job hunt.....

[hydraulic fluid]

How is the job hunt going...who has a float gig lined up, and who is still looking..and what are you hearing from employers

[SkyWolfe]

So far... That the employers are being flooded with resumes. People with very high time have been applying at start level jobs... Not looking good for many people right now. Good Luck.

[Highflyinpilot]

That sucks, doesnt sound good at all

[Hawkeye4077]

I can`t get a job. Multi-IFR 600 TT IT SUCKS!

[SkyWolfe]

Sad to say, there are ton more people with higher time then that and in the same category. Like I said, good luck. No one as far as I can tell wants to move... Road trips... That's my best advice.


Cheers,

Wolfie

[props ahead]

1300TT 800 on floats....nothing yet but I am being a little picky......it will come..... i hope!

[Hawkeye4077]

Would it be worth doing my floats for this summer or basically i'm scr*wed. and it would be a waste of money. I heard you really need 50 hrs floats to get a job or that some ppl would hire FO with just the rating. But I guess there would be no market for that right now eh?

[Highflyinpilot]

What about the instructing industry???

[Just another canuck]

Would it be worth doing my floats for this summer or basically i'm scr*wed. and it would be a waste of money. I heard you really need 50 hrs floats to get a job or that some ppl would hire FO with just the rating. But I guess there would be no market for that right now eh?

I don't think you necessarily need the 50 hours. I definitely wouldn't hurt, but in all likelihood, you will be spending a summer of swamping and working the dock anyway which would also provide you with the required experience to fly the following season.

As far as the places that hire FO's, there is Arctic Sunwest, Air Tindi, Transwest Air and Prov Air maybe... those are the main ones anyway. Problem is I doubt they are hiring, which is obviously no surprise.

[Just another canuck]

Forgot... good luck to everybody who is unemployed right now... like myself.

There are still jobs out there for people who really want them... and are willing to move.

[SkyWolfe]

If I am willing to move my 2 month old baby, then anyone should be willing to get their ass up and move.

You just have to ask yourself... HOW BAD DO I WANT TO FLY?

The ground sucks, but is sometimes a necessary evil :/

[Highflyinpilot]

I respect you for moving with your 2 month old skywolfe. I took a totally diffrent career path when mine was born, did not want no part of living in the middle of nowhere making buttons to get a start in the industry with my youngin.


Good for you.

[synthpro]

Hey...

Ive been looking. 3 interviews.... 3 no goes. Im shocked!!! and getting discouraged. 1500 TT MIFR.

From the feedback I am getting from employers, is that they are getting floods of resumes and only a few positions available (if any). If things continue like this, I'm gonna have to settle for a regular job until something pops up.

I remember 2 years ago... it would be more like... "hi... how many hours?" 1000.... "when can you start" kinda thing.

We'll see what happens... maybe its only a winter thing.

M.

[SkyWolfe]

I respect you for moving with your 2 month old skywolfe. I took a totally diffrent career path when mine was born, did not want no part of living in the middle of nowhere making buttons to get a start in the industry with my youngin.


Good for you.

And beleive me, that is also a good decision... It is hard... But the way I see it, he's young now... And hopefully by the time he is a little older, the moving and strange locations will end... That's my hope anyway... If flying doesn't work out this season, I did pass my ATC exams... There is always plan B.

[karl08]

multi-ifr 800TT..floats...im checkin out...career change!...have fun fighting over the scraps!

[canpilot]

message was supposed to be a PM.. deleted

[180]

I just copied and pasted this from another forum. I wrote it to someone and thought it might pertain here...

Working the dock (or freight office, or dispatch) for minimum wage with 40K worth of commercial training in your back pocket (and likely a good chunk of that debt on your line of credit) is definately right up there with french-kissing your Grandmother. (Especially with 800TT in the logbook.)

Is it mandatory? No.

Is it typical? In a downturn, yes.

What it really does is set you ahead of all the other low timers trying to get on board. You already have your foot in the door (advantage #1) and it puts your work ethic, attitude, and decision making on display (advantage #2, #3, & #4.)

Would you be more comfortable lending your Porsche 911 with your Mother in the front seat to a stranger or to someone you know and trust?

Regarding going IFR or instructing as a way to get ahead in the float game...you're right, it's not float time, but it is real-world time in the seat, it's real world decision making time, it's Pilot-In-Command time. Imagine yourself as the owner rather than the pilot, with 2 resumes in front of you, and one guy has 300 hours total time, 200 PIC, 100 floats, and the other guy has 900 hours total time, 800 PIC, 50 floats. Who would you hire to fly your half million dollar machine with 6 souls on board?

