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Anybody have any experience in crew scheduling/dispatch/flight following? I did a job shadow thing in high school in NetJets' operations department at CMH in 2005 and it opened my eyes to another world in airline/aviation ops, but was a small sample size. I'd just be looking for a general idea as to what work environments were like and if it was a worthwhile place to be in aviation or if it's a "turn and run" type deal.ethanol posted:It must be incredibly disappointing to complete your training for atc or get out of the military with thousands of hours of control experience and then go to the FAA website and see 'no jobs available". As I said in the last thread, I talked to a gate agent at DAB about three weeks ago who was a recent ERAU grad with an ATC degree. Had been hired/offered training to become a controller (however it works), only to have the offer yanked due to sequestration. He's currently doing stuff with the guard alongside working the ramp. The community college from which I graduated has an A&P program which seems to be well-liked among the students. I think you could do it in six quarters (before Ohio changed to semesters). CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 04:32 on Apr 15, 2013 |
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Apr 15, 2013 04:28
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two_beer_bishes posted:My wife is a dispatcher for a 121 carrier and has dispatched/flight-followed for an international cargo carrier as well. I would be happy to forward any questions to her if you's like. Thanks. If I think of any specific ones, I'll be sure to pass them along.
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Apr 17, 2013 02:30
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That 747 crash video is surreal in the most horrific way possible. It's like something out of a nightmare. I've been at the site of two crashes, but was fortunate enough to have my back turned to both (2007 Dayton Air Show & a Fly-in last year). Seeing that sort of makes up for both.  Picking up where I left off a couple pages back (and Figby, unfortunately I don't have PMs): two_beer_bishes posted:My wife is a dispatcher for a 121 carrier and has dispatched/flight-followed for an international cargo carrier as well. I would be happy to forward any questions to her if you's like. Figby posted:I am a dispatcher for a 121 supplemental carrier right now, and have done some time dispatching at regionals and another 121 supplemental. Feel free to PM me with any questions. b c n u posted:I'm a scheduler at a regional....ask away. I guess I'm curious about a general overview as to "Day in the Life"-type aspects of the jobs: What might a normal day/extreme day (weather's gone to hell, other operational nightmare.) entail, how do the companies schedule your work hours, lifestyle, do you get much use out of any travel benefits your employer might provide, is it a position you'd recommend if one has the choice? (I had a Citation X captain tell me during one of my days at NetJets that "You really don't want to fly. Find something else to do.", not messing around in the least, so I'm fine with hearing both sides of the coin if they're out there.) The reason I ask is the school from which I earned my Associate's in Aviation Technology also has a Dispatch program, from which I took several of the classes as requirements and/or electives anyway. One of the remaining classes, an IFR Flight Planning course, would be waived because I have my Instrument rating. Thanks to that, I'm considering taking the last handful of classes, getting the Dispatch ticket, and maybe even going that route for a career. I also have an option where I could finish things through an accelerated program, which I think gets you done in six weeks or something to that effect. CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 17:10 on May 4, 2013 |
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May 4, 2013 17:02
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LoreOfSerpents posted:You don't need a certain number of hours to be skilled at what you do, but you do have to always pay attention, and always be prepared. Exactly. And, slightly unrelated, this is why the 1500 hour rule resulting from this: DNova posted:colgan 3407 ...is so frustrating to me. It's not the hours that make the pilot, it's training and the multitude of other things that go into it. Which Uncle Sam doesn't seem to get. 
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May 17, 2013 03:32
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KodiakRS posted:In industry news: Skywest gets 70+ seat airplanes to replace their 50 seat airplanes. The trend towards larger and larger regional jets continues. I was hoping the airlines would try to deal with the pilot shortage by expanding narrow body mainline flying and drawing down the regionals but I guess not. Why do something yourself when you can pay someone else to do it half as well for 75% of the cost? Isn't Delta picking up the AirTran 717s to help draw down 50 seat ops? My understanding of that situation was "Park most 50-seat CRJs, replace those with 70 seaters, replace 70 seater flying and DC-9-50s with 90 seaters or 717/MD-90s".
