Expert: David A. NewMyer - 3/28/2004

Question
Hello sir,

I would like to find out about the possibilities of getting into aviation (specifically, flying fixed-wing aircraft) as a career. My background so far is as a computer/networking Tech Support specialist; I'm perhaps a year of full-time classes short of a bachelor's degree. I'm 31.

As yet, I don't have any formal flight training, and so would be an "ab-initio" student pilot -- albeit one who is a Flight Simulator enthusiast. Ideally, I would like to find an instructor / school familiar with people in my situation to both make the most of what I already know -- AND to be better able to determine what of my "knowledge" I would be better off UNlearning before trying to apply it to real aircraft!

My biggest concern is cost. If I were wealthy, I would be taking lessons already! I would almost certainly need to find some way that I could work my way through enough training to obtain a commercial license.

I have heard that there are programs which help defray some of the costs by having students agree to teach. I would not mind this at all, provided the program was reputable and safe (I have been told I'm a good teacher, and do have some teaching experience.)

I certainly don't expect to make 747 captain right away (or ever), and would be extremely happy flying something like a Cessna Caravan, Twin Otter, or Regionjet for a living. My main requirements for a career would be:

* I would like to make at least $30k/year (my current salary) -- preferably $40k+,
* I do not want to join the military,
* I would insist on putting safety first.
* Day or night work is fine
* I wouldn't mind working just about anywhere in the US or Canada.
* I would like to fly fixed-wing aircraft.
* I suspect I would prefer flying cargo, although I'm not ruling anything out.

I'm currently in Boca Raton, FL -- near Fort Lauderdale (but too far to go to classes at Vero Beach without moving.) I'm a US citizen.

My main concern:  How can I pay for this? Are scholarships available? If so, what are the requirements to qualify?

Are there any programs that let you work to pay 100% of the cost, and what do they require?

Many thanks!!
--Eric  

Answer
Hi, Eric:

Thanks for your questions.  I will try to assist!

As for paying for a program, there are two key potential sources of financial support to check out right up front no matter which way you go...and a third if you go via a university or college aviation degree program:

1.  Check out this web site for some good general financial aid and scholarship information on aviation:

www.AvScholars.com

2.  Order this publication from the University Aviation Association:  The Collegiate Aviation Scholarship Listing
The cost is about $20 and it can be ordered by calling the UAA at 334-844-2434 or by emailing them at uaa@auburn.edu

3.  If you wish to consider attending a college or university aviation degree program to both finish your BS or BA degree AND obtain flight training, many times colleges and universities have funding that comes just from them for new or transfer students.  So, the university or school you attend can be, in and of itself, a source of scholarships and grants.

As far as becoming a professional pilot as you describe, there are three things you must do:

1.  Complete your BS or BA degree in order to be competitive with others in the aviation job market (thus, the suggestion above to combine your effort to get a degree with you desire to go into aviation).  There are quite a number of colleges and universities that offer aviation degree programs and many will accept much of what you have already taken as transfer work.   A nice listing of such colleges and universities is offered by the University Aviation Association for $25:  THE COLLEGIATE AVIATION GUIDE.  Their contact information was already given above.


2.  Complete your Federal Aviation Administration flight certificates and ratings:

FAA Private Pilot Certificate

FAA Commercial Pilot Certificate with Instrument and Multi Engine Ratings

FAA Flight Instructor (Airplance) Certificate...to teach others to fly and to help build flight time when you are a "fresh," new pilot


3. Build your flight experience to qualify for various jobs:

Entry level (at 350 or so flight hours): Flight Instructor

At 500+ hours:  charter pilot (500 hours needed to satisfy most aviation insurance companies)

1000 to 1500 hours (along with 300 or so multi engine hours):  Commuter or Regional Airline pilot

2500 to 4000 flight hours (along with 500 to 1000 hours of experience flying multi engine jet or turbo prop aircraft as a pilot in commmand or captain):  Major Airline pilot

A note on the lifestyle:  Be prepared to move around a bit to find jobs.  The aviation industry is all over the nationa and, therefore, so are the jobs.  You must go to them, they will not come to you.  And, once employed, there is a lot of "paying dues" via flying nights, weekends and on lousy schedules.  But, the payoff is there in terms of good jobs if you are patient.

As far as programs out there that will defray costs if you agree to stay and teach, those are available at some flight schools but not at any university aviation programs that I am aware of.  The advanatages of a flight school like Flight Safety Academy or Pan Am International Flight Academy or Delta Academy is that they are fairly fast and have some reasonable placement programs....but, they are also expensive and not always well connected to any sort of BS or BA degree program (which you also need).  So, there are definitely trade offs no matter which way you go.

As far as taking advantage of what you already know, the only way you will be able to fully figure out if that is possible is to go get some flight lessons at a local airport.  Then you can see what it is like to fly and whether or not your prior practice on Flight Sim helped or not.

I hope that this answer helped.  Let me know via another question via Allexperts if you need anything else.

Sincerely,

David A. NewMyer, Ph.D., Professor and Chair
Aviation Management and Flight
Southern Illinois University Carbondale
http://www.aviation.siu.edu