Plus, he's got an epic moustache.
Transpac Aviation NOT CFI friendly anymore
- Thread starter The_Duke182
- Start date
Plus, he's got an epic moustache.
The_Duke182
Well-Known Member
So for the month of Feb they had 2 new CFI's in standarization. Well it was 3 but 1 didnt show after the first day. Ha!
kryan11
Well-Known Member
They're doing biweekly classes now. Most recent class has 5. So if you want to start adding for the month, you have to add two classes now. January class had 13. Also, a CFI who quit 8 months ago to go fly "jets" just came back to Transpac to instruct again with 1600 hours. He said the jets aren't that shiny and he missed teaching at Transpac.
In other words, he was fired, or the airplane was sold.
Everyone I've known who has gone to work at a pilot mill like TransPac has wanted out as soon as someone else would hire them. The schedule sucks, the flying sucks, and the students are hard to deal with.
tcco94
Future GTA VI Pilot
Transpac is not the place to go to be a lifetime instructor. I mean they literally told my class when I got hired a few years ago that once you hit 5 years here, you want out. (That's to those who can even make it that long)
Class managers are making lower than first year regional pay now and that's AFTER you get checked out for everything. Nobody wants a desk job and those who do sacrifice flying hours....for what? You don't need that on your resume, you need the hours. Team leaders make more money but still the excuse for QOL makes no sense considering you can get jobs flying locally in PHX and be home at night for a better lifestyle.
A lot of the lifers who do work there typically do it for the extra money on the side as well as their other flying jobs. I mean let's be honest here, it's a stepping stone flight school for everyone. Management clean house swapped before I left (for better HR positions), maintenance is entry level (until they can move up to better jobs) and flight instructors get the worst end of the stick with hours and pay (to move on in life)...that's why the company is geared around promotions for getting you in and out as fast as possible. Even they know it and that's the model they want.
Anyone denying that is literally drinking some company kool-aid....which honestly is probably poison if you can't see the writing on the wall....literally.
Class managers are making lower than first year regional pay now and that's AFTER you get checked out for everything. Nobody wants a desk job and those who do sacrifice flying hours....for what? You don't need that on your resume, you need the hours. Team leaders make more money but still the excuse for QOL makes no sense considering you can get jobs flying locally in PHX and be home at night for a better lifestyle.
A lot of the lifers who do work there typically do it for the extra money on the side as well as their other flying jobs. I mean let's be honest here, it's a stepping stone flight school for everyone. Management clean house swapped before I left (for better HR positions), maintenance is entry level (until they can move up to better jobs) and flight instructors get the worst end of the stick with hours and pay (to move on in life)...that's why the company is geared around promotions for getting you in and out as fast as possible. Even they know it and that's the model they want.
Anyone denying that is literally drinking some company kool-aid....which honestly is probably poison if you can't see the writing on the wall....literally.
The_Duke182
Well-Known Member
The thing is the place was a great place to work at up until January when all the changes took place. They understand CFI's are getting their hours and moving on but they are treating us bad. Not worth it when so many other places around the Phoenix area are treating their people right.
http://www.inc.com/oscar-raymundo/richard-branson-companies-should-put-employees-first.html
http://www.inc.com/oscar-raymundo/richard-branson-companies-should-put-employees-first.html
The_Duke182
Well-Known Member
By the way
They used to pay out your $5000 bonus once u pass PPL standarization, this is NOT the case anymore. Now you get $2500 and 6 months later the other $2500. This tells people were there for a couple months then going elsewhere.
They used to pay out your $5000 bonus once u pass PPL standarization, this is NOT the case anymore. Now you get $2500 and 6 months later the other $2500. This tells people were there for a couple months then going elsewhere.
kryan11
Well-Known Member
Yep, they know it's a stepping stone job, and it's one of the quickest ways to make it to the airlines. There aren't very many other opportunities out there where the students only fly solo for 10 hours, and the rest with an instructor. Try that at most other flights schools and every one of the students would leave. It's just funny that there's people who are trying to sink the ship that they're sailing on. Overall a lot of CFIs are very lucky to have such an opportunity to get their hours so quickly, that's why people are still there.