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May 25, 2013 17:24
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DNova posted:If you're training under Part 61, it's totally informal. When your CFI thinks you're ready, he endorses your book and gets out of the airplane. Part 141 might be different but I don't know much about 141. My first solo was under Part 141. The syllabus called for us to go out ONE MORE TIME in the pattern to make sure I knew what I was doing. After that part of the lesson, I had to come in to do my pilot mill's standard pre-solo written test, which I think was 10 questions and open book, but basic stuff that I already knew pretty well. From there, it was "Go fire it up. When you're switched to tower, tell them you're a student on a solo. I'll be monitoring tower in the office & they know we'll be listening. If you need us, ask for us. See you in a bit."
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Jun 2, 2013 03:49
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Congrats Captain Apollo!  Sully, I want to look up to you so badly, yet you keep making it harder :http://sullysullenberger.com/faa-facing-pressure-as-deadline-approaches-for-pilot-qualification-safety-rules/ hobbesmaster posted:Does anywhere still have metal detectors? My dad was so excited when our small local airport got the microwave scanners because his hip no longer triggered it every time and could go through like a normal person. CMH still has them to back up the phone booths. They even sometimes use it to make the line move faster at Concourse C.
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Jun 4, 2013 01:49
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KodiakRS posted:Pretty much everywhere still has them. Most places use the backscatter scanner though and only use the metal detectors under certain circumstances. What did sully do now? He basically said "The 1500 hour law is a really good thing but is under scrutiny from people who know things, so you need to write the FAA and your representatives to tell them so because if you get on an Express carrier with a sub-1500TT pilot, you're gonna die." Also "We need to stop all those RJ pilots that crash on a daily basis because all they do is kill people." He's being (pardon the pun) throttled on Facebook.
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Jun 4, 2013 02:34
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KodiakRS posted:Didn't the 3407 FO have well over ATP minimums? I dislike the "AIRPLANES ARE GONNA FALL OUTTA THE SKY IF WE DON'T DO SOMETHING" line. I also don't like how he's constantly bashing on the regional like they're death machines where the people who can't make the grade at a major aline go. Unfortunately a logical well explained argument doesn't fit neatly into a 10 second sound bite. Captain and FO were both well north of 2500TT. Both would have been qualified under the terms of the law, which begs the question: "Would the law have prevented Colgan 3407?". It's disappointing because, unlike Schumer, who seemed to be shilling the "We're going to fix this RIGHT NOW, don't you worry, I'm going to be a hero so I get re-elected" approach, you'd think Sully would look at things from both perspectives. I'm still amazed by what he did on the Hudson, but then he uses his celebrity and "expert" status to push his own (flawed) policy. He's not the voice of reason he very well could be, especially since you KNOW he's got to know one of the underlying causes was training. e- And the "traveling public" sees Uncle Sully's calm, gentle demeanor, and buys it hook, line, and sinker. CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 03:19 on Jun 4, 2013 |
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Jun 4, 2013 03:13
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KodiakRS posted:I'm going to have to disagree with you and say that FTDT and the ATP rule really are needed. Current rest rules are pretty weak and can get you into some situations where you're absolutely dead tired but technically legal. I agree with the new Duty requirements, actually. That's something that DOES make sense that was passed in the last few years.
