Re: Where\'s everyone going?
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727 Do you honestly think that Comair or any other airline for that matter would hire someone that didn't have the qualifications. The only thing that DCA did was get them the interview...The interview for them is no different than it would be for someone with 5000 hrs. They make it on their own merit, knowledge and skill...and they alone are the ones who get the jobs for themselves...the academy just gets them the interview. Now if a program gets a person ready to succeed in that interview which is the same for everyone and they happen to do it in a low amount of time then what's wrong with that. Not a thing. DCA got them ready quickly and the instructor received the knowledge and training to satisfy the regional. So the "program" thing you say is not true. The program gets them to the door but the job isn't a part of it...the applicant has to do that on their own just like anyone else..so they earn eveything they get...if they can do that with lower time congrats to them...just because you did it another way doesn't mean you deserved that first job more than someone who goes through the academy with low time. Until you actually go to SFB or a meeting or a tour then all of your banter seems trivial to me. You talk about informing the newbee but why not go down their if you are so passionate about it and open all our eyes. Until you do that you do nothing more than speculate. You say you don't want to waste your time but I say you don't want to find out that maybe they don't put an evil spin on things like you think. Saddle up and put your money where your mouth is.
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abcd, you've completely missed the point. Of course DCA grads take the same FAA checkrides and have the same interviews as non-grads. DE727 isn't saying that they're bad pilots and they only got the FO job because they went through the program and paid for the interview. His point (he can correct me if I'm wrong) is that DCA uses slick marketing and the Delta name to convince prospective pilots this is the quickest and best way to an airline job, which it is clearly not, and it comes with a hefty price tag of $65k-95k. The guaranteed interview thing is down right silly IMO. With the amount of pilots the regionals have been hiring, it was just as easy to get an interview with ASA, Skywest, etc. coming from some small fbo as it was for the DCA grads. You also suggest DE727 should put his money where his mouth is and fly down to Sanford to check out the operation? What in the hell for? It's a flight school, I mean academy (part of the slick marketing), nothing more. They're on an airport, they have some planes (old, crappy ones I might add), some FTDs, a flight store, classrooms, etc. So what? DCA does absolutely nothing special that warrants a trip there. If you are happy with your training there, feel the cost is justified, and aren't worried about your financial future when you're done (assuming you took a loan out for it), then by all means continue. I on the other hand will continue to encourage other prospective students to really focus their flight school search on schools that promote quality training at competitive prices. It was sad talking with some instructors there that are in there early 20's, no degree, with $100k-$120k in total debt (not just flight training) while making $10/hr. Yeah, sure, they still might make it to the airlines, but some will end up ruining themselves financially in the process.