For those currently or served during wartime,

I want to know your comments, suggestions for re-enlistment or separation.

I have a few months left until separation but I'm stuck between getting out and trying for civilian position or staying in and taking the re-enlistment bonus.

USAF - Air Traffic Controller

Please give advice or anything thanks...

 

Dont Air Traffic controllers have the highest suicide rate?

 

Geez, thats a pretty big issue, hard to go over on a forum. Heres my take.....do you enjoy your job? You might enjoy your job, but do you enjoy moving every 3-4 years? Maybe you like your job and enjoy the travel, but how does it go over with the family? If you move from your MOS into a similair job, it's not going to be much different. You'll still have a boss that your probably not going to like, you'll have ****heads in the office or work center, who you'll have to pull their weight and so on........How many years do you have in? For me, I have 12 yrs in, and a pretty skate job, on paper, I make 30K a year, but ad up all the BAH, BAS, and such, plus not paying medical insurance and all, and long story short, I would have to make 70K+ to maintain my current standard of living.I am about to re-enlist for a 45K bonus, and I am putting all of it into my TSP (401K) plan, I see it as free money, might as well make it work for me. Really depends on how your job does for you, how you see it in your future, vs what a civillian market could do by comparison. I like my job and feel adequately compensated, I like that I have the choice to move every few years and travel, see the country. I have not paid one dime for my degree, I usually get 4 days off for every holiday, plus 30 days leave a year, add that up and I only work really 3/4 of the year, and all paid. Of course there have been the deployments, but, oh well, the spice and variety of life I guess. Military isn't for everyone, but thats soley up to you. Just be prepared and make a logical decission, have a plan, move up, not down.

 

Hey Rvizzle, im at the same point your at. My buddy gave me the best advice ive heard as far as re-enlistment. "If your indisisive about what you want to do you might as well stay in until you figure out what you want to do. Atleast youll still have a job and benefits". I hope this helps but I cant speak for you cuz i dont know your mos.

 

You can get a good job in the civilian sector though you havea very stressful job. But, if you don't know what you want to do yet and you are still youg, that 6.0 SRB staring you in the face is hard to pass up. I would say compare what you make now to what you would make where you want to live. I guess what I am trying to get at is try and make as much of an informed desicion as possible. Are you trying to go back to school?

 

This is from a fourth generation Marines, who has currently counting aunts and uncles and first cousins. And of course other immediate family 49 family members either currently serving or have served at some point,who are a live now. So my point of view will be a little one-sided, but here is my take. I personally have never done anything else in my life, and there are times when I think that I should not remain with the Corps. Now as far as MOS go, my civilian qualifications would be a puzzlement to me. I don't exactly know where I would fit in. I am certified In Martial Arts Instruction, Scuba Diving And Skydiving, along with a host of other lethal skills. How would these apply in civilian life. I don't know. Now, if I read your signature correctly, you are an Air Force traffic controller. Now if you are a forward air controller, this makes it a whole different ballgame, but it is a fairly critical position within the Air Force, quite a bit of technical skill training. I am making an assumption there which may or may not be correct. On the civilian side, you probably could make a lot more money than you would with the military right off the bat. But will you be guaranteed as fair treatment as you will receive in Air Force. Would you have the long-term benefits that you have with the Air Force, would you be able at some point to still earn a paycheck while training for a whole other profession, because at the moment you have that ability. I don't think that would be true in the civilian side. A bigger issue is how many years of service do you have and what is your grade rank. You may already be reaping some of the benefits of rank,as it does have its privileges. Pre-9/11 I had the ability to pursue some of My personal interests, while performing my duty in the form of learning to dive and parachute for example, but it most definitely comes down to whether or not you're happy with where you're at in life. And if you're going to be able to achieve the goals that you have set for yourself. I want totell yousomething it may sound like BS to you, but I honest to God inherited a sense of patriotic duty from my grandfather, who said that his father had told him. By serving in this country's Marine Corps, we were paying back this Great Nation for the great gifts that it had bestowed upon us. He would tell me great stories of hardship and triumph and those have carried me over a lot of hard times, and by serving my country, I am ensuring some quality of life for my children and grandchildren. But that's just me. You ultimately have to decide for yourself whether you're going to be content and happy with yourself. If you stay or go. I will leave you with our new worldwide saying for all branches I guess. No worries

 

Wow, that was some good input, thanks to everyone that replied. I am an E-4 , Fully qualified air traffic controller. The Air Force is willing to pay me a re-enlistment bonus of up to 60k for my skills. But at the same time, the FAA is hiring like crazy because all of their controllers are retiring because of the age limit. But I would have to take the chance of waiting on a job for several months and I don't know know where I would be placed for a location. Anyways, I try to look at the good and bad of both sides, no I don't hate the military but I like not having to watch some ****ing dumbass get promoted when he doesn't deserve it. But of course that happens in the civilian world too. Anyway, just wondering what other military members thought. I'll keep ya updated on what I decide. 9 months to go

 

GREAT post HardCorp. Thank you.

[sm=usa.gif][sm=patriot.gif][sm=americanasmiley.gif]