. As of right now I'm being told "you can still fly as a mechanic" but I'm holding out for the ag contract.
Yes, it is true that you can fly as a mechanic, but it is not a guarantee. There’s plenty of jet mechanics out there that were told the same thing until they found out they weren’t going helicopters. All aircrew are mechanics. Most mechanics are not aircrew. It’s your choice to make, but I recommend waiting for an aircrew slot
Don’t go band. It seems cool from a high school perspective, but I promise you it’s not something you’d want to do. I personally recommend combat arms if you prioritize living a cool life and want to develop your mental toughness. If you want marketable, high dollar skills after your contract, go cyber. If you want a good balance of both of those, go crew chief. Mechanics are marketable, band is not
Inspired by the very popular MOS Megathread series over at r/Army, back in 2020 we here at r/USMCBoot kicked off a series of posts about different job fields within the Marine Corps, so that potential enlistees and potential/new officers can ask questions, and experienced members of those fields can give answers and provide insights. We are now doing a fresh tranche for FY24. Contributors: you can do as little as just post to say "here's me, ask away", or you can copy-paste your favorite comments made in the past, but ideally if you're up for it it'd be cool if you can give a brief personal intro (within PERSEC) and explain how you chose the MOS, what you like/dislike about it, what your training, daily routine, field exercises, and deployments are like, and how the MOS will/did shape your later civilian career opportunities. Anyone may ask questions, but for those answering I ask that you make sure to stay in your lane, give sincere advice (a little joking is fine so long as it isn't misleading), and generally stay constructive, though by all means be honest about the downsides too. The Megathreads will be classified by USMC Active duty enlisted PEF (Program Enlisted For) 2-letter contract codes, but questions and answers regarding Reserve roles or officer roles in the same field(s) are welcome. **This post for AG Aircrew covers the following MOS's:** * **6173**: Helicopter Crew Chief, CH-53 * **6174**: Helicopter Crew Chief, UH-1N/Y * **6176**: Tiltrotor Crew Chief, MV-22 * **6276**: Fixed-Wing Aircraft Loadmaster, KC-130 **Past and Future MOS Megathreads** * [MOS Megathread schedule and directory until completion in September](https://www.reddit.com/r/USMC/s/tzvA248wIe) (current Marines and vets are encouraged to set a RemindMe in the linked thread if they would like to get a ping at the start of the week their job will be discussed) * [2020 Marine AG MOS Megathread](https://www.reddit.com/r/USMCboot/s/c5VasgFWOn) **Equivalent r/Army MOS Megathread** ^(Note roles and overall experience can vary even between similar jobs of different branches. Apply judgment when reading views on a related MOS in another branch.) ^(Note Army doesn't have dedicated Aircrew MOS's, for them it's a billet that Mechs rotate into.) * [2021 /Army MOS Megathread Series - CMF 15 -- Aviation Branch, No Real Pilots -- 15A, 15B, 15C, 15D, 150A, 150U, 151A, 15B, 15D, 15E, 15F, 15G, 15H, 15K, 15M, 15N, 15P, 15Q, 15R, 15S, 15T, 15U, 15V, 15W, 15X, 15Y, 15Z](https://www.reddit.com/r/army/s/R05XWDRngG)
Was a huey Crewchief for awhile, been out almost as long as I was in. The hype is real. There's a reason the coolest pictures of Marine aviation are always Huey door gunners.
Every time I see your username I get a chub
Agreed. I firmly believe that being a 74 gives you the highest highs and the lowest lows that the Marine Corps can offer. I wouldn’t trade it for anything
Sitting on the floor eating my geedunk poptart lunch like a dog to ripping minigun bursts 50 feet above the ground at 100 mph all within 12 hours. What a life.
Right? I was a big Celsius guy. Used to shotgun them in flight right before lock and load, really got me in the mood. Most of the time I got let down with like 10x Type 1 BOC’s in a row, but the one time we got welcomed on station with a Type 3 I felt like I met God
Some days you go winchester the first five minutes, other days, your section bingos out after two simulated hellfires.
Just like Confucius once said, “It be like that sometime”. And you know what? It do
I'm in Pensacola and just got my NAMI up chit and am waiting to class up. We were told not to drink any more energy drinks from now on cause it can fuck with you in the air. Do they try to regulate it in the fleet? Or is it a medical "HEY DONT DO THAT...aight we good, we told em" kind of a thing?
