I’m currently towards to get my CPL license and planning on building more flight hours to get qualified to become a major airline pilot especially either Delta or United as of now. and I know there are multiple options that I can choose to build hours. However, if any, are there any recommendation paths anyone recommend me except being a flight instructor and build more hours?? Additionally, aviation industry are continuously changing so I would like to get more feedback from pilots who have more experiences in this industry.
Thank you and have a good rest of the day everyone!
Are you an ATP student? If yes, have you taken a look at ATP’s partnership/pathway programs that you could be a part of?
As for Delta or United, they have their own pathway programs, Propel (Delta) and Aviate (United), which you would have to check the requirements and read the contract to what you can and can’t do. Some programs require you to instruct at a partnered school; Piedmont and SkyWest are two that I can think of off the top of my head, that allow their cadets to build their time however they would like: instructing, aerial photography, etc.
What are you looking for experience wise in the aviation industry? You left the last statement a bit vague. I recommend you check out schedules and flying the line subsections on the forum.
If you aren’t an ATP students with a CML you are qualified for jobs like pipeline, aerial photography, banner towing, etc. A great resource to find lower time aviation jobs is Climb to 350. I’ll post the link below.
The most valuable time building is in flight instructing. Having to teach a student solidifies your own knowledge and challenges you to continually keep learning. Airlines love to see that. However, not everyone can or should be an instructor. If that’s you, check out the link below for other time building options.
Personally I’m a fan of flight instruction. There’s nothing that will hone your skills more than sitting next to a new student that’s actively trying to kill you.
Problem is everyone these days isn’t really interested in building skills (ie, becoming a PILOT), they simply want to build time to get hired by an airline. They put a higher value on the quantity vs the quality of the hours. This is the #1 reason newhire failure rates are higher than they’ve ever been.