Hello,
So I’ve been looking into applying and attending ATP but before making a big decision like this I’d like to have a conversation with a current pilot or two who have dedicated their life to flying.
Does anyone know anyone who would be willing to have a conversation over the phone with me? If you could help point me in the right direction that would be amazing.
Sincerely,
Sam
Sam,
This forum was created for aspiring pilots to ask any and all questions they may have about flight training and getting into the industry. We don’t do phone calls or even PMs so that ALL can learn and gain information.
With that in mind, feel free to ask away! Also, should you see a pilot in the airport, most of us are happy to talk about our careers so just say hi!
Adam
And when Adam says about we are happy to talk, take a large coffee and snacks because we can talk for hours (or at least I can). 
Brady
Yall are cracking me up! I suppose the biggest question I have is what does work/life balance look like especially at the beginning.
Someone I know said that I’d basically have to live part time in another city if I work for a major airline.
What can I expect from the medical exam?
Best,
Sam,
EVERYTHING at the airlines is based on seniority whether you’re at a Regional, LCC or a Major. That means until you build some you’ll have min control over when, where and how much you fly. You can pretty much count on being gone at least half the month. As for living in another city that obviously depends on where you live and where you’re based. I’ve never commuted a day in my life but others have their entire careers. While most pilots do commute, not is definitely an advantage.
Getting a First Class Medical is pretty straightforward. Overall health, height, weight, sight and hearing. The problems kick in if you have/had any conditions or any drug or alcohol problems or arrests. Then you’ll have to jump through some hoops.
Adam
Hi Adam,
Thanks for the insight! What do you mean by commute? I live in Houston currently and would like to be based in Houston.
Until seniority is built up and if I’m based in Houston do the flights always bring me back to Houston?
Would I have to pay for living in another city as well?
That makes sense about the medical exam! I’ve been very lucky and have good health. I’m also active so I think I will be fine in that aspect.
Best,
Sam,
Commuting (when it pertains to the airlines) means you live in a different city than your base. You’re fortunate to live in Houston as there are a few airlines with Houston as a base. Problem is (we’re back to seniority and let’s use United as an example) if/when you’re hired there may not be any open slots in Houston. Houston may be a senior base and you find yourself assigned to Newark (or Chicago, San Fran, etc etc etc). Since it’s your base ALL your trips will start and finish in Newark. It’s YOUR responsibility to get to work on time and well rested and yes living expenses are on you. Eventually, once you gain seniority you’ll be able to “hold” Houston as a base but that could take months or even years. As pilots we can jumpseat to work for free so the expense is not the issue. The issue is there needs to be space on the plane. That sometimes means getting to your base a day or 2 early and not getting home till the day after. Kind of a pain in the butt.
Adam
I apologize for interrupting the conversation, but I found your insights intriguing. I am from near Sacramento, which has its own airport. I was wondering, if a pilot’s base is in San Francisco, would it be feasible to live in Sacramento and commute to SFO for work?
Sam,
We’re part-time comedians in the making, what can I say… In all seriousness, you bring good questions to the table, I’ll give my feedback on top of what Adam and the others will.
During the early stages of your career, you will be on the lower spectrum of seniority, and that seniority moves constantly. This can depend whether you’re at senior or junior base. For example, Charlotte is a super senior base for American Airlines and wholly-owns, as it’s a highly-desired base. During reserve, you may find yourself getting called in more if you’re not holding a line; however, this can vary depending on scheduling needs.
To add to Adam’s comment about the First Class Medical, they will also do a urine sample. If you’re over 40, you’ll need an EKG. While I don’t suspect any medical conditions to require, getting a baseline EKG may be a good thing and you could monitor yearly results as you progress through the career. This might open your eyes to healthier habits and/or open your eyes to future health concerns, if any arose.
https://medxpress.faa.gov/MedXpress/Disclaimer.aspx
Commuting is on yourself, your responsibility and expected to be there for work. That means, if you need to leave the day before to make it to work, you have to. That’s why commuting is not highly desired, living in base is. However, location wise, the could come at a pretty penny and not be affordable your first year etc. There are things called crash pads, I’ve never been in one, but there are some good ones, some bad ones (as you can imagine). In Chicago, a flight crew uses a hotel agreement as their crash pad - I have never seen it, only those that sign in through a binder for it.
Being an airline pilot is probably the coolest (I’m biased) job out there, maybe other than being an astronaut (but that’s soon). What makes you want to become an airline pilot? It seems aviation isn’t in the family; hence your questions. I worked a 9-5 financial job for three years before taking the leap of faith, and I couldn’t be happier.
