For a bit of context, my boyfriend and I have been together for 7 years. I've always known that being a pilot is his dream and now it is finally looking like the odds are in his favor. I don't know all of the specific terms and stages, but I know he passed the initial competency tests, interviews and medical checks with flying colors. The interviewer thinks very highly of him and at the very least I am confident he will be offered some position, even if it is not as a pilot, which I know is highly competitive. We have spoken about what this would mean for our relationship and have concluded that if we handle our time apart while he is in Ontario for training/finishing a degree well, it would make sense for us to get married at some point in that time frame to make living situations easier. My issue is that he is being rather stingy with details for fear of upsetting me when nothing has been set in stone yet, whereas I want to know what I might be signing on for as well. Most online resources seem to focus around the U.S. forces, so I'm having trouble finding answers for basic questions from a Canadian spouses perspective. I mainly want to know what to expect if he gets signed on as a pilot, which seems like the most demanding position he is being considered for.
My questions are:
1) How much time could I expect him to be away during a "normal" year, not counting deployments? I have heard anything from 3-4 months per year (which is concerning to me) to maybe a month. The Forces website says that most of the time members can expect to work a 40 hour week, but from what I've been reading that seems dishonest at best, applying only to less extraordinary positions.
2) How many deployments can a pilot expect to see during a 12 year contract? I know that question will never have a clear answer but do Canadian pilots tend to see a lot of action? How long are deployments usually?
3) I understand that he would be living in barracks all throughout training, but as a married individual who is out of training, would there be many circumstances where he (by himself)/we would HAVE to live on base? The idea of living on a military base is a big turn off to me, but if necessary I wouldn't be opposed to it.
4) Animals have always been a big part of my life. They are pretty non negotiable for me and he is aware of this, but most of the information I am seeing revolves around situations where a single person wants to know if they can have pets. How strict are bases on allowing pets into houses (limits etc.), and as stupid as this question might be, is there ever any reason why you would be restricted by regulation on how many pets you can have if you live off base? Aside from land lord restrictions that is.
I'll appreciate any responses, sorry if I come off as uninformed in any of my statements.
My questions are:
1) How much time could I expect him to be away during a "normal" year, not counting deployments? I have heard anything from 3-4 months per year (which is concerning to me) to maybe a month. The Forces website says that most of the time members can expect to work a 40 hour week, but from what I've been reading that seems dishonest at best, applying only to less extraordinary positions.
2) How many deployments can a pilot expect to see during a 12 year contract? I know that question will never have a clear answer but do Canadian pilots tend to see a lot of action? How long are deployments usually?
3) I understand that he would be living in barracks all throughout training, but as a married individual who is out of training, would there be many circumstances where he (by himself)/we would HAVE to live on base? The idea of living on a military base is a big turn off to me, but if necessary I wouldn't be opposed to it.
4) Animals have always been a big part of my life. They are pretty non negotiable for me and he is aware of this, but most of the information I am seeing revolves around situations where a single person wants to know if they can have pets. How strict are bases on allowing pets into houses (limits etc.), and as stupid as this question might be, is there ever any reason why you would be restricted by regulation on how many pets you can have if you live off base? Aside from land lord restrictions that is.
I'll appreciate any responses, sorry if I come off as uninformed in any of my statements.
As its mostly servicemen/women responding (which makes sense), how have your spouses handled your career from what you can tell? I really feel like this is something I can do, but I seem to hear a lot about spouses burning out which is disheartening but is also understandable from what I gather. Is it really likely that he could be away for half the year consistently? I understand that the first few years can be rough but after 5, 7, 10 years is that really what you are still looking at?
