CFI or Great Lakes?

coa787

Unknown Member
Well guys, this question was brought up as I was analyzing my options after I get out of college as how to build up my hours. Now, I'm not in college yet, but I always like to think ahead into the future to make sure that I'm doing the right thing for myself. The reason why I use Great Lakes is because they only require that you have a Commercial and Multi-engine rating.

So, should I get a job as a CFI or fly for an airline like Great Lakes to build hours after college?

Let's say that the state of the industry is good and the Regionals are requiring at least 1000TT and 500ME. (Except Great Lakes and they are the same as they are now)
 
your profile says you are typed in a 767, and your name would imply that you are flying a 787 (just a bit unlikely). How about you tell us a bit about yourself first? Where are you in your flight training?

If you don't have your commercial that is the first place to start. If you spend too much time looking up the mountain you are going to get bummed out.
 
If I had to take a guess I'd say that the regionals will hire almost nobody at all in 2009 and maybe not in 2010 and 2011 either. Or at least, those that do hire will be doing so in about the same numbers that others are furloughing. In other words little or no net growth in the RJ ranks anytime soon.

You could jump on an opportunity like Great Lakes as it might be one of the only open doors to 121 flying at the time. But, when do you graduate? That is something that really can change the situation you ask about.
 
your profile says you are typed in a 767, and your name would imply that you are flying a 787 (just a bit unlikely).

It looks like coa787 shows his profile as 767-300 as a hobby in flight sim on the computer. I don't see that he claims a type rating to his username -- which I would also not take too literally.

Avatars, too. After all I've had mine for half a decade on this website and I had zero hours at the start of those years and I've still yet to pilot the plane the image comes from.
 
your profile says you are typed in a 767, and your name would imply that you are flying a 787 (just a bit unlikely). How about you tell us a bit about yourself first? Where are you in your flight training?

If you don't have your commercial that is the first place to start. If you spend too much time looking up the mountain you are going to get bummed out.

Nick is right. I fly the Level-D Simulations 767-300ER in Flight Simulator 2004 as a hobby. It even says "FS2004" next to the aircraft type. I don't fly any aircraft in real life.

I plan on getting my flight training and ratings while in college, graduating in 2013.
 
here, you will not get any answers besides do your duty and instruct...

so yeah.
 
I plan on getting my flight training and ratings while in college, graduating in 2013.

That is really quite a ways off. I mean time flies by pretty fast and all, but a lot will change in aviation between now and 2013. Some companies that exist today will not exist by then.

Anyway, in general I'd say you can't go wrong by flight instructing after you get your own ratings. You'll bring more experience to the cockpit of whatever multi-pilot airplane you fly after you want to move on and try a non-CFI flying job.
 
here, you will not get any answers besides do your duty and instruct...

so yeah.

Just looking for opinions and suggestions, that's all. I will make my own actions and take my own thinking into account when the time comes.
 
That is really quite a ways off. I mean time flies by pretty fast and all, but a lot will change in aviation between now and 2013. Some companies that exist today will not exist by then.

I know, but I guess it's still something to think about, right?
 
Well, the important thing is that you're going to college; that's what kids your age ought to be focused on. Do the best you can while you're there and get involved in activities outside the classroom that build you into a well-rounded person. Have you thought about doing ROTC while you're there and maybe looking into the military?

It's a good thing to think about the direction you want to take your life in general terms, but depending on the job market in 2013 your options may be wide open or quite limited with respect to whether or not you'll have to CFI.

I took the "all of the above" approach by getting my CFI in college and instructing part time (dues for my university's flying club were waived because I was a CFI, which was a nice perk). Meanwhile I was in ROTC and got a degree in a field not related to aviation. I flew w/ the Civil Air Patrol (lots of free flight time opportunities there), joined the Air Force, and now also fly Part 121 freight in addition to being in the reserves.

BTW, Lieutenant (and soon Captain) pay is actually quite good; I couldn't imagine having to live in poverty working at a place like Great Lakes. Try to make yourself marketable (and the college degree goes a long way toward this end) so that you don't have to spend too much time at a place like that. No offense to Great Lakes folks, I'm sure it's a blast, but last time I compared the pay scales, Lakes was by far the lowest (even for Captains). With your skill sets and constantly putting your life and ticket on the line, they just don't pay you what you're worth. Maybe by 2013 things will be different.
 
