Career advice. Please help!!!

[EMBpilot]

Dear fellow pilots, please write what you think!!!!!!!!

I hope to hear something from you that will help me to make a very important career decision. OK here is the scenario:

 I am 30 and working very hard, I just had a late start.
 First year with a regional - Brasilia FO, 121 operator with good industry reputation. I will probably upgrade in 2 years for sure.
 The dream of my dreams is to fly for Delta Airlines and I am willing to die trying despite what people say – “furloughs again”, “they will not hire for 50 years”, “they are about to file”. I don’t care about the money I just want to prepare and compete in the applicant’s pool as best as I can for an interview.
 Recently I was offered a job (I told you I work hard), so my dilemma is to take it or not.
About the job: Part 91, B-767-200ER, to fly long hauls from overseas to the US – 8 hour flights, same routes. Upgrade MAY be in 5-7 years.

So, here it is my resume in 5 years:
REGIONAL job: 6000 total, 4000 PIC, CRJ Capt. Jumping around with 5 approaches a day.
Part 91 job: 6500 total, 1000 PIC from Cessna, B-767 FO for the past 5 years. 4-5 approaches a month! International experience, heavy and hopefully a 757/767 type rating.

My question is what should I do to get Delta’s interview faster to stay or go? How much difference does it make if the applicant has Part 121 vs. Part 91 experience??
Please help, what do you think????

Also, does anyone know how long does it take for new hires to pay off a company initial training cost?

 

[Swerpipe]

The advice I received, I'll give to you

EMBpilot,
5 years ago my flight instructor who is almost my brother adviced me to go to the left seat, PIC turbine any time I saw the road ahead splitting in two. If I was Delta, I would talk to a guy who was a EMB120 captain with 1000 hrs of PIC experience and I wouldn't even call the guy who had 3000 hours as a 767 FO and no turbine PIC.
Had I not followed his advice I would now have 4000 total, 3000 turbine but with no PIC. I have 3000 total time 1500 PIC turbine , 100 PIC Jet and 3 type ratings. My dream is Southwest and that is really what shaped my progression. Given your interest in Delta I would go for the PIC experience as soon as you can get it.
Good luck to you whatever path you decide to take....

 

[UPSFO]

EMBPilot,

I agree with the previous post. Turbine Pic is a premium element on an application. Especially Part 121 time. Another big part of this game is getting recommendations from people with whom you flew. In the next five years you will fly with lots of folks. Keep track of them and maintain contacts as those folks move on.

Another consideration is quality of life and pay. Which would you enjoy more? It might be a year and it might be 10 years before Delta or some other major calls so enjoy the "here and now". You may have a family, a mortgage, etc and I would imagine the paycheck is bigger with 767 operation. Do you mind being away for 10-15 days a month with a whole bunch of time off after that? You need to assess the stability of each carrier. Do your homework but I would bet on the Regional over the 767 job. In this current environment Regionals should do well with the opportunity to fill the many gaps the Major carriers are abandoning. To truly understand the volitale nature of this industry, you should read "Hard Landings" by Thomas Pfetzinger. It's a tremendous chronicle of this industry. After I read that, I started looking at the cargo carriers and I'm very glad I did. Prior to reading that, I scoffed at the idea of flying boxes all night! My point is not to convince you to fly cargo, but to be open to other options as you will learn a great deal about this industry through the "aforementioned" network that you're building. The heavy international experience is nice but your basic flying skills will be much sharper coming out of a Regional than a Flag operation.

My 2 cents for getting hired by a major:

1. Get lots of Part 121 turbine PIC time. 1000 hours seems to be the magic number. I don't think it really matters whether it's jet or turboprop.

2. Make lots of contacts and get recommendations. That will significantly decrease the amount of time you'll have to wait for an interview.

3. Try to get a position of responsibility within the union or as a check airman. It indicates your aptitude and desire for leadership.

4. Keep your record clean! I'm amazed at how many folks I know have shot themselves in the foot with a DUI or been nailed in a random (or not so random) alcohol check.

Fly safe.....

 

[Flycatcher99]

While my opinion and a quarter will get you a cup of coffee, I completely agree with the two previous posts. I won't re-chew all of Swer's and UPS' cabbage, but I will say this much.

I don't know much about Delta, but I believe that most, if not all, majors will very highly value the 121 PIC time you will have built at the regional, flying a regular airline schedule, building leadership skills, conducting instrument approaches, and honing your flying skills, little of which you will accomplish with an overseas part 91 operator. It seems that in the eyes of the majors, size of the aircraft is highly overrated.

I really second UPS' opinion that you should look closely at what kind of lifestyle you will have in each option, and weigh that into your decision. Another issue to consider is that making a change to the 91 carrier would require you giving up your seniority number. Further, staying with your present company over time shows stability. I also agree with the suggestion to seek a check airman position. I did this, and it helped me tremendously with my interview at Southwest.

Just a few rambling thoughts. Lastly, I always pray for guidance in these decisions! Hope this all helps.

 

[aroundtheblock]

I'd agree with the previous posts as well with 1 comment. You said you'd upgrade for sure in 2 years at the commuter. When I was starting at the commuters they told me the same thing.... 5 years later I finally got the upgrade. It's great to plan ahead, just be careful, somethings are out of your control. Good Luck.

 

[flaps30]

coffee .25 ?

I don't know where you've been drinking coffee, but last time I bought a cup it was a 1.50, and that fancy mocha latte frappe chit was 3.00.

 

[Flycatcher99]

Coffee prices

Very true. You see, on our budget, the only coffee I've been purchasing is the jumbo can of Maxwell House at Walmart, which costs about $3.82 and yields roughly 8,000 cups of coffee.

So at our house, my opinion and a quarter is actually worth quite a bit of coffee, but not much else.