I recently applied to join the Aussie Military, yeah we get cork hats, a singlet, flip flops and rifle.

Anyway I passed the initial stages of the appitutde testing and now I am looking into which path I wish to pursue.
I was just wondering what people here have done within the military, I know some have served in the US Army, Navy etc, not sure if they still post, but I would be interested to know what career path you took and what your experiences were.

I havent looked at possible paths yet, I plan on doing that tomorrow and after I pick a maximum of three I go for another interview which is basically a job interview for that job I picked within Aust. Defence Force.
I am just interested in seeing what people here chose and what their experiences were like, if they care to share.

Please provide picture of cork hats.

I recently applied to join the Aussie Military, yeah we get cork hats, a singlet, flip flops and rifle.

I figured it would be a boomerang.

sing along, everyone!... You're in the army now, you're not behind the plow, you'll never get rich by diggin' a ditch, you're in the army now.

Cork Hat

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f242/BrokenRecord70/australian-big.jpg

Crikey!

Doe they also give you a unibrow?

Doe they also give you a unibrow?

Yes, but undershirts are strictly prohibited.

Well back to the question of the post. I served proudly in the US Navy as a photographers mate. Various duties ranging from the mundane (grip and grin pr photos of awards and advancements ect) to the wild, (reconancence photography while hanging out the window of a helicopter, to crime scene work everything from hangings, gunshot victims, electricution, drowning, and oh yeah mind field maintence miscues). I spent five years in and after going to college for similar field (television production) I have settled into teaching.

Cork Hat

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f242/BrokenRecord70/australian-big.jpg

scary, that looks like one of my high school teachers.

Well back to the question of the post. I served proudly in the US Navy as a photographers mate. Various duties ranging from the mundane (grip and grin pr photos of awards and advancements ect) to the wild, (reconancence photography while hanging out the window of a helicopter, to crime scene work everything from hangings, gunshot victims, electricution, drowning, and oh yeah mind field maintence miscues). I spent five years in and after going to college for similar field (television production) I have settled into teaching.

ever ride around in a Blackhawk?

how did you find the whole experience of being in the Navy?

USAF ELINT (Electronic Intelligence) Specialist. I would definatly reccomend you check out Intelligence Gunny. I met quite a few Aussie Intel guys and gals and they were top notch. Put them up there with USAF and USN Intel people I worked with.

Heres a link with some typical comments about 205s

http://www.robinjuhl.homelinux.net/weblog/pivot/entry.php?id=708

http://www.robinjuhl.homelinux.net/weblog/pivot/entry.php?id=702

Spooks and Crows baby!

USAF ELINT (Electronic Intelligence) Specialist. I would definatly reccomend you check out Intelligence Gunny. I met quite a few Aussie Intel guys and gals and they were top notch. Put them up there with USAF and USN Intel people I worked with.

Heres a link with some typical comments about 205s

http://www.robinjuhl.homelinux.net/weblog/pivot/entry.php?id=708

http://www.robinjuhl.homelinux.net/weblog/pivot/entry.php?id=702

Spooks and Crows baby!

I am interested in intelligence. Heck if I can't show intelligence atleast i can work in it. :brow:
But I think I would have to work my way from the ground up to get into intelligence.

Oh and if you ever saw Bat21 with Hackman and Glover. When the plane went down and Hackman punched out, those dudes in the back that had to ride the plane all the way down to a smoking hole were ELINT folks - lol

Oh and if you ever saw Bat21 with Hackman and Glover. When the plane went down and Hackman punched out, those dudes in the back that had to ride the plane all the way down to a smoking hole were ELINT folks - lol

okay...that won't be happening now. :ha:

Gunny, I flew mostly in what they called Huey's, it is more of a workhorse type craft than a blackhawk. If you ever see shots or movies from the viet nam era most of those were huey's. I also was back seat qualified for the A-4, A-6 and once got to ride back seat in a A-10 or "worthog" as they call them. They are the tank killer planes, not much to look at but and fly's low and slow but packs plenty of firepower including a nose mounted 50 cal gun. I liked my time in the service, spent most of it in a place that at the time hardly nobody had heard of, Guantanimo Bay, now of course everyone knows the name. I also was in Nevada at a sleepy little Naval Air Station called Fallon, it is where the Navy sends pilots to get really, really good or die trying, and sometimes they do both.