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Jun 4, 2013 13:00
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Schumer's been trying so hard and making it his personal quest to look like a hero since Colgan 3407 to avenge all those lives lost at the hands of those dastardly regional pilots who can't fly worth a drat*. How does it work behind the scenes in what sounds like a "good ol' boy system"? Will the FAA even give him the time of day? (*The "dastardly pilots, can't fly worth a drat" comment isn't my opinion at all. It's the stereotype presented by Sully and Schumer to back the ATP law used sarcastically here. The man makes my skin crawl, so I'd get a bit of schadenfreude if Huerta just goes "Pfft" and stuffs it in the shredder.) CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 01:27 on Jun 8, 2013 |
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Jun 8, 2013 01:16
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Golly gee, I see the word "training" quite a bit in that article. I have a friend who flew for Colgan on the Q400 for a short period of time and, while I never really got into details with him, liked it so much that he quit, told me "Don't go to the airlines." and came home to do more instructing. Fortunately for him, he found a corporate flying job not long after, though it sounds like he's not too much happier. quote:We need somehow to strike a balance to make sure that we don't over-regulate the aviation industry in this country so that we end up with just one or two large airlines and no others, because then we will force the price of air travel up so much that we would force millions of Americans back onto our already overcrowded and much less-safe highways. Heh. This happened anyway. The same government didn't over-regulate, but did allow three mega-mergers which pared the Big Six into a Big Three plus Southwest, which ate AirTran up for something to do. Oh, and Midwest and Frontier merged and the whole thing's now owned by a regional airline. 
CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 06:17 on Jun 10, 2013 |
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Jun 10, 2013 06:11
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Flying backwards (or being suspended in one place) is more fun than spinning. I did that on a windy December day in a 152. Slow flight, into the wind, cue up the "truck backing up" noise. Unicom posted:Spins were the best part of my training. Although seeing nothing but ground through the windshield is a little bit unnerving. My first CFI was supposed to demonstrate a stall to imminent and, in his own words, "got a bit overzealous". The next thing I knew, we were pointed straight down, looking at a sewage treatment plant about a mile below us.
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Jun 13, 2013 18:08
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In case you missed it, a wing walker and her pilot were killed in a crash at the Dayton Air Show: http://news.yahoo.com/wing-walker-p...A3BtaA--;_ylv=3 Thoughts with everybody involved, including the Air Show, which was expecting to struggle with no Thunderbirds/military attractions. This hits close to home, too. I was at the '07 show when Jim LeRoy crashed & this brings back bad memories. I was fortunate (I guess) to have my back turned when he binned it; I was working at my college/flight school's booth and had my back turned talking to someone when everything got quiet. It's one of those moments where, even though one of the veteran A&P instructors working the stand said "Another death at the air show...", you have momentary denial and want to say "Bullshit, he didn't crash...oh he did...oh, gently caress, maybe he just landed hard and things will be OK...Christ, there's the smoke.", at which point it sinks in. The suspense as people waited for news and started to pack things up was a sick "Well, now what?" feeling. e- It's also kind of hard to be the mouthpiece for your aviation program with a lump in your throat and sick feeling in the pit of your stomach. Ugh, this sucks. CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 02:40 on Jun 23, 2013 |
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Jun 23, 2013 02:37
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My first instructor had a pair of those. Never knew they were $1,000+ until I looked them up years later. How he afforded them on a CFII salary, I have no idea, unless he really, really wanted them and/or had a payment plan going of some sort.
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Jun 24, 2013 22:56
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Somebody sent CNN a video clip of the crash taken by somebody across the bay. It's grainy, but with the nose high as it was, it almost looks like they stalled it into the ground, followed by a 270 degree airborne spin eerily reminiscient to United 232 in Sioux City before grinding to a halt.
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Jul 7, 2013 21:10
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NTSB Twitter says they were under the desired approach speed & throttles were at idle. Hoo boy.
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Jul 8, 2013 01:07
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I got a 747 add-on for FS98 as a kid, which featured all kinds of videos and behind-the-scenes stuff on the 747 produced with the help of Lufthansa. One of the clips I remember was a 747-200 performing a go-around at an altitude that had to be under 50 feet. I'm going to wait until I see the facts before I really make an educated response, but I wonder if any "Rules are written in blood" legislation/regulations, whether good or completely worthless, might come out of this in the US. I have visions of Chuck Schumer or an overzealous Californian politician somewhere rolling their hands in excitement, with Sully on speed dial.
