beginning multi

[johnpeace]

I am a 70 hr., career minded PP-ASEL.

We are moving from Hawaii to the Atlanta suburbs in a few months (for a variety of very good reasons I don't need to go into).

I have been waiting until we move to continue my training, and am planning to train pretty much full-time once we get there. I want to work my way up to CFI and then teach.

I have been looking at a bunch of different schools/clubs in the area and noticed something interesting last night that I thought I would ask for feedback about:

Here, I rent a C-172SP for $144/hr. A CFI is $45/hr. making dual $190/hr. This is the rate I would pay if I were to do my instrument training here on Maui.

Atlanta is quite a bit cheaper. One school has older 172s for $80/hr, a M20J for $123/hr (wouldn't *that* be fun!) and a DA-20 for $90/hr.

They also have an Aztec that is $158/hr.

CFIs at this school are $39/hr.

It dawned on me that the hourly rate for dual time in the Aztec would be not that much more than what I am paying for dual in a 172 here on Maui.

So, I *could* do my multi-private (15-20 hrs), then do my instrument training (say, 70 hrs as a estimate) in the Aztec, and finish my instrument rating with almost 90 hrs of multi time, 70 of multi PIC.

Would that be smart? Would my instrument training be tons harder if I were to do it in an Aztec?

I'm looking at the whole big picture and it looks like I work through my ratings...do my multi-pvt then multi comm add on, then MEI eventually...and after all of that I'm an MEI with like 30 hrs multi time. The next opportunity I have to log that most valuable of job qualifying multi time will be teaching the few-and-far-between multi students....and why would my school assign *me* a multi-student as a 30 hr MEI? It seems like the most senior MEI would *always* get the multi students, leaving me short on multi time with little prospects to log any.

If I did my instrument rating in the twin, it would cost a little more, but I'd come out of it with about 90 hours of multi time. That seems like it would be a good thing.

I guess it seems like once I *finally* get through my CFI ratings and start teaching...I'll be logging total time quickly (700-800 hrs/year). It's the multi time that looks difficult to come by when you're new...so I'm thinking whatever I can do to get a little more is probably smart.

Do you guys see any pitfalls in my reasoning that I'm not seeing?

 

[nosehair]

Not at all. The only 3 reasons most of us do all the initial training in a single is - (1)money(2)money
(3)money

 

[I.P. Freley]

If you can afford it, by all means DO it. I wish I'd had the money to do that way back when...

 

[johnpeace]

So it is worth it?

I am starting kind of late in the game (31) and though I don't expect to ever want to fly for a 121 carrier, I do feel like I need to plan my course for maximum efficiency.

I'm not rolling in cash or anything...I just budgeted $30-$40K for all of my training when I first started and am looking at the estimates thinking I could do my instrument in the aztec and still be well within my budget.

From a career advancement perspective, it seems like that twin time would be really helpful in the short to mid term.

 

[Tired Soul]

you're gonna make an instructor VERY happy

without joking, if you have the financial means do it.....
It will give you a sizeable chunk of multi right of the bat, better chances of a MEI job also.
Keep in mind a Multi is not the kind of plane to learn how to teach.
Some 500 hrs of dual given single engine should give you an idea what people can do to you.
You want to see a problem coming from a mile away when teaching multi.

 

[johnpeace]

Oh...yeah.

I figured after this nice block of time in the Aztec, I'm still doing my SE-COM and CFI, -II largely in one of the single engine planes they have.

And of course I would do a lot of my COM experience requirement flights (XCs) in a single...so by the time I am taking CFI checkride it would breakdown to about 300 TT with 80-90 being ME.

Definitely that's low time...but I see plenty of other instructors doing it. I figure it'll be a pretty intense 12-18 months of eat/sleep/breathe aviation leading up to the CFI, -II, MEI checkrides...and then I can relax a little and really start to learn.

It just seemed like sort of a good opportunity, since I'm already doing all this dual time for the instrument rating anyway, to just do it in a twin and get a jump on that multi-engine experience.

 

[acaTerry]

Sorry to hear you're moving to Atlanta....

Atlanta is the ONLY thing I DON"T like about Georgia.

 

[johnpeace]

Sorry...

From here, 'atlanta suburbs' looks like anything withing 100 miles of the city.

We're shopping in Hall/Forsyth counties...not quite the 'burbs (yet) but close.

 

[bobbysamd]

Multi training/initial certification

I'm looking at the whole big picture and it looks like I work through my ratings...do my multi-pvt then multi comm add on, then MEI eventually...and after all of that I'm an MEI with like 30 hrs multi time . . . . If I did my instrument rating in the twin, it would cost a little more, but I'd come out of it with about 90 hours of multi time.

Your idea is not original, but that's good. A number of well-known schools, such as ERAU and FlightSafety, train students for their Private Multi not long after they earn their Private Singles. After earning their multis, they complete their Commercial-Instrument in multiengine equipment, with all of that time logged as multi PIC. Not only does that capture the essence of the type of flying they're likely to do as professional pilots, they graduate with 50+ hours of multi time. Then many of them hop in the right seat and go for initial CFI certification as MEIs and/or CFI-Is. They only have to jump into a simple single to finish their single-engine ratings.

I like that kind of program. By all means, go for it if you can afford it. You are absolutely correct that multi engine time is difficult to come by as a new pilot. Understatement would be more accurate.

Good luck with however you proceed in your training.

 

[johnpeace]

Good luck with however you proceed in your training.

Thanks,
Since committing to this path last year and starting my PPL...it's been a slow, frustrating road. Ironically, it's the financial advantages of leaving Hawaii for Georgia that will allow me to fund this career change...but getting the ducks in a row to move has taken FOREVER.

Anyway, we're in the home stretch: business sale looks eminent, house is in escrow, moving company estimate is signed, boxes are being packed...looks like I'll finally be able to continue training in November or so.

Thanks for the help...I'm going to run this by the school and see if they have any objections.