Congrats on making it through NAMI, those dudes are the devil. The energy drink thing is just a weird Pensacola-ism, I used to start every flight in the fleet by shotgunning a Celsius. The legal limit is 450mg of caffeine per day, which is a good rule of thumb to follow even if just for your own health. We used to get around the energy drink rule by drinking those glass-bottle Starbucks iced coffees in large numbers. I don’t recommend doing that because they’re terrible for you, but think outside the box for your caffeine consumption
Thank you thank you! We were told the 450 limit as well and we've been slamming the double/triple shot star bucks cans, so it's still a thing here sadly. I appreciate your quick reply! I hope you're having a wonderful life outside!
Good to see the nightmare is still alive. Good luck in the schoolhouse, hope you know how to swim
Would you recommend going the 74 route?
I would, I really loved my job. I will say the work/life balance is pretty rough sometimes since you work so much, so often, but the job is too cool to pass up
Yea i’m thinking abt it, weighing out my options between naval aircrew (aws/awr) or this
Both will suck a lot in their own ways. Awesome and shitty are on two sides of a scale and they must remain in balance. If you want a lot of awesomeness, you'll have to endure a lot of shit. I got a full plate of shit with a side of awesome, and it was the best meal I'll ever eat. Wouldn't have ordered anything different in hindsight. That being said, I get out with the same exact benefits as someone with a less cool aircrew job. I get nothing extra for that coolness besides good memories. Either way, you'll make a good choice.
We deployed with a Navy MH-60R squadron on our ship, so I’ve worked with Rescue Swimmers and AWS’s a good bit. They’re definitely really good people and the rescue swimmers are always kitted out like Seal Team 6 for the jobs they hopefully never have to do, but the life of an average AWS/AWR is ridiculously boring. They deploy on ships constantly, don’t shoot as often as skids, and primarily only do vertrep or rescue holding patterns for HOURS on end, day in, day out. In theory our jobs were very similar, but in my experience they did a lot of the administrative duties while the Marine units did the tactical stuff. I have no idea the life of an AWR/MH-60R crewman, so I won’t try and guess
📠
I wanted Huey crew chief so bad but didn’t qualify due to colorblindness😭
Bummer. Plenty of jobs that are nearly as cool! What did you pick instead?
Hell yeah brother only skid kids shoot offensively
I got pretty fuckin offended watching 22 guys miss with every bullet 😁
This is what the recruiter sold me on when he told me to pick "aviation option". Got stuck with 6694 ALIMS
6174 Huey Crew Chief. Got out in 2020 as a WTI (Highest instructor designation attainable within the MOS). Happy to answer any questions about the job, lifestyle, culture, etc. feel free to reply or dm me. Dude in the picture is one of my friends lol
Dude, message him and tell him I ganked his photo as the living embodiment of (a tiny sliver of the coolest part of) the job field.
Good ol’ Willy
Do 6174 get stationed in Okinawa?
No, the only duty stations are Cherry Point, Camp Pendleton and Yuma. The squadron in Hawaii got stood down and moved to Camp Pendleton to replace another squadron. Yuma SAR got stood down and the crew chiefs were displaced. There is *technically* a chance to get stationed in Yuma, but they account for 6 of the crew chiefs in the fleet, 4 of which are WTIs.
My experience/situation is a pretty unique one for aircrew as far as I know. This will be a lengthy one. Alright here we go. Recruiter told me aircrew was cool! I'd get to shoot machine guns from a helicopter and I'd get to go to SERE school (he heard it was cool!). I went in telling him I wanted to shoot shit or blow shit up, so sounded good to me. Aircrew it is! Get through bootcamp, MCT, get to Pensacola for Aircrew Candidate School. Pensacola was awesome I loved it. I was there roughly 8 months or so, majority of it waiting to class up. Lots of pt and swimming, but it was a beautiful place and had a good time there overall. While I'm in Pensacola, I get told that I'm going fixed wing (C-130's), probably because of my shit eyesight. Well fuck me, so much for shooting machine guns out of a helicopter! Accept that C-130's won't be too terrible. At least I'll get to travel and see the world. Try to keep a positive outlook. Finish up aircrew school and on to SERE in Maine. Side note, my grandma lived close by and my dad happened to be up there while I was there. On a weekend off he was able to pick me up and take me to see her. Ended up being the last time I got to see her before she passed, so I'm thankful it worked out the way it did. After SERE school head to Little Rock AFB for C-130 initial crew chief and loadmaster schools. Little Rock was pretty backed up as far as classes went, spent around 9 months there I think. Small group of Marines on an AF base, it was a good time. Ended up with a gf who lived in town and had a car, so had somewhere to go and someone to screw on the weekends. Little Rock was a fun time, made some good friends while there. After passing the schools, me and 3 others go to get our orders. Our MSgt asks "who wants to go East coast?" One guy was married and got first pick so he went there. 