Path to Airline/Airport Management?

Pilot121

Pilot121

Well-Known Member
Hello,

I have a question about pursuing a career in airline or airport management. I was told by an aviation college that I would need to be a licensed pilot and have experience actually flying in order to have a better chance of getting a management job. I had never heard this before, and am wondering if it's true or just the college trying to get me to spend 60,000 on flight training with them. The reason I ask is because I have some medical issues that will disqualify me from even getting a PPL.

Thanks!
 
I've got a few colleagues who just graduated college with aviation management degrees already taken over management positions at specific airports (Colorado/Indiana). That was straight outta college and no PPL.

Try getting some experience in the field at an FBO or airline gate/ramp. Could look huge on your resume. That's what I did and you'll see openings internally open because you're working at the airport or you'll find one somewhere else that you could relocate for. I obviously don't work at an airport anymore but I did in college and funny thing was that the entire field was dominated by college students with aviation studies. It'll look good if you want to be in the industry for anything. That's all the advice I know, but I know people who don't have a PPL and they're doing it young. I imagine you'll be fine.

Also, PPL won't cost $60k. Do not get your CPL for a management job. That's a waste of money.
 
Airline management will generally require you to be a line pilot at some point. While there are certain jobs out there that you may get without it, if you are at all a manager of anything pilots touch you will already start off on a steep hill to climb. Pilots do not like to be managed or have procedures managed by people that have not done their job or worked for their company on the line. No airline manager I know has not been a line pilot with said airline at some point or another. FWIW
 
Pilot121 said:
Hello,

I have a question about pursuing a career in airline or airport management. I was told by an aviation college that I would need to be a licensed pilot and have experience actually flying in order to have a better chance of getting a management job. I had never heard this before, and am wondering if it's true or just the college trying to get me to spend 60,000 on flight training with them. The reason I ask is because I have some medical issues that will disqualify me from even getting a PPL.

Thanks!
Click to expand...
Depends on what kind of management in the airlines. Directors and part 119 Chief Pilots require 3 years of experience in part 135 or 121. Assistant chief pilots, base chief pilots, flight supervisors (whatever a particular air carrier calls them), don't require anything. No company is going to put a non-pilot in those positions though, and the pilots probably wouldn't follow you either if they did. It's pretty hard to take advice/criticism from someone that's never flown out on the line.

There's a whole slew of non-flying duties in the flight and ops department though. With their own hierarchy of management. That would be your only choice if you're not a pilot. We have a records department manager, for example, who doesn't fly.
 
Pilot121 said:
Hello,

I have a question about pursuing a career in airline or airport management. I was told by an aviation college that I would need to be a licensed pilot and have experience actually flying in order to have a better chance of getting a management job. I had never heard this before, and am wondering if it's true or just the college trying to get me to spend 60,000 on flight training with them. The reason I ask is because I have some medical issues that will disqualify me from even getting a PPL.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Start at an outstation smashing bags, then move on up. Get to a hub (the one that HQ is at eventually). Do what you want to do throughout your career. Take advancements when they come, get certifications when you can (can't hold a medical? Work hard and get sponsored for dispatching school).

Listen, learn, work hard. Be willing to move. Be eager to do the jobs that nobody else wants to do (yes, dumping lavs). Be GREAT at your job, learn the industry inside and out. Network. If you have your job on lock, try to learn what other people need to do for their jobs.

No, you don't need a pilot's license (unless you want to be a Chief Pilot or Director of Ops or any number of management pilots) but there are a TON of other important, fulfilling jobs out there. Though, just because you can't hold a medical doesn't mean you can't get a sport pilot license (I think??) and it DEFINITELY doesn't preclude you from taking lessons (I would encourage that regardless of what you want to do in your career). Those two things (sport pilot or lessons) probably aren't going to be big resume builders, but the fact that you can talk shop with someone who is maybe a pilot can't hurt in this industry. Also, if you ever get to the point where you're leading pilots (VP or something), the fact that you have a passion for flying and hold a certificate can help you build a rapport with the people you're leading.
 
You'd think that the path to airport management starts with cutting the grass.

But at every airport I took the time to learn the local scene, the job cutting the grass is the holiest of holies.

Apparently that job is handed down through the generations via some arcane ritual and ancient code.

