Over the course of this semester we have had lectures from
people from all over the industry some of which I found unhelpful and some that
were very informative. And one (Mark Johnson's speech about the Livingston
County Airport expansion) that while didn't really apply to me I found quite
interesting. And while all of these people have opened my eyes to other aspects
of the industry I still feel that I want to fly for Delta Airlines. However the
way I was planning about getting there has changed.
My original plan of getting to my goal was probably the
standard way of go work for a regional airline gaining a lot of hours (for very
little pay) and eventually upgrading to the right seat in the majors. However
after listening to some of our guest speakers I have been thinking about some
other ways of gaining my hours. However
after listening to speakers like Aubrey, and Dewey I have found that by going
the non-traditional route you can actually tend to learn a lot more and make
more opportunities for yourself down the road.
Over the next several years I plan on doing some things that
will help me to make my career really take-off (pun slightly intended). My first
goal is to get my Airframe and Power plant Certification, with this I hope to
work for a small maintenance facility at some point and be able to ferry planes
to and from their owners this way I get flight time and get some experience with
different aircraft systems. Second I intend to start gaining some hours as a
flight instructor with Eagle Flight Center.
I intend to do some research into General Atomics and see if
I would be a good fit while I may not be used to the dangers they are involved
in I feel that I wouldn't mind traveling for them and I feel that it would open
many doors. My other option is a little closer to home and fly for a local
company Corporate Eagle I have talked about them earlier and now I have a
contact that is currently flying for them. We never know the future but this
class has opened my mind and hopefully will help me out. We shall see.
That’s nice that you want to take the nontraditional route. It’s probably the most beneficial in terms of experience and knowledge. But you have to be willing to move a lot and take chances. FYI, getting your airframe and powerplant licenses is not that easy. You will have to go to school full time for two years and it cost about $25,000. Best of luck with your career!
ReplyDeleteGetting an A&P license is a great way to learn more about the systems of the aircraft you will be flying. Yes, some of the non-traditional routes are great ways to gain experience.
ReplyDeleteI thought Mark Johnson's brief was very interesting as well! Even though it was on the management side and nothing that I was personally pursue, it gave me a better understanding of what exacting they do.
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