RSAF Woman Pilot/WSO Career
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I talked to a number of my guy friends abt uniformed services, coz Im very into joining an uniformed orgn. But strangely I noticed most of them are more encouraging abt joining scdf/police rather than saf. The main reason is home team's more operative while saf is just doing "prep work". Do you guys feel that you'd be more likely to become "disillusioned" by a saf job, c.f. say scdf?Originally posted by Shotgun:Be prepared that the Armed Forces is really not as Glamorous as its made out to be. Well, then again, neither is being an SQ stewardess...
The perks of being in uniform would soon wear off. And so would the "pride."
While the main plus-point they gave me was saf's salary and retiremt pension is much much higher than the home team's.. humph -
i think my workplace is operational... at least more than some units that 'claim' they are operational.
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Is it true that for most vocations in the army, shifts are 3- to 4-day kind? Then rest for a couple of days before another 4-day shift?Originally posted by Cens:From most regulars in the air force, especially Uni grads and those non-SAFOS scholars, I always hear them about wanting to quickly finish their bond and zhao. Sometimes the work can be a bit over-bearing especially with the shift work and all. No time for a proper life. -
In the army,it 24 hrs standby,if your superior want u to come back,u have to go back even on leave,unless oversea leave and MC(MC also depend on whether u get it in pte clinic or MO).But it also depend on your unit.I even got call up durning Chinese new year ,Fun,hhahaaa.Originally posted by pandemonium:Is it true that for most vocations in the army, shifts are 3- to 4-day kind? Then rest for a couple of days before another 4-day shift?
Of course being high rank helps,but it also depend on your unit,if your unit is full of high-ranking officers,it does not make your rank special anymore but if u kena a unit with mostly specs n nsf ,u are the officer,then u made do anything u like,i have even seen my camp officer giving herself offs LOL.
That why in the army,it is full of ???? lots of unknown,it depend on luck also. -
There are units and vocations that are entirely operational. They are involved in operations rather than exercises. Naturally, these are quieter and lower profiled units. It is possible to sign on as these vocations, but their selection is kinda stringent.Originally posted by pandemonium:I talked to a number of my guy friends abt uniformed services, coz Im very into joining an uniformed orgn. But strangely I noticed most of them are more encouraging abt joining scdf/police rather than saf. The main reason is home team's more operative while saf is just doing "prep work". Do you guys feel that you'd be more likely to become "disillusioned" by a saf job, c.f. say scdf?
While the main plus-point they gave me was saf's salary and retiremt pension is much much higher than the home team's.. humph
As for the remaining of SAF, you are right that they are more involved in training preparations rather than operations. Hence most of their work involves exercises. But that also makes operations more "satisfying" when accomplished. Recent example being Operation Flying Eagle. All the personnel involved were proud to claim that they played a part, no matter how small it was, in rendering aid to Bandar Aceh, Meulaboh n etc. Such successful operations would not have been possible with rigid discipline and dedication. It wasn't exactly a war op, but it demonstrated how fast SAF could mobilise and deploy. -
Hi ppl.. I've received the letter of acceptance for NTU liao.. Then when I called up the air force recruitment centre, the lady helped me check & told me that I'm shortlisted for the Weapon Systems Officer vocation (still waiting for that letter) and the interview will be some time this month.. Problem is, i don't think air force gives out study awards/scholarships to female diploma holders. Any1 know if there's any chances of me being able 2 accept both NTU and WSO (if i pass the interview)? Or do I have to give up either 1 (which would most prob be WSO liao..
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I called up the army recruitment centre as well, and they say they do give out local study award to female poly grads.. but the thing is, i only qualify for combat vocation, which sounds a bit scary...
Some1 pls advice me on this..
Thanks!
