Defence Forces, Title role, help! :3

Oddballcat

Hi people!!! :pac:

So, I just finished a Healthcare course up in Cork and to be honest, I don't want to further this as my career, I only took it because my mother wanted me to. Now, I'm looking at joining the Irish or British Defence forces.

I have always wanted to be in the Defence Forces because my Dad was in the military, he achieved up to Master Sergeant before being forced to stop due to Stroke.

Anyways, I've been looking around and there's so much roles! I can't pick exactly!! It's kind of doing my head in XD

What i want though is to be taught how to
*Fight
*Weaponry
*and to be able to fly an aircraft
*I also like how they train people in the military

Does anyone know any roles that are just that or is close to that?

I'm in Ireland. An Irish-Filipino citizen (Dual)
I'm Female and I'm 20 =^-^=

So that's it. Thank you kindly, will be looking forward to your response:D:P

amurph0

At the moment the Irish Defence Forces are not recruiting due to the ban on public sector recruitment. They have been allowed to take applications once every two years or so and successful applicants are added to a panel, when the Defence Forces want to take people in they take them from the panel.

The current panel was created last year and is set to expire this December I think. It's likely they'll accept new applications around mid 2014 or so, judging by the fact that it's been around the same time for last couple of years, although that's not a guarantee.

In short, no you cannot join the Irish Defence Forces at the moment.

The British Armed Forces have no restriction on recruitment so it's possible to put in an application right now, applications are done online. Although it may take you between 6 months to a year before you actually start recruit training depending on your job choice.

Judging by the roles you selected I'm guessing you would like to be in the infantry or be a pilot? In the Irish Defence Forces it is not possible to be both at the same time. To fly aircraft you must apply for a cadetship in the Irish Air Corps, but only a very small amount of cadets are taken on every year (usually only 1 or 2, sometimes none at all), being an Air Corps cadet you will learn basic soldiering skills but your main focus would be on aircraft. To join the infantry in the Irish Defence Forces you must apply to the Army (either enlisted or as a cadet) and once you've completed initial training you can choose Infantry as one of your Corps choices.

In the British Army it is not possible to join an infantry regiment if you are a female, and a lot of combat roles are not open to females. As a female you can only join support and some combat support arms of the army. As far as I know it is not possible to become a pilot in the British Armed Forces unless you are a UK resident or hold dual UK/Irish citizenship.

Oddballcat

Hi amurph0, thanks for taking time to reply!!
I really appreciate it.:)

I've made up my mind, I am going to apply for the British Army as a soldier and specialize in aviation.
I have contacted one customer support on their website and he said my best bet was either to join as a commissioned or non-commissioned officer.

He said "Any soldier with the minimum rank of Lance Corporal, recommended and qualified for promotion to Corporal, with at least four years service, may apply for the Army Pilots Course. Selection procedures are the same as those for officers. Soldiers not already holding the rank of Acting Sergeant will be promoted to this rank and re-badge AAC on the award of their Army Flying Wings, following Conversion to Type training."

This is actually perfect for me because I wanted to be a soldier first and move my way up the ranks.
I heard the Officers were more of a managerial type and the soldiers make it happen and there's a big difference between them like pay, type of job and all that but I'm decided on becoming a soldier. =^-^=

Thanks for all yer help

tac foley

Oddballcat wrote: »

I heard the Officers were more of a managerial type and the soldiers make it happen and there's a big difference between them like pay, type of job and all that but I'm decided on becoming a soldier. =^-^=

'You have much to learn, Glasshopper.'

Officers are also soldiers. I respectfully suggest that you read 'Dead men risen', the story of the Welsh Guards in Helmand in 2009. Half the dead were officers, including the CO.

Don't mistake the information from your non-military pals for truth, or anything like the truth. When I was a soldier, I did everything that the officers did. Then when I was an officer, I did everything that the soldiers did. And I did sixteen and half years of each, too, just to even things out.

tac

tac foley

Oddballcat wrote: »

I have contacted one customer support on their website and he said my best bet was either to join as a commissioned or non-commissioned officer.

Well, that's pretty much the way that it happens, except that you join the British Army as an untrained oik, and after completion of your recruit training, you become a Private soldier, not any kind of a non-commissioned officer. That begins at JNCO - Lance Corporal. It then moves on to Senior NCO - Sergeant/Staff Sergeant.

You don't join as an officer either. For that, you have to go to the RMC at Sandhurst - if your education and many other things are up to it. Remember that if THIS is your chosen path that you'll be competing with a cast of thousands, not the couple of hundred or so in the PDF.

I'd also do a check on the eligibility of an Irish/Philipino to fly in the British Army before you start all the whoopees. If the Irish half of you does it, you'll be the very first such person I've ever heard of to do it.

tac

Oddballcat

Thanks tac. Much appreciated.

