What's new
By:
Filters
Navy Net - Royal Navy Community

Register a free account today to join our community
Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site, connect with other members through your own private inbox and will receive smaller adverts!

Warfare Officer to Pilot

B

Bennett

Newbie
Hi all,

I've just been told the good news that I am going to train as a Warfare Officer at Dartmouth. My original chosen role was Pilot but I found out this was not possible due to a slight weakness in one eye (-1.75 dioptres). As I am only 18 I am not viable for the LASIK option due to the Royal Navy regulation on only accepting Laser Eye Surgery in applicants over 22. My question is ,would it be possible/realistic to do 3 years as a Warfare Officer and then have surgery while in service and sideways entry?

Many Thanks,

B
 
Only the flight medical assessment team could answer if you would be accepted. Then the process of would it be possible to change from WO to pilot? All transfers are theoretically possible but never guaranteed. You could wait until you are 22 have surgery then apply to join RN, again no guarantee of being accepted.
Your call, what is more important joining the RN or being a pilot?
Good luck.
 
Sumo said:
Only the flight medical assessment team could answer if you would be accepted. Then the process of would it be possible to change from WO to pilot? All transfers are theoretically possible but never guaranteed. You could wait until you are 22 have surgery then apply to join RN, again no guarantee of being accepted.
Your call, what is more important joining the RN or being a pilot?
Good luck.
Click to expand...

Being in the Navy is the main draw hence why I am starting Dartmouth as WO, however it would be nice to try and go for Pilot if it was an option. I was hoping the fact that I'd be nearing the point at which I can choose a specialisation would make a transfer more realistic?
 
Last edited:
Bennett said:
Hi all,

I've just been told the good news that I am going to train as a Warfare Officer at Dartmouth. My original chosen role was Pilot but I found out this was not possible due to a slight weakness in one eye (-1.75 dioptres). As I am only 18 I am not viable for the LASIK option due to the Royal Navy regulation on only accepting Laser Eye Surgery in applicants over 22. My question is ,would it be possible/realistic to do 3 years as a Warfare Officer and then have surgery while in service and sideways entry?

Many Thanks,

B
Click to expand...

Hiya,
So looking into possible warfare branches aviation can be part of it. After a few years you pass IWOC you can specialise in numerous branches including warfare submariner, mine clearance, diver and even aviation. If it’s something you make clear you what to do from the beginning you have a good chance of landing a pilot role.
Hope this helps


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
97Hannah said:
Hiya,
So looking into possible warfare branches aviation can be part of it. After a few years you pass IWOC you can specialise in numerous branches including warfare submariner, mine clearance, diver and even aviation. If it’s something you make clear you what to do from the beginning you have a good chance of landing a pilot role.
Hope this helps


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...


1 year on I have just finished IWOF, my DO said it was still very much a possibility and may even be desirable to have a watch-keeper trained Pilot with the introduction of the carriers and such. Flying Warfaries exist in the fleet and they have the opportunity of ship command if they can bear going back to sea after spending so much time on a squadron.
 
Bennett said:
1 year on I have just finished IWOF, my DO said it was still very much a possibility and may even be desirable to have a watch-keeper trained Pilot with the introduction of the carriers and such. Flying Warfaries exist in the fleet and they have the opportunity of ship command if they can bear going back to sea after spending so much time on a squadron.
Click to expand...
Nearly all but one of my many pilots when on ships flights were bridge watch keepers so you would simply be taking a shortcut! (IF, always a big IF, you are successful at aircrew selection, the worst part being the dreaded medical). Any skipper would see you as an aviation dream. A pilot AND a bridge watch keeper!)
Anyway, from the few bridge watch keeping pilots/observers I knew, a few attained command of their own ships, some reaching Captain rank and one fella even ended up as FONA. (Flag Officer Naval Aviation). Anything is possible. Good luck.
 
