Expert: D. Norkus - 11/18/2008

Question
Hello. I saw that in 2006 you had just 300 TT and desperately looking for a time building job in texas. and now you have made it.

i am in your same position as you were in 2006. i have completed instrument and im almost done with commerical. i want to time build, but dont know how. i live in los angeles. my cell  is . can you please help me? i will give you a gift ($) if you find me a job flying.

thank you,
Cory

Answer
Cory

Not sure what you were reading, but in 2006 I was flying for an airline. However I do remember having 300TT and looking for a job. That kind of TT is difficult to parlay into a job- even more so today than when I did it in 1999. Post 9/11 a lot of GA flying jobs just went away. The two places I worked prior to 9/11 to get my 1,000TT for the regionals are both now gone and the hiring competition for the time building jobs left has increased greatly. The environment now is much worse than when I was looking for a job. Also, the aviation insurance industry has gone through some changes and a major company left the market. This hurt many low time pilots as more entry level/time building jobs required higher TT to be insurable. That said, with a little perseverance and good networking skills, you may be able to find a job.

I can't find you a job, but here are some ideas:
Banner towing
Traffic watch
Skydive pilot
Pipeline patrol
Fish spotting
Flight Instruction (with the additional CFI certificate)

An aspiring commercial pilot would do well to network in the aviation community as they earned their ratings. Many employers will hire a face they know over a faceless resume. Chatting up pilots already doing these sorts of jobs provides a personal contact for the future. Banner tow & skydive operators can be found in the phone book or online. This site provide some good advice for skydive pilots- DiverDriver.com. Call your local radio station and ask for the contact information for their traffic watch operator. Find out what kind of aircraft they are using (some use helos). A Cessna traffic watch job would be a great time building opportunity. Seek them out with resume in hand. Even if they aren't hiring at the moment, you will be a familiar face if you check back every month or so and they may consider you at a future date. As far as flight instructing, you should check and see if where you are getting your commercial offers employment to you afterwards.

There are also numerous websites on the internet that advertise pilot jobs. Many require a subscription. Here is a listing of most-
http://www.ninety-nines.org/careers/jobplacements.html

You might also try some of the more popular pilot message boards like

http://forums.flightinfo.com
http://forums.jetcareers.com
http://www.usaviation.com/forums

Good Luck,
Dottie