Best way to become a Pilot

ryan1234 said:
Whatever happen to searching for information using the search function or Google?
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Im going to be a Man and apologize for telling to to shut the hell up I just am trying to work things out before i decide where i want to go to college and you were being kind of mean about it Sorry we got off on the wrong foot and hope you dont take it the wrong Way
 
jtrain609 said:
I'm more talking about you pushing away a guy that's looking for some information that this website allegedly provides.

I say allegedly, because instead of being given some real basic information, you've managed to likely run this poor guy off before he had much of a chance to even figure out WTF was happening around these parts.

You may also notice that there's a military sub forum here that you could have directed him too instead of acting like an ass.
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Inviting someone to use the search feature and pushing for critical thinking runs people off .... got it.... noted.... thanks oh, wise one.

SIUav8er said:
Youre kidding, right? Why even post if you dont want to answer?
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brandoncooley92 said:
If you don't want to answer the question with out being a jerk then stop posting on this thread I asked for help not for you to be a jerk So if you don't like what im saying then don't read it and shut the hell up.
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Somewhere along the lines, you've missed the point of what I was trying to say. You can tell me to shut up all you want - the end game here is that I have a little insight on the road to getting paid to fly as well as the road to getting a military pilot slot. It's not all flowers and butterflies....That road requires you to think critically. If something as little as saying "use the search function" is bothering... than brother... you have a long and painful road ahead. Anyways, I do wish you the best of luck... sincerely...
 
Douglas said:
Why is the search function "critical thinking"?
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I guess it has something to do with using each resource at your disposal to make informed observations and analyze answers against other answers of the same nature. I guess you could say, critical thinking begins with available research. I'm having a hard time understanding why encouraging the use of a search function is a foreign concept here?

As an added gem of info... a Google search of "How to be a pilot" yielded 154 million results... some of the initial entries included jetcareers
 
ryan1234 said:
Inviting someone to use the search feature and pushing for critical thinking runs people off .... got it.... noted.... thanks oh, wise one.





Somewhere along the lines, you've missed the point of what I was trying to say. You can tell me to shut up all you want - the end game here is that I have a little insight on the road to getting paid to fly as well as the road to getting a military pilot slot. It's not all flowers and butterflies....That road requires you to think critically. If something as little as saying "use the search function" is bothering... than brother... you have a long and painful road ahead. Anyways, I do wish you the best of luck... sincerely...
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I said I was sorry I have nothing against you I was upset about something else and should not have taken it out on you sorry again could we start over and info you have would help thanks and again sorry hope we can put this behind us
 
brandoncooley92 said:
I said I was sorry I have nothing against you I was upset about something else and should not have taken it out on you sorry again could we start over and info you have would help thanks and again sorry hope we can put this behind us
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I think most of the good info has already been covered.

Get a degree in something you enjoy, not aviation.

If you want to go military, go to one of the sites dedicated to the branch you want to read and use the search function. See if you have the qualifications, eye sight, no health or physical issues. Join ROTC if you like.

If you go private again, read as much as you can on here, most of the questions you will have in the next few months while starting the process have been asked numerous times. Go into the ATP section, career changer section and just look at some of the older pages on the general topics section.

Get your private first, see if you like it truly. Go to a few different FBO's, dont focus on just price. Talk to the instructors, current students and walk around the airport and see the airplanes. Get a feel for the operation and if it is what you are looking for. if not, say thanks and move on, dont be pressured.

You also need to be honest with yourself. Flying a cessna/piper is not the same as flying a boeing. Flying GA you do what you want, have fun and go where you want. Flying commercial, your a tool, you do what your told to do for as cheaply as they can get a pilot for. Are you ok with that? Do you want a family, house, nice car, decent food before your 30? Are you willing to literally start all over again at the bottom of the pay scale and seniority list when your 40, 50, 60 potentially? Do you have any medical issues that could or will cause you to lose your first class medical at some point in the future?

