Forget all the graduation cliches about spreading your wings and flying ““ for two UCLA students, those aren’t far from the truth.
Ralph Porras, a fourth-year history student, and Aaron Richardson, a fifth-year political science student, will enter the Air Force as a pilot and navigator, respectively, after they graduate this week.
Porras and Richardson are both members of Air Force ROTC at UCLA, which means they have completed some military training already and will become officers.
“You meet some of the coolest people,” Porras said. “You all want to serve your country; you all want to lead people.”
But Porras’ interest in the Air Force began long before he became acquainted with other cadets.
“I’ve wanted to fly since I was 4 or 5 years old,” he said. “The first day I saw planes I was hooked.”
Early on, though, it looked like Porras’ ambitions might hit a roadblock. As a child he needed glasses, and Air Force pilots are required to have perfect vision.
Today, he is glasses-free.
“Somehow, amazingly, my eyes got better,” he said.
Though Porras considered attending the U.S. Air Force Academy, he ultimately chose UCLA because he believed it would give him a more normal college experience.
Porras joined ROTC and rose up the ranks to become wing commander during the second half of his senior year.
Air Force ROTC cadets are organized into wings, and students take on leadership roles within the wing.
In addition to managing the wing’s day-to-day operations, Porras mediates between the cadets and the officers who advise them.
“I’m a liaison between the cadets and the officers,” he said. “(The officers) kind of take a step back and let us plan things.”
Parts of his ROTC experience were devoted to preparing Porras to become a pilot, which is a highly competitive process in the Air Force.
A selection committee considers factors such as a cadet’s GPA, scores on special tests, physical fitness and performance in field training, similar to boot camp.
Porras found out during his third year at UCLA that he had been selected to become a pilot.
He will relocate to a base in Mississippi beginning in January to work with officers there, and in October 2009 he will officially begin his pilot training.
“In the first phase (of training) you’re just hitting the books, learning all about your plane,” he said.
And even after the initial book work, the competition isn’t over.
Pilots are “racked and stacked,” or ranked within their groups and assigned different jobs based on performance.
“You find out whether you’re flying bombers and fighters ““ the good stuff ““ or helicopters or cargo planes,” he said.
Porras already has his plane in mind.
“The F-16 Viper,” he said. “I just think it’s beautiful. It’s a single-seater. There’s just something about it that when I look at it I want to fly it.”
Richardson prefers the F-15E.
“It’s a strike aircraft ““ it comes in low and fast. It’s not just air-to-air combat, it’s air-to-ground combat as well, and I like that,” he said.
Richardson has also wanted to fly since he was a small child, but while Porras is the first member of his family to join the military, Richardson’s family has something of a military tradition.
Several of his relatives have been in various branches of the military. This includes both of his grandfathers, who fought in the Pacific and European Theatres during World War II.
Though his family supports his decision to continue the military tradition, Richardson said he does have one critic.
“Mom’s not thrilled,” he said. “She would prefer me in a position where I don’t get shot at.”
Richardson will head to Pensacola, Fla. in September to begin training as a navigator. Navigators fly in planes with the pilots and help run flights.
His training will last 15 months, after which he will be assigned to a base and will begin active duty.
Both Richardson and Porras acknowledged the possibility that they will eventually be deployed to a dangerous region, such as the Middle East, but said it is a part of their jobs.
“You go into the military and you know that your job is to defend America against any threat that (the country) decides requires military action,” Richardson said. “And we’re not making any decisions in Washington, but as an officer your loyalty is to support and defend the Constitution.”
And while some aspects of the job are dangerous, Richardson said he believes the benefits of joining the ROTC and the Air Force are far more significant.
“I have a career when I get out of college,” he said. “If I want to go into the private sector (later in life), the leadership experience and the security clearances you get in the Air Force make you extremely hirable.”
According to the Air Force ROTC Web site, students in the program also receive considerable financial benefits. They have access to funding from the GI Bill, which pays for educational expenses, and they receive additional spending money from the Air Force.
Cadets also take on specialized academic work, such as leadership and management courses, as well as military studies courses, according to the ROTC Web site.
The Air Force also subsidizes additional programs. It paid to send Richardson to an intensive Russian language program in Indiana because having officers who can speak the language is strategically valuable, he said.
“The Air Force actually paid me to learn Russian,” he said. “They sent me to the University of Indiana, Bloomington and taught me about a year’s worth of Russian in eight weeks.”
Richardson said he believes his academic experiences both at UCLA and elsewhere have complemented his ROTC training.
“Political science talks a lot about how decisions are made at the top levels,” he said. “(Top Air Force officials) are involved in larger strategic goals, and a lot of that depends on what Congress and the President have in mind.”
And though Richardson has enjoyed his college experience, he said he is ready to begin applying the skills he has spent the past five years learning.
“I’m excited. I’m anxious to get started. I love UCLA more than anything, but at some point you want to start your life,” he said.
Porras, too, is ready for the next step.
“Even in my freshman year, I couldn’t wait to graduate,” he said. “UCLA was just a stepping stone for me … and that’s exactly what is has been. UCLA’s been good to me.”