Those wanting to be Airborne...

[NoWhereMan]

If you want to enlist for an MOS that can go airborne, here's how to do it.

Go talk to a recruiter. If you're fully qualified (mental, moral, physical) and jumping out of a high performance aircraft is something you want to do, don't go to the MEPS and hope the job is there, then try to be a tough guy and say you won't enlist unless you get airborne. There's no reason for that to happen.

Tell the recruiter you want to use FSR2S. He'll bust out his laptop to reserve you an MOS. If the MOS and airborne (option 4) is not there, he needs to call the ROC. He'll know where to find the number.

He talks to a guy at the ROC and they pull an airborne slot and email the Temporary Reservation to him. You now have seven (7) days to join the United States Army and begin a career of drinking beer and running every day, maybe shooting some stuff, and falling out of an airplane going really fast.

[yrualeg]

Sweet,sounds like they have it all figured out these days.

[Recon133]

Sure was a lot easier back in the day. No trouble getting Airborne at all. However, back then, you were assigned to a Unit on Jump Status before you went through Jump School. When we graduated from AIT at Carson, they posted a big list on the bulletin board telling everyone were they were going. There was a shit pot going Airborne and everyone wanted the 101st because of the puking pigeon patch. Stupid reason, but that was it. Half of us went to the 101 and half to the 82nd, I drew the 82nd, but after serving with the 82nd I would'nt have traded for a million PP patches. I don't even remember the 173rd being active back then

[Skysoldier]

Puking Pigeon huh?.........I remember when AA meant Almost Airborne!

[txhis]

Puking Pigeon huh?.........I remember when AA meant Almost Airborne!

Na, it means Alcoholics Anonymous ............

[T10]

Puking Pigeon huh?.........I remember when AA meant Almost Airborne!

Yes we had a rivalry with the 82nd back then. they called us crying crows and puking buzzards. We called them American Airlines or All Assholes,but we respected each other.

[Skysoldier]

I got a kick out of the Vietnamese......they didn't know what an Eagle was so they called us the Chicken Soldiers! But the VC and NVA were scared shitless by the Chicken Soldiers!

[T10]

By the way sky soldier. Was there still an LZ English when you were in Nam?

[GERONIMO]

I went Airborne and changed MOS. I have never regreted it. I was assigned to "E" Co 1/501ABN BG 101st Airborne Div. We marched to the Jump School every day. Jump School was a snap at 17 nyears old. The real training came after Jump School. It was 1959 and the NCO's were WW11 and Korea vets. For me the Screaming Eagles was the only Airborne Div. AIRBORNE! GERONIMO!!

[Hendo]

I went Airborne and changed MOS. I have never regreted it. I was assigned to "E" Co 1/501ABN BG 101st Airborne Div. We marched to the Jump School every day. Jump School was a snap at 17 nyears old. The real training came after Jump School. It was 1959 and the NCO's were WW11 and Korea vets. For me the Screaming Eagles was the only Airborne Div. AIRBORNE! GERONIMO!!

NCO's FROM WORLD WAR 11!? HOLY CRAP !! When was this again!? I'm just now working on World War 3.......

[82ndtrooper]

I forget how my contract worked at the time in 82 but I had a guaranteed slot to the 82nd Airborne Divison with a 13F MOS. Dont remember if my contract had aption number to it or not.

Funny though, when they issued class A's at Basic at Ft. Sill they went ahead and sewed on the 82nd Airborne desingated insignia on the left shoulder and on my BDU's I did more pushups than any other soldier, I had to run farther and faster and I had to do more pullups to get into the chow hall for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Guess that DUI on my shoulder made me a marked man.

Funny enough, I had a 28 inch wast at the time. I joined in 82, and was to the 82nd Airborne. Reverse the 28 inche waist and it's 82.

I was an "All American" all the way !!!!

[Recon133]

I was in Div about 5 weeks before I went to JS. Pulled every shit detail there was. Lots and lots of PT and runs. There was an outside door to the Mess Hall and we had to do chinups at every meal before we could eat. We never walked anywhere, always ran, we even ran to and from JS. I don't remember any of our Cadre being WWII but they could have been. The only one I really remember is SSgt Blood Burns. He was the NCOIC of our Class. JS was a bitch in late July & early Aug. We had to take salt pills like every 4 hrs, and I can remember our Fatiques would have salt stains under the arms and other places from sweating so much. For me ground week was the worse, after that MOFO was over, the rest wasn't all that bad except for the constant screaming and yelling, but the Cadre didn't seem to care when we did it..

[frybyrd1]

My buddy and I got airborne in our contracts no problem. Went 12B so got the 307th. They didn't sew 82nd patches on our BDUs but the DIs knew we were going airborne. 2 of them had AA patch on the right sleeve. They gave us MORE SHIT. had us DO more and were constanfly telling us that we would NEVER make it through jump school much less be PARATROOPERS!!! Thought they were real asshole, but figured out why they did it later on. Pure motivation. 1 of them showed up at Benning after graduation to congradulate us. He then reminded us that we Still were'nt paratroopers YET. lol Saw him 2 yrs later in Panama during Jungle School. He bought us a beer and said he Knew we would make it.....yeah right.

[bjohns5454]

Getting Airborne was easy when I went in. I scored really high on the ASVAB so the recruiter kept trying to talk me into a technical field. I insisted that I was going Airborne Infantry or I would go in the Marines. He finally caved. They put it in my contract for 11B1P and that was that. Of course that was 20 years ago. (Damn I'm getting old).

[Falschirmjaeger]

Remember, if this advice comes too late, and you are stuck in Legland, put in your packet for SFAS. You get selected, next stop is the big field in front of Building 4.