
The USAF Will Have Enlisted Pilots for the First Time Since WWII, Flying Drones - ourmandave
http://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/the-u-s-air-force-will-have-enlisted-pilots-for-the-fi-1748577205
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dogma1138
Making all pilots officers is pretty done for perks to be able to attract
exceptional individuals and compensate them accordingly since most armed
forces have pretty strict compensation bands which are based on rank and
deployment conditions.

Pilot training is long, many air forces train pilots for 3-5 years, and
depending on the air force it self may require the candidates to be over a
certain age and with a bachelors degree (some air forces integrate the degree
with the training plan it self).

This means that the prospective pilots would be naturally older and would be
less inclined into getting and staying in their position as they would most
likely be supporting a family by the time they get their wings.

So making all pilots go through officer training pretty much allows you to
naturally set them on a career path with the appropriate compensation.

Since operating drones require substantially less training than becoming a
pilot you will get younger recruits, if you recruit your drone pilots at 18
then by the time they finish basic and advanced training and are ready to fly
a drone they will probably not have turned 19 yet.

Training drone pilots is also substantially cheaper when you invest 5 years
and several million $ in training some one you will have to go out of your way
to make sure that they'll stick around. When it takes maybe 6 months and the
cost of a flight sim an a joystick to achieve the same you wouldn't care as
much if they continue to serve after their initial contract / national service
period has ended.