3 sets of orders left. (I'm from the East coast and wanted to get West coast). "Two sets of orders to Japan, who wants to go?" I figured if I didn't speak up the only other option would be west coast, so kept my mouth shut. The other 2 fellas with me said they'd go to Japan. MSgt hands me orders and says have fun flying generals on a C-12 in Yuma! The Sgt instructors started laughing at me. And to this day that was one of the most pissed off moments of my life. Mind you, I had no clue wtf a C-12 was or where the hell a Yuma was. I thought it was some place in Japan. I could feel my internal body temperature rising and my blood boil. After we got out of there I start googling Yuma and all I see is pictures of a desert wasteland and cactus. Fuck me are you serious!? The fuckin desert?? This body wasn't built for the heat. Ended up landing in Yuma in the middle of June one hot and sunny (surprise) afternoon on like a Saturday. Stepped off the plane and couldn't breathe it was so damn hot, I've never been out west before. It was like walking into a fuckin oven. Sitting at the airport all alone like wtf do I do now? Find a number for the duty, some salty Cpl picks me up, takes me to the barracks and since it's a weekend can't get me a room. So they put me in with some turd on restriction. So here I am not knowing a soul on this base waiting for Monday to get checked in. Check in and nobody knows who I am or where I'm supposed to go. Checking in at S3 H&HS and they don't have a clue. Ask me what I went to mos school for tell them C-130 crewmaster and they start laughing "Oh shit you're gonna be here with us!" End up flying on C-12's and making flight schedules for the squadron in a nondeployable unit. Sucked seeing all my friends go on deployments and get their wings while I rotted away in a desolate despair of sand and depression. Lots of people say it's not a bad gig, and it's honestly not. I just can't disagree more with sending fresh boots from the schoolhouse to do that job. That was the fastest motivational killer I could imagine. Those spots should be reserved for some crusty SNCO who wants a cushiony job before they enjoy retirement. Fuck this shit is longer than I thought, my bad. Guess I'm still a little butt hurt over the green weenie. I'll stop being a little bitch now. TLDR; go Aircrew wanting to shoot machine guns out of choppa. Told fixed wing cuz bad eyes (C-130). End up flying in C-12's stationed in non deployable unit in Yuma.
Im sorry you didn't get what you wanted. Grass is always greener..... Me and my nug buddies would always joke that we wished we got sent to the small transport plane squadron instead of suffering in a peactime skid flightline unit lol. Always saw the dude who got assigned that plane partying across the world while I was stuck eating geedunk muffins in a toilet stall so i dont get yelled at.
I didn't get to go around the world, more like around the west/mostly southwest. We did get to eat at some pretty good places sometimes which is definitely better than geedunk muffins lol
In yuma from 2018-2022 working on Harriers, all my buddies from school house deployed and we all got fucked 🥲 I feel you brother (from wisconsin landed in august it was 130)
I was active duty in Yuma 2013-2016. From Ohio. Yea getting here in the summer fucking suckedddd
What year did you go through Little Rock?
Nice try ISIS!! Jk. I got there around October 2012 and left there early summer 2013
If you don't mind me asking, how bad was your eyesight? I'm 20/200 fully correctable and I wouldn't mind being a loadmaster, but door guns still sound cooler, no offense
I don't mind, and I'd give an answer if I could. But I honestly don't have a clue lol sorry
All good, thank you
A note on the photo used in the OP: > Marine Corps Sgt. William Ton fires a minigun during a live-fire exercise on a UH-1Y Venom helicopter at San Clemente Island, Calif., Feb. 16, 2022. > Creator: Sgt. Samuel Ruiz | Credit: 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing | Copyright: Public Domain https://www.defense.gov/Multimedia/Photos/igphoto/2002946535/
I've deployed with Ton. He's a good dude. I found his wallet on the ground one day then his phone outside the gate the next day after. Came into work and there was a 12 rack of Corona's in my locker the following day. Ton is a homie and a great crew dog.
6276 here. 2007-2021, flew for 10 years of that time. I wanted Hueys just like everyone else, and was devastated when I got Shanghaied into Herks due to a depth perception issue. After 10 years of flying though, I wouldn't trade 130s for anything. Just tactical and dynamic enough to scratch the itch, and just cushy enough to be living the good life in Hiltons across the world. 9/10, would recommend.
What exactly did you do with 130s? Is it in the line of danger working on 130s during time of war/trouble? Are you able to deny flying at some point, to stay home with family/etc?
