A part 61 success story...

DE727UPS

DE727UPS

Well-Known Member
I so proud of this kid (he's 25), that I just had to post his stats.

Just got a class date at Ameriflight (BFI-PA31) with 1200 and 50. He worked VFR 135 and did a little free lance CFI (130 hours). Two years from his SE commercial to Ameriflight. Now, it's six months on the PA31 and he'll be able to upgrade to turbine PIC.

For those of you wondering how the 61 route compares to the big academies, I offer this up as an example. I think he's come much farther than he could at an academy at far less cost.

The typical route of instructing and flying 135 freight doesn't get much press or have fancy banner ads, but I think it's a great way to break into the industry.
 
Me too! Me too!
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Private thru MEII all part 61, instructed for 6 months at a part 61 school and now 121 FO. Granted, PIC time is still a year or two down the road, and the regionals may be a slower road than 135 freight, but when I found this site as a 5 hour student pilot in august of 2001, I followed the advice of guys like you and doug to the T and it has worked out better than I ever imagined. I owe you guys a big THANK YOU.
 
Don - great post. Part 61 creates lots of good pilots, some like this guy are very young when they land their first commercial job. Spending more money does not mean you will become a better pilot.
 
oh my goodness. How were they ever able to amount to anything without "training smart by trusting the experts" or getting a "Guaranteed Interview!"
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Sounds a lot like the route I'm leaning towards. Just out of curiosity, where did he get on with a VFR 135 op, canyon tours?
 
Part 61 all the way through.... instructed and flew part 91 "charter" ops.... going to CRJ captain upgrade next month.
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Brian both methods work. Which route you take is a personal choice. Not sure why a persons success with part 61 becomes an attack on all 141 training. I know folks that went both routes and all are either airline Captains or Fo's now. I think both routes have positive and negative points.

BTW I trained under parts 61 and 141. All of my post training flight time came from part 61 flight instruction and part 91 scenic flights. If I had to do it all over again I would still do the bulk of my training part 141. That is what was best for me and it is not a reflection or comment on how anyone else goes about it.
 
Part 141 isn't the issue. What bothers me is your average novice, wannabe, pilot picks up Flight Training or Flying and sees the "big academy" ads that say that's the way you gotta go to be become a pilot. They all say their way is "the fastest" or their training "is superior". I don't think you could go from commercial SE to twin turbine PIC in 2.5 years any faster than this guy did it via the FBO/small flight school route. I don't think you could even do that if you PFTed at Gulfstream and got hired at Pinnacle.

My point is this.....those who claim to be "saving time and seniority numbers" by doing the "fast track" to the airlines might not be doing it the quickest way afterall.
 
Well the flight school I'm going to is called "Florida Aviation Academy". Should I re-consider it? It's not like DCA or anything, it's just a flight school named like that. Here's the website: www.floridaavationacademy.com. We also have a JC'er who will CFI there in the Fall.
 
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Part 141 isn't the issue. What bothers me is your average novice, wannabe, pilot picks up Flight Training or Flying and sees the "big academy" ads that say that's the way you gotta go to be become a pilot. They all say their way is "the fastest" or their training "is superior". I don't think you could go from commercial SE to twin turbine PIC in 2.5 years any faster than this guy did it via the FBO/small flight school route. I don't think you could even do that if you PFTed at Gulfstream and got hired at Pinnacle.

My point is this.....those who claim to be "saving time and seniority numbers" by doing the "fast track" to the airlines might not be doing it the quickest way afterall.

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If a person gets sucked in by and advertisement then it’s their own darn fault for not educating themselves. I have seen some pretty stupid ads for part 61 flight schools as well as dumb ads from some big 141 academies. Everyone I know who trained under part 141 did so because of the training environment and structure. I personally don’t know anyone who trained 141 because they thought it was some speed ticket to the airlines. I have been a part of both training environments and I am a strong advocate for each. There is a lot more to the picture than the a few magazine ads that claim “fast track to the airlines”.
 
I like part 141 better and I think it will work for me. I can also get my ratings with less time which saves me money.
(At least that's what I've been told).
 
Too bad VA won't give me a lick of money back if I were to go Part 61 instead of 141
 
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I like part 141 better and I think it will work for me. I can also get my ratings with less time which saves me money.

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Less time, probably. Less money, it's probably about the same if not a tad bit more. Schools have to go through all the FAA certification for 141, plus there are ground school requirements that have to be met. Instead of doing ground work in the air during a cross country, you're required to sit in a classroom. This costs money. A lot of 141 ops charge more for instruction than 61 schools.

The advantage to 141 is the structure. If you learn well in a structured, rigid environment than 141 is perfect for you. Me, I like to jump around a lot in training, so 141 would be very bad for me. Say you get burned out on something and you want to try something else for a while. Well, in Part 61 you and your CFI can shoot that instrument approach while still training for your PPL instead of doing stalls for the 100th time. Just something to break the monotony. In 141, you pretty much have to stick to the syllabus. Like was said earlier, it all comes down to what is best for the individual student. I do know 61 instructors that have two different styles, a Part 61 loose style and a Part 141 structured style. That way they can tailor the lessons to what the student needs.
 
It has nothing to do with part 61 or part 141, just like working 91, 121, 135 etc. It’s all personal preference. You get out of school and training what you put into it. I did my training both ways, I’ve instructed both ways and now I’m flying 91 sub K and wouldn’t trade it for anything else.
In the end you are what you want to be, not what they make you to be, that goes for life in general not just flight training.
 
"There is a lot more to the picture than the a few magazine ads that claim “fast track to the airlines”."

Yeah. But if you didn't know about jetcareers, didn't know any pilots, and only read Flying magazine....you wouldn't know any different. As people start to pursue the career, I think they get an education. I just wish everyone would come to jetcareers so they can get both sides of the story before they make a decision.
 
A disadvantage to 61 is the lack of VA acceptance and loans are harder to get and are for a smaller amount. I know pilotfinance does loans for 61 but the school has to apply first.
 
Sallie Mae and Key Bank also finance Part 61. But the school has to be approved first for them as well.
 
I think a lot of it comes down to the indivdual, if your a poor stick, your a poor stick weither it's 61 or 141, but your more likely to make it 61. I will say the general level of professionalism heard on the radio is a lot lower than how we were trained however. I often wonder how some of these people got their licences.
 
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