Hello, I’m 24 and as of right now I work as a heavy equipment mechanic. Right now I’m looking into ATP flight school. I have multiple questions that I’m concerned about and hoping that you all can give me guidance in which you all believe would be the best choice. First question is I saw that there is a special physical for aviation, if so how struck is it and what are the biggest things that I should be concerned about possibly improving (if need be) before doing such? Second if I was to go through ATP and then say want to go fly for ups what would be the difference in flight requirements? Third those of you that have gone through ATP when working as an instructor did you have another job to work as another source of income and how flexible is APT in the sense of working with you in that? I have many more questions, but as if now those are My main concern. Thank you everyone for your feedback
Benjamin,
I recommend you spend some time looking at our FAQs and reading through the site but here are some quick answers:
-
The FAA requires airline pilots to obtain a First Class medical. They will check your vision, hearing and take a urine sample. More so they will ask for a VERY DETAILED medical history and yes it’s strict. If you have any concerns I recommend you contact an AME (Aviation Medical Examiner) in you area and ask them specifically or do some Googling.
-
ALL airlines in the US have the same license and rating requirements. That said UPS is one of the top Major airlines in the world and only hires pilots with THOUSANDS of hours and years of experience. ATP will train you to obtain an entry level position with a Regional airline (after you build the required time), after that it’s up to you.
-
ATP is a full-time job and is not flexible at all with you working elsewhere. You cannot.
Adam
Benjamin,
The FAA can be very strict on their medical exams. What they are looking for is really too much to detail here, you will need to take the medical exam and discuss any concerns with your FAA doctor.
UPS is one of the top jobs in the industry, it is extremely competitive to land a job there. You would need to spend many years flying for a regional airline before even applying to a place like UPS.
You will not be able to work a second job while instructing for ATP. The job demands are simply too much and require a great deal of flexibility. Your students will need you to be flexible, particularly as weather plays a huge role in aviation.
Chris
For my next question, Does ATP help find job placement? (Other than an instructor) If so what steps do they go though to insure job placement? How successful is the employment rate after completing APT flight school as a student and as an instructor?
Benjamin,
Not sure if you’ve heard but the WORLD is experiencing a major pilot shortage. The Regionals can’t find enough bodies to fill their classes. Most of ATPs instructors are receiving conditional offers of employment at 500hrs, long before they’re even in a position to be hired. The Regionals are coming to ATP and actively recruiting. Complete the training successfully, build your time and you will get hired.
Adam
I appreciate you all’s answer. So what’s the down sides of being a pilot? How does scheduling work for flights? What’s the most annoying thing new pilots do?
Benjamin,
Everybody’s experience with being a pilot is different, but for me the downside is being on the rode so much. That being said I have way more days off than anybody else that I know and also enjoy my job far more.
I am not sure exactly what you are asking about scheduling for flights, but I can tell you that everything is bid in seniority order and that seniority determines everything, from vacation and days off, to which particular flights you end up flying.
I find most of our new pilots to be great, but if I had to pick something it would be new pilots that don’t want to listen to experience and think that they new everything. To be clear though, this is by far the exception.
Chris
Benjamin,
For me the most annoying thing any pilot does is complain. I’m here to do my job, do it well and enjoy it as much as I can. Some pilots have allowed themselves to become bitter about things they have no control over. The nice part is the scheduling system my company uses allows first officers to avoid pairings with up to two captains.
Downsides to the profession varies person to person. It’s how you handle it is what makes all the difference.
Tory
Benjamin,
I have the greatest job on Earth and my complaints at this stage of my career are nil. When you’re starting out you may find your schedule to be less than great and the pay may require some sacrifice but other than that life is good.
As for annoying my #1 (and really only peeve) is a bad attitude which manifests itself with what both Chris and Tory said. If a new guy is a little rough skill wise that can be worked on but a bad attitude is a problem. I hate to make sweeping indictments of any group but its usually the younger guys. Many seem to think they should be Capt on Day 1 and aren’t happy about that and also believe since they’re so “awesome” they have nothing to learn. Neither makes for a fun day. Fortunately as Chris said that’s the minority but unfortunately it does exist.
Adam
So would you all recommend atp flight school to become a commercial airline pilot? Also what are the down sides of atp?
Benjamin,
All the mentors on this forum are former successful ATP grads and instructors. If you look at the top of this forum you’ll clearly see the ATP logo as this is ATP’s forum. While we all do our best to provide honest unbiased opinions I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was partial to the program and yes I believe there is no better route to a pilot career then ATP.
I don’t believe there’s any downside to the program. The biggest compliant is that the program is VERY accelerated and the pace is incredibly fast. Students sometimes have trouble keeping up. The problem is if a person doesn’t think they can keep up with ATP’s training pace (which was modeled after actual airline training) what makes them believe they could pass airline training and be an airline pilot?
Adam
So generally speaking I understand that cost could vary but what would a ball park number be on cost.
Benjamin,
Actually no, the cost of ATP doesn’t vary (that’s one of the benefits of the program). The price is guaranteed. For details see here: https://atpflightschool.com/airline-career-pilot-program/
Adam
So looking at jobs that are hiring out of curiosity, alot of them require a bachelor’s degree. Would I have to aquire that on top of atp?
Benjamin,
At the regional level? No. At the major level? Yes. It doesn’t have to be aviation specific. Any 4 year degree is fine. You can get your degree at an in person college campus or online. We recommend getting the degree first before flight training, but if you want to postpone it, wait to get it until you are at a regional. You won’t have time to do both during flight training or as a CFI.
Tory
So in your opinion what would be the ideal degree to obtain for the aviation feild, as in what would be the most beneficial?
That is up to you my friend. These are big boy decisions. Whatever degree you want to fall back on.
Tory
For the regionals, you will not need a bachelor’s degree. For the majors, you will.
Really, any degree will do. Thanks would suggest choosing something that you are interested in and could see yourself doing as a job, just in case.
So I could get a bachelor’s in liberal arts and thats would be fine? (Liberal arts ina joking matter)