mechanic pilot

pilotdreams · Post by **pilotdreams** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 2:40 pm

Id like to get into the bush flying. Ive got my ppl and now im getting my a&p, is this going to work out for me? Some people say its not even possible to stay current on mechanic and pilot.

Cat Driver · Post by **Cat Driver** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 2:41 pm

They are full of shit.

Mr. North · Post by **Mr. North** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 3:47 pm

Once again Cat Driver's right. There are plenty of bush operators out there who would jump at the chance to hire a pilot/AME. The real question is, once your hired will you have any time off!?

Cat Driver · Post by **Cat Driver** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 3:57 pm

It's a two way street.

All owner operators are in business to make money.

If you do both jobs to a high standard and your employer does not have enough sense to provide reasonable working conditions...quit.

Productive employees are seldom out of work.

Cat

pilotdreams · Post by **pilotdreams** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 3:57 pm

Well then thats perfect. Im young and looking for experience. If I wanted the money I wouldnt be in this industry.

bushwhacker · Post by **bushwhacker** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 4:34 pm

pilot dreams,

cat's right on this subject, if you are serious about following this line of work (bush flying summer and fixing summer and winter ) you will be first choice on a lot operators pile of resumes.

Cat Driver · Post by **Cat Driver** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 4:42 pm

A word of advice to all you young keeners who are infected with the " I have to fly virus ".

Flying in the bush is a great life style, the flying is truly interesting and if you are infected with the " I have to fix them virus " you will never be out of work.

Just a caution about activities away from the airplane, most of the local girls have either TB or VD...so only fu.k the ones that cough, just don't kiss them.

There you go all you need to know to be successful as a bush pilot.

PS:

Any of you girl pilot / mechanics who want advice just PM me.

bigsky · Post by **bigsky** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 6:35 pm

Cat Driver wrote: Just a caution about activities away from the airplane, most of the local girls have either TB or VD...so only fu.k the ones that cough, just don't kiss them.

There you go all you need to know to be successful as a bush pilot.

SMOOOOOOTH !!!!

bandit1 · Post by **bandit1** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 6:45 pm

so true....Cat

Concerning the pilot/mechanic thing, I did both for while but ended up not mentioning the maintenance side of things whe I was applying for flying jobs

What happens is that you will be in the shop ALL the time.

Drivers are alot easier to come by than qualified mechanics. Especially in some shit hole up north.

So if you want to fly, I suggest that you apply for a pilot position and mention that you have experience to help troubleshoot and help out but that's it.

Besides, if you fly, you won't have time to wrench. The company is not going to work their flights around your schedule.

On topic, I once was asked by the Ops Manager of a certain company to change an inverter en route (ferry) so that we could file IFR on the next leg. We were empty and I told him to forget about it because I wasn't gonna wear the pilot hat and mechanic hat at the same time. A little crazy. Especially considering being in flight.

Cat Driver · Post by **Cat Driver** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 7:07 pm

" Drivers are alot easier to come by than qualified mechanics. Especially in some shit hole up north. "

And the simple truth is it takes a lot longer to learn to be a good mechanic than it does to be a good pilot. Flying an airplane is just operating another piece of machinery, trouble shooting and fixing one is a far more demanding job.

I agree that you should make it perfectly clear to your employer exactly which job is going to be your main responsibility.

Me I prefer fixing them to flying them.

pilotdreams · Post by **pilotdreams** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 7:15 pm

Ok now I have to ask, why would you rather fix an airplane than fly one? what makes you passionate about your job? When I was operating heavy equipment, the field mechanics i spoke with made $200,000 a year and didnt have to deal with the paperwork/responsibility. Whats special to YOU about fixing an airplane? it definitely isnt the thanx your getting from the passengers, they dont even know your alive.

bandit1 · Post by **bandit1** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 7:29 pm

for me, I am passionate about flying and thats what I do but I have spent 2 year building and fixing planes.

If you like a routine job, 9-5 or night....anyway, a schedule, maintenance is for you.

If you don't like having to make very important decisions quickly,than maintenance is for you

If you don't like unexpected overnights or dealing with customers, maintenance is the way to go.

its more of a job than flying. Alot more structured and predictable. But, it gets routine with big compagnies where all you might end up doing for a month is daily inspections and tire changes. Good thing there are snags and things break.

wrenchturner · Post by **wrenchturner** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 8:10 pm

bandit1 wrote:for me, I am passionate about flying and thats what I do but I have spent 2 year building and fixing planes.

If you like a routine job, 9-5 or night....anyway, a schedule, maintenance is for you.

If you don't like having to make very important decisions quickly,than maintenance is for you

If you don't like unexpected overnights or dealing with customers, maintenance is the way to go.

its more of a job than flying. Alot more structured and predictable. But, it gets routine with big compagnies where all you might end up doing for a month is daily inspections and tire changes. Good thing there are snags and things break.

WTF?? Ask my wife if my job is "routine" with a schedule. I have lost count of how much overtime I've put in over the years, both after my shift is over, and coming in on days off.

As far as making important decisions goes, I make them everyday I work. The last time I didn't have to make a decision, I was an apprentice.

I've had lots of unexpected trips, usually because some ham-fisted pilot smoked a tire on landing, but for many other reasons too.

You make the job of an engineer sound like a cushy life where there is no pressure and no stress. I still can't believe what I read.

wrenchturner · Post by **wrenchturner** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 8:10 pm

double post

Cat Driver · Post by **Cat Driver** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 8:10 pm

" Ok now I have to ask, why would you rather fix an airplane than fly one? "

pilotdreams, I will try and answer that the best that I can.

My facination with airplanes began back as far as I can remember. I started hanging around airports when I was about 12 by skipping out of school.