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As a female, i wld advise you to get ur degree first. besides better prospects, the 3 to 4 years spent in the university would allow you time to ponder upon what you really want in life and your career. Just in case you realised, at a later stage, that this profession isn't what you really want. this is impt coz guys have the advantage of experiencing saf during their NS stint, while we don'tOriginally posted by i_heart_icecream:Hi ppl.. I've received the letter of acceptance for NTU liao.. Then when I called up the air force recruitment centre, the lady helped me check & told me that I'm shortlisted for the Weapon Systems Officer vocation (still waiting for that letter) and the interview will be some time this month.. Problem is, i don't think air force gives out study awards/scholarships to female diploma holders. Any1 know if there's any chances of me being able 2 accept both NTU and WSO (if i pass the interview)? Or do I have to give up either 1 (which would most prob be WSO liao.. )
I called up the army recruitment centre as well, and they say they do give out local study award to female poly grads.. but the thing is, i only qualify for combat vocation, which sounds a bit scary...
Some1 pls advice me on this..
Thanks!
my parents used to be against my signing on, right after my A-levels. But after 4 years in the uni (and also after talking to all my guy friends and classmates in uni, who had been thru NS), im very sure that i want a uniformed career. So, now my parents have nothing to say
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So what did you sign on as? Anyway, I can't really say much for army, but for air force WSO vocation, sometimes you're on 8am - 5pm normal working hours, but usually they'll put you doing shift work i.e. 6am - 1pm or 1pm - 11pm. It depends on your base and unit as well. Oh you will have to do duties during the weekend as well.Originally posted by pandemonium:As a female, i wld advise you to get ur degree first. besides better prospects, the 3 to 4 years spent in the university would allow you time to ponder upon what you really want in life and your career. Just in case you realised, at a later stage, that this profession isn't what you really want. this is impt coz guys have the advantage of experiencing saf during their NS stint, while we don't
my parents used to be against my signing on, right after my A-levels. But after 4 years in the uni (and also after talking to all my guy friends and classmates in uni, who had been thru NS), im very sure that i want a uniformed career. So, now my parents have nothing to say -
[quote]Originally posted by Cens:
So what did you sign on as? Anyway, I can't really say much for army, but for air force WSO vocation, sometimes you're on 8am - 5pm normal working hours, but usually they'll put you doing shift work i.e. 6am - 1pm or 1pm - 11pm. It depends on your base and unit as well. Oh you will have to do duties during the weekend as well. [/quote
for army, im trying for IO and arty. then for air force, wso(uav) and (ada). I was more interestd in ada, but the offr calld back to say only c3 and uav have vacancies right now.. generally uav and ada work in shifts right? for uav is there alot of field exercises? im hoping for a non-deskbound job -
Originally posted by pandemonium:
Cant help you there. I only know about WSO (C3)
[quote]Originally posted by Cens:
[b]
So what did you sign on as? Anyway, I can't really say much for army, but for air force WSO vocation, sometimes you're on 8am - 5pm normal working hours, but usually they'll put you doing shift work i.e. 6am - 1pm or 1pm - 11pm. It depends on your base and unit as well. Oh you will have to do duties during the weekend as well. [/quote
for army, im trying for IO and arty. then for air force, wso(uav) and (ada). I was more interestd in ada, but the offr calld back to say only c3 and uav have vacancies right now.. generally uav and ada work in shifts right? for uav is there alot of field exercises? im hoping for a non-deskbound job[/b]
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but for c3, the most common feedback is high attrition rate. very demanding job? and deskbound too..Originally posted by Cens:Cant help you there. I only know about WSO (C3) -
Between an opening at NTU and Air Force, I'd advise u to go with NTU. Get your degree first. No matter what they tell you from advertisements, the Armed Forces still caps by qualification. What qualification you have, pretty much dictates how high you climb.
Air Force does not give out and Local Study Awards if I am not mistaken. You can check with your Air Force recruiter when you go for the interview.
Go for the interview, and tell your recruitment officer that you've been offered a place at NTU, and ask if there is any local study awards that you can take. Don't need to feel to apologetic should you decide to choose furthering studies in NTU over an Air Force career. The recruitment officers there will understand.
