Ones Ready
A team of active duty Combat Control (CCT), Pararescue (PJ), and Special Reconnaissance (SR) leveraging our 69 years of special operations experience to make the next generation of operators smarter, faster and stronger than we ever were. We are the PREMIERE resource for all things Air Force Special Warfare. The Ones Ready Podcast is honest talk about what it is like to go from a know-nothing high school graduate to an elite Special Operator. We will cover important practices for success including physical training, nutrition, recovery, and mindset traits essential to any team. Join us in The Team Room to get all your questions answered!! With battle-tested operators from across USAF SPECWAR and far-reaching web of recruiters, subject matter experts, and friends, there are no questions we can’t answer- and if we can’t, we know exactly where to look. See you in The Team Room!Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the OnesReady team are those of the team and do not reflect the official policy or position of the DoD. Any content provided by our Podcast guests, bloggers, sponsors, or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign the DoD, any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, individual, or anyone.
Ones Ready
Ep 488: Updates to the Updates for AFSW Pipeline!
Aaron rolls solo to drop a grenade on your expectations and walk you through the jaw-dropping overhaul of the Air Force Special Warfare pipeline. New names. New timelines. New chaos. Is dive school back? Is SWOE-V dead? Will your career implode before it starts? Aaron breaks it all down with brutal honesty and zero fluff. No sarcasm (seriously)—just straight facts and insider updates from the front lines of AFSPECWAR’s Frankenstein pipeline rewrite. If you’re anywhere near the door to this career field, buckle up. You’re not ready for what’s coming—but you will be after this.
🔥 Key Takeaways:
- SWOE-V is (probably) toast. Guaranteed contracts are coming back.
- New 3-week land-based selection starts October.
- "Zulu Course" = 16-week common skills crucible for all 1Z AFSCs.
- No more job selection at SWAS—now happens after Zulu.
- Pre-dive follows Zulu. Dive school may be resurrected (again).
- PJs still get hosed with 18–20 month pipelines due to paramedic training.
- Everyone else? Aim is 12 months to team placement.
- Apprentice courses will be cut down—no repeating Zulu content.
- Already in the pipeline but not in an apprentice course? You're going to Zulu anyway. Sorry.
- This is either brilliant efficiency or a flaming disaster. TBD.
- Aaron wants to be wrong… but probably isn’t.
⏱️ Timestamps:
00:00 – Welcome to Aaron’s solo mission
01:20 – The “no sarcasm” promise (mostly)
02:30 – Why is the pipeline changing?
04:15 – Should you still join? Short answer: Yes.
06:00 – Death of SWOE-V? Long live GTAP
08:45 – PJ bottleneck: no slots, no mercy
10:30 – Guaranteed contract vs “hope and cope”
11:40 – Zulu Course: What it is, how long, and why it matters
13:50 – Should you stop swimming? (Hard no)
16:00 – What common skills are covered in Zulu
17:30 – Dive school might be coming back—again
21:00 – Pre-dive’s weird limbo and fairness concerns
24:00 – Lack of standards = morale hits = suck it up
26:30 – 12-month pipeline push—is it even possible?
29:00 – Cutting apprentice course length (but keeping the suck)
31:45 – Already in the p
Join this channel to get access to perks: HERE
Buzzsprout Subscription page: HERE
Collabs:
Ones Ready - OnesReady.com
18A Fitness - Promo Code: 1Ready
ATACLete - Follow the URL (no promo code): ATACLete
CardoMax - Promo Code: ONESREADY
Danger Close Apparel - Promo Code: ONESREADY
DFND Apparel - Promo Code: ONESREADY
Hoist - Promo Code: ONESREADY
Kill Cliff - Pro...