BREAKING | USAF Reverts Back To WWII Style Selection Process

Same Idea. Different Times.

On July 8th, 2016, the United States Air Force announced they are going to be changing rules regarding their training. The same rules were followed during World War II, but back then there was of course a shortage of resources and time. Nowadays, it seems like that wouldn’t be the case.

To get right to it, the USAF just chose 10 enlisted airmen to start training as pilots. For those of you who are not well versed in military ranks, this basically means that you can just join the air force off the street and have the opportunity to become a pilot.

This position was only available for officers. What this means is that you needed to have a four year degree from an accredited institution. Then you had to meet officer qualifications and go to officer training school. It was only then that you got the chance to even attempt flying something. With this new ruling, the first three steps are out the window.

“It is too soon to speculate on any expansion of enlisted aircrew beyond the RQ-4 program.” -Captain Trisha Guillebeau

These airmen have restrictions however. For now, they can only fly RPAs (remotely piloted aircraft.) They will be training to fly the RQ-4 Global Hawk, which is a surveillance aircraft. Valued at 131M USA a pop, that’s a lot of money put into the hands of people that just walked in.

A spokesperson for the Air Force said they’re planning to have about 100 enlisted pilots flying surveillance by 2020. By then, they’ll consider expanding the program beyond the RQ-4 Global Hawk if all goes well.

If any of you have any idea about why this change was made, let us know. It doesn’t seem like there’s a shortage of people who want to fly, so the choice seems trivial to us. Feel free to discuss in the comments section of Facebook.