Re: From AOPA
On Friday I saw the story of Pan Am closing the FPR campus on the local news so I guess I should post what I know.
The instructors were told of the closing last Monday around 2:00 in the afternoon. Most of us were out flying or at lunch, and didn't hear about it until we ran into our co-workers. When I was told by two other instructors I thought it was a joke. I think I was more upset by the way the news was delivered. The students found out the same day at a student meeting at 4:00. The FPR campus is closing, and they are going to move everything to the DVT campus. The closing should be complete by the end of July.
So here's the deal for instructors:
Pan Am is going to combine each of the two locations seniority lists into one list.
Then they are going to meet with each instructor individualy to determine his/her future.
I have already recieved an offer letter to continue teaching in the HAU/Korean Airlines program at DVT. The students will move at times that make sense, such as my class will go in three months when they finish their instrument training. Other classes will go at similar times during breaks in their training. Talk is Pan Am is going to pay for moving the instructors, but that is not written in stone yet.
For students:
Regular domestic students have a similar option, depending where they are in their training. In order to encourage these students to stay at Pan Am and move to DVT, Pan Am is offering discounts on the remainder of their training. Something like 10%.(or more Im not sure) If the student does not want to move, they can leave the program, without any penalty. (no $2000 fine for leaving)
Brand new CFI's waiting for students are in the worst shape. They will be at the bottom of the seniority list, which means a long wait for students, and they have very low times, which means a hard time finding another instructing job.
I think the reason for the closure doesn't really matter. They gave the reason as being "fear of future hurricanes". We were hit hard, but we recovered. I've never heard of a business making decisions based on such a variable long range weather forcast. And if so, why didn't they think of this when they built the place? There must be something more to the reason, but we will never know, so I have just accepted the reality of it. To play devil's advocate with myself, Pan Am is going to continue to pay the lease on the buildings, and from what I hear the lease doesn't expire for another 12 years! So maybe they really are afraid of the tropical cyclones.
The reason why Pan Am is still rebuilding after the hurricanes even though they are leaving is simple. Admin at this campus did not make the decision to close it. All they knew was to continue the rebuilding process. Besides, Pan Am doesn't own the building, so they probably didn't have a choice.
How this affects me can change with the decisions I make in the next month or two. Pan Am says that FPR is now the "primary campus" for job placement with the airlines. Piedmont and Eagle will be visiting the FPR campus "sometime soon". That is if you want a job there. And from what I hear, a lot of CFI's would rather wait, build more time and go somewhere a little better. I can do the same, move to DVT, finish my students out, and in 6 months from now I will have about 1400 hours and 300 multi. Or I could try to get on with Piedmont or Eagle with a lot less time. It is such a crap shoot who you try to work for, but you can make an educated decision and hope for the best.
It's kinda funny how things work out. My Dad worked for Pan American Airways in Miami. In the mid 70's (1976?) Pan Am decided to move HQ from Miami to New York. After 24 years of service they told my Dad in order to keep his job, he had to move with them. With 5 kids and a house he didn't want to move so he got the pink slip. You'd think I'd learn?
