Expert: MARK A. HOWELL - 3/19/2009

Question
Dear Col. Howell,
               My name is Adam and I'm in quiet a dilemma I was accepted to five colleges and have narrowed it down to two. My two choices are Floirda Institue of Technology and Norwich University up in VM. However I do not know which one to chose for many reasons. Since I was young I've always wanted to be a pilot. The plus for FIT is that it contains an Air Field and flying on a regular basis is a good possibility for me. However Norwich is a military academy "look alike" and I do not know if either one would better affect me in the future. I have been awarded an Army ROTC scholarship for both schools. So my question is which college would be a better preference? FIT where flying is all but a given or Norwich where prestige and Honor can be almost like an academy feeling. I originally wanted to be an Air Force Officer however bitter by the academies denial I never applied for AFROTC scholarship. So this may lead to a second question no matter what college I go to I will follow my goal of being a military officer is it possible to cross commission and become a fixed wing pilot in the AF though my goal as of now is to become a rotary winged pilot in the Army?

Answer
Adam,
Congratulations on getting a scholarship!

Let me start by saying I'm completely biased toward Norwich.

As a civilian pilot before I joined the military, I used to fly into Northfield, VT quite often.  There are about 5 or 6 airports in the vicinity of Norwich and the university used to have a contract with one or more of them to teach aviation.  I've had the opportunity to visit both campuses and if at all possible you should too.  Norwich is one of the most beautiful university campuses in the country, especially in the fall, set in an urban environment surrounded by nature.  You'll see 4 distinct seasons there, in all nature's glory.

In my opinion, FIT has one season - warm!  Of course that's what attracts a lot of students, all  the local Atlantic beaches.  It also has more of the fast-paced living whereas VT is a more relaxed atmosphere.  You'll be surprised to learn that the actual flying hours there are few.  A lot of your time is spent in Ground School, etc.

Where do you live?  Since you said "Up in Vermont", I'm assuming you're somewhere down south.  Would FIT be closer to home and more economical for you?  There're some advantages to going to school in your home territory, but if you plan on living in a dorm it really doesn't matter.
 
Let me tell you about flying.  It's a lot like driving a car and how long did it take you to learn that?  Maybe a few months?  Why do you need to go to school for 4 years to learn it?  Believe me, the Army will teach you everything you need to know about flying in 3 months.  Norwich U is a highly regarded school and does an excellent job of preparing you for military life.  The transition from it to Army life is barely noticeable and gives you a huge advantage over your peers.  Did you know that the Army teaches the AF how to fly helicopters?  Yep, all helicopter pilots go to Ft. Rucker in Alabama for 3 months learning to fly the UH-1N helicopter.  Also, the Army is the only service that sends soldiers directly into helicopter training without first being trained in Fixed-Wing aircraft to learn the basics of flight.

General Matia, a friend of mine, is the commander of Army helicopter aviation.  He says the Army has very few fixed-wing aircraft and most airplane pilots are generally enlisted Warrant Officers, so the field is very small for officers.  So most Army officer pilots are helicopter pilots.

So bottom line:  Learning to be a leader in the military is much more valuable than learning to fly.

There are basically only 3 types of helicopters in the military, the "HH-1/UH-1 "Huey", the HH-3  "Jolly Green Giant", and the HH-60 Jayhawk.  The Jayhawk is the most commonly used for SAR.  Because they are unarmed, they are usually accompanied by an Army AH-64 Apache helicopter while doing SAR in a combat zone.  The AH-64 carries HELLFIRE missiles, a 30mm chain gun and Hydra 70 rockets and provides great cover fire while a Jayhawk concentrates on extracting a wounded soldier.  There are plans to retire the HH-60 in anticipation of a new Combat Search And Rescue (CSAR) helicopter.  Fully armed, it can do the job of both a Jayhawk and an Apache.

Even the Navy calls upon the Army to provide protection for their helicopters.  Captain Eason, my Navy buddy, thought he'd get to do SAR  (Search and Rescue) ops but instead spent most of his flying time in helicopters doing drug interdiction ops in the Caribbean.  He'd fly his HH-3 Sea King into a suspected area and draw fire while an Army AH-64D Longbow Apache attack helicopter was waiting just over the horizon out of sight waiting to move in for the kill after the target was located.  Sounds like fun, huh?  Lucky survivors like him usually only fly for a short time and then get a desk job.

As for crossing-over - every helicopter pilot I know wants to be a fighter pilot.  Believe me the job is not as glamorous as it sounds.  A fighter pilot usually only flys a couple of times a week, about 1 - 1 ½ hours at a time.  The rest of the time he's swamped with paperwork and additional duties.  In a 20 year career in the Air Force, fighter pilots are lucky to total only about 4,000 hours of flying time.  Yes, it can be done but it's not easy.  Who knows, you may learn to love helicopters and want to stay put in the Army.

Sorry for such a long answer, but you're about to make a big decision and need to know all the facts.
Please send me a follow-up sometime and let me know what you decided and how you like it.  Then I can use your experiences to help others.
Good luck in whatever you choose.
Colonel H