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Jul 8, 2013 02:52
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Animal posted:Its too early to jump into conclusions as to what was going on in that cockpit, but I will throw this out there even though it might be a little politically incorrect: when I was a CFI, I had Asian students (as in, just got off a plane from Asia, not as in racially) who would have easily gone CFIT on a perfectly clear day if the automation was telling them to go there, unless I intervened. We have talked about this here, and I hate to be insensitive of other cultures, but the truth is that they are taught since childhood that individuality is a great evil. And so everything that comes with it, including initiative and adaptability, are to be frowned upon. By the time they are adults instruction is not just teaching something new, its basically a reprogramming, I could see through their eyes that their brain was going "DOES NOT COMPUTE" whenever I would tell them to throw The Book out the window in certain situations. Do their "bad habits" translate over to solo flight? I was cut off in the pattern one day by a student who happened to be Asian. I'd called left base and was preparing to turn final when I heard HIM call left base. Knowing he was inside me (based upon the fact that he was behind me and called so soon), I stayed on base, tipped the wing up to get a clearer view (C-172SP), and there he was. I put the flaps up, continued into the upwind, and hoped it didn't happen next time around. I'm not insinuating one group does it over another, but I was amazed that the guy pulled that even with me making all the required calls. And I'm slightly overzealous with my calls at non-controlled airports for just that reason.
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Jul 9, 2013 02:17
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KodiakRS posted:Not to beat a dead horse that has already been thoroughly flogged in this thread but this is going to be a thing now: Now, now. You shouldn't question the judgment of Chuck Schumer and the world's foremost aviation expert, Saint Sully. (This law is bullshit and I can't loving wait to do my Graduate Research Project on it to show how worthless it is. Especially in light of the fact that the Asiana captain had 9,700TT and 3,000 in type (twice the ATP threshold) and appears to have blown it badly.) KodiakRS posted:21 years old with 750 hours of military time. Wait, 21? They lowered the age to get the ATP, yet jacked up the flight time? How does a 21 year old even build 1,500 hours?  Is the 1,000 hour exemption for any BS in aviation? I had heard it was going to be for alums of certain flight training programs (ERAU, UND, etc.)...if that's true, my nearly completely lost morale may have gotten a slight boost. I'm an ERAU grad, but went the Worldwide route and did training locally. Also, one of my best friends is a 2LT in the USAF that asked about the law and, when I told him about the military exemption, basically said "  you're not getting out of the Air Force with just 750 hours".
CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 04:32 on Jul 11, 2013 |
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Jul 11, 2013 04:28
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azflyboy posted:They didn't lower the age for the full ATP. If you get the ATP at age 21, it's a restricted ATP (limited to SIC only, and likely only good within the US) until you hit 23. My understanding of the 1000hr exception is that you must have a BS in aviation and have completed at least the instrument and commercial certificates under part 141. Thanks. Glancing through it myself, it seems as though you not only have to do the degree with the school, but also the flight training, which screams "Provision in the law installed to shut the schools which hate this law up". So much for trying to save money, eh?
