Alpha Flying

[yellowjacket]

I am relatively new to the list...been lurking for a few months. Is there anyone out there who has interviewed with Alpha Flying recently? Any insights about the company and the interview process would be appreciated as I have an interview up coming. There is not much current info on the company on this site. PM me if you would rather not have your thoughts out for public display. What's the good, bad and ugly.

Thanks,
Yellowjacket

 

[johnsonrod]

I am relatively new to the list...been lurking for a few months. Is there anyone out there who has interviewed with Alpha Flying recently? Any insights about the company and the interview process would be appreciated as I have an interview up coming. There is not much current info on the company on this site. PM me if you would rather not have your thoughts out for public display. What's the good, bad and ugly.

Thanks,
Yellowjacket

With your time and experience, are you sure you want to fly single-engine (albeit turbine engine) PC-12s? Nice airplane and a good company but you might qualify for jets, etc. elsewhere.

Check this out:

http://airlinepilotcentral.com/airlines/fractional.html

Planesense and Alpha Flying are the same company. If you have jet time you might want to also look at some of the other fractionals on that website. Note the differences in salaries.

Good luck.

 

[yellowjacket]

Jrod,
Thanks for the suggestion. I have checked out the web site you mentioned and I have applied to NJ but didn't get an interview. My 1500+ Jet time is dated and it was SIC time. I am not concerned about what equipment I fly and I like the idea of going into small strips in a very capable airplane. Plus they are getting the Grob SPn and I figure I could upgrade to the left seat pretty quickly since they upgrade based on merit. I am fortunate that money isn't really a concern as I have a good AIr Force retirement. I just want to fly something fun and reliable.

So if anyone out there has some experience or intell on Alpha I would like to hear from you.

Thanks,
Yellowjacket.

 

[On Your Six]

Jrod,
Thanks for the suggestion. I have checked out the web site you mentioned and I have applied to NJ but didn't get an interview. My 1500+ Jet time is dated and it was SIC time. I am not concerned about what equipment I fly and I like the idea of going into small strips in a very capable airplane. Plus they are getting the Grob SPn and I figure I could upgrade to the left seat pretty quickly since they upgrade based on merit. I am fortunate that money isn't really a concern as I have a good AIr Force retirement. I just want to fly something fun and reliable.

So if anyone out there has some experience or intell on Alpha I would like to hear from you.

Thanks,
Yellowjacket.

I am sure management will love to hear that.... There are a few Alpha guys on this site - Geronimo (can't remember his exact name) was an Alpha pilot for years.

 

[ArthurQ]

Technical interview questions include Jepp Charts, 91K Regs, and AIM as well. Other questions during the interview may be geared towards something along the lines of how do get your IFR clearance at blah blah uncontrolled field when there is no phone service? They want to see how well you think out of the box. I think there is a sim ride conducted at DWC.

Wouldn't be my first choice with your flight time, but you could certainly do worse. From what I hear you'll have to get in a long line for the jet once it arrives. Best of luck.

 

[Nolife]

I just want to fly something fun and reliable.

The Challenger 300 is extremely fun and very reliable. Check it out.

 

[captain dad]

I am relatively new to the list...been lurking for a few months. Is there anyone out there who has interviewed with Alpha Flying recently? Any insights about the company and the interview process would be appreciated as I have an interview up coming. There is not much current info on the company on this site. PM me if you would rather not have your thoughts out for public display. What's the good, bad and ugly.

Thanks,
Yellowjacket

This is the second time in two days that I have heard about these Alpha guys. I have not intrest other than curiosity, but do they have a website or something.

 

[johnsonrod]

This is the second time in two days that I have heard about these Alpha guys. I have not intrest other than curiosity, but do they have a website or something.

Check this out:

http://www.planesense.aero/

and then this:

http://airlinepilotcentral.com/airlines/fractional/planesense.html

I am a big fan of that Grob jet. Check out this Grob video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T00BGPFmaxI

And this cockpit picture (Honeywell Apex):

http://www.grob-aerospace.net/index.php?id=147

We all know the Grob has had a rocky start with the crash of one of the intial test airplanes. But it looks like they are working out the kinks - it should be a great airplane going forward. You can land this thing on grass or unpaved strips with its high trailing link landing gear. They should be just as versatile as the PC-12...

Does anyone know the Grob delivery schedule for Alpha Flying? How many Grobs expected in 2008 and then in each subsequent year?

 

[Heavy Set]

Check this out:

http://www.planesense.aero/

and then this:

http://airlinepilotcentral.com/airlines/fractional/planesense.html

I am a big fan of that Grob jet. Check out this Grob video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T00BGPFmaxI

And this cockpit picture (Honeywell Apex):

http://www.grob-aerospace.net/index.php?id=147

We all know the Grob has had a rocky start with the crash of one of the intial test airplanes. But it looks like they are working out the kinks - it should be a great airplane going forward. You can land this thing on grass or unpaved strips with its high trailing link landing gear. They should be just as versatile as the PC-12...

Does anyone know the Grob delivery schedule for Alpha Flying? How many Grobs expected in 2008 and then in each subsequent year?

Cool video of the Grob. Looks like a fun airplane to fly and it will certainly enable the AF pilots to see more of the country. I wonder if AF will open any new bases beyond those in the Northeast and in PDK
when the Grobs arrive because of the type of flying the Grob will be doing (more than just regional flying)... Does AF ever plan to expand its flying out West in the near future?

I would love to see what the initial Grob salaries will look like when they are published too...

 

[yellowjacket]

Alpha Flying Interview

Had my interview the other day with Alpha Flying and it was a really good experience. Met some very nice people who are excited about the company and appear to really enjoy what they are doing. When the day was over I was given a PC-12 pilot's information manual and told they will be in touch for details regarding their next training class in April.

The PC-12 may not be the biggest or fastest plane around, but it will be a lot of fun to fly. Plus with my experience upgrade to captain should take 3 to 4 months as they need captains. Then I will get in line to fly the Grob. They are going to a 7/7 schedule in a couple of months which I think is better tan the 6/4 schedule they currently have.

I have heard that they sent out a letter to their pilots indicating they will start hiring captains off the street, but that was not mentioned during the interview. Actually just the opposite was mentioned...they still plan on bringing all new pilots in as FO's and based on experience they may upgrade very quickly, i.e., a couple of months.

I asked the question about logging time as SIC in a single pilot certified plane and was told that on revenue flights they require two pilots and the fo logs SIC. On non revenue flights the fo typically flies and logs PIC time.

I like the idea of joining a growing company and we will see how much the new NetJets contract will impact the payscale. They are losing pilots I think primarily due to low pay especially for those living in the northeast. If they want to stem the turnover rate they will have to increase the pay.

Looking forward to going into a lot of short uncontrolled fields.

Yellowjacket