Advice and help for a low hour Pilot

Jmckean

Active Member
Good Morning Everyone.

I hope that everyone is staying safe and healthy during this unsettling times. I am a low hour pilot with 320 hours with a commercial and Instrument rating. It seems like I have exhausted all my energy in trying to apply to aerial survey companies and haven't heard back from any. I am also looking into other low hour opportunities such as banner towing and aerial tours and skydiving. As a new pilot with little or no experience in looking for a job I am reaching out to any of you if you have any connections or advice on what companies that are currently hiring and their contact information in aerial tours, skydiving or banner towing. Feel free to DM me or post in the comments. Thank you so much in advance and I hope everyone stays safe and healthy
thanks
Jack
 
Good Morning Everyone.

I hope that everyone is staying safe and healthy during this unsettling times. I am a low hour pilot with 320 hours with a commercial and Instrument rating. It seems like I have exhausted all my energy in trying to apply to aerial survey companies and haven't heard back from any. I am also looking into other low hour opportunities such as banner towing and aerial tours and skydiving. As a new pilot with little or no experience in looking for a job I am reaching out to any of you if you have any connections or advice on what companies that are currently hiring and their contact information in aerial tours, skydiving or banner towing. Feel free to DM me or post in the comments. Thank you so much in advance and I hope everyone stays safe and healthy
thanks
Jack

Hi there.

Take a look at some of the survey threads; the general consensus has been that you really need your CMEL to be competitive - and that was when hiring was really strong everywhere.

In my very limited experience, the best way to meet the skydive/banner ops is to put on some decent clothes, take a resume, and head out to knock on doors and shake hands. (which is kinda hard at the moment, I admit.)

Try to MEET the people you want to work for. That's the best advice I can give you. People buy from people. People *hire* people. Put some shoeleather into it. :)
 
Th
Hi there.

Take a look at some of the survey threads; the general consensus has been that you really need your CMEL to be competitive - and that was when hiring was really strong everywhere.

In my very limited experience, the best way to meet the skydive/banner ops is to put on some decent clothes, take a resume, and head out to knock on doors and shake hands. (which is kinda hard at the moment, I admit.)

Try to MEET the people you want to work for. That's the best advice I can give you. People buy from people. People *hire* people. Put some shoeleather into it. :)
Thanks so much for the advice when this all blows over I will for sure try get out there with my resume
 
The survey stuff for low time guys typically starts its big interviewing in the august to september months for everyone to be hired, trained and deployed in October.

It's a bad situation being low-time as getting your CFI and being ready to relocate anywhere in the US for a gig might be your best bet to start building time quickly, but all us pilots are in a lousy boat right now so don't beat yourself up much for it.

You may be able to get on this summer flying 182s for some jump zone somewhere, but who knows when the season will start this year. They also typically like close to 500 hours with some 182 time, but I believe they're are some willing to make exceptions.
 
The survey stuff for low time guys typically starts its big interviewing in the august to september months for everyone to be hired, trained and deployed in October.

It's a bad situation being low-time as getting your CFI and being ready to relocate anywhere in the US for a gig might be your best bet to start building time quickly, but all us pilots are in a lousy boat right now so don't beat yourself up much for it.

You may be able to get on this summer flying 182s for some jump zone somewhere, but who knows when the season will start this year. They also typically like close to 500 hours with some 182 time, but I believe they're are some willing to make exceptions.
Thank you so much for the advice. I been also looking for some jump places near me and emailing my resume. I feel once This all blows over and people start skydiving maybe I can catch a break in that field.
 
Thank you so much for the advice. I been also looking for some jump places near me and emailing my resume. I feel once This all blows over and people start skydiving maybe I can catch a break in that field.
You won't get a skydiving gig unless you show up. That's actually true of most low time gigs. An e-mailed resume is usually worth about nothing. I remember in 08-09 everyone going, I'm sending resume's no one is responding?!?! But that's literally the least you can do.
The first 4 jobs I had in aviation were either showing up when other's didn't and/or also knowing someone there that could vouch for you before you showed up.
 
You won't get a skydiving gig unless you show up. That's actually true of most low time gigs. An e-mailed resume is usually worth about nothing. I remember in 08-09 everyone going, I'm sending resume's no one is responding?!?! But that's literally the least you can do.
The first 4 jobs I had in aviation were either showing up when other's didn't and/or also knowing someone there that could vouch for you before you showed up.
If you don’t know anybody at this, say, place you really wanna get into, would you say the first time you go seals the deal or do you have to go many times and develop a bond with the people there?
Obviously you should act cool and collected (but still humble), but are there any spoken signs that you made it, like “hey come back tomorrow” or do you go home and cross your fingers they’re gonna call ya?
 
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