Richman
 
Roger Roger said:
Well, for airline management you have to start by selling your soul. Airport management @Murdoughnut might be able to give some insight but as far as I can tell you have to be good at posing with female models and eating cake.
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Hey, it just seems that way because I never post photos of me going through a stack of binders for company's bidding to provide our long-term disability coverage, or cold calling various business owners ;)
 
Depends on what you want to do, and where you want to do it. For the most part, all of our operations staff have either an aviation management degree, or experience in education (military, FBO, etc.) Those of us who work in fields such as accounting, marketing, finance, planning & development, etc. typically built our careers in other areas before coming to airport management. Our concessions team is mostly comprised of former mall managers. Our communications team is entirely former newspaper reporters.

We're a large airport, though. Things run differently at small, regional airports, and at GA fields where an aviation background is more important.
 
Assuming you're going through undergrad, or about to, keep an eye out for management internships at the airlines. Southwest has a pretty strong program, for example, with slots in almost every department. Like any internship, a lot of hiring is done from these programs. Longer term, if you have an eye on C suite type stuff, get an MBA and target airline internships while doing that (typically revenue management, ops, etc). AA has traditionally had an MBA management development program where they take guys and put them through departmental rotations to groom career talent. The previous CEO of AA came up that way.

I guess you could try to do an end run like Willie Walsh at BA (he started as a line pilot at Aer Lingus), but you really want to be business focused for the most part.
 
Southwest has a pretty spectacular internship. I think it's competitive but you should really look into internships.
 
uavking said:
Assuming you're going through undergrad, or about to, keep an eye out for management internships at the airlines. Southwest has a pretty strong program, for example, with slots in almost every department. Like any internship, a lot of hiring is done from these programs. Longer term, if you have an eye on C suite type stuff, get an MBA and target airline internships while doing that (typically revenue management, ops, etc). AA has traditionally had an MBA management development program where they take guys and put them through departmental rotations to groom career talent. The previous CEO of AA came up that way.

I guess you could try to do an end run like Willie Walsh at BA (he started as a line pilot at Aer Lingus), but you really want to be business focused for the most part.
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This. The way to be a leader is to understand as many aspects of the business as possible. Pick up as much as you can about finance, marketing, operations, accounting, etc.
 
hook_dupin said:
This. The way to be a leader is to understand as many aspects of the business as possible. Pick up as much as you can about finance, marketing, operations, accounting, etc.
Click to expand...

Spot on. It cannot be stressed enough, you HAVE to know the industry backwards and forwards (yrtsudni, right??). As we all know, and @Murdoughnut pointed out, our industry spans across almost every other industry. On top of learning the specifics of our industry, you have to be a bit of a jack of all trades, or at least be able to speak intelligently across a broad spectrum of topics.
 
I work in airport operations at a small active GA airport so I can only speak for airport ops. You definitely don't need to be a pilot of any sort to work in airport ops. However, I think there may be a couple or few airports that prefer at least a private pilot's license but I think most airports don't require one. For me, I got a bachelors degree in aviation administration and used to take flying lessons but never got to solo. It never hurts to take some flying lessons and even if you're only just a student pilot, it will only help you out in understanding how the aviation system works.

As for medical issues, I learned a while back here on this board from others that if you work in airport ops, you would likely have to pass a pre-employment physical before you are formally selected for the job. For me, I never was required to take a physical for my current job but I think most airports do. The medical is not FAA-related and it is administered by the government (ie. city, county, airport authority, port authority) that the airport is operated under. I can't tell you if the physical is as strict as the FAA first or second class medical as I never got a physical for my job but in my opinion, it may be less stringent than an FAA medical.
 
Airport management absolutely does NOT require a pilots license. I work with the management at my home airport. It seems to be starting at the bottom (now we're here*ill stop) and working your way up is the way to go. If I were going to shoot for airport management I would do something like this;

Work on a management/business degree from an affordable college---->possibly continue into masters while avoid debt as much as I can. In the meantime, take a bottom rung crap job at the airport, anything to get your foot in the door. Fueling planes for the local FBO, whatever. You're working on your degree and getting real experience in an aviation business. I would also campaign like crazy to get into an internship. A lot of management offices offer internships to the local colleges and if they don't have one, contact them and your school to create one.

Pilots have it easy, our career progression is laid out nice and simple regional FO--->regional CA---->major FO----->major CA----->second divorce----->tell everyone how cool we are and regal them with stories of our day----->death.

Management you have to get creative.
 
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