Help? So many school choices end goal Airlines???

[av8tor2003]

Hi, I am a high school senior this year and I have had a life long dream of becoming a Commercial Pilot/ Airline area. So many schools and colleges sent information saying they are the best to come to,Embry-Riddle, Jacksonville University/Comair Connection both say they are the best? JU/Comair says that you will get hired after graduation of the program $130,000.00 Later! There is alot of money involved with this decision and I am not sure what is the best route to take? If you could make any recommendations or send any advice I would appreciate any information! P.S. I live in Texas so If there was a school that you know of near Texas, that would be just as good for my end result :plane:as the others please advise.

[traveler]

Hmmmmmmmmmm ..............
Sorry buddy, there are so many out there, I wouldn't be able to do this selection for you.
If you are determined and serious you'll probably could pick any one of them.
But a guarantee on paper to get a job sure sounds nice.
Good luck with your search !
Go ask some South-West pilots.

:pilot:

[dal764]

I would seriously look at Comair in Sanford,Fl. It is self contained at the airport. The Jacksonville University part you go to college at JU and then fly out of Craig Airport. ERAU has alot of Internship agreements and can help you get hired with regionals with less hours required.

[mdtony]

If you want some advice on this, I would suggest a great website. Check out www.jetcareers.com. (http://www.jetcareers.com.) This is a website that someone who flies for Delta put together to help folks like you. Definitely check it out, and good luck!

[Jessica]

Metro State College in Denver has an excellent program...

Metropolitan State College of Denver Department of Aerospace Science (http://www.mscd.edu/~aviation/)

Metro's school is on the list of institutions whose aviation-related programs meet the academic and training standards of the Council on Aviation Accreditation. Other schools on that list include:

Arizona State University Mesa, AZ (http://www.asu.edu)
Central Missouri State University Warrensburg, MO (http://www.cmsu.edu/prt)
Dowling College Oakdale, NY (http://www.dowling.edu)
Embry-Riddle Daytona Beach, FL (http://www.db.erau.edu)
Embry-Riddle Prescott, AZ (http://www.pr.erau.edu)
Florida Institute of Technology Melbourne, FL (http://www.fit.edu)
Hampton University Hampton, VA (http://www.hamptonu.edu)
University of North Dakota Grand Forks, ND (http://www.aero.und.edu)

There are many good schools out there - best of luck to you! :plane:

[mdtony]

Okay, if we're pitching various schools, I gotta get a plug in for my alma mater.


University of Illinois Institute of Aviation (http://www.aviation.uiuc.edu/)

[EXASaab]

None of these schools can guarantee that you will have a job upon completion. What some can guarantee is upon completion of certain programs/internships that you will get an interview with one of the Regional Airlines they partner with upon having a set number of hours(flight time). They all very from 500 hours and just a minimal amount of multi-engine hours.

If at all possible try to narrow it down to a few that you feel meet YOUR needs and then visit each one and talk to current students as well as former students/graduates. Get the good and the bad about each school/program to help make your decision. The more information you have the easier it will be to decide.

Good luck on your search. Even though the industry is in a down time at the moment it will pick back up by the time you finish school and have the flight time. I was in your place just 10 years ago when the industry was in a slump. There were days I thought I would never figure out how to get the "golden ring". But with persistence, disicipline, and alot of hard work you will get there. Never lose sight of the big picture but also enjoy the ride up.

Best of Luck!

:wink_2:

[av8tor2003]

Thank you Traveler for the advice! :plane:

[Av8ist]

there is a flight school that i know of in Longview,TX. There is another in Dallas/FT Worth, and then also you have Flight Safety there in Dallas. The major ones on my list when i get the financial go ahead... Comair #1, San Juan College/Mesa Airlines #2, Sierra Academy of Aeronautics #3, Univ of N. Dakota #4, Utah Valley College (Distance Learning) #5 my goal is to get to right seat of a CRJ or ERJ w/o flight instructing....the first 3 places I know all offer that option, Mesa's program is the only where that is standard. Good luck, I kno I need it!! :windsock: :plane: :pilot:

[EXASaab]

the first 3 places I know all offer that option, Mesa's program is the only where that is standard. Good luck, I kno I need



Don't let them fool you into thinking that once you complete "their" training that you WILL be placed into the right seat of an RJ.... If you read the fine print in their ads it says they give prefrential interviews to those who complete additional training requirements. Such as a Turbine Transition Course, etc... Then you will get a prefrential interview.. You are not guarnteed a job.

I believed the same thing when I went to Flight Safety Academy a few years ago. I had my eyes opened when I realized that they wanted an additional $6000 for another week of ground school and several hours in a King Air Simulator then I would be placed in a pool of candidates for those "bottom feeder" regional airlines who hired pilots with 400 Total and 50 Multi-Engine.

Don't underestimate the value of being a Flight Instructor. I was very much against it. Then I bit the bullet and dove in head first and I loved it as I learned more from my students than I had ever learned from 0 hours to the big 300 mark I was at. As I'm flying the CRJ now I can tell who was a flight instructor and who wasn't by the "tone" they set in the cockpit.(i.e. more laid back relaxed and not jumping to yank the controls away and willing to teach me Captain flows, judgement, etc.)

I once I had an Old Crusty Captain tell me when I was still "green" in the Saab "You were a flight instructor weren't you?" He could tell from my crosswind technique.
He said in all of his years of flying only those who were CFIs knew how to do a proper crosswind landing. :grin:

Good Luck in your choice.

Hope to see you on the line in the future.
:windsock:

[Paddles_up]

Don't let them fool you into thinking that once you complete "their" training that you WILL be placed into the right seat of an RJ.



EXASaab is correct! We operate RJ's as well. Our RJ pilots are the most qualified of our crews. Our new hires who come right from CFI's, and go into right seat of our turbo-prop aircraft. If a new hire goes into the right seat of the RJ, he usually has had turbo jet time previously.

Don't let these schools fool you into thinking you are gonna go right into the right seat of a jet after completion of their program. Most jet pilots will tell you that "every one does thier time"!

So my suggestion is: take your time, do it right and everything for which you've worked will eventually fall into place. Work hard and keep you goals in mind.

[mdtony]

That's one thing that people have told me about instructing. They tell me that unless you've got military experience, hiring managers love to see flight instruction experience for the reasons that you mentioned.

And it only makes sense.

[Paddles_up]

My personal recommendation would be UND. We have a "flow thu" program with them and hire allot of their grads because they teach our training curriculum.

Another good choice would be either of the Embry Riddle Universities as I've seen many a good and professional pilot from those.

Both have sattelite programs as well and you can complete your degree with credit towards ratings via the internet.

But, I personally would prefer to attend in person because you get so much more out of the classroom and fellow peers.

There's also the "school of hard knocks" which my son is attempting at this point..... a little at a time and paying cash.

[P51]

I would personally recommend against UND. They teach you how to pass your check ride, NOT how to fly the airplane. A lot of the smaller, less structured schools will provide you lessons on FLYING the airplane. (Spins, rolls, loops, etc.) At UND you have specified flying areas you may or may not enter, specific plans you must follow for every lesson, BOOOORRRRRIIIINNNNG!!!!!! Go to a real school that will let you FLY!!