PPL to Legacy in under 9 Years...

dasleben said:
Dood. We're the same age. If you start pushing for it now, you'll have 30+ good years. Moooore than enough, trust me.
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jtrain609 said:
So let me broaden what my fellow One Lister is talking about a little bit.

You will die, and soon. It may be tomorrow, it may be 70 years from now, obviously nobody knows.

But I have no intent of living my life where I have to look back and say, "Well...should I have?" So far, I don't have to. Am I saying it's easy? No, but I AM saying it's something I want to do.

So to illustrate this, let me tell two stories. The first one is @Derg's, and the second happened recently.

If I understand the issue properly, and BTW I take this line from Derg, Derg's father died reasonably young, in his 50's or early 60's. His attitude is that you never know when it's going to happen, so live your life as much as you can.

The other story is a friend of mine who recently died in an ice climbing accident. She was living in Utah, where we want to live, living the life we want to live, and pursuing a PhD in water sanitation (public health), helping those that couldn't help themselves. She died young, 30, but she died while LIVING, and it's the life that I want for me, my wife, and my daughter.

HOW you facilitate that is up to you, but don't half ass life, because it never lasts as long as we'd like.
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Thanks guys, I guess I should clarify that I don't regret my life thus far, I have a lot to be thankful for. 4 years of good Active Duty Army service, a great, healthy 6 year marriage thus far, an amazing 3 year old daughter who is the smartest thing I've ever seen, and a great, stable IT job working at a national laboratory...I guess my point is that I see the "greener" grass compared to guys my own age. I just wish I would have realized I had a passion for aviation a little earlier in life.

Thanks though for the pep talk, definitely helps me redefine priorities. (No, I don't really need that new 2013 Fusion I've been looking at...my '04 Korean land yacht is just fine.)
 
I was in high school in 1999 when I got paired up to play a round of golf with three United captains. We hit it off and they gave me a plan on how to get hired by United before I was 25.
-I did my private to cfi 2000-2002
-I flight instructed from 2003-2005
-I flew 135 freight from 2005-2006
-I've been stuck as an fo at a regional since 2006

13 years later I am 32 now. I try hard to stay positive and hope someday I will get a call from one of the many places I have apps in at.
 
Hootie said:
I was in high school in 1999 when I got paired up to play a round of golf with three United captains. We hit it off and they gave me a plan on how to get hired by United before I was 25.
-I did my private to cfi 2000-2002
-I flight instructed from 2003-2005
-I flew 135 freight from 2005-2006
-I've been stuck as an fo at a regional since 2006

13 years later I am 32 now. I try hard to stay positive and hope someday I will get a call from one of the many places I have apps in at.
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But you could hold Bro captain by now eh?
 
jtrain609 said:
But you could hold Bro captain by now eh?
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I could've held bro captain back at amf. I could've held rj captain at gojets as a street hire for the past 5 years. But yes I am considering capitulating to commute out of my domicile to get tpic, cause all the captains I fly with tell me that is when the limo finally shows up. You're a stuck regional fo, what's your plan?
 
Hootie said:
I could've held bro captain back at amf. I could've held rj captain at gojets as a street hire for the past 5 years. But yes I am considering capitulating to commute out of my domicile to get tpic, cause all the captains I fly with tell me that is when the limo finally shows up. You're a stuck regional fo, what's your plan?
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Use my soon to be granted degree to get into management at a legacy carrier.

:)

(I don't think TPIC will be required to get a job soon if you're well networked)

Also, take the upgrade, man. You'll find a way to deal with the commute, and maybe you'll find a way to base trade back to where you're living. They have a Bro base there, right?
 