And if they don't take me in the British, I'll just go to the Philippines where they would gladly take me. Assuming that the 10 years of living in Ireland, going through the school system, getting certs qualifications and a citizenship doesnt cut it.

I'll be happy either way. I'm not going to postphone my excitedness just because I need to wait and just because I'm not fully Irish, just because they might not accept me because I came from another country. No. This is what i want to do. and if someone doesnt accept me, I'll go somewhere else =^_^=

Thank you

tac foley

I'm not sure if your response is sarcastic or not, so I'll be charitable and assume that it isn't. So first of all, please don't hesitate to ignore anything I've written.

First of all - have you looked at - https://www.army.mod.uk/documents/general/Your_Guide_to_the_Army_Air_Corps.pdf ?

Next, have you read THIS? - http://www.army.mod.uk/join/20149.aspx

And finally, have you read THIS? - To join as a NCO from another part of the Army, you will need LCpl rank, Apply for a pilots medical at the Medical center, Apply and pass an Aptitude test, Then attend the Pilots selection course. Once you've passed that, you'll be sent to Middle Wallop, Hampshire. There you will train on the Squirrel Helicopter and maybe Gazelle. Then you will do a conversion to type course where you can either go Wildcat or AH. If you choose AH you'll be sent To Wattisham Airfield in Suffolk, Wildcat will send you to Yeovil, Somerset.

Also he was correct in the assumption that you don't need to be AAC in order to attend pilot selection. But if you wanted the experience of helicopters first, the AAC also has Aviation doorgunners, who will sit at the side door of the Wildcat with an ariel machine gun. these are then progressed through to pilot as their experience and career progress. [As a female you will NOT be a door-gunner]

If however you want to join as an officer anyway, Do it. go to sandhurst with the aspirations to commission into the AAC.

You'll receive flying pay, regardless of rank. which is actually quite a lot. One thing to be worried about though is the Medical, They are extremely unforgiving with it, and although its helicopters only in the Army Air Corps, they still make you pass the RAF fighter pilots medical requirements, So if you're too tall for the ejector seats in a jet, they wont let you fly a helo either. A similar bar is lack of height. That might be a clincher with you being Philipino - not wishing to be personal but many Philipinos are quite short in stature. Source(s): British Army NCO- Served in the AAC for 10 years

Whether you like it or not, and however many school certificates you have on your wall, that nationality thing might well rise up and bite your butt. We tend not to have foreigners flying our front-line aircraft, and you are not only a non-Commonwealth citizen being half-Irish, with no declared residency in the UK to get you even a toe-hold, but have half a citizenship of a nation with whom the UK has only passing contacts of any kind. Here in UK there are many fine Philipino citizens working in the National Health Service, indeed, without them we'd be sunk, but for one of them to be flying an attack helcopter in the British Army is something that needs a whole new assessment. All I'm trying to do is to let you down lightly. You will therefore need to be doing some serious questioning of the recruiting office - I would insist on a face-to-face interview to start with - before we hear the whoopees from your direction.

However, if you feel that applying to the Philipino Armed Forces to fly one of THEIR attack helicopters is the way to go, my suggestion is to try them first. After all, you are half-Philipino to begin with, and not half-British.

Lots of luck, eh?

tac

Oddballcat

Hello there =^_^=

I wasn't being sarcastic I was just stating that I want to do this and will do the utmost everything I can so If i get turned down, then I could say that I would have no regrets it trying. It's just my optimism, drive and motivation. For the 20 years I've been living, i have never found a passion for any career or hobby I have had and expirienced and nothing will take that away from me. Not now anyway haha

I get what your saying about the nationality thing and yes I know they will prioritise their own first and yes, most of our countrymen is a bit shorter than the average other nationality. I'm short aswell. I'm only 5'3" lol. I appreciate about pointing out that I would need to be able to reside or have declared residency in the U.K.

Thanks for letting me down lightly, I know I'd have to face the hard facts that I may not be eligible for the job, but that's okay. Rules are rules after all.

Well if either doesn't work out for me, then tough luck for me, right?
I ain't gonna cry over spilled milk xD


Thanks for all the shared information, I definitely have a long way to go in learning and will be looking more into it and any other possibilities that I may stumble upon as a back-up.


Well.. atleast it's Summer. Lets all go to the beach lol Thank you Tac!

tac foley

OBC - thank you for explaining your POV, much appreciated. You have a great and positive attitude that I greatly respect, and one that will help you positively no matter what route you take. I know I read like a fortune cookie, but it's true, nevertheless.

I wish you great luck in whatever it is that you do!

Best

tac