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AUGUSTA, Maine - “I think it is awesome,” said Joseph. “I can't
wait until I get pilot in command so I can fly with him. It is
pretty cool. Not many people have the opportunity to fly side by
side with their brother, so I consider myself pretty blessed for
this.”
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Joseph Emery is a pilot with
Charlie Company, 1/126 Aviation Regiment. His younger brother,
Warrant Officer Candidate Nick Emery left for Fort Rucker in early
November 2013 so that he too could take the first step in becoming a
pilot. Nick, who said he had always looked up to his big brother,
first joined the Maine National guard six years ago. At that time,
he needed something more fulfilling in his life than he was getting
from his college classes.
Nick has been working on the
electronic systems on the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters for Charlie
Company. When he returns from flight school, he will be able to fly.
His brother is more than happy to share his experiences with Nick,
but at the same time, a bit worried his brother might do better than
him.
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December 1, 2013 - Warrant Officer 2
Joseph Emery pins his brother Nick with the rank of Warrant Officer
Candidate. After Nick completes Warrant Officer School at Fort
Rucker he will earn the rank of Warrant Officer 1. The two brothers
have been very competitive, and Joseph is a little nervous he will
be bested by his little brother in school. “We are very
competitive,” he said. “I am sure that whatever I did in school, he
will try to one up me. It's good for him, a challenge.” Courtesy
Photo
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“My brother and I, we are very competitive,” said Joseph.
“I am sure that whatever I did in warrant officer candidate
school, he will try to one up me. It's good for him, a
challenge. But I am going to have to dig up all my old
grades, just to make sure. It's just part of who we are.”
Joseph didn't start out wanting to fly. He enlisted 11
years ago as a cook. Then after his first deployment, he
requested a transfer to an infantry unit. After his second
deployment, he decided he might want to be a pilot.
“The decision to go from infantry to pilot,
was based on my experience with the last deployment and
working with the helicopters,” said Joseph. “Not working on
them, but having them bring us places, drop things off for
us and provide cover for us, I really got to see their role
in the mission. It has definitely been an evolution for me,
deploying as a cook and seeing the infantrymen and saying,
wow that's awesome, I want to do that! Then I went as
infantry and I saw what the pilots did and said, wow that's
cool, I want to do that! I think that's it for me though, I
don't want to do anything else except fly helicopters.”
That passion for flying seems to have influenced his
brother Nick as well. Nick enlisted as a heavy construction
equipment operator, joining the 262nd Engineer Company in
Belfast. When the 126th was preparing to deploy, he made the
transfer in order to go with them.
“I really love
being in this unit. The people are awesome, we all get
along,” he said about his first experiences with Charlie
Company. “I love working on helicopters. Think about it, I
get to work on helicopters as part of my normal job. That's
not a normal job, that's cool! I have that enthusiasm. I
mean it's so cool being around the helicopters, working on
them all the time.”
Being deployed with the 126th
meant Nick had a lot of time to spend with current warrant
officers and pilots. Before Kuwait, he had thought about it,
but had never really pursued it. There, he started actively
looking into the program requirements.
“I realized, I
really wanted to fly,” said Nick. “I have always had a
passion for flight. Just seeing them take off is a really
cool thing, but I want to do it. I want to be in the cockpit
and I want to fly. I never thought I could actually be a
pilot, but then I checked the standards, I got all of the
information, and realized, hey I can really do this.”
Both brothers, who grew up in Whitefield, chose to go
into the warrant officer program because of their reputation
as being experts in their field. They both wanted to be
experts at flying. Because of the unique structure of the
program which works though levels of expertise through
assignments, training and education, aviation warrants tend
to be able to spend more time in a helicopter training other
pilots as they progress, rather than having to give up
flight time for other duties.
To obtain an aviation
warrant, any candidate must have proof of U.S. citizenship,
a 110 on the general technical testing, high school
graduate, secret to top secret security clearance, pass the
flight physical and be no older than 33 years of age.
Technical warrants must be no older than 46. After retaking
the test and completing the flight physical, Nick worked
with Chief Warrant Officer 2 Carlo Paratore and Chief
Warrant Officer 5 Darryl Stevens to complete the packet.
“Chief Paratore and Mr. Stevens are phenomenal at their
job,” he said. “They did an outstanding job making sure we
were well prepared and we had everything we needed. “
While they did that, Nick relied on his older brother
for some advice on how to tackle school.
“He told me
to take charge when I got there,” said Nick. “He said it's
not just a course you can slide though. You can't keep your
head down and go through the motions or you will get called
on it. Be active and take on responsibility.”
Nick
looks up to his older brother and is thankful to have him as
a sounding board.
“He has been my role model for a
long time. I have looked up to him in more ways than just
the military. We have always been there for each other. He
has always been there for me. We trust each other, kind of
rare these days. But we can be completely honest with each
other, and we have each other's back. It is a pretty cool
relationship we have because we are brothers, we are flight
brothers, and soon, we will both be pilots and warrant
officers. I think that's pretty cool.”
While the two
are looking forward to the opportunities ahead, Nick still
has to complete warrant officer school. He carries around
the Warrant Officer 1 patch in his wallet to remind him of
what he's working for. Which is to not only complete the
course, but graduate with a better overall ranking than his
brother.
“I have to destroy him in school,” said
Nick. “I have to always one up in everything. He set the
standard pretty high in school, so it will make beating him
that much sweeter.”
By U.S. Army Sgt. Angela Parady
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2013
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