Sign On: Worth It?Wise? Career Prospect? 2nd Career Pathway?

xingg SG

i guess many of you guys have signed on in the army/navy/airforce.

care to share your experience??how it affected your lifestyle, future job prospects, and do you regret signing on? ( as the outside world will definately offer better prospects?)

i am thinking if i should sign on with the airforce to be a pilot.then after serving my bond, i want to apply to be a commercial pilot with SIA. but what i heard is that choosing this method would be unwise as SIA prefers non-army pilots due to some reasons.

i really need some sincere advise here. please state your reason and explanation too and those with no experiences etc, please refrain from making pointless/unsubstantiated statements as it may further confuse me.

thanks!

P.S. i have realised that my title is inappropiate. sorry for that, but i do not know how to change it. i would change it to " comments/experiences on signing on".

cheers!

stellazio SG

nah....many airforce pilots still become commercial pilots..and dude.. commerica doesnt equal SIA..there's so many other airlines..

Lokey SG

i guess many of you guys have signed on in the army/navy/airforce.

care to share your experience??how it affected your lifestyle, future job prospects, and do you regret signing on? ( as the outside world will definately offer better prospects?)

thanks!

yah, you wan to sign on, apply for it loh . There are so many stuffs involve, medical, technical, skill... it is a fact that there are many rounds of trials and tests, to make you seat on the aeroplane. It has been 2 years already, my cousin still have not commercialized, and there is no assurance that he does not go OOC "tomolo!?"

SIA has a training scheme for pilot and does not require you to have flying experiences.

Beside military and commercial aircraft uses different systems.

And oldies from the military sides have their unspoken problem.

the job is quite boring, if u r a routine.

and there is no need to think so far ahead as how can you predict what you want 10-20 years later? who knows suddenly you might want to be a go-go dancer?

deathmaster SG

wake up ur idea lah. u think u want sign on as pilot they let you be pilot meh.

you have to go through a very tough selection test in order to be pilot and you will be competiting against other like-minded people who are all wanting to be pilot too.

so most likely if u sign on, you will end up in some other vocation that doesn't involve you flying a plane. and there goes your dream private sector job as a higly paid pilot.

Detached SG

Isn't it alarming that people who are planning to sign on are asking questions like "is it worth it and wise?"...

deathmaster SG

this is why there are more and more f-up ppl in uniforms

Detached SG

Precisely.. And it's a vicious cycle, people with no real passion to serve sign on, f everything and everyone with their f-ed up attitude, the conscripts suffer a lower morale.. it just goes on and on..

If this country really wants to keep this conscript army thing running, they should exercise a more stringent selection of its regular force.. or hell, when the day the whistle is finally being blown.. not a single soul will be back at their respective centres to report

Fatum SG

i guess many of you guys have signed on in the army/navy/airforce.

care to share your experience??how it affected your lifestyle, future job prospects, and do you regret signing on? ( as the outside world will definately offer better prospects?)

thanks!

1.) you don't choose to be an airforce pilot, the airforce chooses you to be a pilot

2.) if you need someone else to tell you whether to sign on or not, then you don't really want to sign on, so just serve and f*** off, as a favour to yourself.

xingg SG

i'm sorry but i find most of your responses are rather useless.those who are sincere to help, please comment. those who are not, then please dont post useless comment.

if i decide to sign on i will serve with all my heart. but i just dont want to commit myself into something that i don't know much yet( i'm 18 and i dont want to sign my life away without knowing more about what im heading into). i am treating this matter seriously, if not i wont be here asking these questions. furthermore,i know myself very well,ido not have some f-up attitude and treat life like a joke.

i came in to ask people with experience to comment and let me know more about the army life. i do have friends who sign on. there are positive and negative feedbacks. i'm here for more feedbacks.

and i'm not some ambitious kid who thinks i can do whatever i want e.g. walk into airforce recruitment center and ask to be pilot and tada! i get it!. no! i have passed both my compass and medical test. waiting for interview. so i am thinking should i decide to sign on with airforce to begin my pilot training( or whatever you like to call it) , i need to make the decision soon if i pass my interview. because if i decide to sign on, my enlistment date will be changed as i will have to be transferred from SCDF to BMT.

and i understand that the criteria to become a pilot is very strict. the passing rates are quite low. nontheless, its still my ambition to be a pilot( through airforce/commercial). i do not want to give up and walk away without even giving it a try. so what if i do not make the cut in the midst of the training stages? at least i know i gave it a shot. and there is one question that needs to be clarified, if i sign on to be a pilot, but i cannot pass certain training stages and got dropped out, i know i will be posted to other vocations. but in this case, my bond is void. am i right? as i have read this somewhere.