An opportunity to study in a Local Uni is harder to come by for a poly grad than an opportunity to join the Air Force. Besides, you can always join the AF after you graduate from NTU. No big deal... Btw, what course did you do in Poly and what course have you been accepted at NTU? -
Thanks for the advice, shotgun.. i did communications & media management in TP.. then for NTU i'm going 4 communication studies.. mass comm thingy.. haha.. i know it's damn unrelated 2 air force la, but 3 yrs ago, i thought mass comm was what i wanted.. now i change my mind, coz initially when i joined the course, i wanted 2 be an actressOriginally posted by Shotgun:Between an opening at NTU and Air Force, I'd advise u to go with NTU. Get your degree first. No matter what they tell you from advertisements, the Armed Forces still caps by qualification. What qualification you have, pretty much dictates how high you climb.
Air Force does not give out and Local Study Awards if I am not mistaken. You can check with your Air Force recruiter when you go for the interview.
Go for the interview, and tell your recruitment officer that you've been offered a place at NTU, and ask if there is any local study awards that you can take. Don't need to feel to apologetic should you decide to choose furthering studies in NTU over an Air Force career. The recruitment officers there will understand.
An opportunity to study in a Local Uni is harder to come by for a poly grad than an opportunity to join the Air Force. Besides, you can always join the AF after you graduate from NTU. No big deal... Btw, what course did you do in Poly and what course have you been accepted at NTU? dun laugh at me lar.. haha.. -
Then u shld really go for your degree, it will further open up your career choices after u grad. Let u also mature and get some feedback in Uni with guys that already served their NS then consider ur options. Career in the SAF is really no child's play where u cannot suka suka say "I quit".Originally posted by i_heart_icecream:Thanks for the advice, shotgun.. i did communications & media management in TP.. then for NTU i'm going 4 communication studies.. mass comm thingy.. haha.. i know it's damn unrelated 2 air force la, but 3 yrs ago, i thought mass comm was what i wanted.. now i change my mind, coz initially when i joined the course, i wanted 2 be an actress dun laugh at me lar.. haha.. -
Doesn't matter... since you're not applying for a technical/engineering vocation, any degree is fine as long as it is from a recognised university.Originally posted by i_heart_icecream:Thanks for the advice, shotgun.. i did communications & media management in TP.. then for NTU i'm going 4 communication studies.. mass comm thingy.. haha.. i know it's damn unrelated 2 air force la, but 3 yrs ago, i thought mass comm was what i wanted.. now i change my mind, coz initially when i joined the course, i wanted 2 be an actress dun laugh at me lar.. haha.. -
Wah... there's a big difference in terms of what you do between your desired army and airforce vocations leh...Originally posted by pandemonium:for army, im trying for IO and arty. then for air force, wso(uav) and (ada). I was more interestd in ada, but the offr calld back to say only c3 and uav have vacancies right now.. generally uav and ada work in shifts right? for uav is there alot of field exercises? im hoping for a non-deskbound job -
Actress... hmm. Then after ur NTU course, I suggest u consider joing the Army instead. Cos in the army, you need to ACT like you are working very hard! =DOriginally posted by i_heart_icecream:Thanks for the advice, shotgun.. i did communications & media management in TP.. then for NTU i'm going 4 communication studies.. mass comm thingy.. haha.. i know it's damn unrelated 2 air force la, but 3 yrs ago, i thought mass comm was what i wanted.. now i change my mind, coz initially when i joined the course, i wanted 2 be an actress dun laugh at me lar.. haha..
K, jokes aside.
It seems you have some experience with "Sticking with it." No matter what studies, what job (esp SAF) after a while, interest will begin to fade. And when the course, or job gets boring and dull, we cannot just quit. Same for studies, same for career.
Glamorous as it may look now (air force career), it will only last a while. After that you'll realise that you are just stuck to it cos of the contract or MTE (minimum term of engagement). OH! unless you are trying to sign on as pilot den different. PILOT career is GLAMOR all the way. Cos no one knows whether u fly Helos or Fighters... they just know that you fly! =D -
new blood are always welcome in the saf. they are cheap and they complain less. how else do you think the old bird can leave the service? without replacement, some just rot along with the others.
