alright..well i just hav a couple questions about becoming a fighter pilot. i would like for you to know about me first..i am a lost young man. i love to go fast and i do not have any fear of anything, except missing out on opportunities that i could have had. i have messed up my life so many times because of stupid mistakes that have hurt the people i love. i currently play college baseball. i love the game and i would very much like to pursue my dream of playing professionally. music, cooking and tuned cars are my passions. i have never known what i have wanted out of this life. i have always admired the challenge of flight. i have the utmost repect for gravity and the challenge of flight. recently my thoughts towards flying have changed because of the new technology of our air force. the f22 raptor is baffling. it is defying gravity and i can not get it out of my mind. i want to fly this plane and experience what nobody else on the earth can even phathom. my dad was telling me about when he saw it flying at an airbase and the description has not left my mind. i do not even know the being of becoming a pilot, let alone, anything about flying. because of stupid choices in the last two years of my life, i have been searching my mind trying to figure what my purpose on this earth is..i honestly think that i am meant to fly planes and that i would be very sucessful at flying. but i am an athlete who has an oppertunity to perform at a level which very few can. i know that i am meant to fly, but i have another dream in front of me right now. if someone could tell me about the rigors of being a fighter pilot? what are the metal stresses? if someone could also give me the exact specs of what they are looking for in a person physically as well as mentally? how long is the training? then what are the drawbacks? what are the aspects that are looked down upon? i just want some answers..for nineteen years i have been searching for a purpose to be on this earth, i truely believe that i have found it. i am sorry for the ridiculously long explaination, i just wanted you to know what the deal is and i hope that someone out there can give me some straight answers. thanks a million. inLineRaptor24

First, you must become a commissioned officer.  Look into ROTC (within your college) or Officer Training School after graduation.  If you have an Air Force or Navy ROTC unit at your school or if your school has a cross-town agreement you can join there.  ROTC would add some classes to your schedule and you would need to do some training in the summers.  If you want to be a pilot, you need a to get a pilot slot out of your class.  The best way to do this is be high up in your ROTC units order of merit.  It is based off of your GPA, Fitness tests, and commander's rating.

You could also apply to a Service Academy, but since you are in college already, beginning a four year school might be repetitive.

Pilot training is usually 1-1 1/2 years.  It can be a very stressful job in that you must be able to quickly diagnose and correct problems in mid-air.  The emergency procedures are extensive and must be memorized exactly.  You will also have to deal with potentially long briefings, de-briefings, and ground-based duties.  It is definitely NOT always "Top-Gun" hollywood glamor.