When my husband got his dream sheet we were in good ole Enid America. We were so excited to find out our new base (please be somewhere with a Target)! Little did I know we would end up in the cornfields of Illinois with my husband flying a plane I had never heard of.
Hi y’all, my name is Taylor and I am a proud wife of a C-21 pilot! If you are looking for an Air Force career that allows for a great family life, look no further!!! We are currently at Scott AFB in Illinois and we love it here! There is so much to do here because we are only 30 minutes from St. Louis! The C-21 only has two bases: here and Ramstein, Germany.
THE PLANE
The C-21 is a small Learjet that specializes in passenger transport. The passengers are usually Generals and/or military and civilian leaders, and the occasional medical transport.
TRAINING
My husband started his career in this plane by first going to Orlando, Florida for what is called PIQ (Pilot Initial Qualification). The first time they go to Orlando for 2 weeks to complete the simulator portion of the training. There is also a requirement to go back to the SIMs in Florida every 6 months on a TDY.
Once my husband was back from SIMs he went to the training unit, also called the FTU, for the second half of PIQ. This is one of the best parts because the FTU is here at Scott so no 6 month TDYs for training. Yay! For the rest of PIQ he flew with an instructor to gain hours in the plane. It is a lot like pilot training where they have desk time, and then flying time. On the flying days they usually go in around 6am and are home by 3pm. On the classroom days they report around 8am and are back by 4pm. So, that schedule is great!
Once PIQ was over and my husband passed his checkride, he officially joined the squadron.
DAY TO DAY
The way the C-21 works is, the pilots go on “missions”. These missions range anywhere from a day trip to 4 days, and a pilot usually only goes on 1, maybe 2, missions a week. The missions are assigned on a first come first serve basis in the squadron. These missions come and go any day of the week.
A normal mission is taking a General and his/her aide to a meeting in D.C. or really anywhere in the United States. On the overnight trips, once the General has been dropped off, it leaves time for the pilots to explore the city they are in, and lots of communication time for the spouse.
On a normal day when the pilots are not on a mission, everyone in the squadron is assigned an office job, and they work normal business hours. Sometimes they even get to come home early!
Personally, my husband and I have not been through a deployment yet, but he is scheduled for one this January. The deployments last anywhere from 3-5 months, occur every 18 months or so, and they are usually deployed to the Middle East.
COMMUNITY
As far as pilot jobs go this one is pretty stable and very enjoyable! My husband has loved getting to meet all his passengers and traveling to many different cities. He also really enjoys the community of pilots. The squadron is fairly small so the wives really get to know each other. Everyone is always there for each other and ready to lend a helping hand. As a C-21 spouse I also got the opportunity to fly in the plane! It was amazing to see what my husband does every day, and made me even more proud of him. They do the spouse flight a couple times a year.
There are lots of different jobs and planes in the Air Force, but I am lucky to be a C-21 spouse!
Every single lady has a different story about being a WAF. My biggest suggestion is to communicate with your spouse and find a great group of friends. You are stronger than you think and these experiences will make you stronger!
MEET TAYLOR