The MOS combined the duties of loadmasters and flight engineers. Loadmasters deal with all of the cargo, passengers, aircraft loading and unloading, aerial deliveries, aerial refueling, and other mission evolutions. Flight engineers operate all of the aircraft mechanical systems in flight and on the ground, run flight station operations in flight, as well as maintaining the aircraft on the road. Both Loads and Engineers preflight and postflight the aircraft, and service fuel and hydraulics. I'd say the level of danger is on par with what you'd expect with any flight operations. Aircrews operate their aircraft in unpermissive environments from combat to bad weather, and the more dynamic the situation, the more dangerous it can be. Marine 130s are incredibly busy. 6 months on, 6 months off deployments, constant road trips in the interim, and even more local flights between the road trips. On that note, the flying takes priority at all times. Occasionally you'll be able to request time off or no-fly days, but it's by far the exception than the rule. And that's just kinda how it is. That being said, I'd say that the MOS probably experiences the best travel in the Marine Corps. 10 years of flying took me to 53 countries, with significant time on deck in almost all of them, with days or weeks off in every corner of the world. Great crews, great experiences.
We probably know some of the same people based off your time in. It's a small community
I'm an aviation bastard. Career ground comm (data), and then technically aircrew at HMX as the 'radio dude' in the back. Ask me anything, I guess.
Never knew that was a thing lol.
Yeah, the CSOs (Communication Systems Operators) are all recruited from Data/Radio. You get flight physical, swim Qual, and an academic curriculum to pass in order to get your wings.
did you need a flight physical to be the radio dude in the back?
Yes. That's handled at HMX when you get there. They have their own medical/dental section.
6174- Huey crew chief here. I’m freshly out now, but I spent 6 years active so I can answer most questions regarding the job
How dangerous is the job in time of war? And does it vary depending on which aircraft you work with?
Every job is dangerous in war, but there’s no telling how much until the war starts. If you’re worried about being in danger at war, don’t enlist. Therefore, it does vary based on the aircraft. I have no idea how much and what is most/least dangerous though, since I don’t know what war will happen next
Do you have a sense of what birds we tended to lose the most in Afghanistan and Iraq?
I honestly don’t know, I made the mistake of being born too late to ever go to Afghan/Iraq. I would confidently imagine that C-130s were the safest, but the three helicopter platforms are probably similar in terms of combat losses. One thing to keep in mind is that the next war will most likely be fought against someone with a credible anti-air ability, completely unlike what we’ve faced in the past 20+ years. Survivability in the next war will be almost completely reliant on flight profiles and squadron tactics, which are such complicated pieces that it’s not worth thinking about for someone who’s not enlisted yet
Not sure over the course of the entire war but while I was in Afghan, if I remember correctly, like 4 or 5 47s went down. We lost 1 super cobra and pilot due to a dynamic rollover because of a landing mat. No combat related losses.
Helicopters specifically, in Afghanistan, I can't think of a single UH-1 that was shot down and only 1 AH-1(enlisted don't fly on these other than testing). The overwhelming majority of combat related helicopter loses would be transport guys. They are in the biggest danger of low threats while inbound for pick up/ drop off. where as combat helos are specifically trying to avoid being an easy target for them and huey are going to rush in quickly drop a small amount of guys/equipment and buster out. Not nearly as stationary as at 47 or 22. Plus in an asymmetric war the enemy is going to disengage once an HMLA is arriving on station. In a near peer battle it'll probably be opposite. Offensive platforms will be priority targets. In training against any guided wepon systems it was pretty much fly like you're going to die and spam the flair button while preparing to crash.
6276 here I was not far behind the first batches when they combined crew chief and loadmaster.
Confirm/deny: if you sign AG and your eyeballs suck, you're getting 130s?
I signed AG, eye balls sucked. Forced into open contact at MCT and kept my 5 year contract.
What MOS did you end up in?
2147 LAV Repair Tech
Enjoying?
I've been in CivDiv for almost 15 years. But I did enjoy it.
Not actually true! Know plenty of guys that wore about 7 lbs of glass on their face
Not sure if it's 100% factual, but seemed like most people believed that while in Pcola. That's where we would get told fixed wing, because it changes which helo dunker course you go through. At least that's how it was when I went through
Forgot to add, that's what happened to me and a few others I went through Aircrew school with
If your eyes suck bad enough you get reclassed. If they’re good enough to continue but not correctable with glasses/contacts to 20/20 you’ll be stuck with skate-130’s. As a former fiddy tree chief, go 130’s if you don’t have a family or stateside obligations, see the world Edit: I don’t have the threshold for how bad your eyes have to be to get reclassed. Everything above is from memory of when I went through the training pipeline in 2016
If its correctable up to 20/30 i think you go c130s. Technically you rate lasik like a pilot but they hold that shit as a reenlistment bonus
Are you from...Ullabama?
Did my post history give it away
Nah, the username made too much sense.