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Jul 11, 2013 05:39
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What time of day are you going? If it's a morning flight, there's a chance it'll be smooth as silk. Seeing as it's a BFR, be prepared for some maneuvers, especially steep turns, which might be hard on a GA rookie.hobbesmaster posted:I guess Delta wouldn't let them into their 777 simulators that are within what 30 miles of CNN hq so they found some guy's FSX setup? Yeah, it appeared the sim they were using had Beechcraft gauges, so I'm not sure what they were "flying", unless it was a 777 with the standard panel that comes with the game. azflyboy posted:Sounds like it's mostly a case of the US media looking for a story, since the NTSB clarified the statement to say that the pilot stated the light didn't affect his ability to fly the airplane or his vision. CNN has also helpfully added that a cell phone or iPad didn't cause the crash, after they informed people that the airplane caught fire because something was burning. "Don't worry, John Q. Public, it's still safe to fly. You're not going to die today. For more, let's call in Chesley Sullenberger for his input..." CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 00:54 on Jul 13, 2013 |
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Jul 13, 2013 00:52
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Rickety Cricket posted:Logged my first hour of actual today! Almost a full hour of hard IFR, it was incredible!! Flying in the clouds was awesome and flying above them was so beautiful. I can't wait to do it again! If anyone flew into DCA or IAD today you saw the rainy/crappy day we had. So pretty up top though Weird in a cool way, right? My first hour of actual almost felt like sitting in a sim because it was smooth when we did it. My (first attempt at the 250NM) Instrument cross-country was in solid IFR on a rainy day. Ended up having to go missed at the destination (the first time my CFII ever actually had to go missed) and fly all the way home after not getting down on two attempts. Did it VFR a couple weeks later, which was an adventure in itself with gusts into the upper-20s and big-time turbulence below 5,000. As much as the low altitude rough ride and Westbound leg at 70kts sucked, we cruised at 9,000 on the way back, doing 169kts in a 172SP. 
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Jul 13, 2013 03:08
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How hard did the 737 land? The video makes it seem like they buried it in the runway, though it could just as easily be a lovely camera operator.b c n u posted:The pilot only had 5hrs of flight time and had never landed at LGA before! QuiteEasilyDone posted:"Breaking news: Latest inquiries have found that all four pilots were literally playing cards while operating a hacksaw on the nosegear for the duration of the flight and buzzed the tower for no less than three times before turning short final and landing on the nosewheel, cartwheeling TEN times before coming to a rest on its tail. Authorities at this time are putting the probable cause as mechanical failure." - Something that I wouldn't be surprised to hear on the news given the mainstream news understanding of aviation reporting... given KTVUs gaff Let's bring in Sen. Chuck Schumer, Senator, what do you make of this? "See? SEE? Those drat regional pilots, shame on them and their ERJ and for being hired at 750 hou---it was a Southwest flight? A 737? Those can't have accidents or incidents, can they? Oh..." (I'm being facetious and realize it sounds like it was a mechanical failure at this point. I just like taking a jab at the government.) CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 15:22 on Jul 23, 2013 |
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Jul 23, 2013 15:19
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Rickety Cricket posted:Airplane Repo just referred to a kingair as a jet. Thanks Discovery! That show was so bad it was insulting. It's a shame, because the original run was actually an interesting show with a shade of legitimacy to it. Also, anybody that watched it catch what was wrong with the Philadelphia area airport at the end? It was Daytona Beach (KDAB).
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Jul 31, 2013 01:40
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Good luck to the soon-to-be CFI/CFII/MEI Goons!
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Aug 1, 2013 21:45
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KodiakRS posted:This is pretty standard for someone in CFI training. Most people learn more in their CFI training and first 50 hours instructing than they do during any other time in their career. What's the feeling among pilots about the law? Is it pretty consistent with the feeling I've gotten on other sites so far, which is a mix of established pilots going "HURR GET OFFA MY LAWN YOU drat KIDS AND YOUR 250TT HIRING" against new hires/students going "Holy poo poo, this is insane"? I posted something on Facebook today about the rule & got responses from friends who are an E175 captain (my Private ground instructor, in his 30s, hired ~2006), a CR7 F/O (mid-20s, ATP, hired 2011ish), an ex-corporate guy who's a new hire on a CRJ (mid-high 30s, hired 2013), an ex-CRJ F/O that's now doing some sort of corporate flying (mid-20s, hired 2011), and a guy that's getting close to 1500 (low-to-mid 20s). The sentiments were as follows: -E175 Captain- This will lead to better paying jobs. -CR7 F/O- (Disagreeing with E175 guy) I'm an ATP already and get paid poo poo. -CRJ new hire- If airlines would pay better, there'd be no pilot shortage, followed by some incoherent stuff. -Ex-CRJ, now corporate guy- This law is such poo poo and I'm glad I left RJ flying.-Close to 1500 guy- I could still probably make more at McDonald's. e- Demographics added if it matters. CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 04:39 on Aug 2, 2013 |
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Aug 2, 2013 04:34
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I guess.
