Commercial pilot 290TT looking for anything.

[esa17]

Sadly I have had no luck getting a Pictometry, Jump Pilot, or Banner Towing jobs. So I was thinking that I should get an A&P license and get a BA degree in Aviation Maintenance. So I was wondering how long and much would it be to get my A&P license. I'm looking for the fastest and most reliable school to get my A&P license. Thank you very much.

If you work in a shop it will take 30 months to earn your A&P but you'll get paid between $12-$14/hr to do it. Or you can pay $20k at a school for it in half that time.

If you're wanting to be a pilot you can build time at a shop and then move on so long as you don't depart in such a manner as to screw the shop.

The main goal is to be a pilot. Having an A&P license would look good for any job related to flying, you are right its a lot of time and money already invested however, I've been looking for a job the past 4 months almost seems like its too far out of my reach, employers want 500TT for insurance reasons and there aren't many people that are taking <300TT via online... I'm pretty sure people that get hired under 300TT were walk-in pilots with their resume in hand, and lets be honest its mostly about who you know to get the interviews. I applied to the free CFI, CFII, and MEI academy, so I will see how that turns out. I love flying don't get me wrong but teaching is not really my forte.

You really should earn your CFI. It will teach you more than you know. In addition, in the future how do you plan to groom a FO if you don't develop teaching skills?

Unless you're going to fly bush having your A&P isn't going to help you land many flying jobs and when it does you'll do twice the work for the same pay. Ask me how I know...

Spend the money you'll spend on A&P school on your CFI.

ETA: The biggest mistake you can make in aviation is to look for the fast way to do anything. Think of your career path as an approach to landing. You'd better make dang sure you're stabilized before attempting to land or you'll find yourself on that paved road to hell.

 

[USMCmech]

Sub 500 hr pilots are a dime a dozen.

At my school there is at least 15 adds on the bulletin boards from flight schools needing CFIs.

American Flyers CFI academy has an advertised price of $3500.

The 4 months you have spent looking for a job has cost you more than getting your CFI will.

 

[derg]

Hot dang, there's a company spending good money looking for CFI's. Run the numbers and figure out your ROI, but a couple hundred hours in this market is a tough nut to crack because the regional airlines have increased requirements and everyone at that level is trying to hustle.

 

[killbilly]

Sub 500 hr pilots are a dime a dozen.

At my school there is at least 15 adds on the bulletin boards from flight schools needing CFIs.

American Flyers CFI academy has an advertised price of $3500.

The 4 months you have spent looking for a job has cost you more than getting your CFI will.

You're not kidding. Every FBO I've talked to here in the DC/MD/VA area is looking for CFIs.

You would think they'd be paying more as a result, but I'm still seeing $25-$30 an hour at the FBOs. I've talked to 3-4 different freelancers in the last two weeks as well. All of them charge $50 or more per hour, and NONE of them have any availability in their schedules.

 

[drunkenbeagle]

You're not kidding. Every FBO I've talked to here in the DC/MD/VA area is looking for CFIs.

You would think they'd be paying more as a result, but I'm still seeing $25-$30 an hour at the FBOs. I've talked to 3-4 different freelancers in the last two weeks as well. All of them charge $50 or more per hour, and NONE of them have any availability in their schedules.

No kidding. Just about everyplace I know around here is looking for CFIs. $50+ freelance is pretty standard, even in Florida.

It isn't expensive. Really. Spend the time studying. Anecdotally, I can tell you that no one around here is happy with the quality of part 141 CFIs they are seeing I suspect that the structure is so different that they tend to be lost when it comes to variety that is encountered part 61.

Perhaps try calling a few FBOs and see if they would be willing to cut a deal? If you have already done the study time, it shouldn't take more than a week to knock out the CFI-A. If you make a good impression with the CFI's and owner, and offer to work the front desk/wash planes/help around the MX shop, a small FBO will probably cut a deal to do the CFI for you. They do get the benefit of having someone that they have trained to do things their way...

 

[swisspilot]

I'm a 767 Capt. I have had a CFI since 1980. Teaching is a forte all of us airline pilots will be exposed to one way or another. It's not a bad thing. It's hard at the beginning. It's a very difficult checkride. But I will tell you that if you accomplish it, when you sign off your first solo, it will be as momentous of an occasion in your mind as your first born. It's truly an experience that every career pilot would benefit greatly from. And I'm not knocking the A and P. It could be helpful to further your career as a pilot or lead to another worthy career. I just hate to see you to get to 300 hours and leave the career.

My career is no where close to yours but I can agree that a CFI will open many doors down the road, even if it is not required to have one. I joined my current company as 206 line pilot (the bottom of the bottom), because of my previous 206/bush flying experience and the CFI rating! I became in less then 6 months the 206 training captain for the company (we are a 121 and believe it or not even for a 206 we have an approved course of ground-school and type training in the aircraft). I'm next in line to become the training captain on the 208 fleet, I have climbed the ladder way faster then other line pilots that have been here for 4+ years, having a CFI was a big plus and I really enjoy training future bush pilots. I also make extra money giving the ground-school, which is nice.