Autism in the Military

My flavour of Autism resulted in me being able to leave the servcie shortly after receiving my training because my temperament was indeed "incompatible with military service". 

IN laymans terms, psychologically speaking, the Military (and particualrly the army) need to overlay the standard human psyche with a carefully created "mask" to ensure correct operaton of the fighting unit when the time comes.

Autistics are already wearing one, so it's going to be a poor fit, at best...

As I found out. Glad I could do it and had the experience, happy for you that you cannot.

If autism affects an individual to the extent that they're entitled to PIP, it seems a safe bet that it would rule them out for anything like this. 

Hi , did your son receive Disability allowance ? Or continue to receive PIP ? I’m just interested in high functioning autism , and the review of medical notes etc and whether receiving this payment would affect chances of being successful in future . Thanks 

I had one scowl at me once.

But to be fair, I was really quite drunk at the time, he was introduced to me with the words " 'Sperg meet Igor, he's Russian".

To my eternal shame, not only did I reply; "Well, he'd better slow down a bit, then!" but I went on to find my own (unexpected) wit immensely funny as only a drunken idiot can...

I very, very, rarely drink, he was a very unlucky Russian...

No russian ever called me a *******

I've done aircraft engineering for a few years, and it is a job an Autist can do very well indeed.

Attention to detail is all important. 

I liked the people and the working environment much better though doing I.T. or field service engineering work.

I found Aircraft engineering in the civil sector, to be a miserable (and astonishingly poorly paid!) experience once I passed the "initial enthusiasm for the learning" phase. I liked the actual work, but little else, I did six years of it though, so I gave it a fair chance.

I was good enough to do Airframe Engine and Avionics interchangeably, and I got asked to come back repeatedly for several years, so this isn't the sour grapes of "failure to do the job", but it was awful compared to I.T.

I did it because I was following my dream of being a commercial pilot and couldn't actually afford to fly after getting my licence to do so, and hoped it would help me do some of that. It did not. I eventually got offered a chance to do some flying as an inducement to return to the engineering, but that was a false promise so I quit properly after a year.

THEN I got a real offer of some hour building, but it really was too late to realistically get that CPL (commercial licence) and then a job flying, and I had quit properly, abandoned my overly troublesome and expensive aeroplane in a field, (where it remains today, and that's not an unusual thing in private aviation) and walked away form the whole mess and even completed my grieving for the wasted time, money, and effort I invested in aviation.

BUT, having said all that, as a first job and getting the RAF training, excercise, personal discipline, etc. That does look like a great opportunity for a younger person, and if he finds it all not to his taste the skills are really transferrable and useful. 

Indeed. I wonder exactly how they think they’d address autistic people if they brought back national service. There are enough undiagnosed young people that they couldn’t use diagnosis to weed them all out, and assuming they’re not going to war zones the argument for doing so would be a lot weaker.

I have Autism and I served in the early eighties.

I got so fed up with being singled out for the "special treatment" that I engineered my discharge after a mere 2 years.

I was very good, and made every effort t everything asked of me to the best of my ability, but that Autism difference makes it really hard to fit in with military life.

Fortunately, not very far away there is a war happening right now, and one side is very, very, grateful indeed for anyone who wants to sign up.

The training is a bit abbreviated, but my goodness, the opportunities for authentic military experiences is unrivalled! 

All you need is a ticket to Poland and a grand or so to buy your kit.

Bakhmut beckons...

Fully I'm in mpct rn I wanna be in the infantry n I tried to apply for the army n they just stopped my application bcs I said I'm autistic, autism rlly doesn't stop u from being a soldier so I just don't get y.  I'm fully capable just like everyone else who isn't on the spectrum the only thing tha I need work on is being louder that's literally it n tha will improve if they would just let me join 

Still nothing has changed. I may have high functioning Autism but I know I be perfectly capable of being a solder as much as someone without autism can. My autism doesn't effect me. I was part of the air cadets when younger and was fully successful in that. I also have got too grades on everything since. I'm currently doing auto mechanics and I am predicted Distinction. The highest you can get. And that's what I would join the army as. A mechanic. I already know the background of military training and have experience in many military practices. But to the army, no no u have autism.

My son is 16 and has a diagnosis of Autism/Aspergers. He has just accepted a place in the RAF as an Aircraft Engineer. 

He was given a medical where he was asked how his Autism affected him and his medical records were looked at. They seemed more concerned over any food Intollerance’s. 

They have finally opened up to the fact that people with Autism are an asset. 

My son has a diagnosis of Autism and has just been given a place in the RAF to study as an Aircraft Engineer. He had a medical where Capita asked him questions about how his Autism affected him and his medical records were looked at. They seemed more concerned about any food Intollerance’s. 

Modern warfare is all about "silent weapons for quiet wars" apparently...

war is beyond even tanks and drones now....

modern war is waged with information.
he who controls the context, the news, the facts, becomes god, shaper of everything.

I mean to be honest I don’t think this is going to be an issue much longer. In the 21st century war is basically becoming a video game. The notion that wars are won by people marching around with guns and backpacks is becoming pretty antiquated. The tank is the backbone of the land force and the jet seems to be the key to air superiority. More and more drones are coming into the picture. The notion that you need to stay calm and communicative while waiding through mud with 30 men to perform on the field of battle is no longer true for many roles.

as war becomes ever more mechanised I think hand / eye coordination and technical skills will be prioritised over social skills.

this subject comes up all the time --- i was in some armies with autism and it was great. 

I am convinced an autistic unit could be set up  that could support the fighting troops and if need be part of fighting units.  

the RLC  ( drivers )  is an example of where it could start. All soldiers currently have to be capable of combat but  i dont see this as a problem. It just takes a new approach to get a valuable contribution from the autistic community.

haha

This post is over two years old.

aye in ww2 they probably wanted anyone and didnt care about casualties. a time of desperation theyd want the unwantables.... kinda like how the soviet union disregarded the lives of their people and pointed guns at their civilians and forced them into the germans arms to waste german bullets. costing over 20 million soviet casualties by use of using humans as disposable meat walls with little care for their own peoples lives.

I am unable to damage another being I found early in my childhood, so what use army would have of a soldier like that?

though I had spent obligatory 1 year in polish army, good I did not have to shoot at anybody or they would find out and I would have court martial 

plus all the shouting