A what should I do question....

E_Dawg

Moderator
OK I'll keep it short and sweet:
Private, Instrument Rated, 210hrs.

I'd like to do the Commercial and CFI back to back: get 'em both done at 250.

I'm just wondering if this is possible, and if it is, when should I start training for all this stuff? I already have all the books and am studying ground stuff, but I don't know a lazy eight from my big toe. Any comments are greatly appreciated!!!

And for my last question.... if my chances of getting a CFI job are iffy at best, should I forego the CFI until I think I can get hired so I don't have to retake the ride??? Or just do it and hope for the best?
 
YES, you can do the comm and CFI at 250 hours if you plan it right. That was my plan but I ended up about 40 hours over the 250 when I got my CFI.
Start training NOW for it. Your next flight, go up with an instructor and have him/her go over lazy 8s, chandelles, steep spirals and 8's on pylons. Once you're familiar with the manuevers in the left seat, make the transition to the right seat ASAP. Try to be flying in the right seat by 220 hours. I did most of my comm training in the right seat and didnt have any problem in the left seat for my checkride. The comm maneuvers are not that difficult and shouldnt take more than 10-15 hours to perfect. You should be at around 235 hours by then. That gives you 15 hours to tighten everything up. You'll also need to do your night/day VFR flights with anstructor and your solo long cross country. As you learn the comm maneuvers begin performing them and talking through them at the same time. Start talking through every aspect of your flight from here on out. If you start in the right seat now and learn the comm maneuvers now and begin explaining all the maneuvers now as you perform them, you should be ready for your CFI ride immediately following your comm ride.
Whatever you decide to do, be sure to communicate fully to your instructor your inentions to complete the CFI at 250 hours. Grab a comm PTS and know exactly the standards to which you will have to perform.
Hope that answered some of your questions.
 
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And for my last question.... if my chances of getting a CFI job are iffy at best, should I forego the CFI until I think I can get hired so I don't have to retake the ride??? Or just do it and hope for the best?

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In my rambling I forgot to answer this question. I would definately get the CFI now. In my opinion you want to get yourself in an employable position as soon as possible. You dont want to wait for an instructing job to become available and not be able to take it because you don't have your CFI. Unless you get lucky and find someone to hire you at 250 hours towing banners or flying skydivers, having a CFI is the only way you'll have a chance to get paid to fly. Why not get yourself lined up and ready to go when opportunity comes knocking?
I dont understand your question of retaking the ride. Your CFI is good for 24 months. If you take a CFI refresher clinic you dont have to retake the ride and your ticket is good for another 24 months. There are also various online refreshers as well.
 
Dude I would go and get it - at the very least you could log every flight with me! But I am sure you could get a job at SNA or do some freelancing.
 
I agree. Go ahead and start working on commercial maneuvers now. You basically need to be able to fly the same maneuvers for both licenses (you just need to fly from the right seat and explain what you are doing when you go for the CFI). They usually don't take long to learn, but the more time that you spend practicing, the easier they will become.
 
Thanks for the answers... it's things like this that make this site so damn good.

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I dont understand your question of retaking the ride. Your CFI is good for 24 months. If you take a CFI refresher clinic you dont have to retake the ride and your ticket is good for another 24 months. There are also various online refreshers as well.

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And thanks for clearing this up as well; for some reason I was under the impression that you had to retake the ride if you didn't have a certain pass rate by a certain time...
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