Air Guard Student Flight Drill 5

This afternoon, I shook hands with my instructors, hugged my fellow soon-to-be-airmen, and said goodbye to my last Student Flight as a trainee. Oh, Student Flight. How I'll miss it.

I once again got to spend the past two days with my Idaho Air National Guard fellow trainees who are learning what to expect in Basic Training. We did push-ups, we marched, we had "uniform" inspections, did a full PT test (sit-ups, pull-ups, and 1.5-mile run—I updated my scores at the bottom of this post), and yep—we got yelled at a few times. I loved every single minute of it. See, at Student Flight, it's all a game. You're essentially learning and practicing for BMT, and it's all just to help prepare you for the real thing.

341's (pictured above)? Getting one pulled has no real consequences in Student Flight—except push-ups, I suppose. If you get a 341 pulled in Basic Training, that's the real deal. Getting yelled at in Student Flight? Absolutely no big deal—learn from it! I can't emphasize the importance of Student Flight if you're a new enlistee and preparing to go to BMT. It's such an amazing and wonderful experience. It truly will help prepare you for the first two weeks of BMT (or so I'm told), and the fact that you get paid makes the whole deal that much sweeter.

Despite how much I love Student Flight, I'm eagerly anticipating my departure for Basic Training. Also, I have a "break in training," so for four months after I return from BMT, I'll get to return to Student Flight as a BIT—an Airman who has completed BMT but has yet to attend Tech School. I can't wait to put on my uniform and return to Student Flight as an Airman First Class and help out my friends who will still be awaiting their BMT schooling dates. What a surreal experience that will be—returning as a BIT and getting to help the people who I was sitting alongside these last few months. That will be very, very neat.

I'm so grateful for everything that Student Flight has given me. New friendships, a little extra help for my first few weeks of BMT, and an appreciation for the little things in life that make the days tick by and the world go 'round. We'll see you on the flipside, Student Flight...

... Off we go, into the wild blue yonder ...

See my other Air National Guard Student Flight experiences here: UTA 1 │ UTA 2 │ UTA 3 │ UTA 4 │ UTA 5