Welcome to the Security Forces AFSC discussion blog. The purpose of this blog is to foster discussion between future Air Force officers interested in the Security Forces career field and current officers in SFS. The views expressed in this blog are solely the opinions of the individual authors and not of the United States Air Force nor the Department of Defense.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Questions
Cadets, post questions here as comments on this post that you'd like to see turned into new threads for discussion.
The answer to that depends on where you are assigned. The operations tempo for SF is high. The baseline deployment is 179 days in country and there is usually about 1-2 months of pre-deployment training on the front end. SF troops are also called on to fillILO taskings (in leu of) usually this means the Army can't meet a tasking and USAF SF units have the best compatability so that ball gets tossed to us.
Having said that there is a strog chance you will deploy as a Lt and Jr. Capt. You can deploy several times if you wish and the unit can afford you being gone. However, if you are attached to a nuclear unit your chances are reduced but not eliminated because the security requirements will not change in that arena.
There is A LOT of opporunity within SF now as we use inovative methods to solve the deployment and homestation security issues. Thus it may be just as interesting working at home or deployed.
Your flight will see you coming and be a bit stand-offish at first. Ideally the Ops Officer should introduce you to the Flt Sgt. or Asst.Flt Sgt. Talk with them and get to know them first as they will facilitate introductions to the rest of the flight. At guardmount be yourself and keep it simple and quick. Watch and learn how the Flt.Sgt does buisness. You will have a lot of time later to build individual relationships.
If the flight already has a LT on it the same applies. Get to know the LT and learn their patern and let them facilitate the introductions.
I guess one of the key things to learn is let them teach you. That SrA has gone through a lot of training and will love to teach a sincere Lt how to do things since you may not go to tech school for possibly 6 months or more. Always remember your the boss but you are willing to work with them. They will respect that!
P.S. make sure your Flt Sgt is close by if they want to show you handcuffing techniques :)
Having a family in this career field is possible but it's not easy. You have to be each other's best friend, have complete trust in one another and your spouse can't be dependent on you (this makes a great marriage anyway, but usually takes time to develop). Even when you're performing home station missions you'll be working long hours and be expected to work on days off. Your spouse has to know this up front and be prepared to support you (pack you a meal on the go when you get called in on a moment's notice, can't mind middle of the night phone calls, etc.). When you are deployed for 6+ months at a time, your spouse will be pulling double duty taking care of the house, kids, pets, etc. Not a probably if they've been on their own before. If they've not had to fend for themselves for an extended period of time you need to prepare them. At the end of your deployment you'll have to adjust back into the routine. While absence does make the heart grow fonder, it does take work to re-integrate back into your family.
Regarding women in this AFSC. I have seen a few issues where women have had a harder time. However, I have also seen several women excell. This AFSC is charged with testosterone and while that is NOT an excuse for differential treatment it is a factor to consider. I think over 90% of the people do not have a problem with it. The other 10% you won't be able to convince no matter what.
I think what the airmen look for is someone who can lead them to success and take thier share of the work load and deliver. Very simular to what is expected here.
If you establish the tone early gender should not be a problem.
I am a woman in this career field and have had no major issues. I will say there are still a few senior officer/SNCO "good ol' boy" mentalities out there. However, I've always been able to work through any issues with those individuals. They didn't look at women negatively, they were just unsure as to how to treat me.
The main this is establishing yourself at the start as someone who is physically fit and can pull their own weight. I equate it to the first weeks at the Academy during basic training. I don't feel I have to prove myself as a woman, but I do feel like I have to establish myself as someone who knows their job and can hold their own. The other part of that is ensuring you establish clear boundaries on professional relations. Perception is what matters and you don't want to be perceived as someone who flirts with those you work with (that goes with any career field, but especially so in this one becuase you'll spend long hours working closely with those on your flight). I would also say sometimes I think I get more respect than I've really earned because I'm a woman in demanding career field, and right or wrong I think it's worked to my advantage at times (but let me be clear I have never and would never intentially use my gender to get things to work my way, I'm just saying that this is a tough career field and I think a lot of people respect a woman who can "tough it out with the boys"). I've really enjoyed it and similar to the Academy, I feel like my male peers in this career fields have been like my brothers.
As an LT is there a chance to specialize in any aspect of SF (i.e. law enforcement, security, nukes, ground combat ops). Also how hard is it to get spots to go to Army schools (airborne, infantry school, ranger school, etc)
UM...OK, It is possible to have a focus but not specialize. What that your focus is depends on where you are stationed. As an SF officer you will be expected to have a solid understanding of security, LE and base defense. Different wings and squadrons have different focus areas and that will allow you to develop knowledge in those areas.
There are opportunites to go to Army schools they are difficult to get unless you are in an organization that needs people trained in those skills. AF/SF also has several regional training centers that teach courses that have in many aspects more appliciable outcomes to AF needs.
Going to ranger school and earning a tab is great but rangers do a different mission than we do plus you most often can't wear the tab you earn.
As an SF Lt, what do you do on shift when you're not doing post checks...or is it just post checks all night long? Also how does training usually work when you're on shift for all twelve hours of your shift and then you're off?
14 comments:
How many times can a new 2LT Security Forces officer expect to deploy in the next couple years?
