Hello everyone my name is Marcus. I am 38 years old and have always wanted to fly! Flying has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. For some reason or another I just never pursued it…I ended up having three kids and getting married at the young age of 22. I did a little bit of community college but then ended up getting a job and I have been there ever since… I am now in my 17th year at that job and frankly it is getting old! My kids are older now and I want to pursue flying. I do not have a degree, but I really would like to get some type of commercial flying job… I realize I will need to do something to build the hours for a regional. I do plan on flight instructing, with that said I start my lessons here soon and was wondering on a timeframe for flying two times maybe 3 times a week to get all my ratings for cfi… Beyond that also my chances to become a regional pilot… like I said I just want to fly… I also have a disorderly conduct on my record from 2007 hopefully that’s not gonna be a issue. Thank you Marcus.
Marcus,
First if the disorderly is your only offense you should be fine. As for a time frame that can be very difficult to nail down. First we obviously have no idea what kind of flying skills you have nor how you learn. For some these skills come very naturally for others not so much. Same goes for the knowledge portion. Some it comes easy, others take longer. The biggest obstacle is often simply being consistent with your training. Now if you can in fact fly 2-3 times a week that’s great but unfortunately that seldom happens.
Both Chris and I tried to train locally and it took far too long and cost far too much. You see you take a lesson and it’s great but the next time the weather craps out. The time after that the plane is out for an annual. Next the instructor is booked. Next thing you know it’s been a month and you have to relearn everything. I know you’re saying that won’t be me but trust me it happens more often than you think.
With that in mind I have two recommendations. One you take a look at our FAQ section as it will certainly answer most if not all your questions. Second, at your age you seriously consider training full-time at an academy designed for that purpose. There’s a reason the airlines and the military train daily. It’s because it works.
Adam
Alright thank u… Appreciate your time.
I totally agree with what everything Adam says!
I’m 36, going on 37, so not too far off from you.
It certainly depends on the area you are in, but like Adam said, I too, trained locally for my PPL and it took far more money and time than I had planned and hoped for. I am now going on 10 months and am finally ready for my checkride (it was supposed to be today, but due to weather, I had to reschedule…the second time this has happened.)
Like you mentioned, I too, wanted to fly 2-3 times per week. I booked 3 lessons a week typically in order to allow a little buffer. To my disappointment, over 50% of my lessons (litereally) were cancelled due to weather in my first 5 months of training. I was lucky to get 1 lesson in a week some weeks.
Fast forward to today, and that is exactly why I signed up and have been on this site for the last 3 weeks or so, doing my research and homework before I make a move. As they say, seniority is everything in the airlines, and I have realized that I need to proceed full steam ahead, am not getting any younger, and time wasted is future earning potential wasted.
I am about 2 weeks out from pulling the trigger, and there’s a 99+% chance that decision is going to be to enroll at ATP (likely down south at one of the Florida locations) and proceed, as I said, full steam ahead.
That’s just my two-cents, take it for what you wish, but again, from my personal experience, I can confirm what Adam is saying in that if you try to do it piecemeal at a local school you may just end up finding it takes more time/money/resources than you would have ever imagined.
Marcus,
To begin with, I do not see the disorderly conduct conviction being a big issue, provided that you do not have any other issues on your record. Moving forward, you need to be sure to keep your record perfectly clean, to include driving infractions and your FAA record.
It sounds like you are training at a local school. I got my private at a school like this, it took much longer than it should have and cost more money than I was initially quoted. Flying a couple of times per week is just not enough. Sure, you will eventually get there, but it will take some serious time. The airlines and the military train on a consistent basis, often everyday. That type of training would serve you better as well. To go at the pace you are suggesting will take years.
Take a look at the FAQ section, there is a lot of good information there that you will likely find helpful.
Chris
Michael,
Good insight, thank you for chiming in.
Chris
You’re welcome!
I will just reiterate one more thing, and that is to confirm what Chris said, in that flying a couple of times a week is not enough.
I couldn’t agree more.
Having recently gone through PPL training and looking back, I would recommend to anyone flying to fly at least 3 times per week (whether you go to ATP or not.) Even those times I was actually able to fly twice a week often didn’t seem enough.
And for those weeks I flew once or the weeks I went without?
I found myself getting rusty on certain maneuvers when not being able to fly for 2-3 weeks due to weather, thus having to repeat some training aspects. As you might be able to imagine, this leads to a vicious cycle of spending more money and time.
I always felt bad for some students I would see walk in to my school who I would overhear talking to their CFI about their plans to fly once a week, or even once or twice a month because that’s all time or money allowed for them at the time. To me it seemed like literally throwing money away.
For those not pursuing accelerated training I would only say, if time/money only allowed them to fly less than 3 times per week, I would save up my time and/or money until I could do so in order to maximize the benefit you receive from the training.
Michael,
Thanks for chiming in. Obviously we’re all on the same page here. I’m currently a Capt at Hawaiian Airlines, have 3 Type ratings (incl the A330), have been an instructor at both my airlines and have had zero training issues. I’m not trying to impress anyone, I’m simply saying by all standards I’m a good and capable pilot. When I started flying it took me almost 2 years to just get my Private and again it wasn’t because I lacked talent. These are perishable skills and each element builds upon the last. Consistency is critical and without it it’s literally impossible to progress in any meaningful way. As I, Chris and clearly you have all experienced being motivated and having good intentions just can’t overcome the challenges and logistics of local piecemeal training.
This is a great career and I’ve been extremely fortunate to have exceeded my goals. My only single regret is I didn’t start sooner and dive in with both feet.
Adam
Great stuff guys! Hats off to u all! I will take what u all have said into consideration… happy flying!