The professional pilot career has MUCH TO OFFER — good pay,
benefits, and working conditions. Flying is a respected profession — like law, medicine,
and engineering. Demand for pilots will only increase in the years ahead.
While most pilots find flying to be enjoyable and financially
rewarding, not everyone is well suited to the demands of this profession.
If you'd like to see if this career is a good
fit for you, keep reading.
This career has high expectations, including:
One example of a high standard: Being late for a scheduled flight can cost you your job.
It encourages instructors to help pilots learn what’s needed
to successfully complete the course.
Caution: Pilots
who are NOT willing to put-in the effort needed to acquire the knowledge and
skills the profession demands will be quickly dismissed from most training
programs.
Three recent studies found that over 50% of the licensed
pilots who applied to an EU regional carrier were not even fit to interview while over 50% of the licensed pilots who were hired by U.S. regional airlines
were not well-prepared to enter the airlines’ Pilot Indoctrination and
Type Rating courses.
Too many trainers spend most of their time teaching the
tests and checkrides while giving little attention to the course material pilots
need for their early career flying.
Only the best programs address turbine aircraft and
high-altitude operations that begin to prepare you for the airlines. That said,
Pilots with basic knowledge of those subjects have an employment advantage.
With that in mind, keep reading to find out how
to pursue this rewarding career.
Contact all four of the organizations below for their recommendations.
They are unbiased, non-commercial, and offer excellent guidance to everyone:
Get a 1st Class Aviation Medical Exam from an FAA-approved physician. Why a 1st Class medical? Because it will be required if you want to fly for an airline.
If you fail the physical, you'll have saved a lot of money on airline-level training you might never use.
The cost of pilot training for cadets -- not including living expenses
Courses cost between $80,000 and $150,000 (USD) — plus living expenses.
WIAI frequently publishes articles on how pilots have paid for their training.
The bottom line is: If you need financial assistance, search and apply for it.
U.S. high school students interested in a flying career now have a unique and exciting opportunity to learn about aviation through a program sponsored by the U.S. Air Force:
The best reference sources for learning what college programs offer are AABI (Aviation Accreditation Board International) and the UAA (University Aviation Association).