Hi I'm currently an Air Force avionics guy looking to become an AET. Has anybody made a similar transition that could give advice or maybe some insight on the process?
I'm prior service (Army) and I'm amazed at the number of people in aviation who are prior service. There good things and bad about each service. The Air Force has nice bases, hangars, etc whereas in the CG you don't always have the nicest facilities. What I like about it is that everyday your doing your job, unlike when I was in the Army, your training everyday to do your job. You'll have a broader job window as you'll be expected to both fix the aircraft then take it flying. Also as an AET you'll do more than just avionics, you work on anything that has a wire going to it (Fuel, electrical, comms, nav, radar, engine and airframe indications, etc).
for the most part no. We usually ship out our line repairable units. But there are schools you can apply for to learn how to. There are also some billets that fix them more then others. It depends on the level of maintenance your allowed to do. the C level of maintenance is shop maintenance. D level is considered depot level. On the other hand some LRU's may be fixed by us where some are not even owned by us.on lease or under warranty etc... It's been fun but have to get back to work to warm up the coffee....... Later!!!
Does the Coast Guard track rates/stats such as mission capability, scheduling effectiveness, 8 hour fix, etc...?
I'm not sure what an "8 hour fix" is, but readiness and dispatch rates are tracked. CG Aviation went to a computerized scheduled maintenance tracking system in the 1980s, and computerized all logs and records in the last five years. It spits out all kinds of fun data.
We do not run a phase system like the AF. Our scheduled maintenance looks more like the airlines. In the corrosion world, we have a few drop-in mini depots scheduled between major PDM events.
Much of the LRU maintenance has been contracted out (government depots have been killed off) but there are units that stay in house, and go back to the CG repair center.
It's a great service to serve in. Plenty of opportunity for variety. Unofficially, people tend to specialize in certain systems. Some folks also can spend a bunch of time flying too. Aircrew and maintenance duties are complimentary to each other. It's a very different world from AF; maint. vs. aircrew. A lot less "them."
What is the pitstop program like? Should I expect group showers and locker inspections or is it going to be more relaxed?
Also I was told by the recruiter that I most likely won't retain E-5 because I don't have aircrew experience. How long on average does it take to become aircrew qualified?
You need to go to the recruiter thread for the latest gouge. There are two active recruiters that answer questions there.
Very few prior service keep rank. It is hard to say here what you will be offered or required to do. It is possible to avoid AET "A" School (tech school) but that needs to approved by the recruiting people AND the AET Force manager. Your mileage will vary.
Once you hit the field after school is done, it takes from 6 months to a year to get aircrew qualified. Fixed wing is faster than helos, usually. You can get back that E-5 sooner than later. You'll have to get all your advancements completed, including practical factors, then compete in the Service Wide Exam (SWE).
There is plenty of info on advancement on the CG public web sites. Don't worry about that too much now. As you know from advancing in the AF, one step at a time!