I became a pilot the hard way by working for Central Airways as what is known today as a ramp rat.

My first job as a commercial pilot was aerial application and my mentor had me work in the hangar rebuilding and maintaining Cubs and Stearmans I found it facinating learning the mechanical side of how airplanes work and better yet learning how to fix them.

I spent the next fifty or so years mostly flying, however I gradually became more involved in maintenance over the past twenty years.

I was fortunate to have flown in the era when we were expected to use good airmanship and decision making skills to stay alive, gradually the job of being a pilot beame more and more paper work and B.S. oriented and finally I just lost intrest in having rule makers run my every hour of being a pilot.

I have flown most everything made by man from bi planes to modern jets and light to heavy lift helicopters and enjoyed the flying.

I decided to retire at 70 not because I do not like flying but because I was no longer willing to put up with all the B.S. just to fly an airplane.

My last paying job was flying war birds and flying as an air display pilot in the European air show circuit....not bad for a 70 year old, so I decided to quit while I was ahead.

You will have to follow your heart and do what is best for you.

decide what you want and get it.

what makes you passionate about your job? When I was operating heavy equipment, the field mechanics i spoke with made $200,000 a year and didnt have to deal with the paperwork/responsibility. Whats special to YOU about fixing an airplane?it definitely isnt the thanx your getting from the passengers, they dont even know your alive.

Well that is difficult to answer, I guess it is sort of like having sex, you like it but don't know exactly why, and when you are enjoying it most you do not really care whether or not the other person thanks you for services rendered.

pilotdreams · Post by **pilotdreams** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 8:30 pm

Well that is difficult to answer, I guess it is sort of like having sex, you like it but don't know exactly why, and when you are enjoying it most you do not really care whether or not the other person thanks you for services rendered.

Haha thats awesome man. Thats the best analogy Ive ever heard. Wow, youve definitely had a great career in aviation. I wish you were my grandpa, Im sure you could teach me so much.

This is off topic but if you own your own airplane, are you able to do all the maintenance on it yourself aswell as inspect it for airworthiness? It would be nice to buy my own floatplane and get time on that aswell as fix it. Definitely be cheaper to operate.

Cat Driver · Post by **Cat Driver** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 8:47 pm

I have three airplanes.

A Cessna Aerobat Texas Tail Dragger.

http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e353/ ... 010783.jpg

And a Cri Cri and a Cub that I am building in my garage.

http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e353/ ... 010897.jpg

And yes I do all my own maintenance.

Where do you live?

pilotdreams · Post by **pilotdreams** » Thu Jan 04, 2007 9:12 pm

Currently I live in Northern British Columbia. Small town called Dawson Creek. Is that a Catalina on your album? Theres one of those rusting away in Nanaimo, on Vancouver Island. Pretty sad to see that sight. Oh, wow, a cri-cri, those things are unbelievable.

bandit1 · Post by **bandit1** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 7:18 am

I agree with you wrenchturner. Compared to most other jobs outside of aviation, there can be alot of unexpected work, overtime, stress and overnights.

However, after having flown up north for a couple years, it's alot more stressful to fly than wrench. Always have to carry an overnight bag, conditions are always changing, wx, pax loads, things break, ghetto GPS approaches to really low minimums, shitty runways.....

All that stuff you guys don't have to worry about. The hangar is usually warm unless you open the doors and the unexpected overnight....well we run that risk almost every day.

By no means am I saying that you have a cushy job, on the contrary, your performance can make a HUGE impact on alot of lives and have alot of respect for mechanics.

But, when flying, you don't take a 15 minute break at 10 and 3, lunch is in the air and there are alot more variables that can ruin your day.

gonfly'n · Post by **gonfly'n** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 10:44 am

i also have the same goal as you to fly and fix. Are there more oppourtunities as an apprentice mechanic or as a low timer pilot?

petite · Post by **petite** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 11:44 am

Ok, Don't kiss the ones that cough. If there's one piece of advice that I'll remember from you, that's the one.

twotter · Post by **twotter** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 7:42 pm

I've been doing the pilot/engineer thing for over 30 years now and there is a lot of satisfaction on both sides of the industry. As a pilot, I can understand much more about what is happening when there is a problem with it and make a much more informed decision on actions to take. As an engineer, I can fully understand how a problem would affect the pilot and the operation of the aircraft. At the same time, I can avoid all the conflict of the pilot vs engineer thing by the fact that I am both.

For the naysayers who say that you cannot be current on both, I call bullshit and will put my abilities against theirs any day.

If you want to do both, do it. Don't let others tell you what you can or cannot do. Only you can make that decision for yourself. Just don't let operators take advantage of you, they will try, they will want you to fly them all day and then fix them all night if they can get away with it.

pilotdreams · Post by **pilotdreams** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 8:42 pm

Awesome, So Ive got my PPL, getting my A&P now, CPL next. Ive got almost 5 years planned out. Good enough for me. Thanx for all your guys support, Sometimes Im glad the wages are low, you end up with an industry full of dedicated workers with passion for what they do, not some **** ups simply looking for a paycheck.

Cat Driver · Post by **Cat Driver** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 8:58 pm

pilotdreams, why don't you find an old run down Cub or Champ and rebuild it from scratch as a home built put it on floats and the world is yours for fun and gaining experience.

Not to mention it is a good investment.

The other guys may have their cars for picking up girls but a Cub or Champ on floats is a real leg spreader.

pilotdreams · Post by **pilotdreams** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 9:40 pm

Thats the plan.

See how things pan out. Is building time in a kitplane/homebuilt the same as building time in a cessna? You dont see many people buying a $30,000 plane, its always guys renting for that much.