View Full Version : Infantry Weapons Officer(s)?
ValeTudo
03-01-10, 01:48 PM
Heads-up:I'm new to the forums, this is my first post.
I filled out my profile and I searched the site and couldn't find anything about this.
I want to enlist after high school and there a are a variety of MOSs I am looking at. Just yesterday I found out about Infantry Weapons Officers (MOS 0306), which is apparently a Chief Warrant Officer MOS. However I wasn't able to find much else. I was just wondering if there are any former/serving IWOs out there, and if you could maybe shed some light on what the job entails.
Thanks for the help.
You can't enlist as an officer, especially a CWO.
"Enlisted" is grades E1-E9.
TJR1070
03-01-10, 02:17 PM
Just to give you a heads up on rank structure, you can't even apply to become a Warrant Officer in the Marine Corps until you reach the rank of Sargent. I think you can go into the Army as a WO (not that I am suggesting that) to fly helicopters, but I'm not entirely sure. Warrant Officer is a highly respected rank in the Corps since by definition you have to be prior enlisted. My MOS NBCD Specialist had Warrant Officers as our OIC's and a few of the Marines I served with as a young PFC and L/Cpl went on to obtain that prestigious rank. They are usually very good at what they do and excellent Marines.
ValeTudo
03-01-10, 02:18 PM
You can't enlist as an officer, especially a CWO.
"Enlisted" is grades E1-E9.
Oh, I know...I just have always heard people use "enlisting" as a general term for signing up, even for becoming officers....would just saying "signing up" be better?
The died in the wool genuine Gunner joined the MC before your dad was a twinkle in his dads eye. We're not talking CWO X we're talking genuine gunners. They are the weapons advisor to the battalion commander. Doesn't matter if you know how many pounds per square inch is required to pull the trigger on a 9 mil. Your bona fide gunner probably was the company gunny with the commandants company in vietnam, when he was a captain.
Warrent officers come in all flavors and you might encounter a CWO5 that is the head honcho at disbursing. It don't make him a gunner.
josephd
03-01-10, 06:51 PM
Weapons Officers are gods amongst Marines....
brian0351
03-02-10, 02:18 AM
There are only about 70ish Gunners in the USMC. You have a better shot at getting promoted to General.
stretchusa
03-02-10, 07:51 AM
To become a Gunner you have to be Infantry for a min of 13 years, and be Staff Sgt. Used to be Gunny but they changed that due to not enough Gunners.
@0351 more than 70, the range officer MOS went away and those that had 03 backgrounds were crossdecked into the Gunner community
brian0351
03-02-10, 11:23 PM
@stretch...yeah I read that...but that added in about 30? So we have 100 now. Out of 203,000? Takes a lot to get up to that!
stretchusa
03-03-10, 07:38 AM
something like that right now we are just arguing numbers. There are still more Generals in the Corps and Gunners