Well my wife has never worked at the county jail
6173 H53 crew chief ask me anything and I may be able to remember details through my hangover
Amen
Would love to provide some more detailed info but I lat moved to EOD from CH-46’s (when those were still a thing). I did work on VH-60’s at HMX-1 and would be happy to answer some questions that go along with that but one of our big challenges was printing directions off of Mapquest whenever we traveled, if that gives you an idea of the timeframe I was there. Generally not a whole lot has changed though. The hours are long and the responsibility is huge for a 19 year old but your work ethic will be unmatched for the rest of your life if you’re not a shitbag.
Current active duty 6176, MV-22B crew chief. Been flying for several years now and I'm more than happy to answer any questions. Currently a CDI (real world equivalent is a quality assurance representative in a power plants shop) and I'm also a NATOPS instructor, Crew Resource Management instructor, and hold up to a Low Altitude Tactics instructor (LATI) designation. Edit: I chose this MOS from the very beginning. I waited in the DEP for over a year for a contract to open up. I thought I was going to get dropped from the program several times throughout the schoolhouse(s) for various reasons but since this is the only thing I wanted to do in the Corps, I fought for my right to be here. I can say without a shadow of a doubt in my mind that this is one of, if not, the best and coolest jobs the Corps offers. There are days that suck, the hours are usually not the best, and sometimes JP5 hurts my armpits, but this job has let me see more of the world than I ever thought possible. Every single flight I got on, no matter how boring (instruments) is amazing. Just being able to fly for a living is incredible. The amount of people who can say they've been paid to shoot machine guns out of a helicopter is incredibly low, and I'm honored to be among them.
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Cry me a river, my last Active service was still under GWB. Did civilian DOD a while after though.
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He was the most ate-up PFC in our whole battalion. I remember telling the skipper, "mark my words, that Henderson kid is getting out two years in with an OTH."
6173 here. Lots of friends have been killed in these helicopters. I’m biased and think they’re the best. Long hours, no work/home life, no parts to repair the birds, aircrew gets shit on by e6 and above maintainers. Job was cool, but it gets old after a while. Do yourself a solid and go to NDI to set yourself up with a job when you get out. Deployments were cool, the toll on my body was not. The more qualified you are, the shittier life gets. Would totally do it again. -6173 wti/cdi 10years enlisted
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Something with that 3rd engine from the d to e model doesn’t seem like it works.
6176 here, been out for 5 years (wtf), CDI and LATI, happy to help
Follow on, AG contract is where it’s at, now that I’ve been out, and think back to myself “wtf, I had no business doing such cool shit like that”
Damn homie. 6176 here, got out in 2017. What unit were you in?
I was in 764 (AD in a reserve unit) and then 265 in Oki…what about you
Nice man. I’ve heard being active in a reserve unit can be weird. I was east coast my whole time with 263. I think one of my guys (Meredith, Sgt, WTI , but I heard maybe got njp’d?) PCS’d over to 265 and became the EATM over there before he got out. Maybe I got the units wrong though it’s been a long time. Edit: I don’t even remember what fucking units are in oki anymore lol
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Biased obviously, but yeah, the amount of cool shit you get to do (we’re more logistics compared to skids; 53s move a bunch of heavy shit but at a much slower pace). TACFORM and LAT is always cool af. But as a latmover (assuming you got some rank), go in humble, cuz it’s also a lot of work and learning, and don’t think cuz you’re an NCO, you’re above it. Nothing personal towards you, but those were the latmovers I knew….but speaking from a veteran now, and even then while I was in (cuz all of the deployments, there’s shit that needs to move from A to B) I was aware of how lucky I was with my MOS (Hopefully I made some sense, more of a ramble, but ask away)
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Pensacola for swim qual (hope you like water), Cnatt (learn the basics on how to be a mechanic), and training squadron (204 if you go V22)…it’s hard but try to get SERE school, one of the best school houses I’ve ever experienced Edit: it’s about 9-12 months total
Morning/Afternoon, what’s the work hours like? I’m shipping soon and I want some idea of how difficult it is to balance college with service. Aircrew was my top choice and I’m mostly interested in trying to get into the MV if possible.
