u/According_Dream_6780

[removed]

Looking for an EU clan or squad to join. All three of us are mainly PvP focused, one of us is a strong builder for base setup. Active, mic required, no drama.

Looking for an EU clan or squad to join. All three of us are mainly PvP focused, one of us is a strong builder for base setup. Active, mic required, no drama.

I’m -0.5 dioptre and 6’3” and can’t find anything solid online about either one. Does eyesight like that actually cause issues at the medical, and does height matter more for some aircraft than others, like would a Typhoon or Hawk cockpit be tighter for me than a C-17 or rotary, or does the RAF just place you wherever you fit? Anyone been through OASC or is aircrew, genuine input welcome.

I’m 17 and the goal is RAF pilot, no backup plan really, that’s what I want. I already meet the entrance requirements for pilot selection but I’ve still got time left in college so I’m not applying yet. Trying to work out whether I should go to uni first, probably mechanical engineering, or just go Direct Entry as soon as I’m eligible and skip uni completely.

One extra factor for me is nationality. I’ve lived in the UK since I was 4, over 15 years now, but I’m currently a Polish citizen and my British citizenship is still in progress. Poland’s in the EU and NATO, so I’m hoping that keeps things straightforward on the vetting side once the citizenship comes through, but I know dual nationality and DV clearance can get complicated depending on the specifics.

Part of me thinks going Direct Entry gets me flying sooner and I don’t waste years or take on debt if this is genuinely what I want to do with my life. But then I keep hearing about University Air Squadrons and how you can actually get real flying hours and RAF exposure while still at uni, which sounds like it would help both with getting a feel for it and with the application itself. I just don’t know if a degree actually makes a difference at OASC or when it comes to fast jet streaming, or if people just assume it does.

If anyone’s actually been through OASC recently I’d genuinely want to know if Direct Entry vs Uni Entry changes your odds at all, especially for fast jets. And if anyone did a UAS, was it actually worth it, and are there certain unis that are known for having a good one or being taken more seriously by the RAF. I’ve seen Oxford, Cambridge, Bristol and Southampton mentioned but no idea if there’s an actual difference between them or if it’s more about which uni you’d want to go to anyway.

Haven’t spoken to recruiters yet, want to get a feel for people’s real experiences first before I go down that route.

Building around a 7800X3D and RX 9070 XT and trying to keep costs down for now. I know 32GB dual channel is the ideal but I am wondering if starting with a single 16GB DDR5 stick is a reasonable stopgap.

The plan is to add a second identical stick later to get into dual channel, so I want to avoid buying 2x8GB now since that caps me at 16GB total with no upgrade path without wasting the sticks.

Main questions:

How bad is the single channel penalty on the 7800X3D specifically? I know the large L3 cache helps mitigate it compared to other CPUs but curious how much in practice
Is 16GB enough for gaming in 2026 or will I be bottlenecked by capacity before I even notice the bandwidth hit
Will 16GB single channel handle having Spotify, Discord, and a game like War Thunder or Rust running at the same time without the system struggling on the memory side
Any specific sticks you would recommend that are likely to have a matching second stick available to buy later

Not interested in the “just buy 32GB now” response, I know it is the better option, working with a budget.

I’m in the uk