Hello,
I am new to this forum
I am 31 years old and had my Private pilot license for 5 years. I have an opportunity to do my commercial now and would like to eventually land a flying job.
Just want to ask you if now is a good time to do all this(i know the markets are slowing down now).
Is my age a big factor? What would be best to do to advance quicker?(Instructing sounds interesting to me) FYI : airlines are not a priority for me, just want to settle down with some reputable charter company and fly turbines.
Thank you all for your support.
Seeking advice...
Moderators: North Shore, sky's the limit, sepia, Sulako
Re: Seeking advice...
Of course, everyone will have their own opinion, and you have to choose what is right for you.
IMO the general consensus is that if you prepare yourself during the slow times, you can get a jump on the industry when things get hopping again. They will, it's just a question of how long will the wait be.
To that end, I have a friend who had his commercial and certificates at 38, and decided it was time for him to jump into it. What he decided to do was plunk down some major change and he went out to fly a Beech 1900 stateside in the right seat for 100-200 hours. He has a job now on a PC12 and soon will be into a twin turbine. He's about to cross the 1000 hour threshold. At 1000 hours I was flying skydivers still...
He also had a good relationship with the people that hired him, he wasn't friends, but he did network his way into the job.
I'm not a big fan of the pay to play scenario, I didn't and couldn't do it when I was fresh out of school with a wet commercial... it is there though.
But I will stand by the statement of getting your training, building your flight time where you can, and then leaping into it when the industry picks up.
this is just one opinion, hope it helps your decision making, good luck
IMO the general consensus is that if you prepare yourself during the slow times, you can get a jump on the industry when things get hopping again. They will, it's just a question of how long will the wait be.
To that end, I have a friend who had his commercial and certificates at 38, and decided it was time for him to jump into it. What he decided to do was plunk down some major change and he went out to fly a Beech 1900 stateside in the right seat for 100-200 hours. He has a job now on a PC12 and soon will be into a twin turbine. He's about to cross the 1000 hour threshold. At 1000 hours I was flying skydivers still...
He also had a good relationship with the people that hired him, he wasn't friends, but he did network his way into the job.
I'm not a big fan of the pay to play scenario, I didn't and couldn't do it when I was fresh out of school with a wet commercial... it is there though.
But I will stand by the statement of getting your training, building your flight time where you can, and then leaping into it when the industry picks up.
this is just one opinion, hope it helps your decision making, good luck
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Captain CADORS
- Rank 2
- Posts: 54
- Joined: Tue Nov 14, 2006 4:36 pm
Re: Seeking advice...
I don't think your age is a negative factor in this. Most of the "mature" students (30 years old +) that I graduated with, from an aviation diploma program, are doing the best in their careers. If I owned a flightschool, I would want someone with some life experience and someone who is safety minded. If I owned a turbine operating charter company, I would hire someone who is willing to work hard while at the same time stick around longterm and bring inject good work habits and decision making abilities. Some of the younger people are lacking in these areas and I know that my employer has been annoyed in the past with such behavior.
As for the economy slowing down... its a great time to do your training! Maybe you're previous employer gave you a severance package... it'll help with the cost of your training. The economy was slow back in 2001 when I began instructing - a few positions came available at the local flight school and I "landed" the job. After a year and a half of instructing, the economy began picking up and I got a job on a turboprop. Been flying the same machine ever since and love it!
$0.02 from CADORS...
All the best Pitchfork!
As for the economy slowing down... its a great time to do your training! Maybe you're previous employer gave you a severance package... it'll help with the cost of your training. The economy was slow back in 2001 when I began instructing - a few positions came available at the local flight school and I "landed" the job. After a year and a half of instructing, the economy began picking up and I got a job on a turboprop. Been flying the same machine ever since and love it!
$0.02 from CADORS...
All the best Pitchfork!