Brady
Janvi,
While I have no geographical reference or knowledge of the SFO and SAC area, I did Google Maps to find that during “no rush hour,” it’s nearly a 1 hour 40 minute drive.
I would say anything under 2 hours is suitable; however, could make for an extremely long day/night. I used to drive one hour and ten minutes to work, prior to moving closer to base. There were mornings I’d wake up at 2:00 AM to leave by 2:45 AM, to get to base for a 4:00 AM report time… those mornings were long. The last thing passengers want is a fatigued, exhausted, tired pilot. You want to ensure you have good rest, so maybe 2 hours is not for you, only you will be able to determine that.
Again, while I’m unfamiliar with the amount of foot traffic in the SAC environment, commuting to work via airplane may be feasible if you had a later report time for your first leg, and could make it back in time utilizing a later flight return. I’ll let the others chime in with their experience on commuting and drive time, I know now being able to wake up within an hour of report time, make it to work, has greatly improved my QOL.
Brady
Hi Janvi,
I live in the Bay Area and our options here for “local” airline bases are pretty limited. SFO has United and Skywest, Oakland has Southwest, and I think that might be it for now. Chances are unless you end up at one of those airlines you will be going to SMF and Jumpseating to your base to start work. Depending on where that base is and how close you live to SMF, you could get to base faster than you get to SFO.
Also most people here are airline track, but many charter companies offer “home basing” where they fly you out to meet your plane from your home airport. That model may offer you a better quality of life depending on what you are looking for.
Alex
Thank you, Brady! This is all very helpful information. I remember reading about crash pads back when I applied to be a flight attendant during my college days, but ended up not accepting the position with United because I needed to make sure I earned my undergrad first.
How long does someone typically remain a reserve? Also, as far as compensation when can you really expect to start seeing more income. Does that tie into seniority level as well?
I remain pretty active but agree that it will ensure that I maintain healthier habits! I’m currently 30 so no EKG for now lol
I’ve always been curious about the process of becoming a pilot but think that maybe things held me back from exploring the option. I think it would be a career that is fulfilling for me and checks off a lot of boxes in terms of what I’m looking for in a career.
I worked for Marriott for 7 years (5 in operations) and then switched to Sales and had great success early on. I’ve worked for a software company the last 3 years in the Sales/Account Management department and have been successful but am feeling unfulfilled, so I think it’s time that I also take a leap of faith because I think it will be challenging and fulfilling.
Best,
Janvi,
No apology necessary and I’m going to disagree with my colleagues here. A “feasible” commute is whatever is acceptable to you. In fact back in the day at some airlines you could be “Bay Area” based and you’d have to cover SFO, OAK and SMF.
As pilots we have the ability to literally live ANYWHERE we choose. I’m based in HNL and know pilots who commute from the Japan, Australia and all over the mainland. When I was based in EWR we had pilots who drove hours from PA, MA, MD etc etc. I even knew a few who commuted from Europe.
The thing is whether you’re flying or driving commuting is a choice and it’s YOUR responsibility to get to work on time and well rested. How you do it is entirely up to you.
As for your chances of being based there, personally I wouldnt call 2 Majors and a large Regional “pretty limited”.
Adam
Again EVERYTHING is based on seniority, most certainly pay. This is why if you check payrates for the various airlines it is ALWAYS listed in terms of years of service.
Adam
Got to love the seniority system! Thank you, Adam.
The seniority system is the only fair way to manage progression in the airlines. Going outside of that system would open a Pandora’s box.
I live near ORF, but work out of IAD. It is a three hour drive for me. It sounds like a long drive, but after commuting ORF-EWR for seventeen years, I am the happiest guy in the world when getting into my car. I do the drive about three times per month, so it really is not that bad.
Chris
Hey there, I’m not interested in charter, mostly in becoming an airline pilot. I really think the idea of commuting is suitable because of my family, and I acknowledge the seniority level in aviation too. But I was just wondering if flying to a base is possible as a jumpseat or standby, and how it works, since from SMF there are flights under 2 hours to few airline bases.
I just checked ATP’s brilliant Airline Domiciles Map / ATP Flight School, and found that Alaska is also based in SFO, and Avelo is out of Sonoma (STS). That’s a pretty good set of options!
Janvi,
You could catch a flight to and from work, but keep in mind that there has to be available seats. Most airlines require you to have one or two backup flights as well, so that can often mean leaving much earlier than you might think you would need to. So yes, you can commute, but if you can be based somewhere with a reasonable drive, I would really recommend that.
Chris
Got it, thank you so much for the information and feedback! Good luck and stay safe flying, everyone!
