Becoming a fighter pilot is the dream of many, but it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to fulfill this dream. It is a long journey and some don't quite make the requirements and perhaps this is due to not knowing all of them because there is a long list to complete. For those who are looking in this direction for a career, here is an outline of the requirements that you will need to tackle one by one.

Enrolling to Become an Officer of the Navy or Marine Academy

The first step is deciding whether you want to enroll in the academy for the Navy or the Marines. Each has different career lifestyles to offer you. Once you have enrolled, you must meet the physical requirements to become a pilot which are stricter than usual. You also fit into the cockpit and have good eyesight as well.

Upon your commission you have to choose your field of aviation before entering flight school. Even though technically you will apply for this aviation position, you will not make the last decision but the school decides this in the end.

Flight School

When you enter flight school you will always be considered of a lesser rank than anyone else until you achieve your pilot wings and this takes extra hard work. There are two categories of which you will be graded on. They are your academic classes that you will be attending such as the principles of flight and meteorology; then there is the flying that you will be graded on. This is done through flight simulators and actual flying.

During this time you will constantly be evaluated so if you start at the bottom you can earn your way to the top, however, it is essential that you remain in the highest of standings. The better that you do means there is a higher chance of getting into advanced flight training.

Advanced Training

There are two components of this advanced training. The first is the wilderness survival school. You will go through several days of training first before you are tested by being left in the forest to use these learned skills such as knowing which plants and insects you can eat and how to get clean water. You will also be trained to survive as a prisoner of war and when tested, if you are captured, you will have to undergo the same treatment and torture as real life would have it.

The second part to this training is when you are trained on the same type of plane that you will be flying when on the job. Once you have passed these tests and graduate from advanced training you will be considered an official fighter pilot.