When you were in ATP did you ever fly into major airports? Also when visiting the location for the first time, did you bring your own headset for the flight?
Dan,
Biggest airports I ever flew into with ATP was Huntsville Intl, RDU and NE Philly but Iām sure itās been done. No headset required but if you want to bring your own sure.
Adam
Dan,
I routinely flew into RDU, RIC and ORF when I was a student and an instructor at ATP, that was about as big as it got. Needless to say, we avoided places like EWR and ORD.
Chris
I know this may be somewhat of a weird question to ask but when a flight in delayed or cancelled due to various reasons such as snow, storms, etc, how are hotels paid, and per diem affected for and all since the flight was not able to be completed? In addition, what happens with the next part of a trip if a pilot was due to work in a different location the next day and was not able to get to that location?
Dan,
Not a weird question at all. There are a few answers. If the flight is cancelled before you actually leave base you go home. You still get paid for the trip but obviously not the per diem because you never left. If you get stuck elsewhere the per diem clock keeps running and scheduling needs to find the crew accommodations. As for the balance of the trip it depends? More times than not another crew will be brought in or one thatās at the destination might be swapped. Thatās the back office stuff and they usually do a good job mitigating the effects.
Adam
Dan,
That is not a strange question at all. Our hotels are paid on a monthly contract basis, so they are taken care of whether we show up or not.
As for us, we are paid the original value of the trip or the greater amount if we end up flying more. For example, if I have a 20 hour trip and two flights of it cancel and we only fly 16 hours I still get paid for the full 20. If we end up flying 22 hours for some reason we get paid the full 22 hours, this is called āscheduled or betterā.
If the trip is broken up due to a cancellation or delay the airline uses reserve pilots to cover it and the other pilots are either reassigned to some other flying or released to go home.
Scheduling at an airline can be rather complex. I have a great deal of respect for our schedulers, it isnāt always an easy job for them.
Chris
Did you all keep your CFIās once you got into the airlines also? I heard some do and some didnāt.
I have but Iād say most donāt. I worked hard for those puppies!
Adam
I have also kept my CFI certificates current, they are relatively easy to maintain, but were sure hard to get.
Whats involved with keeping CFIās once done instructing and working with the airlines?
The most common method is a CFI Refresher course that you can take either in person or online every 2 years. However the local FAA sometimes interpret the FARs differently which can give you some other options. When I was an instructor at ExpressJet the FAA allowed me to simply present my training records as proof I was still actively an instructor so that was easy. Iām a ground instructor at Hawaiian and our local FAA will not because Iām not flight instructing? Also many FSDOās will let you renew if youāre a Capt since part of your job is āmentoringā. Whichever you do theyāre all much easier than letting them lapse and having to take the checkride again.
Adam
Dan,
There are several ways that one can keep their CFI certificates current. The most common way, and the one that I use, is to do a bi-annual, online refresher course from a company called American Flyers. The course is completely done online and is pretty easy to accomplish.
Another option is to do a longer weekend refresher courses that various different flight schools offer.
In some cases the FAA will renew your CFI for you if you are a captain or an instructor pilot at the airline.
Chris
I looked at the American Flyers CFI renew and itās a good option since you only have to pay the fee once. Once I get my CFIās, I think Iāll use that program.
I have been using it for a decade and have been rather pleased with it. That being said, if I was going to begin actively instructing again I would want a course that was a lot more indepth than that.
Is it indeed the one time fee and thatās it for the CFI renew?
Yes, it is. The only exception is that once you complete the course you can either take your information to the local FAA office for free or pay American Flyers $24 to file it for you. I pay the fee.
Visiting ATP Trenton tomorrow and taking a flight with them as well. I will post my reaction and thoughts tomorrow evening.
Dan,
That is great, I trust that it will all go well for you. I am looking forward to hearing all about it.
Chris
The weather cancelled the flight today so Iāll be visiting Trenton November 19.
That stinks! Where were you coming from?
Adam