Will I have to be a regional airline pilot right out of flight University or can I go straight to a major airline?

Airline Pilot Questions & Answers
1

Hi! my name is Brayden and I’m 15 Y/O. I wanna pursue in my dream of being a commercial pilot, but not the military route. I have a few questions down below.

• Will I have to be a regional airline pilot right out of flight University or can I go straight to a major airline?

• What do regionals Airlines pay PER YEAR? 1st year, 2nd and 3rd year?

• How long will it take to be picked up by a regional airline right out of college?

• Am I guaranteed to be picked by a regional airline right out of college?

• How long would it take to picked up from a major airline after I’ve started with a regional?

• How many hour weeks do new first officers work a week?

• Would I have a faster better chance at being picked up a major airline going the military/coast guard route?

And finally, the last question.

• Will I have a better chance at being picked up by and airline if I go to a certain aviation college?
If so, could you list some that are on the east coast?

Thanks guys!

2

Brayden,

Lots of good questions most of which have been answered MANY MANY times before. I recommend you take a few minutes and read through some of the threads particularly the FAQ section. This is certain to shorten your list.

To answer your question on top yes you will have to fly for a Regional and gain time and experience before any Major will consider hiring you. While there are no guarantees if the current environment continues (which it should) you’ll have no problem getting hired by a Regional. The Majors are a completely different story and some pilots never make it.

Adam