The answer to that depends on where you are assigned. The operations tempo for SF is high. The baseline deployment is 179 days in country and there is usually about 1-2 months of pre-deployment training on the front end. SF troops are also called on to fillILO taskings (in leu of) usually this means the Army can't meet a tasking and USAF SF units have the best compatability so that ball gets tossed to us.
Having said that there is a strog chance you will deploy as a Lt and Jr. Capt. You can deploy several times if you wish and the unit can afford you being gone. However, if you are attached to a nuclear unit your chances are reduced but not eliminated because the security requirements will not change in that arena.
There is A LOT of opporunity within SF now as we use inovative methods to solve the deployment and homestation security issues. Thus it may be just as interesting working at home or deployed.
How did you go about introducing yourself to the men as a new second lt (or how would you do it if you had a do over)?
Your flight will see you coming and be a bit stand-offish at first. Ideally the Ops Officer should introduce you to the Flt Sgt. or Asst.Flt Sgt. Talk with them and get to know them first as they will facilitate introductions to the rest of the flight. At guardmount be yourself and keep it simple and quick. Watch and learn how the Flt.Sgt does buisness. You will have a lot of time later to build individual relationships.
If the flight already has a LT on it the same applies. Get to know the LT and learn their patern and let them facilitate the introductions.
I guess one of the key things to learn is let them teach you. That SrA has gone through a lot of training and will love to teach a sincere Lt how to do things since you may not go to tech school for possibly 6 months or more. Always remember your the boss but you are willing to work with them. They will respect that!
P.S. make sure your Flt Sgt is close by if they want to show you handcuffing techniques :)
I understand the ops tempo for SF is high. How does the AFSC match up with having a family?
Having a family in this career field is possible but it's not easy. You have to be each other's best friend, have complete trust in one another and your spouse can't be dependent on you (this makes a great marriage anyway, but usually takes time to develop). Even when you're performing home station missions you'll be working long hours and be expected to work on days off. Your spouse has to know this up front and be prepared to support you (pack you a meal on the go when you get called in on a moment's notice, can't mind middle of the night phone calls, etc.). When you are deployed for 6+ months at a time, your spouse will be pulling double duty taking care of the house, kids, pets, etc. Not a probably if they've been on their own before. If they've not had to fend for themselves for an extended period of time you need to prepare them. At the end of your deployment you'll have to adjust back into the routine. While absence does make the heart grow fonder, it does take work to re-integrate back into your family.
MLY,
Great answers and posts!!
Where are you? Im in DFEG.
What is it like for a woman to be an officer in this career field? Are there respect issues from the young airman?
Regarding women in this AFSC. I have seen a few issues where women have had a harder time. However, I have also seen several women excell. This AFSC is charged with testosterone and while that is NOT an excuse for differential treatment it is a factor to consider. I think over 90% of the people do not have a problem with it. The other 10% you won't be able to convince no matter what.
I think what the airmen look for is someone who can lead them to success and take thier share of the work load and deliver. Very simular to what is expected here.
If you establish the tone early gender should not be a problem.
I am a woman in this career field and have had no major issues. I will say there are still a few senior officer/SNCO "good ol' boy" mentalities out there. However, I've always been able to work through any issues with those individuals. They didn't look at women negatively, they were just unsure as to how to treat me.
The main this is establishing yourself at the start as someone who is physically fit and can pull their own weight. I equate it to the first weeks at the Academy during basic training. I don't feel I have to prove myself as a woman, but I do feel like I have to establish myself as someone who knows their job and can hold their own. The other part of that is ensuring you establish clear boundaries on professional relations. Perception is what matters and you don't want to be perceived as someone who flirts with those you work with (that goes with any career field, but especially so in this one becuase you'll spend long hours working closely with those on your flight). I would also say sometimes I think I get more respect than I've really earned because I'm a woman in demanding career field, and right or wrong I think it's worked to my advantage at times (but let me be clear I have never and would never intentially use my gender to get things to work my way, I'm just saying that this is a tough career field and I think a lot of people respect a woman who can "tough it out with the boys"). I've really enjoyed it and similar to the Academy, I feel like my male peers in this career fields have been like my brothers.
Defender: I'm at Langley as the Ops O--controlled chaos.
As an LT is there a chance to specialize in any aspect of SF (i.e. law enforcement, security, nukes, ground combat ops). Also how hard is it to get spots to go to Army schools (airborne, infantry school, ranger school, etc)
UM...OK,
It is possible to have a focus but not specialize. What that your focus is depends on where you are stationed. As an SF officer you will be expected to have a solid understanding of security, LE and base defense. Different wings and squadrons have different focus areas and that will allow you to develop knowledge in those areas.
There are opportunites to go to Army schools they are difficult to get unless you are in an organization that needs people trained in those skills. AF/SF also has several regional training centers that teach courses that have in many aspects more appliciable outcomes to AF needs.
Going to ranger school and earning a tab is great but rangers do a different mission than we do plus you most often can't wear the tab you earn.
As an SF Lt, what do you do on shift when you're not doing post checks...or is it just post checks all night long? Also how does training usually work when you're on shift for all twelve hours of your shift and then you're off?
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