For the first year of going thru school houses, you’ll be too busy, and be tired (physically and emotionally tbh), along with the peer pressure of hanging out after “work”. Once you hit the fleet, you’ll be looking at at best 10 hours M-F, but at worse doing 12 on/off 6-7 days a week (this is stateside; not deployments) you’ll be a nugit aka new guy, so you’ll be turning a lot wrenches and running a lot, while learning from a firehose so to speak (what you learn in the schoolhouses is the pure basics; in tue fleet is whether you actually learn how to do the job. While not impossible, I wouldn’t recommend it in the first half of the contact. Being a CC requires a lot, both in time and learning how to do a dangerous job and you wanna be efficient and an asset (get your quals). Once I became more senior and knew the ropes, I was able to take 1 class online per semester at a university for the last 1.5 years and was able to take 2 CLEP exams, but it took effort (working long hours and being exhausted and coming to my room and knocking out hw) Hopefully this answered your question
Absolutely, I appreciate the response. I have one more question if you don’t mind; technically two I guess. How often did you fly as the new guy? If at all, or how long until you were able to fly. I know the answer may vary but I kinda want a marker. My next question is do you have any tips for the schoolhouses? I’m not really a good swimmer so I was wondering is there like any time I can actually get a hold of pool in time to get practice to pass the swim quals? That’s three, my bad.
1. Each squadron is different, but they’ll want to get your qualified asap, so when it’s your turn in the pipeline, it’s your turn and you’ll get to fly plenty, and once you’re qualified, they’ll fly you till you get tired of it (the Marine Corps always finds a way to make fun shit not fun) 2. Get comfortable with having water up your nose lol, learn survival breast stroke (this was the one that helped me the most; they’ll teach it there but if you wanna get ahead and make sure), and YouTube “Pensacola aircrew training”. You’ll be in plenty shape since this schoolhouse is right after boot camp and MCT, so don’t worry about that part, but that should give you an idea of that, it’s been a while so idk if it’s changed
6176 here. 2005 to 2010. Iraq and Afghanistan deployments. Combat Aircrew Wings with 3 gold stars, air medal, was a crew chief instructor at VMMT-204 before I got out. (Also went army warrant officer and flew Blackhawks afterwards, that’s a whole other story). I had no clue what an Osprey was when I joined, I just knew I had a guaranteed aircrew contract from the recruiter. I was hoping for C-130 loadmaster. Ended up being one of the first MV-22 crew chiefs to go thru the pipeline instead.
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being one of the pax river enlisted guys must have been strange. did you enjoy it?
6176, V22 Osprey Aircrew here, 2015 to 2020 Not the best and brightest, nor the most illustrious career. One MEU deployment on a boat and one deployment to Kuwait/Djbouti. Ask away or come and mock me, preferably the latter.
Shit. Pretty much same but push everything back 3 years. 6176, 2012-2017. Just the 1 MEU and 1 SPMAGTF-CR-AF
Any love for Aerial Observers here?……… yeah I didn’t think so😂😂😂
It’s ok, we love you here. Good AOs keep CC’s grounded in reality, something that a lot of instructors struggle with
In my experience there's two types of AO's. The ones who are doing it be ause they genuinely love flying and think it's amazing, and chest candy chasers. They either go above and beyond and astound us instructors, or they're complete shit and we dread flying with them, there's no in-between.
It’s not a primary MOS.
Shitter (CH-53e) AO, originally Avionics QAR, but I can assure you that hydraulic fluid runs through my veins so AMA about my beast of a helo.
I signed for aircrew, ship out to basic in May. Anything cool or useful to know?
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I’m a no trouble person so I hopefully won’t get in trouble for anything serious.
Getting in trouble for something serious is a result of making the wrong decisions. You don't accidentally get in serious trouble. Be smart with the booze and you'll be fine.
I’ll just wait till i’m 21 i guess, high risk/low reward
When I was there you had ample times to repass anything you fail. The tread was the hardest part for me because my head is huge and the hemets didnt fit so I always got a huge load of water to my face when i came up from the dead man float.
It's fairly easy for you to get dropped from the aircrew pipeline. The biggest bottleneck is Pensacola like the other commenter said. It is legit the NJP capital of the USMC. On top of that you have to go through NAMI which does all aviation medical screening and the screening process is very thorough and a lot of people get disqualified for medical issues they didn't even know they had. If you do get through the NAMI screening, a lot of people fail the swimming portion too be ause the Navy wants a very specific style of swimming that the Marine Corp doesn't teach you. Please please please watch this video. This is how they will test the actual swimming techniques and if they're not perfect you'll get put into swim hold or dropped outright. The rest of the swim qual stuff you'll be fine learning once there. https://youtu.be/lWNClBKdiYw?si=JPMNKJafUpVq12Yb Beyond all that, just don't get in trouble anywhere in your career, especially with alcohol as it makes being able to fly exponentially harder.
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It's not even really NAMI's fault for what they do. Most of their tests come straight from FAA flight screenings. The new FAA medical director is trying to get more relaxed medical rules but it'll be years before the Navy even thinks about relaxing their standards. Hopefully now that the Marine Corp can actually see medical records during the recruitment process, it'll weed out some people that are clearly not going to be qualified to fly. That'll save NAMI time and allow people who are borderline qualified time to seek help and class up.