Well, like Nick mentioned earlier it will most likely be a whole new ball game by the time your out of college. With not being able to know what the future holds I'd say planning on being a CFI is a safe bet, not only as a way of furthering your career but for the experience as well.

Great Lakes should not be viewed upon as an alternative to instructing.
 
Something to keep in mind: Lakes may not always have the minimums so low. A few years ago when no one was hiring, even Lakes could be tricky to get on with. So if the industry keeps getting worse as far as hiring goes, you may not even have a choice. Plus, I think it's a bad idea to assume you can get a job with any company, no matter what your skills are.

You are still a few years away from having to worry too much about this yet, and Lakes may not even exist by then.

The CFI is well worth it, as so many people preach. But when it comes time, pick your own path. :)
 
Lakes isn't the always the "sure thing" it has been as of recently. The day I hit 500 hours (and about 300 of that was multi time) I put in my app there, and I updated it ever 100 hours after that until I hit 900 hours and figured I had just as good a shot somewhere else as there. And I had a senior checkairman over there walking in my resume every 100 hours too.

As was said, get the CFI rating and start building hours that way WHILE you apply to other "low time" places, if you don't want to stick with the CFIing.

And besides in 2013 there might not even be any airline jobs because the Star Trek style beaming system is perfected by then.:)
 
here, you will not get any answers besides do your duty and instruct...

so yeah.

Not so fast, there.

I found myself in a similar situation back in 04. I had a decent instructor job and was flying a good chunk of hours. It depends on the instructor position, really. If you're scraping for students at a local FBO, you might be better off going to Lakes. Here's why: minimum guarantee. You KNOW for a fact you're going to get at least $XX at Lakes based on guarantee. Not so with CFIing. In my case, I was making $1 more an hour than a lakes FO and flying nearly 100 hours a month. For me, going to Lakes would have been a huge pay cut, and I wasn't about taking a cut to fly bigger equipment. Now, someone that's only flying 20-30 hours a month, it might work out that they make the same or more at Lakes. Another thing is (and I don't know if/when they offer it) health benefits for you and your family. My situation was we had health insurance through my wife's job, so I was covered. I can think of exactly ONE CFI position that offers health insurance, and it ain't cheap. If you need health insurance, then taking the Lakes job might be beneficial.

It's a very, very individual choice that needs more data than "what should I do?" What's the current situation? How many hours are you flying? What's the current pay? Do you need the benefits or can you get by without them?

Like I said, for ME Lakes didn't make sense b/c of the situation I was in. For someone instructing at a smaller airport in the same city (or even another school at the same airport), it might be a better move to go to Lakes than stay.
 
Well I CFIed for a year and applied to Great Lakes over a month ago and they didn't bite. I don't think they are just commercial and multi any more.
 
Not so fast, there.

I found myself in a similar situation back in 04. I had a decent instructor job and was flying a good chunk of hours. It depends on the instructor position, really. If you're scraping for students at a local FBO, you might be better off going to Lakes. Here's why: minimum guarantee. You KNOW for a fact you're going to get at least $XX at Lakes based on guarantee. Not so with CFIing. In my case, I was making $1 more an hour than a lakes FO and flying nearly 100 hours a month. For me, going to Lakes would have been a huge pay cut, and I wasn't about taking a cut to fly bigger equipment. Now, someone that's only flying 20-30 hours a month, it might work out that they make the same or more at Lakes. Another thing is (and I don't know if/when they offer it) health benefits for you and your family. My situation was we had health insurance through my wife's job, so I was covered. I can think of exactly ONE CFI position that offers health insurance, and it ain't cheap. If you need health insurance, then taking the Lakes job might be beneficial.

It's a very, very individual choice that needs more data than "what should I do?" What's the current situation? How many hours are you flying? What's the current pay? Do you need the benefits or can you get by without them?

Like I said, for ME Lakes didn't make sense b/c of the situation I was in. For someone instructing at a smaller airport in the same city (or even another school at the same airport), it might be a better move to go to Lakes than stay.

I didn't read the whole thread, but I bet there is only 2 (most 3) ppl that said great lakes instead of CFI lol
 
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