Supporting your Soldier through Flight School
Is your service member about to go through flight school? My husband went through flight school in the middle of the pandemic and it was definitely a challenge that brought us closer together. Whether you are with your solider during their time at flight school, or you are still at your previous duty station, there are lots of ways you can support your service member through it! I am specifically going to be talking about flight school at Fort Rucker in Enterprise, Alabama, for Army but you can adjust this to any school situation for a military member.
Part of being a great military spouse includes being a supportive person while your solider goes through trainings, schools, changes in leadership, promotion, etc. Flight school is a unique experience that is an absolute honor to be chosen for, and the path to get there is earned through lots of hard work.
Me & my hubby after his “Nickel Ride” in flight school at Fort Rucker.
THE NUTS & BOLTS OF FLIGHT SCHOOL
BOLC/WOBC
SERE SCHOOL
COMMON CORE (PRIMARY, INSTRUMENTS, BASIC WARFIGHTER SKILLS)
AIRCRAFT SELECTION
ADVANCED AIRFRAME
GRADUATION
After completing BOLC or WOBC (Basic Officer Leaders Course or Warrant Officer Basic Course) which can be anywhere from 4-7 weeks, the next step is to attend SERE school. This stands for “Survive, Evade, Resist, Escape” and it is no joke. The majority of what is covered in SERE school is classified information, but you should know that your soldier will be learning how to do those things and it can get pretty uncomfortable through them. They will need and benefit greatly from your support after this training!
After SERE school comes “Common Core” which the academic work that prepares the future-pilots. This is like drinking from a firehose. Common Core involves a LOT of information at once and there will be a lot of studying your soldier will need to do during it. They will be assigned their first “stick buddy” which is the person they are learning to fly with (they will become your bestie too) and their “IP” which is the Instructor Pilot. What is important for YOU to know as a spouse during this time is that your spouse will be spending a lot of time studying and preparing for flights. It is a lot of information at once, and they will be tested every so often with a “Check Ride” which is like a flight they are graded and quizzed on to ensure they are making adequate progress to continue in the course.
Ways you can help your spouse during Common Core…
Avalanche coffee from one of my favorite spots, Bean Bro!
Offer to quiz them: You can purchase a flip book of the things they are studying from The Hangar and quiz them while going on a walk together or just around the house. This is a GREAT way to support your spouse AND spend time with them at the same time. There is a great park you can walk at in Enterprise while you quiz them: https://www.enterpriseal.gov/230/Johnny-Henderson-Park
If you have kids, take them outside of the house for a few hours so your spouse can get some solid quiet study time in each day
Grab some pizza & drinks for your spouse and his stick buddy to have a solid study session at your place
Give him extra grace, he may be more stressed than normal during Common Core or before a “Check Ride” which is a flight he will be “graded” on for his progression in flight school.
Go on a coffee run for them! For info on places to get coffee at Rucker check out my other blog post HERE!
After Common Core, your spouse will select their aircraft. If they aren’t going in with a specific mission set where they already know the aircraft they will be flying for their career in the military, this is the time where they will be assigned their aircraft. Service members get to put down a preference, but at the end of the day the needs of the military will prevail!
Ways to support your spouse during selection…
Get excited for them! This is simple- whether they got the aircraft they were really hoping for or not, be the light and show them how excited you are to support them as they become a _____ pilot!
Once your service member has been assigned/selected their aircraft, they will now be shifting gears to learn to fly that specific aircraft. This next phase of Flight School is called “Advanced Airframe.” The amount of time between selection and graduation now depends on which aircraft that is. Either way, this is more academics and LOTS of flying for your service member. Now it is more focused! You can refer to the same list of ways to support them from Common Core, as it is similar.
When Flight School Graduation finally arrives, your service member will choose someone to pin their hard-earned “wings” on them! If this is you, you should feel so excited and honored! Your solider worked so hard to earn those and you stood by his side every step of the way! I know when I was able to do this for my husband, it was one of my favorite memories of being a military spouse so far, because not only was I extremely proud of my husband and all he accomplished, I was also proud of myself for being his #1 supporter through it all. I felt honored in that moment as well!
Did you have the honor of supporting your service member through flight school? How did it feel when he graduated? Let me know in the comments!