Back to kissing your grand mother...with the right attitude, work ethic, etc., you might be on the ground for 2 weeks, 2 months or 2 years depending on the economy, movement within the company, if someone gets injured, gets sick, breaks an arm, whatever. There is no set time limit and there are no guarantees.

But if you want something bad enough, and you're willing to work for it, and most importantly, you bring the right attitude with you....well my man, the world is your oyster.

On a personal note, I did a full year on the ground with 800TT, 700PIC, at 30 years old, in order to finally get into that 185 on floats, and it was another 4 years of twilight zone northern communities before I got the BC job I wanted.

Good luck.

[sstaurus]

low timer here... still looking

[Westward_Bound]

Another low timer looking for that first gig. Unfortunately both my other means of income have suffered greatly too. 3 different career's and they've all ground to a halt in the last 6months. God damn media!! Imagine the situation if the media didn't scare everyone into this "recession"

Rumor has it Jazz is hiring 80 people tho

[canpilot]

Westy,

Sad to hear! Hope things pick up for you soon. I picked up a newspaper ...and called around and had some luck. You might not like the pay or the job you will be doing but heck.. it puts food on the table and maybe some more education in your bucket.. see my post in your " im pissed thread"


times like this pride goes out the window.. just get through it and be ready for the next two year upswing before everything tanks again! Your best best is to be strategic when you switch seats and the seat in which you crawl into..

[LegoMan]

Called a few skydiving companies their old pilots are coming back with 1500TT+ for the season. very tough times.

[sounder]

Has Harbour Air hired their summer crew?

[canpilot]

Lego,

yup! indeed

Sounder,

Yes, I think so.. if not it'll be competitive.. very much so

[sounder]

Roger.

One of these days....

[anonymity]

Been flying since 94, when I fininshed my training, 1500 hrs was the minimum to fly a 207 up north.
Then overnight, it seemed to change. Worked the ramp for 6 months at 9 bucks an hour then, at bare minimum of 220 hours multi-ifr, I was flying the 207.
This is my 3rd or 4th downturn, I don't remember anymore, one thing for sure in a down turn you will be abused and taken for granted by all the 703 operators who find themselves with a ton of resumes.
It takes a certain personality to stick it out in this industry, not sure if it's the amount of money and time invested that keeps you going or just a masochistic personality.
I hope for those of you in your first downturn, that its short lived. If someone had told me that after 15 years I'd be making 40,000.00 a year with 8 or so years ahead of me before I'm making what I was at the time of the last downturn(9/11)70,000.00. I would have thought they're full of crap, but knowing then, what I know now I would have chose a different career path.
If you're reading this and thinking about becoming a pilot, some old Hawker pilots tried to warn me about this industry, but they weren't specific enough.
Specifics;
1) Some work the ramp for 2 yrs plus at barely above min. wage
2) Your 1st job will barely pay the bills
3) During downturns you may have 3500 hrs,ton of multi-pic on turbine and not be able to find a job because somebody with half your time, had money and bought a PPC then pimped themselves out because they had a trust fund.
4)1 step forward 2 steps back your whole career
5)AIDS(aviation induced divorce syndrome)
6)If you work for a non-union company and you happen to be the 2nd highest paid employee, when the industry turns you and the 1st highest paid(Ops manager and Chief Pilot)will be the first to go. And if you think well a company can't operate without those positions, you're correct. But someone that you work with will do your job for half the money to remain employed(1st hand knowledge)
7)During recessions there will be cutbacks most jobs pay less now then the same jobs 10 years ago
Many times over the years you will question what the hell you were thinking.
9)No sympathy from the general public because they think we make way more money, than we do.
10)When you can't find anything you will probably end up flying airplanes that belong in a junkyard for an operator who thinks of you as a tool, not a person.
11)See posts about "Mark Tayfel"
12)I love my job now, unfortunately, I have to commute to work because I can't afford to live in any of the bases offered. This means I spend more nights away from home then at home, See point 5
13)I wonder if I will still have a job in 6 months, so after 15 years I still worry about whether I'll be driving a long haul truck to pay the bills during yet another down turn.
14) Better have a backup plan because you will need it!!!!

I dont want to come across as completely bitter, there will be moments that you will have, that make you think you wouldn't trade this for anything else. A small percentage of the population get to do what we do.