Careers

Career Description

When something goes wrong at 50,000 feet, it's always an emergency. As an Aerospace Physiology specialist, you'll teach pilots and aircrews the skills they need to handle in-flight emergencies. You'll conduct training for all emergency devices needed while flying, such as oxygen masks, pressure suits, ejection seats, night vision and the use of parachuting techniques. If an aircrew member needs treatment after an emergency, you may provide it via a hyperbaric chamber. Basically, the things you learn, teach and do will be instrumental in ensuring the health and safety of our flying Airmen.

Career Tasks

• Provide pilots and crew members with the necessary skills to function safely at altitude and correctly handle emergencies, and you will provide them with hyperbaric treatment whenever necessary
• Operate and maintain aerospace physiology devices, including low- and high-pressure chambers in which crew members are subjected to simulated changes in barometric pressure experienced in flight
• A large portion of the career field is involved with pressure suits (space suits)
• Fit and maintain full-pressure suits (space suits) and offer direct support to associated flight operations such as high-altitude reconnaissance and high-altitude air delivery missions
• Instruct crew members on the effects of flight on the human body, sensory illusions of flight and means of protection against them
• Proficient use of oxygen masks, pressure suits, ejection seats, night vision, parachuting techniques, swing landing trainer and parasail
• Work in the area of research and development, centrifuge operations or clinical hyperbaric treatment
• Perform inspection and maintenance of training devices and prepare and maintain administrative documentation and files

Relevant Interests & Skills

• Health and Medicine
• Computer Science
• Mathematics

Training

After eight-and-a-half weeks of Basic Military Training, every Airman goes to technical training to learn their career. Here's the basic information about Aerospace Physiology technical training:

School location: Wright-Patterson AFB [OH]

Length of course: 42 days

College degree earned: Aerospace Physiology Instructor

College credits earned: 14