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Geography plays into the CFI world and time-building, too. As the chief flight instructor at my FBO said when I talked to her not too long ago about the law, try building time in Ohio between November and March. You'll get about 15 days VFR & you're not allowed to go into known icing, so there goes actual.
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Aug 2, 2013 17:08
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KodiakRS posted:Well I guess the pilot shortage is here. We're already out of FO reserves for tomorrow. To make matters worse we're losing about 30 guys a month and that number is only going to go up as the doors at AAG, UAL, and Delta open up over the next year or so. Of course then there is bullshit like this: Well, that was quick.  e- Does Kirby really buy that? I get the feeling that if it's that way, it'd be more because people are getting frustrated and saying "gently caress this". What are the alternatives for pilots in that time range at this point, anyway? Choice of CFI or night cargo in a Shorts 360 or Beech 1900? CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 19:21 on Aug 3, 2013 |
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Aug 3, 2013 19:07
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azflyboy posted:Got to teach in a 182 with a STOL kit fitted today (drooped wingtips and giant vortex generators), which was a lot of fun. It's a 1960 model, so nothing in the cockpit is quite where'd you expect, but it has giant toggle switches for everything electrical (so much more satisfying to flip than the plastic switches on later models), along with a very manly Johnson bar for the flaps. I've flown a 172SP with a STOL kit and, yeah, you're wasting your time trying to get that thing to stall/spin. On my initial checkout in it, I was told "Just try to give me a power-off stall, but it's probably not going to break so don't get frustrated if it doesn't work.".
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Aug 6, 2013 16:57
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Rickety Cricket posted:A week of firsts for me! Logged my first 7.0 hour day flying from DC (KVKX) to Moline, IL (KMLI) via Zanesville, OH (ZZV) and Kankakee, IL (KIKK) in a Cardinal 177. Wow, ZZV is my hometown. How'd you like the fancy FBO that's always vacant because nobody flies there? Also, August 9th (yesterday) was the 8th anniversary of my first solo and the 7th anniversary of passing my Private checkride.
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Aug 10, 2013 05:21
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The US DOJ is filing an anti-trust suit against American and US Airways over the proposed merger, citing the consolidation of service as being bad for travelers. Oh, NOW this is a bad thing. Dumbass government. Where was this when Delta/Northwest, United/Continental, and Southwest/AirTran all tied the knot? Hasn't the UA/CO merger been a nightmare so far? ProFootballGuy posted:Excellent! I'm sure I'm still in the phase of not knowing what I don't know, but stall training is great and I'd love to get more in-depth with spins and other bad situations. Assuming the pants-making GBS threads is fun and not of the "holy gently caress we're going to die" variety. My first spin involved the CFI getting overzealous demonstrating a Power-On to Imminent. He took it to Full and beyond, to where we were pointing straight down at a sewage treatment plant when it was done. I was a nervous* kid anyway, so while it didn't SCARE me, it wasn't something I liked. Your results will vary. *Nervous=paranoid about getting airsick. CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 23:47 on Aug 13, 2013 |
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Aug 13, 2013 23:39
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MrChips posted:No, but when was the last time you saw a GA pilot fly a properly tight circuit? Flying an overhead break makes it all too easy to fly that lazy, three mile wide circuit in your 172. Being an instrument-rated pilot, you'd think I'd know the proper answer to this question, but what IS the proper distance to be in the pattern? At my first school, operating at a commercial, Class C airport, I was told "runway half way up the strut on downwind" (Cessna 152) to the point where it stuck, yet I've had two people* bitch about my "jet patterns" at uncontrolled airports for doing what I learned first. *One was a somewhat hot girl who had just gotten Private and was talking, not complaining. She gets a pass. 