P.S. thanks Lokey for your comments. i know that the commercial and airforce training are totally different. and that even after i finish my bond as a pilot with airforce, i have to learn from scratch when i apply for commercial. but what i hear from my elder friends ( who have friends as airforce/commercial pilots) is that commercial airlines prefer non-combat pilots etc? not too sure about that too. hence, i need the help of people who have underwent this process to tell me more about their experiences.

cheers!

xingg SG

and there is no need to think so far ahead as how can you predict what you want 10-20 years later? who knows suddenly you might want to be a go-go dancer?

yah that is what i was thinking too. if i decide not to pursue my career as a pilot ( commercial/airforce). i will need to plan what i want to do now before choosing a course in uni. and if say i did make as a pilot in airforce, i have to retire before 30 right? ( as told by some friends) . at that time, if i apply to be a commercial pilot and fail, i need to consider other options. hence, i need to prepare myself for it by selecting the appropiate course in uni should this case happens.

deathmaster SG

no, you do not have to retire by the age of 30 if u r a pilot in the airforce. usually by then you will be in a command position and may no longer need to fly a plane anymore.

so, you have pass ur selection test, that's good.

all i want to point out is that bearing in mind that you sign on now, as a fresh jc/poly grad, it is unlikely for you to go pursue a degree, as pilot training will take up a considerable amount of time in your first 10yr of bond. if you are to pursue further education, there will be a considerable increase in workload.can you cope with that?

xingg SG

no, you do not have to retire by the age of 30 if u r a pilot in the airforce. usually by then you will be in a command position and may no longer need to fly a plane anymore.

so, you have pass ur selection test, that's good.

oh..hmm. what i heard is that i sign on for 6 years first( for pilots), and at the end of 6 years, the airforce will choose if they want to 'keep' me or not? if they decide to, then i sign on for 4 more years. hence adding up to 10 years?

lastly, i was also told that of the 6 years bond that i sign, the first 1 and a 1/2 years - 2 years will be served as NS. then i will be allowed to come out to complete my university studies before returning to finish my bond. is that true? i am quite confused now as all the information seems conflicting.

thanks deathmaster for your info!=)

dkcx SG

thanks deathmaster for your info!=)

I've never heard of pilots being allowed to do their degrees though some of the other vocations might since a degree education will help them in their work but usually the degree choices are limited and you are not really free to study whatever you want.

However, unless you see any such term in black and white on the contract, do not trust them as they can change their mind as easily as the wind blows or simply just tell you policy has changed etc and your future is ruined.

xingg SG

However, unless you see any such term in black and white on the contract, do not trust them as they can change their mind as easily as the wind blows or simply just tell you policy has changed etc and your future is ruined.

i find your information very vital. oh man. need to do more research before signing my life away.

thanks buddy!

xingg SG

hmm ok this is quoted from the RSAF's pilot booklet:

LSA: local study award - pilot

All RSAF pilots, who have obtained operational CAT B, may pursue their university studies, which will be fully sponsored by RSAF

you'll be encouraged to study most of the courses offered ( except medicine, architecture, and accountancy) at NUS, NTU or SMU. law studies are allowed but you'll be restricted from the Bar examinations.

this scheme offers pilots their monthly salary throughout the duration of their studies.

the RSAF will also bear the cost of:

tuition fees

annual book allowance

any other approved charges incurred during course of study

.... etc etc..

i will try to scan and upload it here.there some more information

dkcx SG

hmm ok this is quoted from the RSAF's pilot booklet:

LSA: local study award - pilot

All RSAF pilots, who have obtained operational CAT B, may pursue their university studies, which will be fully sponsored by RSAF

this scheme offers pilots their monthly salary throughout the duration of their studies.

the RSAF will also bear the cost of:

tuition fees

annual book allowance

any other approved charges incurred during course of study

.... etc etc..

i will try to scan and upload it here.there some more information

I don't think everyone can get LSA though you may be allowed to study at your own expenses. It would cost the RSAF alot if they let every single pilot get the LSA consider LSA is still open to others in the army

Lokey SG

if you wan to go Uni, then go uni and sign on SCDF, police, coscom or whatever later.

it is a fact that after you become more educated, you might want to be a CEO, or deputy director, banker or something else. you never knew your limit and potential and how far you can go?

Who knows being a SAF pilot may not be enough for you, you might want to be the SIA director?

The point is dont cap and sealed your fate at such a young age. BUT... if you know that you cannot make it, not so capable then signing on might be a good choice...