Dual military question

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I am currently in nursing school right now and have been talking with an air force recruiter about joining when I finish next year. My husband is currently in the military too but he is in the army. I grew up an air force brat and have seen the army side (from a wife's view) and I think the air force would be a better fit for me. My question is if anyone knows how difficult it is to be stationed together? Or if someone is currenly dual military in different branches, how much more difficult is it being in different branches? Also, do air force nurses work on army posts?

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I cannot speak to the actual dual-dual thing, but I do know that with the combining of many major military medical centers - Wilford Hall and Brooke being the one I know the most about - your chances of pulling this off have just gotten better.

Wilford Hall and Brooke Army have combined (and are still in the process of combining) into one huge medical facility - San Antonio Military Medical Center. Wilford Hall is considered SAMMC South, and BAMC is SAMMC North. Eventually BAMC will be the only inpatient facility, and Wilford Hall will be the clinics and an eye hospital.

Right this second it's the only example I can think of. But I know that there are several AF and Army posts that are close to each other - I grew up near Langley/Fort Eustis, and I was stationed at Altus AFB, which was only forty-five minutes from Fort Sill in Lawton. I know there are others.

There's also Pope/Ft. Bragg in North Carolina; there may be AF billets at Womack Army Medical Center as well.

I'd be willing to bet if you did some digging on the web you'd find a message board for dual service couples. (There seems to be a message board for EVERYTHING these days...) And I wouldn't be surprised if your husband didn't know of - or could help you find - couples on your post in that situation.

Good luck with your decision. I understand your Blue Bias. LOL

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I doubt that there is much, if anything in place, to officially accommodate the process, but there would be the avenue of requesting reassignment to the area where the spouse is assigned. This is what we used to do in the Army when the automatic process of assigning spouses together did not "automatically" work. I would do a lot of research on the possibilities before you take action. For instance, in addition to the areas that carolinapooh mentioned, at Fort Carson CO (Army) you have Peterson AFB, the AF Academy, and Cheyenne Mountain, that I recall. I would think there are more areas where the two of you could be stationed together. And one of you could also try to get assigned as a nurse recruiter for their branch in an area where you could not otherwise be accommodated. Good luck.

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I doubt that there is much, if anything in place, to officially accommodate the process, but there would be the avenue of requesting reassignment to the area where the spouse is assigned. This is what we used to do in the Army when the automatic process of assigning spouses together did not "automatically" work. I would do a lot of research on the possibilities before you take action. For instance, in addition to the areas that carolinapooh mentioned, at Fort Carson CO (Army) you have Peterson AFB, the AF Academy, and Cheyenne Mountain, that I recall. I would think there are more areas where the two of you could be stationed together. And one of you could also try to get assigned as a nurse recruiter for their branch in an area where you could not otherwise be accommodated. Good luck.

The other base in CO is Buckley; Cheyenne Mountain is in Wyoming. Peterson would be AWESOME. I think Peterson and the AF Academy are the only medical places because Buckley is mainly an ANG base.

I forgot about all that stuff in Colorado.

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Cheyenne Mountain isn't in Colorado Springs? I've been under a misconception for a long time. Changes my perception of Stargate SG-1 episodes I watch! Anyway, that is why I suggested the OP do research on the co-location of AF and Army sites.

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Just looked up Cheyenne Mountain in wikipedia, Cheyenne Mountain Operations Center is located in Colorado Springs CO. Air Force operation.

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Specializes in Advanced Practice, Home Care, Med-Surg,.

Also Ft. Stewart(where I will soon be stationed) and Hunter Air Fore Base- although I here Ft. Stewart is a "highly deployable base".

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Just looked up Cheyenne Mountain in wikipedia, Cheyenne Mountain Operations Center is located in Colorado Springs CO. Air Force operation.

I just realized that after I hit save - I'm an idiot - I'm going to go crawl under my rock and die now. :lol2:

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Also Ft. Stewart(where I will soon be stationed) and Hunter Air Fore Base- although I here Ft. Stewart is a "highly deployable base".

I think it's Hunter Army Airfield, not an air force base.

Personally, I was dual military in the Army. Neither of us was MEDDAC and we had a tough time getting stationed together with two common combat arms and combat support branches. There is no way I would attempt this with Army and Air Force unless I went into it accepting that we would be stationed apart. My branch manager told me that the Army Married Couples Program means that they check a box that says they understand that they should consider stationing married couples together. There is no requirement or restriction on when and how they do assignments. Obviously there are branch managers who would work more for it, but there are no guarantees. Again, I would go Army if I were you and wanted to have a chance at being together.

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Specializes in L&D,Wound Care, SNC.

I was in the Air Force and am currently an Air Force spouse. I'm not gonna lie, being Army and Air Force dual military would be extremely difficult. IF you were to get joint spouse they can only guarantee that you will be stationed within 50 miles from each other. This is not firsthand personal experience, but from an Air Force co-worker who was married to an Army solider. I know dual Air Force couples that struggle with joint spouse assignment.

Air Force nurses do work at Army posts. I work at Landstuhl in Germany and I work with Army and Air Force nurses.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Med-Surg. Telemetry.
I cannot speak to the actual dual-dual thing, but I do know that with the combining of many major military medical centers - Wilford Hall and Brooke being the one I know the most about - your chances of pulling this off have just gotten better.

Wilford Hall and Brooke Army have combined (and are still in the process of combining) into one huge medical facility - San Antonio Military Medical Center. Wilford Hall is considered SAMMC South, and BAMC is SAMMC North. Eventually BAMC will be the only inpatient facility, and Wilford Hall will be the clinics and an eye hospital.

Right this second it's the only example I can think of. But I know that there are several AF and Army posts that are close to each other - I grew up near Langley/Fort Eustis, and I was stationed at Altus AFB, which was only forty-five minutes from Fort Sill in Lawton. I know there are others.

There's also Pope/Ft. Bragg in North Carolina; there may be AF billets at Womack Army Medical Center as well.

I'd be willing to bet if you did some digging on the web you'd find a message board for dual service couples. (There seems to be a message board for EVERYTHING these days...) And I wouldn't be surprised if your husband didn't know of - or could help you find - couples on your post in that situation.

Good luck with your decision. I understand your Blue Bias. LOL

Hello , I just got selected in the Air Force April 2011 boards and will be leaving for COT in October 17 and will be doing. NTP in Cincinnati from Nov. 28-Feb.15 and will be stationed with my wife and 2 children in lacklnd, tx working in med. Surg. I see that they have combined with brook army. I was wondering if you knew any details with whether I would be working in wilford hall or brook? We are also in the process of looking for a safe place to live in but at the same time affordable with BAH. We are also looking at sending our kids to cornerstone christian academy. So I would like to make sure we live in a place that is convenient for our commute. Thanks!

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Specializes in ER/Trauma Administration Geriatrics.

Having been part of a dual military couple -- both of us in the Army -- I can tell you getting assigned together was not easy. The needs of the military come first -- not married life. As you go up in rank, things get tougher because there are less and less slots for you to fill. Better to consider DOD nursing -- things are more flexible and chances of getting a position together are better.

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