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Aug 17, 2013 02:18
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Rolo posted:Some bittersweet news, I passed my CFII the other day... on my second try. I've never busted a checkride before and this one was infuriating. The examiner hated me from the start, and I should've taken that as a hint to discontinue. We get in the airplane and on my last approach he starts hurling insults, grabbing the controls, telling me to use shortcuts I've never learned and barked at me to pull off my foggles and look for the airport because traffic was getting congested and he changed my MAP last second. I pulled them off and saw the airport but it was too late, I dipped below the mins and he called it. The whole experience was a nightmare and I told him I couldn't fly with him anymore after the retake. Congrats on the CFII. I know how you feel on the nightmare checkride. My instrument checkride featured an examiner that probably should've found something else to do 20 years ago, featuring his own interpretations of the FARs that you actually learn from your CFII because he'll chew out and/or bust you on the oral if you give him the actual reg. (Sort of a "Look, here's what the regs say, but for HIM, say this.". To be fair, his concept makes sense.). I'm also one of the last remaining "pilot mill" guys that transitioned to the local school. He hates the mill's guts and will rip you for doing things their way (which I learned first), but won't get pissed at you per se because it's not your fault you learned the wrong way. Law of primacy is a bitch. I nearly busted the checkride on altitude because he wouldn't let me cruise out the plane, putting in full throttle after I leveled out twice. I almost didn't get the chance to nail the hold, ILS, VOR, and LOC approaches because of altitude PTS. When I DID pass, I just wanted to go home. When I considered starting commercial there, the CFII with whom I finished Instrument (who was loving awesome) suggested tag teaming between the two instructors. I told her no. I think she understood where I was coming from, because she seemed OK with it. CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 16:47 on Aug 22, 2013 |
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Aug 20, 2013 00:21
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Sorry for double-posting, but I wanted to shift this to its own post for ProFootballGuy: ProFootballGuy posted:Probably been covered dozens of times in this thread, but what's the real story for career-changing into flying, at age 29+? My PPL training (as nascent as it is) has only confirmed my love for aviation. I can't speak for the commercial side of things (others have covered that well, anyway), but if you do do at least some form of training, the main tip I can give you is to pick a good flight school. I know you've started out at one, but I guess what I'm trying to say is "If things aren't working, don't be afraid to look elsewhere". Read reviews, talk to people if you can, ask around. People will give you the "WE'RE AN AWESOME PLACE!" routine, but looks can be deceiving. The flashy Part 141 school may have enough Diamonds/Cirruses/whatever the GA plane that looks like a Cirrus but isn't is for a small Air Force, but may be flying purgatory. Similarly, the mom and pop FBO may have six planes, but the camaraderie is awesome. (Are you planning on getting some sort of aviation degree? Because if you're not, as has been discussed in the thread, you're flying 1,500 to get in the right seat anyway, which could make 141/142 less worth it. If you don't mind going to a Community College, you could shave off 250 hours with an Associate's assuming the government doesn't gently caress that up, too.) Your search should probably include the presence of decent-to-good equipment. The place at which I started had 152s that weren't great and 172s that were complete shitboxes. I'm talking "both 172s broke with no A&P to fix them, so they were down for a month with people waiting to do Instrument training" bad. I left before that happened, but had a lesson of my own become essentially worthless when the DME readout, on a lesson focusing on DME Arcs...was unreadable. The worst part was my CFII knew and said, out loud over the intercom, "Ohhh poo poo. This is the one where the DME doesn't work.". (Given that I'd been delayed three hours for clownshoes reasons just to DO the lesson and that he was a bit of a snarky prick to begin with, I really should've just "Right turn, Clyde"ed him.) When I expressed concerns to higher ups, the program director promptly berated me and suggested I, in essence, be "demoted" to the A&P program; the former Base Manager who had transferred into a management role but was familiar with our location apologized and refunded the cost of the lesson, basically saying "Yeah, that's not right, sorry." (I was vindicated a year later by the active Base Manager, who exclaimed, without mincing words, "And maybe we'll have planes that WORK now!" at a meeting announcing the closure of the pilot mill.) We were promised more advanced equipment that never came because they shut down before they were delivered. Not all schools are bad. The first batch of instructors at my first school were a great group of guys that made flying beaters worthwhile. The next school I went to had airplanes that actually worked (and a chief flight instructor that will probably kick your rear end if you pick on their students ). I know it's difficult to find the right fit without actually going somewhere, but it's all a balance worth getting right early. Let me know if you want some more stories from the As for professional vs. flying for fun: MrChips posted:Having sat on it for a day, I still stand by what I said entirely, even if it did come out a bit unfiltered. Speaking on behalf of everyone else, I think some of what makes us so upset is that we see a lot of our previous selves in you wide-eyed, excited new pilots. I know I feel like I could somehow recapture that spirit, but I haven't figured out how to get there just yet. This is how I am today and it's the part that hurts the most. Several years ago, I was excited by the promise of enrolling and spending a summer (I started Private in high school) flying. The first segment of my training, if you will, was "living the dream". Much of the rest of it, for reasons both in and out of my control, has gone to poo poo and has led me to where I don't even want to tool around in a C-172 for fun. I'm still an aviation geek at heart, love sitting in the back, traveling, and learning about/discussing the world of aviation, but doing it? Not so much. As KodiakRS said in a post, your results may vary, so I hope things shake out better for you in your training. It's a wonderful world, but it has its downsides. CBJSprague24 fucked around with this message at 16:58 on Aug 22, 2013 |
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Aug 22, 2013 16:54
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KodiakRS posted:Anyone else get caught up in the royal clusterfuck that was ORD last night? I've never seen it get THAT screwed up. I think my favorite part of the night was ATC asking for volunteers to south and literally in the middle of their transmission there was a lightning strike about 3 miles south of the field. Speaking of clusterfucks, I was a passenger today at ATL in the middle of a runway change. I was on a DC-9-50 3rd in line to go on 27R when a storm just NE of the airport spun the winds around. Waited probably 10 minutes before they let us taxi down 27R, clear, and become #3 for 9L, but we had to wait until the arrivals on 27L (of which there were a pile) wrapped up before they could start departures. Counted at least 17 airplanes behind us in line. An Eagle 145 and DL 738 that we passed on the way to 27R got boned and wound up at the back of THAT line.
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Sep 1, 2013 05:18
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Wow. I knew of AA, DL, and OH 191, but didn't know about the others.
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Sep 3, 2013 20:05
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SJS stands for...?
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Sep 9, 2013 02:02
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Thanks for the definition of SJS. I didn't realize DCA made people take a picture with the mascot upon signing.b c n u posted:4 10s, 3 off every week. My quality of life is good, really it's just like any other office job. I do work nights and weekends and am on a completely opposite schedule to my SO which sucks. Do you get any sorts of flight privileges as a benefit? I have a friend who's a scheduler for another regional and she quickly used them to go to St. Maarten and Cancun not long after getting hired, but I didn't know if that was common of most regionals.
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Sep 10, 2013 20:04
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Re: Primary training and sims, my school had (I think) Lessons 2, 4 and 6 as sim lessons, though it must have been CFI's choice/at their discretion because I flew them with my instructor. (On that note, PCATDs are surprisingly great for learning spin recovery. Those spin like it's nobody's business.) Also, one of their instructors had a stuck mic and, I guess, was chatting about stuff he did behind closed doors. A student downloaded it off LiveATC and was going to play it when a few of us were over, only to find she'd deleted it.
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Sep 21, 2013 05:28
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