Where do I start?

[WacoFan]

Another quick question, do y'all recommend attending a dedicated aviation university or pursuing a standard college degree while completing flight training on the side? I know that an FAA-approved aviation degree offers R-ATP eligibility, which lowers the requirement to 1,000 hours. This is a good way to reach the airlines sooner. However, I also want a solid backup plan in case life happens. I feel that a degree in Engineering or Economics offers better career security outside of flying compared to a specialized aviation degree. Is the speed of the R-atp worth the trade-off in degree versatility?

If you absolutely do it right and have the means, I could see you having your CFI by the time you start college, or soon thereafter (or if long, maybe do a skip year after HS to finish flying thru CFI). Then, you could be flight instructing and various time building as a job while you attend college. Then the ATP-R would be irrelevant because you'd have plenty of time logged by the time you graduated and I imagine would be far more impressive to a hiring board than a minimum time academy type.

 

[Kingairer]

If you absolutely do it right and have the means, I could see you having your CFI by the time you start college, or soon thereafter (or if long, maybe do a skip year after HS to finish flying thru CFI). Then, you could be flight instructing and various time building as a job while you attend college. Then the ATP-R would be irrelevant because you'd have plenty of time logged by the time you graduated and I imagine would be far more impressive to a hiring board than a minimum time academy type.

That would be a very steep hill to climb. Cant even do your commercial until 18. Trying to meet those requirements, swim, and do CFI all while trying to graduate high school, yikes, dont forget to enjoy life a little bit. Just get on the track and youll be fine. Go to the University where theres a progression of CFIs who will leave as soon as school is over. You get guaranteed students to fly with, no stress. Lots of ways to go about this, but dont forget to have some fun doing other things along the way.

 

[Shiftace]

I’m definitely looking into it, but my concern is that if something were to happen, like losing my medical or if life takes a different turn, I wouldn’t want to end up with an Aviation Management degree (Unsure if any 141 programs do regular degrees) from a 141 program that might limit my career options. I’m just thinking ahead and want to make sure I have backup plans in place. I'm still looking into it as of now and reaching out to coaches for the recruiting season that's coming up to see what my options look like, one of the Usafa Coaches had reached out to my team coach inquiring on a couple kids from my team including me so my parents want me to consider that. Thank you all for the advice!

I think you would be fine as long as you have a degree. We have students who graduated with a flight degree that are working in sales/demo pilot roles at places like Textron (owner of Beechcraft and Cessna). Some do airport management and the like. Others are working as drone operators. Working as an instructor pilot at Flight Safety/CAE is an option.

Aviation is a big enough industry that you can find something. Don't worry too much about losing the medical - and life **will** throw some curve balls at you. Get those ratings and get those hours while you can.

I say all of this as someone who has no aviation degrees at all. Having a degree does make a difference; but how you network and apply yourself is the bigger piece.

 

[CFIT99]

Another quick question, do y'all recommend attending a dedicated aviation university or pursuing a standard college degree while completing flight training on the side? I know that an FAA-approved aviation degree offers R-ATP eligibility, which lowers the requirement to 1,000 hours. This is a good way to reach the airlines sooner. However, I also want a solid backup plan in case life happens. I feel that a degree in Engineering or Economics offers better career security outside of flying compared to a specialized aviation degree. Is the speed of the R-atp worth the trade-off in degree versatility?

Again awesome questions...

a few thoughts in a nutshell:

1. Go to college and get it something that you enjoy AND is marketable. As someone who has an Aviation degree, yes I get to check a box but it's range of "grandeur" doesn't extend past that. Also you never know when/if aviation doesn't work out and you end up somewhere else other than a pilot (FTR, that might mean, maintenance, ATC, airport management, etc)

2. NETWORKING, this is vastly more important than getting the degree(in terms of job acceptance). While the degree is a prerequisite, networking is what gets you noticed. I've had 14 flying jobs before I got to my dream legacy and ALL of them (except one) was acquired because I knew someone that helped me. Remember this is an extremely small industry (~120,000 professional pilots, compared to the field of doctors and lawyers, that's a fraction). I still run across pilots that I haven't seen in over a decade.

3. Lastly, SLOW DOWN AND ENJOY THE RIDE. Meaning don't worry about getting to the airlines as fast as possible. Burnout and the next career slow down will challenge your motivation. And there's no quicker way to leave this industry than a derailed career projection.

Remember the average new hire age at a Legacy is around 40, (don't use the last 5 years as the norm because it most definitely isn't.)

Good Luck!