Welcome back and let’s talk Raven,
Hey, I’m Vlad and I spent 5 years of my Air Force career as a Security Forces Phoenix Raven member. You are here because you have a lot of questions about Raven in the Air Force, I know it. Well congratulations, you are in the right place because that is exactly what I want to tell you today and hopefully answer the questions you got. Phoenix Raven is a unique opportunity to cross paths early or late in your career. Either way, you don’t want this opportunity to pass by. Trust me. I want to answer as many questions and help paint a picture of the best way to grab this opportunity and take advantage for as long as possible. So, get comfy and read along as I try my hardest to give you the best pointers, I know you have been looking for.
First, I want to talk a little bit about Security Forces career field as a whole. Security Forces is military police. They are the guys who work the gates of any Air Force base making sure only allowed people can get on. They also ride patrols around the base, give people tickets, sort out any complaints within base limits, and ensure the perimeter is secure. If you ever watched a YouTube video about Air Force you will 100% see SF guys there. They wear dark blue berets and usually wear body armor and are armed with a pistol and sometimes a rifle. Within the Security Forces career field, there are a lot of different jobs. Raven, Dagre, CATM, K9, and a lot more. I’ll only touch on Raven since I never done any other ones.
Now Raven! What is it? Ravens are Security Forces members who graduated from Raven school, fly on Air Force’s cargo planes (C-130, C-17, and C-5), and provide security while on the ground at high-risk places. Unfortunately, you have to sign a contract as a Security Forces to have a shot at becoming a Raven, that is the only way. What do I mean by trained? Everyone who wants to become a Raven has to graduate from Raven school (PRQC* is the official term). Usually, PRQC is 4 weeks long (at least it was when I went back in 2019) and it consists of physical and knowledge aspects. It is challenging but not hard ONLY if you work out and study the material before you go. There are only certain bases that have active Raven hubs/sections, where flying missions is the main job. Those are at AMC* bases, in other words, bases with cargo and/or refueler planes. There are AMC bases that have Ravens but do not have active Raven hubs/sections, meaning those guys went to Raven school and now do everything on base, work gate, patrol, etc., and if there is a chance they might fly a mission once in a while, not guaranteed. All the C-17 bases have full-time active Raven hubs, if you want to fly constantly.
OK, thank you, Vlad, but what is the best way to go Raven if I am at AMC base? This one is pretty simple. Go to the Raven section and they will tell you exactly what to do. They are usually very open and willing to help out as much as they can. So, you go talk to Ravens and they say you have to go through Pre-Raven. Ummm, what is Pre-Raven? Pre-Raven is a 2–3-week course at each Raven hub that teaches new candidates what the PRQC is going to be like. Don’t think it’s an easy course. No. Usually, each Raven section makes it harder than the actual Raven school to make sure each candidate is prepared as much as possible. During Pre-Raven, they will smoke you (work you until failure, usually with calisthenic exercises), and make sure you have the correct knowledge about the program, history, and certain key concepts.
Perfect, now what if I am not at AMC base, what are my chances? Well, honestly your chances slimmed down a lot but there Is always a possibility, if there is will and passion. If you are just enlisting in the military, my recommendation is to fill out a dream sheet Basic Training with only AMC bases. That is the best chance of getting to the AMC base. As a new airman, there is a 95% chance of getting one of those bases. Next, if you are already in “operational Air Force”* and not at AMC base. The best bet is to try to get orders to one. Either try to go on a short tour and pick a follow-on or try a BOP*. It is rare but I have seen people who are not at AMC bases go to Raven school. Their leadership allowed it. That is another chance to get that Raven tab on your uniform. There are some chances, the main goal is to “want it bad”. Show your passion and you will get it sooner or later. Good things take time, remember. It took me 3.5 years to get there. Enjoy life, life is good!
Lastly, I want to add a little of my personal opinion about Raven. The job is amazing, and the stuff that I experienced/saw is still unbelievable to me. Once you graduate from Raven school you automatically become part of the brotherhood and amazing community. The Raven community is like no other, Ravens always help out Ravens even if they never met. No matter of rank, the bond is unbreakable. It is easy to get burnt out flying. Change of time zones, different places, new people, some people get burnt out quickly. I was gone on an average of 10 days a month; some Ravens were gone for much more than that. With that, family life could be suffering a lot. Trust me. Have a strong support system back at home. You will be bringing good money, so make sure to buy some flowers and bring a little gift from all the places you have gone to. My recommendation ha-ha. Promoting and winning awards is very easy with being a Raven. We used to win all awards because no one could beat us. With awards come promotions to the next rank, this is your chance to be promoted quickly. Don’t promote just to make more money, promote to be a great leader. With that being said you will experience hate from regular Security Forces members and leadership for the same reasons. It’s ok, it never bothered me because everyone has the same chance of becoming part of us, but most won’t do it, there was always an excuse.
Thank you for tuning in and reading through my 2nd blog post. This is great, I enjoy this a lot. Even if there’s only a couple of people reading it, it makes me happy. Make sure to tell everyone who will find it helpful. I am sure this blog will gain some traction, and people will want to read it more and more. It’s just the beginning.
I know this is a lot of information but if you have got any questions or need help clarifying anything I’m always here. Email me, or we can hop on a call for a quick talk. I will be more than happy to help out as much as I can!
Very Respectfully,
Vlad Kalinin
AMC – Air Mobility Command. Bases that have cargo and refueler planes.
PRQC – Phoenix Raven Qualification Course (Raven School)
Operational Air Force – Its regular Air Force after you finish BMT and tech school.
Base of Preference – As a first term Airman you can still pick your next base.