Questions about different AF bases

[scsh]

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Hi! My husband is entering the AF this summer to pay off his med school loan (he did a civilian residency in gen surgery). We are currently in the midst of ranking the different locations and I was wondering if anyone has any insight on some of the bases. Also, we were told that the chances that he would be deployed are much higher at bases that aren't busy - is this true?
Keesler AFB
Travis AFB
Scott AFB
Academy
Wright Patterson
Wilford Hall
Nellis

Any thoughts on these bases and/or cities would be greatly appreciated!!! Thanks!

 

[trauma_junky]

Originally posted by scsh
Hi! My husband is entering the AF this summer to pay off his med school loan (he did a civilian residency in gen surgery). We are currently in the midst of ranking the different locations and I was wondering if anyone has any insight on some of the bases. Also, we were told that the chances that he would be deployed are much higher at bases that aren't busy - is this true?
Keesler AFB
Travis AFB
Scott AFB
Academy
Wright Patterson
Wilford Hall
Nellis

Any thoughts on these bases and/or cities would be greatly appreciated!!! Thanks!

Wilford hall by far is the best. They are a level one trauma center, and it's in San Antonio, TX. San Antonio is real layed back, low cost of living, The TX hill country is just minutes away, Padre Island only 4 hours away, and Wilford hall see's a lot of civilian cases as well.

 

[cdreed]

Keesler is a decent base located in Biloxi right on the Gulf Coast... nice if you like southern living.

Travis is a nice base if you like CA. It's near both Sacramento and San Francisco. Nice area for culture and good wine, but the cost of living is high.

If your husband wants great training, he should try to go to Wilford Hall. I was assigned to the surgical operations squadron there, and the amount and quality of training he would receive there far by far exceeds (in my opinion) other bases.

Generally, AF bases are nice whereever you go. It depends on what your priorities are. If you want to save some money or have a nice lifestyle, I would suggest pursuing an assignment to a base in the south somewhere- Keesler and Lackland (Wilford Hall) would both afford you a very comfortable lifestyle.

I haven't been to any of the other places that you listed, but you can be assured that most if not all AF bases are decent places. I would advise to ultimately make your decision based on your personal preferences about the area in which the base is located. Make sure that you as a military spouse will enjoy being a particular city. Consider employment opportunities for yourself, as well as other factors including art, entertainment, climate, etc.

Hope this helps.

Cyndi

 

[Heeed!]

I have been to every base you listed so if you'd like additional info you can PM me. I can't speak to the training in each hospital but can touch on what I think is the best location for overall lifestyle. BY FAR, WITHOUT A DOUBT, the best place to go would be the Academy. I'm a USAFA grad and hated attending the school but the location can't be beat. Good schools, variety of weather, lots to do and see, lots of options as far as housing goes etc. (By the way, if you do go there, make sure you check out the housing area called High Forest Ranch in Black Forest. Incredible!!!) The second best choice is Nellis. It's one of the premier AF bases w/ the Thunderbirds and the Weapons School permanently stationed there = lots of $$$ spent on the base.

So, here's how I'd rank your list based on overall quality of life (i.e. location, weather, housing, base facilities, etc):

Academy
Nellis
Travis AFB
Wilford Hall
Scott AFB
Wright Patterson
Keesler AFB

Good luck!🙂

 

[FliteSurgn]

scsh,

I feel for your situation. I'm in the process of doing the exact same thing. I'm finishing my surgery residency this summer and need to give 2 more years to the AF.

Of the bases listed, I've been to Wright-Pat, Wilford Hall, and Travis. Wilford Hall will by far be the busiest of the hospitals followed by Travis and Wright-Pat. I know that some of the Wright-Pat surgeons did moonlight at the local hospital (trauma call at Miami Valley) to keep their skills up. All of them are decent as far as surrounding areas. It really does come down to personal preference as to what location or part of the country you want to live in.

One thing to keep in mind though. These 3 bases along with Keesler are where they have surgery residencies. Therefore they tend to give those spots to surgeons with a little experience. And the Academy is also pretty hard to get because it is a fairly desirable duty location for all of the higher ranking surgeons. Don't let this discourage you though. You never know how things will work out.

Good luck in the assignment process.

 

[FliteSurgn]

scsh,

I feel for your situation. I'm in the process of doing the exact same thing. I'm finishing my surgery residency this summer and need to give 2 more years to the AF.

Of the bases listed, I've been to Wright-Pat, Wilford Hall, and Travis. Wilford Hall will by far be the busiest of the hospitals followed by Travis and Wright-Pat. I know that some of the Wright-Pat surgeons did moonlight at the local hospital (trauma call at Miami Valley) to keep their skills up. All of them are decent as far as surrounding areas. It really does come down to personal preference as to what location or part of the country you want to live in.

One thing to keep in mind though. These 3 bases along with Keesler are where they have surgery residencies. Therefore they tend to give those spots to surgeons with a little experience. And the Academy is also pretty hard to get because it is a fairly desirable duty location for all of the higher ranking surgeons. Don't let this discourage you though. You never know how things will work out.

Good luck in the assignment process.

 

[scooter31]

This is coming from an AF brat, but I'd say, from a dependents POV, Nellis and Travis are pretty nice.

Travis- David Grant and the base in general is huge, and it has great amenities, given its size and mission. Vacaville/Fairfield are decent areas, and you have the Bay Area about 40mins to the west, and Sacramento 40mins to the east. Napa Valley is like 30mins to the north, and the weather is awesome.

Nellis- Vegas. What thoughts are conjured up in your mind are totally individual when that name is brought up, but it really is a decent place. My parents are actually stationed there currently, so I have quite a bit of experience with Nellis. Like Travis, its a gigantic base with many,many missions. O'Callahan is pretty big, it may have about 50 beds (?), but I may be mistaken. I do know they have a VA associated with it. Anyhow, on to things I do really know... the BX is redone, and it's the largest in the AF supposedly. The commissary isnt too bad, but honestly, shop offbase for food. As with Travis, the services are pretty good- the NCOclub leaves a bit to be desired, as does the OC. Housing can be tough to get, but they were remodeling, and adding new quarters, so things may be different. If you choose offbase housing, do yourself a favor and take something a bit of a drive from the base. The north side of LV/city of N LV outside the base are not a good places to be, so make a 10-15 minute drive into work, and get a nice house, rental more in the city.

Feel free to PM me if you have questions about this or anything else re: Nellis. Overall, you'd enjoy Travis and Nellis, and probably CO Springs, but I left CO when I was 7, so I cant really remember much about that. Hope this is helpful, and like I said, its from the dependents perspective. Best of luck