Aloha Pilots!, first off THANK YOU ALL for taking the time to answer questions!.
Say I reach the 1500 hours, how likely would it be to get hired by a regional? and if hired by a regional, how is the training for it, would you consider it very tough? do people not pass training. Ill be honest I dont consider myself the worlds smartest guy, nor am I great at math, but I do have a passion to fly.
Adam the man at Hawaiian! BTW I have a couple of friends who fly for Hawaiian and you may know them!!!
I know there are no Guarantees at all, but its been my DREAM to fly the 717s for Hawaiian Air, however id be contempt even landing a job as a King Air Medvac Pilot, or making a career at Ohana by Hawaiian, or even flying for Aloha Air Cargo, or Trans Air.
There are many variables that determine whether a person gets hired or not. If you do well in training and are an affable person you should be fine. Pilot hiring, like many things, is often a matter of supply and demand. When I started years ago, things were rather flat. There was some need but not alot so many people got hired and many did not. Just before the pandemic there was a huge pilot shortage and everyone got hired. To quote a friend of mine in hiring at a Regional “if you have 1500hrs and a pulse we’ll hire you”. Everyone agrees that once things settle down we’ll be hiring like that again. I think the shortage will be worse and getting hired should be no problem. In fact they’ll be fighting over you.
With that you bring up an excellent point. While getting hired may be easy, getting through newhire training is not. It’s very challenging and yes people do washout. In fact with the pilot shortage the failure rates did as well since the bar had been lowered to get the bodies. As for being smart, while you definitely need some level of intelligence, flying airplanes is not rocket science. In my experience the reason for failures is more a matter of not working hard enough vs smarts. That for me is the biggest reason to train with ATP. ATP was created by airline pilots to train airline pilots. There’s a great deal of self study and pressure to maintain a rapid pace and keep up. Many ask well what if I can’t? I can tell you if you can’t keep up with ATPs program you most likely will not at the airlines. Most flight schools will let you take as long as you want or are comfortable with (as long as you keep paying). That’s great for them but creates an unrealistic level of comfort that does not exist at the airlines. ATP helps to prepare you for what’s ahead.
As for Hawaiian I’m a union rep so I pretty much know everybody. Work hard and you’ll get there too.
That is a question that is really difficult to answer. Much of it depends on you, some of it does not. Do you have a clean record? Do you have a clean FAA record? Any check ride busts? Do you interview well? How is the industry doing at the time? Are you very specific in who you want to work for and where? All of those answers could greatly affect your outcome.
Training at the airlines can be rather tough, that is why it is so important to select a flight school that will properly prepare you for such. Find a flight school that has a focus on airline style training and you will be better prepared. For the record, I consider myself to be of average intelligence and I am horrible at math, but I figured it out.
Hiring has resumed at most if not all airlines. Alaska and Horizon (where I work) just announced their purchases of new aircraft. Alaska is notorious for being very conservative in their decision making. So, to see them make this announcement is a good indicator that the industry is recovering from the pandemic. That said, if you have the time there’s a good chance you’ll be hired at a regional.
New hire training is very hard, but completing ATP’s program was harder. People do wash out of training. I don’t know the rate. Best advice I can give is to show up with sharp instrument knowledge and a strong work ethic. Join a study group or make one and find a mentor.
Harold,
The industry is starting to show great signs of recovery. If this continues the demand for pilots will only increase. With that being said, interviews can be very tough and the initial training even tougher. Many do wash out but the best thing you can do it focus on making yourself the strongest student you can through flight school. Go to a program that trains professional pilots like ATP. It’s a tough program but surprise, it’s supposed to be to prepare you for what’s to come. Develop a strong work ethic, good study habits and be successful at each checkride as it comes. Find a mentor, develop your networking and interview skills and with a little bit of luck… you’ll get that first interview and the opportunity to take that next step in your career. The ball is in your court.