Some advice needed...
03-04-2007, 01:38 PM
#1
Line Holder
Thread Starter
Joined APC: Feb 2007
Position: CRJ FO (in training)
Posts: 82
Some advice needed...
Hello All,
This is my first post here and I'm very much in need of a bit of advice and perspective.
A little background data about myself: I'm 40 years old, started flying in 1990 after being obsessed with aviation since watching the moon landing, retired from the computing profession in 1999 just before the dot-com crash, got all my ratings via the FBO route (presently C-ASMEL-IA, CFI, AGI, IGI - 1032TT, 79ME, 170+IFR w/~116 actual), and spent a number of years in the sport aviation arena (I built one airplane and part of a second, flew the finished one all over the country, and had a few articles published in Sport Aviation and Kitplanes). I spent a short while instructing in T-6's last year and haven't flown in about nine months.
I've flirted with the airline thing before, but various life circumstances conspired to prevent my pursuing it in the focused and determined manner required. Things are now properly aligned in life to permit me to fulfill this lifelong dream, but the best path to take currently has me scratching my head. Obviously, I need to get IFR current and acquire another 25 hours or so of multi time. If I get this done in short order, would I be in good shape to apply on my own, or would I be better served by taking a course with one of the schools (such as ATP) with airline agreement letters, which would guarantee an interview (though not the job, of course)? Such programs seem more set up to facilitate the hiring of guys with lower TT than I've got, though my feeling is that, if I apply on my own, I might not get any interviews because of concerns over my time off from aviation over the last nine months or so.
For what it's worth, I'm particularly interested in ExpressJet, with Pinnacle and American Eagle close behind. Any advice would be sincerely appreciated.
Regards,
Ken Balch
This is my first post here and I'm very much in need of a bit of advice and perspective.
A little background data about myself: I'm 40 years old, started flying in 1990 after being obsessed with aviation since watching the moon landing, retired from the computing profession in 1999 just before the dot-com crash, got all my ratings via the FBO route (presently C-ASMEL-IA, CFI, AGI, IGI - 1032TT, 79ME, 170+IFR w/~116 actual), and spent a number of years in the sport aviation arena (I built one airplane and part of a second, flew the finished one all over the country, and had a few articles published in Sport Aviation and Kitplanes). I spent a short while instructing in T-6's last year and haven't flown in about nine months.
I've flirted with the airline thing before, but various life circumstances conspired to prevent my pursuing it in the focused and determined manner required. Things are now properly aligned in life to permit me to fulfill this lifelong dream, but the best path to take currently has me scratching my head. Obviously, I need to get IFR current and acquire another 25 hours or so of multi time. If I get this done in short order, would I be in good shape to apply on my own, or would I be better served by taking a course with one of the schools (such as ATP) with airline agreement letters, which would guarantee an interview (though not the job, of course)? Such programs seem more set up to facilitate the hiring of guys with lower TT than I've got, though my feeling is that, if I apply on my own, I might not get any interviews because of concerns over my time off from aviation over the last nine months or so.
For what it's worth, I'm particularly interested in ExpressJet, with Pinnacle and American Eagle close behind. Any advice would be sincerely appreciated.
Regards,
Ken Balch
03-04-2007, 02:22 PM
#2
La Familia Delta
Joined APC: Oct 2006
Position: B-717 FO / C-17 AC
Posts: 2,467
email those companies' HR departments and ask what theyd like to see from you as far as recency of experience. my guess is you can get hired easy, XJT needs a few hundred pilots this year, and eagle needs 700. Skywest needs another 700 or so, and republic also around that many. so youre in good shape.
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