I was looking over ATP’s website again under their airline placement tap. While some students finished around the 24 month mark as advertised, there were also many students who were in the 28+ month range by the time they officially started with their regional. While there are various factors that can lead to an extended amount of time to earn hours, why do you guys think that so many people don’t finish in 24 months?
I bring this up because I, like everyone else, am not looking forward to the loan. If I spend 4 more months than necessary training/instructing, that just increases my financial burden with all the interest accumulating without a livable income inflow.
I graduate in April with my degree in Actuarial Science and am conflicted on whither I should jump right into flight school (because seniority is everything), or go work for a few years so I can minimize my loan.
Any advice or guidance is greatly appreciated. As always, thanks for all the help y’all provide.
Do the math. You complete your training with approx. 250hrs. That leaves 1250hrs to make 1500. The average ATP instructor flies approx. 75hrs a month. So 1250/70 = 17 mos + 9mos = 26 mos. So that’s the average. Go a month over on training, you’re at 27mos. Have a few months instructing where you under you have to add time, fly more (weekends) you subtract. This is not an exact science. Weather, examiner availability, student availability, etc can all affect your time.
Btw, most instructors find ATPs pay with the Tuition Reimbursement a “livable income”.
There are a whole host of reasons that people take longer than 24 months to get to an airline. Weather, personal delays, examiner delays, training date availability at the airlines, etc. Quite honestly, some people work harder than others. Some work at locations that get more hours, some people work weekends when others do not. Also, airlines do not always have classes starting each week. Many airlines do not hire new pilots in the summer as they are using the instructors out on the line to fly the busy summer schedules.
You could wait a few years to minimize your loan, but know that you could be greatly reducing your income potential over your career.