Networking definitely helps, but for those who don't have any contacts, don't let a lack of TPIC scare you off from applying. I got hired at my current employer without any TPIC and without any recommendations. It can happen, so my advice is if you are interested and meet the minimums, always apply. Good luck!
 
dasleben said:
Well, at 29 I'm the snot-nosed kid in class. Perspective. :)
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Haha fair enough. I got hired to fly the 757/767 at your last carrier when I was 22, they had to give me the type rating on my commercial certificate and give me the ATP on the next recurrent. While I'm not at a major, that was getting PPL to a heavy jet in 5 years. Hoping to get a job at a major in the next year though and I think it's realistic. Never know, but we'll see!
 
falconvalley said:
Did I miss something? IanJ asking about a 121 flying career. It feels like 2006 all over again. Anybody have any info on AirNet?? 8D
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I almost wish I had a prize to give you.

But no, not about me, brother. I've never had a PPL.
 
My company has been hiring a bunch of 25, 26, and 27 year olds who have been flying for less than 9 years into the right seat of A330 and B777s for the last few years. We also have many captains who are in their early 30s. That's a foreign airline though.

As for the original question. I went from PPL in 1982 to hired by a legacy in 1989, seven years.

Routing was this:

PPL = Some time mid 82 ( age 17 )
CFI = 84
CFII = 85
MEI = 86
CFI ed full time for last two years of college
Graduated College and started at commuter = June 88 and July 88
Upgrade at Commuter in 7 months, 500 PIC turbine was the magic number back then so,
Hired by legacy ( USAir ) = October 89


I have a friend who was hired by Piedmont ( the original one ) in 1978 at the age of 21. He was a captain there by 1981 at the age of 24.

The fast route takes some sacrifice. One needs to be focused on the objective and not get distracted by certain elements of life. Not to say you can't enjoy life. On the contrary, I'd say that period from 1984 to 1989 was some of the most enjoyable times of my life. However one must stay lean and be willing to move for the right opportunities.


Typhoonpilot
 
Private at 17-January 1999

B747-400 FO at CX at 25-August 2007


Hard work helped but luck and timing more than anything.

I was hired at Comair and put in the hiring pool in 2004. Had a friend get me an interview at CHQ while I waited.

Ended up at CHQ, CA in 24 months. If I had gone to Comair, I never would have upgraded and who knows.

I feel the worst for guys that worked just as hard and for no fault have struggled in their career progression.

Enjoy the ride along the way.
 
Just over 8 yrs for me
PPL- Oct 99
IFR- Jun 2001
CSEL- Oct 2001
CFI- Dec 2001
CMEL- Oct 2002

NWA- Mar 2008

I did all of my training except for the PPL at a part 61 flying club.
 
PPL-97
A+P-97
IFR-97
CSEL CMEL 98
CFII MEI 99
XJT-01
(unpaid vacation from XJT thanks to 9/11)
G4-11

It's a lot of luck, I'm not sure I'll ever make it to major at this time. Everyone in this industry works hard and sometimes the stars align to get you to a major and sometimes they don't.
 
Dan208B said:
Haha fair enough. I got hired to fly the 757/767 at your last carrier when I was 22, they had to give me the type rating on my commercial certificate and give me the ATP on the next recurrent. While I'm not at a major, that was getting PPL to a heavy jet in 5 years. Hoping to get a job at a major in the next year though and I think it's realistic. Never know, but we'll see!
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I wish I could be that lucky!
 
[quote="typhoonpilot, post: 2049570, member: 3020"
The fast route takes some sacrifice. One needs to be focused on the objective and not get distracted by certain elements of life. Not to say you can't enjoy life. On the contrary, I'd say that period from 1984 to 1989 was some of the most enjoyable times of my life. However one must stay lean and be willing to move for the right opportunities.


Typhoonpilot[/quote]

This right here is probably the best advice for someone who is looking to make a career in aviation. You have to be willing to make major sacrifices, put everything else on the back burner, and move wherever you need to in order to make it to the top tier aviation jobs. Work your butt off, network like crazy, and do whatever is necessary to get where you want to go career wise.
 
I kinda took my time getting my ratings. Got my PPL in 2002 and my IR in 2004 since I didn't want to take out the loans for it. I wound up saying "Screw it" and took out the loan because I was tired of going no where in 2005. So, I kinda count that as my start point. Hired by jetBlue (not a legacy, but my #1 choice none the less) in 2012, so right around 7 years there.
 
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