As far as lifers, there are plenty of people who have spent more than a decade of their lives trying to make Transpac a better place for everyone. It's most apparent in the maintenance program. It's superb. I am consistently impressed with the level of detail that goes into those airplanes. There's a reason why Piper has used Transpac for their R&D and even used their DERs in their own designs. Safety and maintenance should be the number one priority for anyone looking for a "CFI Friendly" place to work.
tcco94
Future GTA VI Pilot
I feel like this thread is just beating a dead horse. Some of the changes do sound like they suck but honestly TransPac is desperately trying to just make money. What do you expect? The last owners were treating the company miserably, no funding, and wanted to dump them so badly. Obviously the new owners want to cut drastically, but it's not earth shattering to the instructors.
Be honest with yourself, TransPac does everything they can to be employee first. Sometimes making changes will affect that. They will protect you as long as you do it the right way and they do take care of their employees. They do their job of getting you hours. Complaining about the pay and work rules though just tells me you failed to do your research. I mean it's like going to Mesa and a few months in complaining you're the lowest pay, worst QOL airline???? Well why did you go there then? Westwind, CAE and ATP will happily pay you more and QOL will be much better. You'll still have to work harder to get the 120 hour months with night/x-country time TransPac gets you in IFR.
Pick your poison. This thread is over. Really all this thread did was identify what working at TransPac is about. If you came for the QOL, not the right move.
Be honest with yourself, TransPac does everything they can to be employee first. Sometimes making changes will affect that. They will protect you as long as you do it the right way and they do take care of their employees. They do their job of getting you hours. Complaining about the pay and work rules though just tells me you failed to do your research. I mean it's like going to Mesa and a few months in complaining you're the lowest pay, worst QOL airline???? Well why did you go there then? Westwind, CAE and ATP will happily pay you more and QOL will be much better. You'll still have to work harder to get the 120 hour months with night/x-country time TransPac gets you in IFR.
Pick your poison. This thread is over. Really all this thread did was identify what working at TransPac is about. If you came for the QOL, not the right move.
Maximilian_Jenius
Super User
Funny is trying to get a call in edgewise on the CGZ CTAF at ~0100 with 2 or 3 Mesquite callsigns on frequency with their CFIs griping about this or that with the school, schedule, pay, etc. I sure learn a lot about the problems there firsthand.
The call sign Mesquite, I hear is only supposed to be used around KDVT. Because their call sign isn't recognized outside the boundaries of KDVT by the FAA. When outside the boundaries of KDVT, they're supposed to use the planes numbers as a call sign.
All this according to my instructor.
They use it down there and around there. Griping about how they're the only flight school having to be flying at 1am lol.
Maximilian_Jenius
Super User
They're teaching instrument students at that hour.
Yeah i can tell that from them being in the stack and such. But sounds like they're the only valley flight school working at that hour, based on the commentary haha.
Maximilian_Jenius
Super User
I'm frequently there in the mornings, when I fly. That place is busy. It's the only useable ILS in the Phoenix area. It can get really scary and crazy busy down there at times.
Karnage
I-am-a-pirate. I do not need credentials!
Is that guy with the Spitfire still practicing intercepts and near fly-bys of planes in the stack while talking to no one? Gave me a fair amount of heart burn when teaching instrument students and being unable to get a word in over the damned TIS constantly yelling "traffic" in my ears.
Bear
Well-Known Member
In 2017, is this now the principle route / source for commercial pilot positions?
The_Duke182
Well-Known Member
Funny is trying to get a call in edgewise on the CGZ CTAF at ~0100 with 2 or 3 Mesquite callsigns on frequency with their CFIs griping about this or that with the school, schedule, pay, etc. I sure learn a lot about the problems there firsthand.
Look at that .. and I thought it was just me haaaaa
tcco94
Future GTA VI Pilot
No it's actually in the system as Mesquite nationwide by the FAA. Even our flight plans were filed MSQT. We used to be TransFlight which was just an agreement with PHX but they wanted a real call sign so they applied and somehow got that.
https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Notice/N_JO_7340_345_eastern_breezy_angel_med.pdf
Maximilian_Jenius
Super User
Sounds like my flight instructor got it backwards. And was talking about TransFlight, confusing it with the newer call sign Mesquite.