David L said:
Yeah, I know with AEC theres a mandatory enrollment of four years in the forces as for pilot theres a minimum of ten years service. Also if Im not mistaken AEC's are more stationary at air force bases compared to pilots.
My girlfriend of two years also seems to like the AEC option a lot better than the pilot positon.
Ive also talked to a couple of people that are working AEC in civilian life and seem to be doing very good for themselves. But it really seems you've done your homework when it comes to different trades and what it takes to achieve them.
All the Best to you,
Cheers.
It depends what you mean by "stationary" in a base. Most (not all) AECs are on a ground job, whether in IFR, VFR or Weapons, but generally are on a shift-work schedule. Some Weapons guys do fly in AWACS planes (E-3 Sentry) out of Elmendorf Alaska, Tinker Oklahoma, and Geilenkirchen, Germany (not sure about the last one anymore.)
So yes, AECs generally don't deploy as much as aircrew would, but the shift schedule may mean that you two don't see each other a lot either, depending on her work schedule.