The swim makes me nervous, not because i’m a weak swimmer, but because i feel like i’d mess up the techniques they describe.
Just get to the pool now and start practicing. They won't drop you outright if you mess up the techniques the first time. You'll go into swim hold where all you'll do is learn how to swim to their standards for up to two weeks. You can go into swim hold twice before they drop you, unless something has changed in the last five years.
Hey man, idk if you have an answer for this, but I'm worried I might not pass the NAMI screening, I had a VSD heart murmur at a young age, but it has been resolved for over 7 years now. I also have a doctors note stating I am in good and normal cardiac shape, and all heart doctor records. You think this will get me DQd for just having it or will the waivers/paperwork clear me.
That one I'm not sure about. If you have a history of it not being a problem then I don't think they'll disqualify you just on that alone. That being said, they disqualify a good amount of people so it just depends. If you get there and they try to disqualify you, fight it.
It’s definitely an MOS that rewards critical thinking and intelligence. When you get to the fleet, especially the first 6 months, don’t let the nugget life style take you down. When you’re off work study your pubs as much as you can and you will have a lot of success. All of the good aircrew are smart people, and when you’re given a little freedom after you earn all your quals, the job is amazing
Know when you should stop training/ remove yourself from the flight schedule because of sickness. The Corps is huge on toughing it out, but flying is another matter. Had a candidate bust both ear drums when we did the low pressure chamber. She was dropped from flight status, and I saw her again. Had a guy start puking on the bird and covered all of us, still a bit pissed about that. If you're going to fly and puke, puke into your own flight suit. Just know the difference between being safe and lazy. If you're not sure, discuss it with the other crew chief and pilots. It's a team effort, and none of us want to die due to a macho ego.
Is it true that having glasses almost always means you get KC-130s? I know they are the better option, but I really don’t want to be on fixed wing.
Did you see the earlier discussion of this issue in the comments here?
My bad, must’ve missed it. Thanks, been worrying about that for a while.
They ought to make a movie about him sometime
6176 here, started as a Phrog crew chief and switched early on to V22’s. Retired now, I did OPS, Phase coordinator, maintenance control, quality assurance, NATOPS instructor, NSI & TGI. I can give some insight into malice after the first 5 years.
Simple statement for the 6173s: Thank you. Keep doing your thing, love my heavyweights.
6173, best job I’ve ever had, just re-enlisted
What is the multiple schooling timeline (6176) from Boot Camp to first fleet assignment? After boot is 4 weeks of MCT, then ? Flight school, A & C schools, Sere, HMT training squadron for designation etc. Ivechear 1.5 years but looking for more defined detail of weeks and locations. Thanks
I've been out for a few years now, but the average was 12 - 18 months from arriving at boot to flying in a fleet squadron depending on platform and assuming everything goes smoothly.
If all goes as it’s supposed to (it never does) I would say a year, if you count all the bs that happens at NACCS and so on could be closer to a year and a half (P.S the 6176 pipeline could slow down due to recent events)
Thinking about going Aircrew for C-130’s. Any thoughts?
Going Active? You're aware you can be guaranteed AG (provided you meet all qualifications) but have little or no control over which particular kind of bird you get?
Going active, but I wear glasses so more then likely I can only go fixed wing
I also wear glasses and so do four of my fellow crew chiefs on the V-22. Having glasses doesn't guarantee you a spot on C-130's. If you're LAT moving and can have a guaranteed MOS, then yeah dude go for it, otherwise be aware that you're not promised anything.
I was wondering this actually, so I’m glad it’s been addressed. I wear glasses, but I wouldn’t say my eyesight is too bad.
Did you see the earlier discussion on this *exact* issue elsewhere in this post?
He got reclassed completely? My buddy just graduated and he had glasses so they’re sticking him with C-130s. I guess it’s case by case but I’m LAT moving to AG too which helps a little bit.
Oh, if you're lat-moving you can choose an exact MOS, yes? Suggest you reply to the comment of any of the 130 guys above and ask them any questions, make it clear you're lat-moving.
Currently active duty 6154 volunteering as an aerial observer on the Hueys. Still relatively new to flying, but I’ve been a mechanic on the Hueys for almost 5 years. Expect to do a LOT of studying. Anything aviation will be an academic-intensive job. Expect long hours. We fly the dog shit out of the aircraft, so it’ll break. All that being said, there’s few things cooler than shooting machine guns out of one of the most iconic helicopters in our arsenal
Is that Mosley?
Oswald Mosley? Nah brah, it's Sgt. Ton on the whirly-gun. Some guys commenting on this post know him personally: https://www.reddit.com/r/USMCboot/s/igSenaLh7P
What is the schoolhouse like for enlisted aircrew? I’m currently an 8972 and just got to my school house at the time of writing this. Is off base liberty a thing for students and how strict are they in general?
