With slowing hiring, what is better? CFI or Airline placement programs?
03-22-2008, 05:30 PM
#1
Gets Weekends Off
Thread Starter
Joined APC: Jul 2007
Position: EMB 190 FO
Posts: 115
With slowing hiring, what is better? CFI or Airline placement programs?
Seeing how things have been developing over the last few weeks regarding hiring slowdowns I have begun to wonder whether or not my money is better spent getting my CFII and MEI or going to one of the regional jet placement courses and triying to get on with a regional fast before things get worse.
Im low time and this is a decision I have to make fast over the next few days, I know that most here preach the almighty get your CFI's and instruct, but what if 3 months from now airlines stop hiring completely? what do I do with my CFIs then?
Im low time and this is a decision I have to make fast over the next few days, I know that most here preach the almighty get your CFI's and instruct, but what if 3 months from now airlines stop hiring completely? what do I do with my CFIs then?
03-22-2008, 05:42 PM
#2
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Mar 2007
Position: Dreamniner
Posts: 352
03-22-2008, 05:58 PM
#4
New Hire
Joined APC: Oct 2005
Position: IT Server Room
Posts: 8
I myself am not a huge fan of CFIing especially when compared to using that time to enjoy some rec flying to different places, airports, and approaches. In todays world I would say get the CFI because say you do get hired on immediately somewhere, with today's economy, you are prime for furlough if that were to happen.
03-22-2008, 06:29 PM
#6
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: May 2006
Position: Student Pilot
Posts: 849
you are right, I bet 98% of people here will tell you just that. why? because most people are for building experience through instructing versus 250 hr hirees.
but aside from that tired argument -
they will tell you if hiring DOES stop completely in 3 months, you will be stuck on the bottom of the seniority list on reserve with crap schedule and probably not flying at all and no hope of getting paid over guarantee (around $1500 for most regionals first year pay BEFORE taxes and deductions). the ultimate point of getting on a seniority list asap is to BUILD seniority... if you get hired at the tail end and no one is hired after you, you will always be the bottom and not building any seniority.
plus if you care about upgrades and that sort of stuff.. if you get hired with 250 hours, you will end up not meeting mins to upgrade even when you finally get the seniority to do so. right now i'm at a place that is hiring street captains because we have many FOs who have the seniority but not enough hours to upgrade.. as you know, part 91 doesnt restrict you to how many hours you can fly in a month.. so if there is plenty of work (and I think there is right now esp for CFIs), you could fly 130 hours a month for example and build time hundreds of hours in a matter of a few months. but most regional guys typically only fly 80-90 hrs as a lineholder, so your path to meeting the total time requirement for captain upgrade is that much slower. and mind you, those are for lineholders.. if hiring does stop completely like you fear, you will likely be stuck on reserve for who knows how long.
on the other hand, if you instruct, there are lots of places right now that are offering sign on bonuses, attractive pay and lots of flight time.
but aside from that tired argument -
they will tell you if hiring DOES stop completely in 3 months, you will be stuck on the bottom of the seniority list on reserve with crap schedule and probably not flying at all and no hope of getting paid over guarantee (around $1500 for most regionals first year pay BEFORE taxes and deductions). the ultimate point of getting on a seniority list asap is to BUILD seniority... if you get hired at the tail end and no one is hired after you, you will always be the bottom and not building any seniority.
plus if you care about upgrades and that sort of stuff.. if you get hired with 250 hours, you will end up not meeting mins to upgrade even when you finally get the seniority to do so. right now i'm at a place that is hiring street captains because we have many FOs who have the seniority but not enough hours to upgrade.. as you know, part 91 doesnt restrict you to how many hours you can fly in a month.. so if there is plenty of work (and I think there is right now esp for CFIs), you could fly 130 hours a month for example and build time hundreds of hours in a matter of a few months. but most regional guys typically only fly 80-90 hrs as a lineholder, so your path to meeting the total time requirement for captain upgrade is that much slower. and mind you, those are for lineholders.. if hiring does stop completely like you fear, you will likely be stuck on reserve for who knows how long.
on the other hand, if you instruct, there are lots of places right now that are offering sign on bonuses, attractive pay and lots of flight time.
03-22-2008, 06:38 PM
#7
Prime Minister/Moderator
Joined APC: Jan 2006
Position: Engines Turn Or People Swim
Posts: 40,056
If the music stops (the beat is slowing for sure), where would you rather be:
Stuck as a CFI (which will still be in demand) making more money, home every night, building time which will apply towards your ATP, and maybe making connections in the corporate world.
Stuck sitting airport reseve for $20K in some derelict city on the other side of the continent from where you probably want to be, working for the crappiest of regionals (who do you think is going to hire low time, non-cfi's). Plus you could get furloughed and be unable to afford your CFI tickets because you're still paying off that jet training loan with your unemployment checks.
If everything slows, you won't be missing much seniority, since that will slow too.
Stuck as a CFI (which will still be in demand) making more money, home every night, building time which will apply towards your ATP, and maybe making connections in the corporate world.
Stuck sitting airport reseve for $20K in some derelict city on the other side of the continent from where you probably want to be, working for the crappiest of regionals (who do you think is going to hire low time, non-cfi's). Plus you could get furloughed and be unable to afford your CFI tickets because you're still paying off that jet training loan with your unemployment checks.
If everything slows, you won't be missing much seniority, since that will slow too.
03-22-2008, 10:48 PM
#10
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jun 2005
Position: Retired
Posts: 2,934
Personally, the last thing I want to do on my day off from flying an airplane is flying an airplane.
Go CFI. Higher time and higher experience equals greater opportunities. There are lots of flying jobs out there beyond crappy regionals that hire at low times. There's no reason for somebody with a commercial certificate to pay for training that an airline is going to provide to you with pay.
Go CFI. Higher time and higher experience equals greater opportunities. There are lots of flying jobs out there beyond crappy regionals that hire at low times. There's no reason for somebody with a commercial certificate to pay for training that an airline is going to provide to you with pay.
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