Originally Posted by John Milliman
Ron -- Not all Warrant Officers are created equal -- Army warrants and Marine Corps Warrant Officers are two *very* different officers. My cousin is a retired Army CWO-5 and served two combat tours in SEA flying Little Birds (he's never been a terribly sane man ... Most pilots try to *avoid* trees ... wink ). He then flew in the AL National Guard while being a civilian helo instructor pilot at Ft Rucker.

From my understanding, Army warrants usually have an associate degree and then go to Mother Rucker for their training. And then ALL they do is fly. Just get in the seat and wiggle the sticks for 20 years. Day in and day out. Fly, fly, fly. Nothing else. No "shore" tours (away from flying). Not many collateral duties. Just fly. And then go fly some more. Did you ever meet an Army CWO who *wasn't* a pilot? Do they even exist?

Marine Corps *Chief* Warrant Officers (if you want to believe Rusty or NAPCOMan...) are Deities (Just plain Warrant officers, WO-1s, are slime like the rest of us). We all bow in reverence when one passes. They are (usually...) Staff Sergeants (E-6) or SSgt Selectees (on the promotion list but not yet promoted) before they can be selected for Warrant Officer (and earned their chops in their MOS). And out in the Fleet, USMC Chief Warrant Officers usually hold Company Grade Officer positions (lt/Capt) positions in which you want someone with a lot of experience and skill that a Lt or Capt will not have, but the position does not require a Field Grade officer (Maj/LtCol/Col -- i.e., a lobotomized officer). In the Marine Corps, I have always found Chief Warrant Officers to be real Leadership "force multipliers/torque amplifiers" ... IF one could tolerate their "saltiness" ... wink.

So, in short, if you want to go somewhere in a helicopter (and actually arrive safely), choose an Army Warrant Officer.
If you need someone with a crapload of broad real world experience, skill and professionalism (and you don't have any PAO Captains handy ... wink ) And you've turned your BS detector off, go with a Marine Corps Chief Warrant Officer.

Semper Fi,
John

John,

In all fairness, I have to speak up and say your info seems a bit lacking. "Did you ever meet an Army CWO who *wasn't* a pilot? Do they even exist?" Yes and Yes! In my Army career, I had the great pleasure of working with and for a number of CWOs (from CW2's to CW5's) in a variety of MOS's including aviation, combat arms and combat service support units. I will agree that Army Pilot Warrants are the bulk of the slots, but just to clarify, here is a current list of Army Warrant MOS's and the "enlisted" MOS's that provide the fodder for filling those needs: Army Warrant Specialties

The Army uses a similar program to the Marine Corps, with Staff Sergeants (E-6) or SGT(P) (E-5s on the promotion list but not yet promoted to E-6) that get selected for training and to to fill such positions throughout the Army. I do know this as I was on such a track as a SSG when Desert Storm deployment pulled the rug from under my feet.

Army Warrants also fill similar Company and even Field Grade Officer slots, although seldom in a command position. More often than not, with the exception of Pilots, most Army Warrants are found running technical specialty shops, staffs or other critical highly technical positions. Absolutely considered "force multipliers"! Anyone that chose not to heed (or even ignored) their shared wisdom soon found themselves on the very short end of a one way conversation (often followed by banishment from whatever position they may have been in).

In conclusion, suffice it to say that your very last sentence (less something-something about PAO Captains??? grin ) applies equally to Marine Corps and Army Chief Warrant Officers!

No arguments to be had here. Just providing some facts that may have been overlooked. wink

HOOAH thumbs_up
Dan

~ Dan
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