My Father was in the Air Force for 20 years. I don't think I would ever do it, but I don't think my dad regrets it. I honestly believe that war is the highlight for these guys. IF you survive something, and do not come away scarred, it's a real life experience and brotherhood that you can't experience anywhere else. Except maybe in sports. There's something to be said for that, but the everday stuff, I think can wear you down.

As far as being a kid and growing up in it. There is some good and bad as you can imagine. You never really have one set of friends cause you are always on the move. But the good is that you are not afraid to travel and leave home, and you become quite adept at fitting in and meeting new people. Kids will pretty much be kids, but that is one reality the children will face.

I would think the wife is lucky, that the comrodary in the military helps her make new friends once they settle in, but imagine it is tought to pick up and leave just when you get settled. And probably tough on being close to the family too. Not really sure.

USAF,355TFS, Night Hogs
You can thank my wing for the removal of 987 tanks, 926 artillery pieces, 500 APC's, 1,106 trucks from this planet, plus placing an untold number of souls on the express train to meet with 72 virgins.

My advice would be to slant yourself with an expertise as a linguist, and if that is not interesting to you I subsequently specialized in cartography and hi-res recon imaging analysis. Multi-linguals are in high demand, and I'm not talking Spanish here either.

Yeah, if you know Mandarin or Farsi, you can be employed forever by the government...

Thank the Elint guys for telling ya where to point your fancy cameras - lol

Elint tells em where to point the cameras then the photo boys get all the glory cause they can produce pretty pictures instead of heaps of numbers - lol

Good Job Don, always fun to help the bad guys start their permenant dirt naps.

USAF,355TFS, Night Hogs
You can thank my wing for the removal of 987 tanks, 926 artillery pieces, 500 APC's, 1,106 trucks from this planet, plus placing an untold number of souls on the express train to meet with 72 virgins.

but whose counting right? :brow:

My advice would be to slant yourself with an expertise as a linguist, and if that is not interesting to you I subsequently specialized in cartography and hi-res recon imaging analysis. Multi-linguals are in high demand, and I'm not talking Spanish here either.

i have looked at Geospatial imagery actually.

I drove an M1A1 back in the day. I did the three country tour in Desert Storm. I scored high enough on my ASVAB to do almost anything but they showed me a tape of a tank going airborn and I was hooked. I loved the sight of the 120mm gun going off at night with the Ma Duece and 240s singing backup.

Gotta love how well trained the military is that people here have gone and come back unharmed and unscaithed...well except Overalls who became a Texan fan :brow:

I drove an M1A1 back in the day.Funny story. My father was in the army during the development of the M1A1 and he worked on it in a non-technical capacity. He had Secret clearance and wrote a paper about something. He went back a few hours after submitting it to rewrite part of it, but it had been bumped to Top Secret clearance. He wasn't even allowed to read the paper that he wrote himself just hours after handing it in...

gots to have the clearance and a need to know...

Thank the Elint guys for telling ya where to point your fancy cameras - lol

Elint tells em where to point the cameras then the photo boys get all the glory cause they can produce pretty pictures instead of heaps of numbers - lol

Good Job Don, always fun to help the bad guys start their permenant dirt naps.

We wrote a new definition to "plow the road". Flew tons of CAS, and quite a few CSAR ops, mostly for the Brits in their Tornados, at night. The pucker factor was high.

We may not be pretty, but if you were a trooper on the ground there was nothing in the air more beautiful than a Hog.

Talking A-10 Warthog right?

If so Awsome engineering. Basically a cannon with a plane wrapped around it. Composite engineering allows it to basically be shot out from under the pilot and still be flyable back to base.

I love that gun ship the USAF used in Fallujah right after the bad guys bravely attacked US civilian contractors. That thing would just ruin your day if you happened to be at the working end of it - lol Computer controlled chaos.

We wrote a new definition to "plow the road". Flew tons of CAS, and quite a few CSAR ops, mostly for the Brits in their Tornados, at night. The pucker factor was high.

We may not be pretty, but if you were a trooper on the ground there was nothing in the air more beautiful than a Hog.

what are CSAR ops?

Combat Search And Rescue Operations

man you guys have all the good ones.

Marines, SEALs, CSARs, Green Berets, etc.

We got the SAS and Commandos.

SAS and Commandos are awsome!

Don't forget the Aussie Navy, whatever it is called. Yall got top notch equiptment and somebody has to sink the Indonessian fleet before they establish a beachhead in Darwin - lol

I am actually considering the Commandos, which can lead into the SAS.