camaro80

Have a contract to sign thursday for garunteed f16 crew chiefs. Is this a good job or not? Positives and negetives please.

babydeuce

iTrader: (24)

Negatives, lets see...

1.) A job that has very little cross(job availability) to the civilian sector.
2.) Spending all day out on the hot/cold tarmac
3.) Long hours
4.) Lots of deployments(potentially)
5.) Garunteed to go to Korea at some point

Positives

1.) Your a Maintainer, not a desk jockey

That's all I can come up with....I am sure I will get flamed by the Crew Chiefs on here, but thats fine. As a Maintainer for 9 years, I will do anything to stay away from it, but thats just me.

Jack

adam1803

iTrader: (65)

Pretty much hit the nail on the head. Im a former maintainer that crosstrained, and while im still proud of what i did as a maintainer, i wouldn't recommend it unless its REALLY what you want to do.

Maintainers work damn near the longest hours of anyone in the AF and generally are treated like crap IMO.

J2Pharren1

iTrader: (1)

FLIGHTLINE maintainers are the hardest workers in the Air Force.

ASOS/STS maintenance is probably the easiest job on the planet, lol.

adam1803

iTrader: (65)

Whats up X? IMO flightline maintainers are the only real maintainers.

J2Pharren1

iTrader: (1)

Whats up man

Vee 6

I can think of more bad than good when it comes to crew chiefs, LOL. If you're a **** hot crew chief they'll make you a DCC of an aircraft....which usually means that you're the guy to blame when something goes wrong with your aircraft even though you had nothing to do with it.

With that said I enjoyed being a crew chief...it has it ups and downs just like any other job. But I was a helicopter crew chief in the AF so we were way cooler and did more work than the fighter jet crew chiefs.

adam1803

iTrader: (65)

Where we you stationed? I was avionics at Moody on H60's

Vee 6

I was at Moody from Jan 02-Nov 04...I was 460s DCC. When were you there? I might know you.

adam1803

iTrader: (65)

I was there Feb 02-May 06. Blodgett is my last name.

99WS7

iTrader: (13)

[QUOTE=babydeuce;10139588]Negatives, lets see...

1.) A job that has very little cross(job availability) to the civilian sector.

This is the only statement I dont agree with. You can get plenty of training to work on the outside. I got my A&P license and and also worked a lot with hydro shop, e/e, jets etc...and learned a **** load.

but yes...you do work a lot, it can be fun but it can also suck *****. I was a B1 CC for 8 years and believe me...that is one broke dick plane.

Anyway, its what you put into it, good luck and have fun. 4 years will fly by.

Vee 6

Hey Adam, I remember you! This is Rodney and I had the black 89 IROC, and then I got in that accident in Nov 04. I remember you spanked my car at track and got like your first 11 sec run. How have you been...congrats on the crosstraining, I don't blame you for getting out of there!

adam1803

iTrader: (65)

PM sent, sorry for hijacking the thread

JUICED96Z

iTrader: (2)

For one I did not know you could get 16 in your contract unless you were Guard or Reserve? It was just cargo or fighter?

16's will not be around a lot longer, they are getting worn out, going F/A-22 and F-35.

My father is now QA on 16's been doing it for 27 years and still loves it and is 50 years old. He was a crew chief untill last year.

I am a civilian aircraft tech and work with a TON and I mean a TON of former millitrach mechanic's, hydro, structures, avionics, crew chiefs, ect ect.

Lots of money contracting, not much money working for the airlines.

Im getting out of aviation.

extinctls1

iTrader: (2)

I am a F-16 crew chief right now and have been for the past 6 years. The job has its ups and downs, we work the hardest on the flightline and that is good and bad. We also get stuck with alot of the bullshit work that no one else has to do like cleaning jets, keeping up on forms that back shoppers always mess up and the list goes on and on. I have been to Korea, and would not say that is a bad thing i loved that place i would go back in a heart beat and i just came got back to the states about 2 months ago. Best part of the job is doing burner runs and doing "harder jobs" like landing gear, adg etc.

When i came in you couldn't pick a jet it was either fighter or heavier. When you got to tech school is when you found out what airframe you will be working unless things have changed.

Lots of stuff to cover in this post sorry it all runs together if you got any other questions send me a PM.

good luck

CALL911

iTrader: (17)

I have met countless maintainers in my career. Only met a couple that enjoyed it. All the fighter maintainers I have met said the same; that they hate their job with a passion. Long hours, no respect, tons of responsability with no authoratiy. Basically you're screwed.

This is probably another sad case of your recuiter lieing to you and saying what a great job being an aircraft maintainer will be (I know mine tried to weasel me into it). The truth is the job is a hard one that almost all that go into regret doing, and try to get out at their earliest possible chance. Thats one of the reasons there is a shortage for aircraft maintainers, and why your recruiter probably told you what he did to try and re-populate the career field.

I will also say this, maintainers are crutial to the fight. Without them, our Air Force would be lost. It is a job I could never do, but I thank everyone who is one. Good luck dude.

Nite_Hawk

I'm an F-16 CC originally, but now I'm working the F-22. Bout 10yrs ago if you chose the F-16 to crew you had the possibility to crew the F-117. That was my goal to work the stealth. Now, i have done both in 10yrs, i helped retire all but 4 Stealth Acft this past year. I've had a blast doing it. Yes, hours are long, and pay is low. But, it's what i wanted to do. Now the Stealth is gone, i'm working on the F-22. I've spent the first 5yrs of my career on the line, the next 5yrs in Crash/Recovery. Which also doubled as AR for the stealth. Basically all the heavy maintenance stuff, Landing gear, Flight controls, and Canopy's<---no explosives in it, so it's was ours. But i wouldn't change a thing. Now, i'm heading to Nellis Afb, NV to crew the F-22. Can't beat that.

Most would say Love the job, Hate the people...It's them who ruin the experience.

ryanvv355

iTrader: (17)

I'm sorry (old F-16 E/E guy here)

AznMuscle

iTrader: (7)

[QUOTE=99WS7;10146011]
You have a red ws6? You helped brett pull the motor from his car up at the auto hobby shop? I was the one that bought the springs and tail light.

Anyway, I have been wondering the same thing. I want to be a maintainer for either UAS, or for planes, but I don't have the work experience. I have my avionics certification, and FCC license, but can't get a job around here. I've been really thinking about joing up when I get done with my AAS, but I am still undecided.

Chrisingermany

I am an A-10 Crew Chief right now. Have been for 5 1/2 years. I am DCC on the Commanders jet. It is fun most of the time. It all depends on who you work for. And that is the bottom line!! Good supervision you will love your job.
On to a different note it was great to see all the noners wearing blues on Monday. Made me feel better about being maintenance.