Training schedule:
- Basic officer leadership course (BOLC) B: 2.5 weeks
- Helicopter Overwater Survival Training (HOST), or Dunker : 1 day
- Survival evasion resistance escape (SERE): 22 days
- Initial Entry Rotary Wing Core (IERW): 22 weeks
- Pre flight: 2 weeks
- Contact: 8 weeks
- 48.9 flight hours, 4.5 sim hours
- Instruments: 8 weeks
- 16 flight hours
- 33 sim hours
- Basic War fighter Skills: 4 weeks
- 19 flight hours
- Phase II Go-to-war Aircraft, UH-60M Blackhawk: 18.4 weeks
- 111.3 hours
Training so far:
I am not going to spend much time on BOLC because the current cadre is changing the entire curriculum. That said BOLC is still powerpoint driven and test heavy, it should be come more accesable though. Medical Service pilots and other officers that have already been through a BOLC are considered 'bypass students' and will be fast tracked. I only had to take the aviation tactics quiz which included the first two and a half weeks of lectures. This bred some ill will haha.
HOST or Dunker is pretty fun and it only takes on day. It isn't difficult as long as you don't freak yourself out. It entails a short swim test, a few hours of lecture, then practical application back in the pool. The practical application includes 10 dunks, some underwater breathing/regulator training, hypothermia regulation, and other survival training. The cadre are largely prior service and helpful. It was a good time, if you youtube it you can find a bunch of videos, here's one of the Ft Rucker facility: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikQH9zoqd40
I don't know much about SERE yet as I am just leaving. I do know it's 22 days long. I also know that the weather has improved, hooray. I'll write about what I can write about when I return.
Other things:
So far Alabama has been a good time and it's more than just dive bars and strip clubs! If you like to be outdoors there is a lot to do. Base has a solid Moral and welfare office with vehicles and equipment to rent for boating, camping, biking, etc. The also base has a decent gym, mountain biking trails, indoor rock climbing wall, movie theater, disk golf course, bowling alley, all for very cheap or free.
With a weekend pass you can get to Panama City, Atlanta, Montgomery, New Orleans, and many more locations. Near FT. Rucker there is still a ton of stuff to do, you've just got to look around.
Study applications such as Quizlet combined with small group studying has helped a lot of my buddies get through AV BOLC and it sounds like the theme doesn't change once you get to IERW and Phase II. There is a lot of rote memorization, but if you work with peers and get ahead of it it is all doable.
In regards to air craft selection, every student is put into a order of merit list (OML). Everything a student does leading up to selection is put on the OML. When a class has graduated IERW and is ready to pick their airframes they are all pulled into their classrooms and told what is available. After that, the top person on the OML is called and he/she picks her air frame and they just go down the list. Medical Service and guard/reserve guys should already know what they're flying based on their unit/mission.
That's all I have for now. I'll write more when I get back.