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hah ya i realised too.. IO is extremely deskbound right. that's why i told the recruitmt offr during my first intervw tt im considering arty too. at first IO was my one and only choice.Originally posted by cornyfish2000:Wah... there's a big difference in terms of what you do between your desired army and airforce vocations leh...
the worst thing is the offr doesnt noe much abt IO, coz its hush-hush and I cant make a practical comparison and a good decision.. now just waiting for the 2nd intervw (if i pass the first). -
er, i'm trying for WSO.. not pilot.. u got any info on that ma??Originally posted by Shotgun:Actress... hmm. Then after ur NTU course, I suggest u consider joing the Army instead. Cos in the army, you need to ACT like you are working very hard! =D
K, jokes aside.
It seems you have some experience with "Sticking with it." No matter what studies, what job (esp SAF) after a while, interest will begin to fade. And when the course, or job gets boring and dull, we cannot just quit. Same for studies, same for career.
Glamorous as it may look now (air force career), it will only last a while. After that you'll realise that you are just stuck to it cos of the contract or MTE (minimum term of engagement). OH! unless you are trying to sign on as pilot den different. PILOT career is GLAMOR all the way. Cos no one knows whether u fly Helos or Fighters... they just know that you fly! =D
thanks! -
I went to visit the base where they house the UAVs and saw some demonstration controlling. Like flying some huge model aeroplane. ADA quite tough lah, in my batch had a WSO(ADA) course and we always call them the commandoes of the RSAF. For guys quite xiong physically.Originally posted by i_heart_icecream:er, i'm trying for WSO.. not pilot.. u got any info on that ma??
thanks! -
From what the recruitmt offr told me, WSO(UAV) are the ones collecting intell info on hte frontline, (besides navy and army intell) then these info are passed on to IOs for analysis before submitting to the 'higher-ups'.Originally posted by Cens:I went to visit the base where they house the UAVs and saw some demonstration controlling. Like flying some huge model aeroplane. ADA quite tough lah, in my batch had a WSO(ADA) course and we always call them the commandoes of the RSAF. For guys quite xiong physically.
Then for ADA, lady-offrs are most likely posted to handle ihawks (hope i din rem wrongly) coz these are much too huge to carry, got to transport on wheels. all the other missiles/weapons will be taken apart and ada peeps will carry the individual parts on their backs. -
Pilot ah.. I'm not sure le. Generally they'd look for people with good math background. Then again really have to depend on how u fare for your aptitude test.
As a pilot, u need to fare well mathematically, orientation, translate 2D data to 3D mind map (situation awareness) , as well as good hand eye coordination.
You can always try for it... Pilot wings are hard to come by. Haha. BUt same advice tho... go for degree first! =D -
seriously the army does not change gals into tomboy...in fact in ocs they emphasize on u being a lady more than anything...
For bmt (OCS)...basically the training syllabus is totally the same as the guys in tekong jus tat u will be training with gals instead (So there's lots of moral support etc to push n encourage each other on...)training includes...pt lessons, m16 handling, soc (clean fatigue n only need to clear 6 out of 11 stations), field camp, 24km route march, basic combat, grenade throw, hmmm etc.... as its progressive training, ur body will slowly be conditioned to the physical load... normally the gals will come in with ippt pass n by the end of bmt, they will get gold so its more of pushing urself mentally to perform...
After bmt the guys will join in for ocs tri-service term...u will spent 2 weeks in Sierra wing for the leadership field camp which includes navigation package and some other stuff before u move off to air wing -
Female ADA officers are not only posted to Ihawk, in OCS Air Wing last time got 2 female ADA officers there doing their instructor phase. One was RBS-trained another was guns trained. Both quite xiong physically especailly the RBS one. The missle is huge man. But she still had to carry it, altough with some help from more *ahem* caring male colleagues.Originally posted by pandemonium:From what the recruitmt offr told me, WSO(UAV) are the ones collecting intell info on hte frontline, (besides navy and army intell) then these info are passed on to IOs for analysis before submitting to the 'higher-ups'.
Then for ADA, lady-offrs are most likely posted to handle ihawks (hope i din rem wrongly) coz these are much too huge to carry, got to transport on wheels. all the other missiles/weapons will be taken apart and ada peeps will carry the individual parts on their backs.