Hello Pilots, I have multiple questions for you today. Let me start off by asking, I was reading the ATP Flight School website and saw that you get a guaranteed job as a flight instructor, after the complete the “Airline Career Pilot Program” can you work as an instructor to make money while you wait for airlines to hire/ interview you in the mean time? My second question is, how do you get the “Boeing 787” instrument rating/how do you get to chose what type of airplane you want to fly? Third, was is the percentage of getting hired for a airline between “1500 hour minimum,”and a “2500 hour competitive”. For example how would a 1500 student pilot chance of getting hired compared to a 2500 student pilot in percentages please. And lastly how are student pilots able to get a loan if then don’t have/ barely have credit.
Thank you for reading, I appreciate it a lot!
From, Orlando
First ATP does not guarantee instructor positions. Simply put you might not be a very good pilot or may have training issues. You wouldn’t want a subpar instructor who was guaranteed a job and neither does anyone else. That said do well in the program and yes you will be offered a position and yes it is paid. The average instructor earns in the mid to high $20ks.
There is no such thing as a 787 instrument rating. There is however a 787 “Type” rating and you’ll earn that after completing 787 training at your airline. In the beginning you’ll be assigned whatever airplane the airline needs you on (in most cases this will be a junior narrow body airplane like the 737 or 321). As you build seniority you’ll be able to bid for other airplane.
In the beginning you’ll be hired with 1500hrs at a Regional due to the fact they need pilots. After that if you want to transition to a Major the more hours you have, the more competitive you’ll be. Virtually no one gets hired at a Major with 1500hrs but you could have a shot at an LCC like Spirit or Frontier with ATPs Direct Entry programs.
First things first, you will definitely need a cosigner. Most do, as it’s a large unsecured loan. Once you have financing in order, the program is 7 months. If you do well, you could be offered a job as a CFI. It’s not guaranteed, but something to be earned throughout your training as a student.
You’ll finish the program with about 270 hours. You will start earning an income as a flight instructor and building the remaining 1230 hours needed to meet ATP mins. There are dozens of pathway programs you can apply to with various benefits. Those that offer direct entry to LCC like Frontier and Spirit are the most competitive. With a good checkride pass rate, a safe flying history and a decent app most pilots don’t have a problem getting picked up by a regional carrier at 1500 hours. Getting hired is the easy part. Making it through an initial 121 training program is the hard part.
The regionals as the name suggest, fly small regional jets: CRJs and ERJs. The LCC’s are mostly airbus 320s. You won’t have the opportunity to get a 787 type rating until you fly for a legacy like United.
Ok thank you, I have been reading and I seen about the loans how are you able to pay a loan if you are a ATP student and don’t have any income since you can’t work. Would you pay after atp when you get a job or do you get tuition?
Ok thank you so much, like I asked before can you have a job as a flight instructor in the mean time untill you get hire or would you not recommend it. I will also like to fly for United is it hard get to UNITED activate? I saw you should apply as soon as you can if you want to fly for united after the pilot career program. Or should I not worry about it so much? I also saw on the website once you got the job for united express, you will be able start making the payments for the loan and other expenses? Also need to fly 2,000 hours and 24 months in united express to be able to fly for united with will make me the number one priority, am I correct with that?
Thank you, all soo much for taking time out of your day to answer my questions I really appreciate it.
Ok I think we need to clear something up. After you complete the program you’ll have approx 250hrs. You’ll have to instruct (or find some other low time entry level job) to build the required 1500hrs you’ll need to fly for a United Regional (or any other Regional airline). After that you’ll need to build time and experience at that Regional before United (or any other Major) will entertain hiring you.
Regardless I wouldn’t worry about any of this at this point. You need to learn to fly. Right now you’re at the point where you just saw a baseball game on TV, thought it looked like fun and decided you want to play for the Yankees before you’ve even picked up a ball.
Simply put, regardless which aviation training program you go through (be it ATP or any other), you have the same steps to complete:
1.) Private Pilot (minimum 35 hours total time with a part 141 training program like ATP)
2.) Instrument (immediately after completing Private to meet the specific IFR proficiency and hour requirements)
3.) Commercial (minimum 190 hours total time with a part 141 training program like ATP)
4.) CFII (requires minimum of Commercial Rating)
5.) Multiengined add-on
You will begin teaching and making some $$ after step 4 and have more teaching options after completing step 5.
Once you get those notches in the belt, you’re qualified to act as CFI for private through CFI students, IFR and Multiengine. You will be at a minimum of 190 hours (if in part 141 school), but realistically you’ll be at more since you need 190 to get your COMM and then train for CFI certification, so assume 250. Your next 1250 hours will need to be logged by any for hire flying job which includes instructing, but also part 135 charters (limited opportunities with low time), sight seeing, aerial photography, etc. Basically any paying flying job that is not a part 121 airline will qualify to build time. This is how many current airline pilots did it 20 years ago, especially when you could get hired with as low as 250 hours but more realistically they were getting offered regional airline turbo prop flying at 500 for $18,000 year.
Oh, above all else, go get an FAA 1st class medical exam before you spend a ton of money on flight training. You’d want to make sure there are no conditions or medications you’re taking which bar you from flying for an airline. If there are, then you want to work with the AME to see if you can mitigate and still be cleared. If you’re clean, then your future medicals only need to be 3rd class until you fly for hire (though you can continue to do 3rd class medicals as a CFI).
Admittedly I’m not an ATP student, but I had thought they were 141 from prior reading. At least some of their locations come up in the faa.gov search for part 141 schools like Arlington, Daytona, Mesa, Jacksonville. That doesn’t necessarily mean they are running all their students through a part 141 curriculum though if they are doing it through a regimented part 61 syllabus that still meets all the airmen certification standards.
They also advertise their collegiate program also trains “under part 141”. I realize now that this is not a blanket statement that the entire program and all of it’s locations are training under part 141 and I get why. Most schools that are, make it very clear in all their literature that they are.
