Personal Statement: Warrant Officer

General George Patton is known for his outstanding leadership skills in the army and was quoted saying, no soldier is the army, an army can never be better than its soldiers, citizens form the military and becoming a soldier is the most prominent obligation and privilege citizens can enjoy. I concur with his thoughts, which motivated me to join the army and serve at my most able capacity. I am a self-motivated and results-oriented person; qualities which were integral while serving as a commander in the Unmanned Aircraft System Operation. For this reason, I consider myself, a suitable candidate for the position of a warrant officer. While serving as an Unmanned Aircraft System operator, I achieved numerous accomplishments. For instance, at the age 24 years, I managed to fly more than 900 combat missions totaling to 4,900. Also, my timeless and meticulous efforts directly resulted in over 30 strikes on the enemy targets.

Because of my steadfast devotion, I have been able to achieve the promotion to being the Aircraft Commander of the RQ-7B which happened 120 days after deployment. This was an achievement that allowed me to command more than 100 missions, for ensuring that my crew was well informed to increase the mission success rate. For instance, I provided accurate and consistent information on enemy operations, to facilitate the counter attacks by my crew on the war ground.

My experiences and proven track record working as an unmanned aerial vehicle operator for the C TROOP 2-7 CAV Regiment exceptionally qualifies me to be a warrant officer as a pilot in the rotary wing. While serving as a mission commander, it improved my understanding of the airspace, weather, risk mitigation, and mission approval process. These skills are very critical for a rotary wing pilot to excel in the position. Additionally, as an aircraft commander for the RQ-7B (SHADOW) my experience, judgment and ability to mitigate risk in the Unmanned Aircraft operations improved tremendously. I believe that these qualities add significantly to my exceptional qualification to being a Rotary Wing Pilot. Adding to my outstanding qualifications of being a warrant officer is my then responsibility and authority to operate, service, and secure the unmanned aircraft that I commanded before and after a flight. This implies that I am in knowledge of all the rules and regulations that apply for manned pilots, thanks to my service as a commander of the unmanned aerial aircraft. I have undergone thorough and regular tests during my serving as a commander to ensure that I stay current on knowledge and system procedures.

My strong personality, willingness to learn and dedication to help fellow soldiers led to my promotion as a sergeant, ahead of my peers after two years and eleven months of service, despite being halfway the contract. Also at my position, I was able to help two out of the six soldiers under my command to earn the rank of sergeant. My outstanding performance has resulted in deployment to Iraq, currently working as an unmanned aircraft operator and have taken part in countless missions during this time.

Additionally, I believe that I have significant self-awareness and adaptive technical expertise that qualifies me to be a reliable combat leader, trainer, and advisor, qualities which are requirements for becoming an army warrant officer. Through the progressive levels of expertise in assignments, training, and education, I believe that I have what it takes to administer, manage, maintain, operate and integrate Army systems and equipment across the full spectrum of Army operations. As Mission Commander, I have an in-depth understanding of air and ground contingency operations and capability to operate in a dynamic multiple, simultaneous UAV operations in a complex, austere and hazardous airspace operating environment.

Also, through the associates of liberal arts honors I have been able to attain, I am capable of understanding the historical background and nature of combat skills of the enemy. This skill gives my team a competitive advantage during the battles, as it helps to understand the opponent tactics. Similarly, through the associates of applied science degree that I have attained, I can decipher the technology used by enemies in the air combat to enable the deployment of better or equivalent counter-offensive equipment. Finally, I have attained the Flight Operator President List and Bachelors of Criminal Justice High Honors Graduate, which I have been using to gather intelligence on enemies and understanding weaknesses within the army to improve efficiency during combat.

On top of my experiences and qualifications, my decision to become a warrant officer can be explained by my constant desire to seek change. Since my junior years I high school I always wanted to do more than just studying to exploit my full potential. For instance, as a liberal arts student, I was among the top student-athletes which puzzled people how I could manage to be a full-time student, athlete, and resident assistants concurrently. I was able to maneuver through the three areas successfully through self-respect, prioritizing activities, strong will-power, and dedication, which also motivated me to desire becoming an aviator. The constant desire for improvement motivated me to join the army after dropping out of college. This was a step to overcome my perceived failures by pursuing a degree in applied science, which led to the interest in becoming a warrant officer. I can assist manned pilots while collecting data, but I feel that I have a higher obligation to help the troops on the ground and the mission directly, also explaining my decision to change to become a Rotary Wing Pilot.