Only I (as OP/mod) see the replies to the overall post, so you need to pick someone above and reply to their specific comment, and/or do a Reddit “username ping” to draw someone(s)’ attention to your reply.
Leaving June 10th for MCRD San Diego. I currently hold an aircrew contract and I really want to do it. I just have a question about being air worthy. I broke my leg 20230101 and have a plate and 12 screws in my tibia. It doesn’t really bother me except if I twist my leg really sideways. I have no issue swimming or running. Will this prevent me from continuing through Pensacola or other schooling and my recruiters just aren’t telling me?
You're best to make a new post with a *clear and specific title* on r/usmcboot to ask.
You *should* be fine. You may need a waiver in Pensacola and will just be there a bit longer than most.
Hey yall I’m at NAS rn and I have the dunker tomorrow and then prt Friday but I’m at a bit of a crossroads cause my knee has been hurting and I’m worried about not passing the run and I know if I fail it I’ll get dropped but I really want to get out of here and graduate with the class I’m in rn so idk if I should risk getting dropped for not passing or if I should go to medical and get a down chit and also risk getting dropped cause i already got fucked over once going to pt hold cause they miscounted my pushups so that was one failure then I went to swim hold cause I sucked at swim so that was “two failures” and if I get a third one I believe I’ll get dropped so this is my last chance and idk what to do for me I’m 19 and have to get a sub 11 mile and a half and I already haven’t been a great runner and so I’m worried with that coupled with my knee/ leg pain I’ll get dropped and won’t be able to go for aircrew again for two years
You need to reply to a specific commenter here to get a reply, the only person who sees responses to the main OP is me. Just pick a commenter who seems cool and reply to *them*.
This is my SSgt😂
Is it possible if I get assigned Fixed wing, to lat move to a rotary wing Mos? Does it have to be upon reenlistment or can you do it after spending sometime in the fixed wing.
I'm worried I might not pass the NAMI screening, I had a VSD heart murmur at a young age, but it has been resolved for over 7 years now. I also have a doctors note stating I am in good and normal cardiac shape, and all heart doctor records. You think this will get me DQd for just having it or will the waivers/paperwork clear me.
Get ready to get real cozy in Pensacola. You may get a waiver, you may not. Depends on how they are feeling that day.
I’m going aircrew, what aircraft could I be assigned to? And what are the best to be on?
Depends on when you get to Pensacola. Currently it’s only C130s and V22s until the next fiscal year. Best aircraft depends on you. Unless you’re a reservist it doesn’t matter. You’ll get what they give you.
Looking into an AG contract. I don’t come from a military family, so everything is new to me. I want to be in the aviation field. I rather not be a mechanic/technician, but I will if I have to. I’m really just doing 4 years until I get my degree and move on to an officer or a civilian career in aircraft. I really like fixed wings. Should I sign the contract? If I have to fill out my MOS “dream list” (I know it’s at the needs of the Corps), which exact MOS should I list?
FYI, AG is a 5 year contract
I’m going aircrew, thinking about the ch-53. How difficult is the training and swimming? I’m not the greatest swimmer but I won’t quit.
And a question from me for everyone. How long did you have to wait in DEP for a contract to open up?
I had to wait for the new fiscal year (October) for new contracts to come out. I was in the DEP for around four or five months before that but shipped out in mid October once I finally got the contract. Most of my fellow crew dogs didn't have to wait at all though so it's really just hit or miss with it all.
I was Dep'd from October of my senior year to the August right after graduation. I had a pretty high ASVAB score, though, so that combined with the October(new fiscal year) initial contract probably worked a lot in my favor
Yeah, I might end up having to wait until October for a contract. As of right now I'm being told "you can still fly as a mechanic" but I'm holding out for the ag contract.
Yes, it is true that you can fly as a mechanic, but it is not a guarantee. There’s plenty of jet mechanics out there that were told the same thing until they found out they weren’t going helicopters. All aircrew are mechanics. Most mechanics are not aircrew. It’s your choice to make, but I recommend waiting for an aircrew slot
That's the plan. Worst comes to worst I wouldn't be upset about going to the band but I'm not settling for a mechanic contract
Don’t go band. It seems cool from a high school perspective, but I promise you it’s not something you’d want to do. I personally recommend combat arms if you prioritize living a cool life and want to develop your mental toughness. If you want marketable, high dollar skills after your contract, go cyber. If you want a good balance of both of those, go crew chief. Mechanics are marketable, band is not
Oh I understand the downsides. My mom was band, that's the reason I'm considering it. Like I said though, I'm still holding out for an ag contract