skidz
Well-Known Member
Go military if you wanna serve your country. This involves a lot more than just flying. Go civilian if you have some spare 100k that you don't care about because you'll need it for your ratings and your college degree.
Military or Civilian??
- Thread starter DC10FlyBy
- Start date
Go military if you wanna serve your country. This involves a lot more than just flying. Go civilian if you have some spare 100k that you don't care about because you'll need it for your ratings and your college degree.
Minnesota_Flyer
New Member
In the military, you are an officer first, a pilot second. If you are not comfortable with that, you don't want to go the military route.
BE19Pilot
Flying a Box
I'd apply for all the options you mentioned to give yourself some options. If it were me, I'd go to Purdue on an Air Force or Navy ROTC scholarship and study engineering. Get the commission, and go onto flight training. I'd avoid going thru any kind of pilot training programs at ERAU or any other University training program. Not because they don't offer good training, but because of the cost/benefit. The military is going to give you the best training, life experience and you'll be serving a higher purpose than the flying a "greyhound-in-the-sky". Good luck!
Fly Navy, the best always have!
Fly Navy, the best always have!
blee256
Well-Known Member
So you were awarded a pilot slot without getting your waiver first?
Yes, Colleges are generally cheaper in your own state. If you go to a school out of state, there is an out-of-state fee in addition to the regular tuition for public schools. Private universities are expensive no matter where you live.
blee256
Well-Known Member
ok.
thanks, Mizzou is 30k out of state and 19k in state.
not tooo bad
19K!!! Is that tuition only? I hope not. Does that include room and board? UCLA and Cal Berkley were like the Mizzou equivalent here in California and it was only 5-6K a year during the days I went to college.
kgflyboy
New Member
You might consider visiting the University of Central Missouri. They have a larger flight program that SLU or any other college nearby. I started the flight program there, got my instrument rating, and then changed majors. A couple years later I wanted back in aviation, and I'm doing the FBO route now.
The advantage of the college flight school is that it is a part 141 school, which means thay can get you certified with lower minimum hour requirements. If I remember correctly, private at 35, instrument at 80, and commercial at 180 instead of 250 hours for commercial at the part 61 schools (most local airport schools). When you finish your instructor rating, you will have the opportunity to build hours by instructing students between classes since most colleges give everybody that takes the instructor classes a job up passing. In Warrensburg, it was reasonable to expect to be an instructor by the time you were a senior, and depending on how the industry is at the time, you can stick around and instruct after you graduate if you still need more hours.
I agree that loans suck, but the student loans you get through your college have lower interest rates than ones you can get to train at an FBO, so if you plan on borrowing money for flight school, do it through a college.
MU doesn't have a flight school, but you could take lessons at the airport 15 minutes south of campus. I'm not sure if you they have planes there for multi engine or complex aircraft training thouth. Also, UCM is a little cheaper that MU.
I hope this helps.
The advantage of the college flight school is that it is a part 141 school, which means thay can get you certified with lower minimum hour requirements. If I remember correctly, private at 35, instrument at 80, and commercial at 180 instead of 250 hours for commercial at the part 61 schools (most local airport schools). When you finish your instructor rating, you will have the opportunity to build hours by instructing students between classes since most colleges give everybody that takes the instructor classes a job up passing. In Warrensburg, it was reasonable to expect to be an instructor by the time you were a senior, and depending on how the industry is at the time, you can stick around and instruct after you graduate if you still need more hours.
I agree that loans suck, but the student loans you get through your college have lower interest rates than ones you can get to train at an FBO, so if you plan on borrowing money for flight school, do it through a college.
MU doesn't have a flight school, but you could take lessons at the airport 15 minutes south of campus. I'm not sure if you they have planes there for multi engine or complex aircraft training thouth. Also, UCM is a little cheaper that MU.
I hope this helps.
kgflyboy
New Member
If you want to save a little money, you get your private pilot license in Springfield before school starts in the fall. Then, you can pick up on your instrument rating in the fall through a college and work from there.
I have a friend from college who instructs in Springfield. If you want to talk to him I can give you his info.
I have a friend from college who instructs in Springfield. If you want to talk to him I can give you his info.
staplegun
Well-Known Member
I wasn't a fighter pilot, but you never had to remind those guys of this...
It was a little harder in the "Reagan-era" Navy to remind the Anti-Submarine Warfare folks of how serious we were, let alone the cooks...
Most sailors (and troops) in those days didn't believe how close things came to an all-out shooting (Nukes & all) war...
The only thing which encouraged me was how the "citizen-soldiers" responded and stepped up to defeat the Axis in WWII. I knew (and know now) that if it came to a shooting war our guys would step up and prevail...
No problem, thanks for your service in the Mideast!
Kevin
DC10FlyBy
Well-Known Member
Guys i know what i am going to do.
I am going to major in Sports Medicine and Physical Training at Missouri State University, which is 30 miles away from here and hopefully play soccer there.
I will also do all of my flight training at Pro Flights at the Springfield/Branson Airport there.
As a back up i will be a trainer at a local gym. Sound good? Or not?
I am going to major in Sports Medicine and Physical Training at Missouri State University, which is 30 miles away from here and hopefully play soccer there.
I will also do all of my flight training at Pro Flights at the Springfield/Branson Airport there.
As a back up i will be a trainer at a local gym. Sound good? Or not?
DC10FlyBy
Well-Known Member
Mizzou is private??
LoadMasterC141
Well-Known Member
Don't be a zoomie
azpilot84
New Member
Military takes longer but essentially $0 debt for flight training just the cost of schools which is recovered through GI Bill.
His dream was to be a fighter pilot, my dream was to be any kind of pilot. I went the civil route and I have a good friend who just got a pilot slot in the USAF. Sometimes when I have to pay my bills I think..."Maybe the military route might have been better..."
One way to do it is get your Private civily while your working on your non-aviation related degree to see if flying is really what you want to do and then think about the military when you're done with school. An applicant with a PPL is a lot more likely to get in according to the USAF recruiter I chated with online.
LoadMasterC141
Well-Known Member
Seriously,
If you want to be an airline pilot, then be an airline pilot.
If you want to serve your country, defend it if neccesary, and are interested in more than button pushing, join the military.
Personally, I would have given anything to fly for the military over the airlines. Just me though.
If you want to be an airline pilot, then be an airline pilot.
If you want to serve your country, defend it if neccesary, and are interested in more than button pushing, join the military.
Personally, I would have given anything to fly for the military over the airlines. Just me though.
Hacker15e
Who am I? Where are my pants?
Although you don't pay out of pocket for USAF flight training, it's not at all "free".
In fact, the joke goes that you pay for your "million dollar" training "one nickel at a time, shoved up your @ss."
If you count all the intangibles, like the 10-year training contract and the fact that you can't say 'no' when you bid a bad schedule, it is far from free.
azpilot84
New Member
I made a point of not saying it's free but that you don't pay any $ for it. It costs quite a lot... sometimes your life.