How to Become an Air Force Pilot

Meeting the Basic Requirements

Meet the basic age and citizenship requirements. In order to join the U.S. Air Force, you should first become a commissioned officer, and then a pilot. For this, you must be between 18 and 28 years old. You also must be a native-born or naturalized U.S. citizen.

Qualify for the weight and height requirements. Ideally, you should have a standing height of 64 inches (160 cm) to 77 inches (200 cm), and a sitting height of 34 inches (86 cm) to 40 inches (100 cm). You must be within the ideal weight range for your height based on the chart available at https://careers.airforce.com/height-weight/. You should be at least 5 pounds (2.3 kg) under the maximum weight based on your height. For instance, if the maximum weight is 186 pounds (84 kg), you need to be at 181 pounds (82 kg) or less (with a minimum of 128 pounds (58 kg)).

Meet the criteria for healthy vision. As sight is the key sense to successfully maneuvering aircraft, the U.S. Air Force pays a great amount of attention to vision requirements. In order to apply, you must have normal color vision, and meet refraction, accommodation, and astigmatism requirements. Your uncorrected distant vision should not exceed 20/200, and your uncorrected near vision should not exceed 20/40. Both your distant and near vision should correct to 20/20 or better.

Check your medical history. If you had hay fever, asthma, or allergies after age 12, you won’t be eligible to apply to the Air Force. Similarly, any kind of corrective eye surgery might be a disqualifier as well.

Have a clear criminal record. It’s very important to have an almost clear criminal record in order to qualify for the Air Force. Even having a lot of traffic-related law violations within a year can impact your eligibility. Of course, contact your recruiter if you have any questions.

Completing Different Training Programs

Earn a bachelor’s degree before applying to become an officer. You may choose to go to college before joining the Air Force. There is no requirement as in what you should study in college, but taking technical or engineering-related classes may help with the knowledge you’ll need in training. Your GPA is very important as part of the selection process, so make sure you study hard for your classes. When you take rigorous coursework that's relevant to a prestigious program you want to be accepted into, you're more likely to stand out and be accepted as a candidate. You'll seem prepared for all the demands of your chosen field.

Join the Air Force Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (AFROTC) in college if you want a head start. Instead of waiting to finish an undergraduate and/or graduate program, you can join AFROTC during college, and get started on your military training early on. AFROTC offers three- and four-year scholarships for those who want to go to a college of their choice before joining the Air Force. To be eligible, you must have a high school GPA of 3.0 or above, and high test scores on SAT or ACT. If you fully apply yourself when you're in a special undergraduate program, the transfer process to a graduate program will be a lot more seamless.

Attend the Air Force Academy (AFA) if you want to attend a military academy. Instead of going to a non-military college, apply to AFA for a multidimensional education that includes academics, military training, and athletics. Similar to AFROTC scholarships, admission to AFA requires many factors, including very good high school grades, along with high SAT or ACT scores. You may also wish to be selective about your extracurriculars. Certain sports or volunteer activities may boost your chances of coming across as the best candidate for your program.

Skip college and enlist as an Airman right after high school to speed things up. You can decide to enlist immediately after earning your high school diploma or GED, which will allow you to earn credits at the community college of the Air Force while learning a job integral to your future as a pilot. If you want to get your hands dirty early on and train faster, this might be the right choice for you. Apply through the U.S. Air Force website at http://www.airforce.com/apply-now. Enlisting as an Airman will take you through a process of tests, screenings, and Basic Military Training (BMT) before following the next steps and applying for officership.

Take the Air Force Qualifying Test (AFQT) after earning a bachelor’s degree. In order to become an Air Force Officer, you must first pass the AFQT, which is a multiple-choice test consisting of verbal and math questions for specific areas of interest. You’re only allowed to take this test twice, so it’s very important that you study well and prepare in advance. You should also take the Test of Basic Aviation Skills (TBAS) that will result in a Pilot Selection Candidate Method (PSCM) score.

Go through physical and mental screening. After taking AFQT, your local recruiter will contact you for an appointment at a nearby Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) for a screening. This will be an examination for the physical and moral requirements set by the Air Force, the Department of Defense, and federal law.

Pass the Selection Board. Once you pass the screening, you’ll need to be reviewed by the Officer Training School Selection Board or Air Force Recruiting Services in order to determine if you’re a good fit to become an officer. The review process consists of objective factors such as test results and GPA, as well as subjective factors set forth by the board.

Prepare for Officer Training by starting to work out 6 weeks in advance. Once you’ve passed all the requirements and are accepted into the Air Force, you’ll go into the Delayed Entry Program (DEP). This means that you’ll have a departure date for Officer Training School or Commissioned Officer Training, which are both physically intense programs. During this waiting period, you should be working on your physical conditioning in order to prepare in advance. It’s best to start working on physical conditioning at least 6 weeks before your departure date. Work out for 3 to 5 times a week to gain endurance and strength.

Complete the Officer Training School. You should complete a nine-and-a-half week program at the Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama, which is organized into four phases intended to mentally and physically challenge you. These phases are indoctrination, development, application, and transition. In the last phase, you’ll transition from training environments into the operational Air Force. At the end, you will graduate from the Officer Training program.

Completing Further Training to Become a Pilot

Pass an Air Force Physical to be Pilot Qualified (PQ). This is a physical screening, mainly focused on vision. Once you pass the vision requirements, you will attend the Initial Flight Screening (IFS) in Pueblo, Colorado, where you will fly 25 hours in the Diamond Aircraft DA-20 for a duration of 40 days. At the end of the training, you’ll do a test ride to show your competency in about 20 basic flight maneuvers.

Attend the 1-year-long Air Force Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training (SUPT). All of the past examinations, grades, and ratings will culminate in an “order of merit” score, which will determine if you’re eligible to join the SUPT. Once you gain a slot, you’ll complete a 52-week-long program with three phases: academics, primary aircraft training, and advanced aircraft training. Once you successfully complete the Phase 3 of SUPT, you will be awarded the official title of “Pilot” and receive your silver pilot wings.

Commit to a 10-year active duty service. Since the SUPT costs close to $1,000,000 per student covered by the Air Force, each pilot is expected to incur a 10-year active duty service commitment when they finish the training and pin the silver wings. This means that you’ll be committed to working for the Air Force for the next decade.

Complete additional training and move to your permanent duty station. As a new pilot, you will need to complete additional training programs such as water survival or Survival Evasion Resistance and Escape training. Afterwards, you’ll go to your Replacement Training Unit (RTU) for 3 to 6 months of additional training. Then you will be able to move on to your permanent duty station.