Re:The U.S. Air Force learned to code and saved the Pentagon...
by DennisP on Friday July 06, 2018 @08:12AM
(#17470740)
Military retirement after 20 years isn't all that generous, it's about $40K. It's nice but you're still probably getting a job if you've got a family.
Re:The U.S. Air Force learned to code and saved the Pentagon...
by Jtsummers on Friday July 06, 2018 @12:00PM
(#17472473)
$40k household income for life, and that's still above median for many parts of the US (though about 2/3rds median for the US as a whole). Are there other job opportunities, outside some police departments, that offer similar compensation and let you retire at age 40?
Re:The U.S. Air Force learned to code and saved the Pentagon...
by DennisP on Friday July 06, 2018 @12:50PM
(#17472936)
Yes it's great, it's equivalent to over a million dollars with a safe withdrawal rate. I'm just saying you're probably still going to be working, not actually retired.
$40K is the figure I got from a Navy commander who's been in over 20 years. He and his family are used to approximately triple that level of income. He doesn't feel he can retire.
Lower-ranking people will be used to living on less, but will also have proportionally lower retirement pay. If you're a lower-ranking person and can get significantly higher pay in the private sector, it's not necessarily a dumb choice to go for it.
Re:The U.S. Air Force learned to code and saved the Pentagon...
by dralley on Friday July 06, 2018 @12:34AM
(#17468852)
Unless you have to work in a SCIF
Given the choice between a typical developer's life (outside a tech hub or hot spot most programmers aren't compensated much different from any other low social status white collar worker), moral issues aside, I'd take the military job any day.
A person can join the military at 18, retire at 38 and be in a prime position to capitalize on his network as a consultant or "small business owner" contractor, or else just sit back and enjoy his generous pension and health and other benefits. That's a big deal.