out of curiosity, who did you talk to at the fort worth unit. that is my home unit. i can answer some questions if you have them.

bonuses - yes there are some. however, this is not a career field to enter just for the bonuses. im not saying that is your prime motivation, just mentioning it because it is such a long road of schools. i received a $15k bonus for reenlisting in the career field. it helps keep the family motivated while youre gone.

halo and scuba - not everyone is doing it. a lot of active duty guys are halo qualed. some guard guys are halo qual. not to many scuba guys though.

citizenship - to join the fort worth unit you will need a top secret clearance.

p.t. and past test - some of the scores for the events you listed are for "progressions." each 30 days you are retested and a new higher set of scores must be accomplished.

as far as specifics about the pipeline of training, it now mirrors the active duty side of the house.

anymore questions let me know.

Hey Warrior! Thanks for the response, I'm very glad to have met another operator in the area. I spoke with Sgt Hawkin a few weeks back, great guy. He answered a few questions for me and was able to tell be a bit about the pipeline.
And you're right money is not my main motivation what so ever about this careerfield, but i'm just trying to find out if I will be able to provide for my family a bit during training, or will I have to dip into the savings account for a little bit. I always like to be prepared for anything ya know?

I'm very excited though b/c I have my family's support to do this and even my current employer is being very supportive about me joining this unit.

One other question for you warrior...

Do you live outside of the base? or does the unit in Fort Worth provide you with housing?
Do you get a housing allowance?








"I choose to defend the ones I love, and even the ones that might not love me back. I choose this life, this calling, and I will die to defend it! Never quit."

Reserve Component service members do not get housing/housing allowances unless they are on active duty.

You will not get your bonus until you complete your training.  Then, you will get half.

You should call your point of contact back and ask him these questions, since he'll be responsible for getting you trained and paid.

You need to double check some things about your TS.  There could be complications regarding your citizenship and the citizenship of anyone in your immediate family.

The SOWT members in the 125th up in Portland were getting MFF/Scuba as part of their initial pipeline, as they were deploying alongside CTTs (on Special Tactics Teams), and therefore must maintain comparable quals.  Although I'd be far from an expert on this, published material and personal Q&A with unit staff at both STSs (123rd in KY, and 125th in OR) states that SOWTs specifically joining Special Tactics units--at this point--have a bit more follow-on training than the SOWTs in the Weather Flights (like the 181st there in TX).

You really should just track down some POCs at these units and ask them any and all questions you have.  Write all your questions down before you call.  Or, since you're in the DFW area, see if you can schedule an appointment with your POC there at the 181st.  As a general rule, I'd say you need all of your info bases covered before you take any action at this point.  Especially with your family involved.  Ambiguity can be one thing for a wouldbe operator...and something hellishly different for your fam.

You need to make certain--from the fam end--that you have all *their* bases covered when it comes to their stability and quality of life while you're training.

This is obviously the place for Q&A, but the individual units will have more unit-specific info.  Especially when it comes to your bonus...

Good luck and godspeed.

Thank you my friend. I appreciate all your help and info. My plan is to schedule a meet and greet with this unit within the next week or so, and pretty much ask all the questions i can think of. You are absolutely right about one thing, I do have my fam's support to join, but I need to make sure that they are going to be "SET" while I train.








"I choose to defend the ones I love, and even the ones that might not love me back. I choose this life, this calling, and I will die to defend it! Never quit."

Be sure to cover questions about OPTEMPO and your clearance.

Good luck, bro.

Sure thing boss, thank you. It's funny cuz I had actually talked to Staff Sarge Monestelly (i think that's how you spell it) initially last year b/c I wanted to join you guys as a combat controller. Antonio Bruno is in the guard up there with the 125th, and he recommended me to them.








"I choose to defend the ones I love, and even the ones that might not love me back. I choose this life, this calling, and I will die to defend it! Never quit."