Waspie said:
Nearly all but one of my many pilots when on ships flights were bridge watch keepers so you would simply be taking a shortcut! (IF, always a big IF, you are successful at aircrew selection, the worst part being the dreaded medical). Any skipper would see you as an aviation dream. A pilot AND a bridge watch keeper!)
Anyway, from the few bridge watch keeping pilots/observers I knew, a few attained command of their own ships, some reaching Captain rank and one fella even ended up as FONA. (Flag Officer Naval Aviation). Anything is possible. Good luck.
Click to expand...
^^This.
The aircrew I served with was exactly the same.
Good luck.
 
Waspie said:
Nearly all but one of my many pilots when on ships flights were bridge watch keepers so you would simply be taking a shortcut! (IF, always a big IF, you are successful at aircrew selection, the worst part being the dreaded medical). Any skipper would see you as an aviation dream. A pilot AND a bridge watch keeper!)
Anyway, from the few bridge watch keeping pilots/observers I knew, a few attained command of their own ships, some reaching Captain rank and one fella even ended up as FONA. (Flag Officer Naval Aviation). Anything is possible. Good luck.
Click to expand...
We had a WAFU skipper on Danae 81_82 he could hit anything, especially when coming along side. Standing bet, Jimmy with MEO, get alongside without full astern, Jimmy wins, unfortunately he lost most times.
 
Admiral Zambellas, 1SL four/five years ago, joined as a pilot, flying Sea Kings, if I remember correctly.

He went on to take command of three ships, HMS Argyll, HMS Cattistock and HMS Chatham..
 
soleil said:
Admiral Zambellas, 1SL four/five years ago, joined as a pilot, flying Sea Kings, if I remember correctly.

He went on to take command of three ships, HMS Argyll, HMS Cattistock and HMS Chatham..
Click to expand...

Nice bloke to have a pint with, hopefully our socials will continue when freedom returns.
 
Captain D Pentreath, my skipper on Plymouth during the Falklands Conflict, flew Sea Hawk and Scimatar from Ark Royal and Victorious. So far as ship handling is concerned, try looking up his obituary from 2019. It might be using a little journalistic license but a passage reads, 'A gifted ship-handler, he could spin his frigate around the ocean as though it were a Lamborghini'! My old CCY Tommy Doak agrees and reminded me a year or so ago that when we departed Gib en-route home from the South Atlantic for a 2 x day stopover to ''let off steam'', that the skipper did a full 360 at speed within the confines of Gib harbour - show boating at it's best..

Furthermore, at the same time, our 2 1/5 ring Jimmy was Ian Henderson. I always thought he flew Buccaneer but according to wiki:

Henderson joined the Royal Navy and trained as a helicopter and fast jet pilot, including a secondment to the RAF where he flew Phantom interceptors out of RAF Leuchars. He became second-in-command of the frigate HMS Plymouth and saw action during the Falklands War. He went on to be commanding officer of the frigate HMS Ariadne, the frigate HMS Charybdis and the frigate HMS London. In HMS London he saw action during the Gulf War. He went on to command RNAS Yeovilton and HMNB Portsmouth. Henderson became Flag Officer, Naval Air Command in 1998 before retiring in 2001.
 
soleil said:
Admiral Zambellas, 1SL four/five years ago, joined as a pilot, flying Sea Kings, if I remember correctly.

He went on to take command of three ships, HMS Argyll, HMS Cattistock and HMS Chatham..
Click to expand...
He was also a Wasp pilot, I knew him as a Lt.. He's in my log book. His aircrewman was an ex chef, now a retired Lt Cdr!!!
 
Sumo said:
We had a WAFU skipper on Danae 81_82 he could hit anything, especially when coming along side. Standing bet, Jimmy with MEO, get alongside without full astern, Jimmy wins, unfortunately he lost most times.
Click to expand...
Even Royalty bumped into the odd thing!!! (Admittedly, he also was a pilot!!!!).
 

Latest Threads

New Posts

Top