Lastly, dont go in focusing on the airlines, there is so much more to aviation than the airlines. Dont get sold on a flight school because they make good airline pilots or have an agreement with a regional or any other marketing BS. Learn to be a good all around pilot as Waco already said. You dont have to follow his plan, but dont go to one of those schools where they tell you where to go, when to go and how to go. Whats the fun in that? Fly somewhere where you can take your friends up and fly to the beach, being in York its not that far of a trip and a ton of fun. Fly a place that will allow you to take their planes into a grass strip and teach you how to truly do a soft field landing. Most of all, have fun. The focus is not the destination but the journey, if you go in thinking the opposite, you've already lost.
 
Give him a break man, he's interested in this. If he were to search he'd likely get dozens of different threads with people in situations not exactly like his. I don't mind giving him some advice and I'm sure many others don't mind either.

To OP, I went to college and got an aviation degree. Others might criticize the decision to get such a degree, but in my opinion it worked out for me. While being in college for this I was able to get financial aid to help with my flight expenses. I had to take out some loans, but sometimes chasing a dream has a price.

I got my private license through a pt 141 school and really didn't like it one bit. I changed flight schools and got my instrument rating, commercial single and multi all under pt 61. I am also doing my instructor stuff pt 61.
 
Another option is to join, active or reserve, and reap the benefits of the military flying club system. Some will even have a 141 program and you can use your GI Bill. Welcome to flying!
 
What Ryan was getting at is how we at the military forums deal with this sort of very common question. I'm a mod at www.airwarriors.com and when a newbie comes on and asks a question that has been asked many, many times before, we lock it down. An example would be...what are my chances of getting jets? That is an instant closed thread. We expect any wannabe to exhibit a degree of initiative and look before asking. Granted, this isn't a military forum and folks are a bit more laid back but I get where Ryan is coming from.

IMO, you want the best flight training without a dime coming out of your pocket? Fly military then. Nothings impossible if you really want it...as long as you don't have physical impairments or other issues that could affect getting into the program. I too was a dorky kid years ago, got a NROTC scholarship, was accepted to flight school, earned my wings and have been flying military ever since. I'm not exactly or even close to Chuck Yeager either.
 
I went to a major university and had the time of my life, saved up and started flying, worked at the airport to get discounts, and had several hundred hours instructing by the time I graduated. It cost a lot of time and money, but you'll find out pretty early if you really want to stick with it. After graduation I became a starving unemployed CFI for a while, and went the military route as a Air Force Reserve Pilot. Looking back I don't think I would change a thing, but other dudes here might have completely different stories and think the same thing so don't think there's only one way to skin a cat.

A few notes on the military:

1) I do not think the GI Bill currently covers even the majority of flight training. Someone else may be more up to date on this, but the last I heard the idea had been approved but funding had not. Also, I do not think the bill can be used for both flight training and college, so if you go that route be sure to consider which route would ultimately save you more.
2) Think long and hard about joining the military period - much less devoting 12 years of your life to fly for Uncle Sam. I couldn't be happier, but I know a hell of a lot of guys that wish they had done something else (very few actually in cockpits, but medical DQs, UAVs, time away from the family, etc.).
3) I'd recommend further queries on the military side be directed to the military forum.

Good luck!
 
1. Non aviation four year degree.
2. See if you qualify for the guard.
3. Keep costs low.
4. AVOID DEBT.
5. Read #4.
 
brandoncooley92 said:
I said I was sorry I have nothing against you I was upset about something else and should not have taken it out on you sorry again could we start over and info you have would help thanks and again sorry hope we can put this behind us
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Maybe some periods, a comma or two. Just a thought. :)

Don't be afraid of financing. Just be smart about it. If you have to get a loan, do it one rating at a time. Pay down the last loan before getting a new one. Might take a bit longer, but trust me, you have time.

Which brings me to my next point. ENJOY your life outside aviation. I didn't start flying professionally till I was 31. After four years active duty Air Force (enlisted, non-flying) and 8 years working for the Sherrifs Dept. The later allowed me to pay for my ratings as I went. People might tell you that you should have your life planned out by now, or you may feel like you should. Guess what? You don't and that's ok. I'm 35 and still have another 35-40 years worth of flying in me. I might make it, I might do some thing else. I'm not too sure what I'm going to do with the rest of my life. But so far I have enjoyed the ride.

The words of the mighty Joe Dirt come to mind,"Life's a garden. Dig it."
 
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