Colgan Asked to PFT

[givpicachanc]

I got a call today from Regional Airline academy today. they said i could have a interview with Colgan on wednesday if i could qulify for a $16500 loan through sally mae. The reason they said was that Colgan had furloughed SAAB pilots and couldnt afford to train them, so they re looking for 8 pilots who could cough up $16500. If hired( which you will since you paid just like the other passangers) training starts in Deland Florida on the 19th. I decided to keep my money.......

 

[chperplt]

Dude... The RAA is trying to take your money.. We (Colgan Air) are NOT PFT. Not only are we NOT PFT, but we don't train at the RAA academy in Deland, FL.

Last year we hired a couple of their low timers for the Beech 1900. The money they are quoting you is for their own King Air SIC program. To the best of my knowledge, they do not have ANY level C or D sims to train anyone in. We (Colgan Air) use FSI in LGA for ALL Beech 1900 training.

We don't have any furloughed Saab pilots either. We do have a few pilots that asked for and were given leaves of absense rather than spend the month of June TDY or on reserve after their base closed.

 

[KATL8R26L]

RAA

wowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww RAA runnin the game again....


point and shootttttttttttt,pass the ballllllllllllllllllll>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

 

[T-Gates]

Wow.....

Some scumbags will say ANYTHING, won't they. One of the dudes in my crashpad who was a Captain at Colgan said that right before he left last month they put on a hiring freeze. They just closed a base in Hunington, WV so those pilots are now displaced. So I don't think that anyone is getting hired soon.

Sure a sign of the times isn't it......

--03M

 

[350DRIVER]

I have never heard that RAA and Colgan were ever tied together. I don't think that is true BUT I have heard that many of the Colgan new hires have come from Eagle Jet Intl. which IS a PFT company...... possibly that is why a "hiring freeze" has been put into effect at Colgan, dunno for sure though but what would be interesting is to see how many of the Eagle Jet PFTrainers were taken on by Colgan after spending "X" amount of dollars for some kind of SIC program.... I think this has been kinda kept "quiet" from within ELI.


3 5 0

 

[asarjfo]

Can someone say "Airline Training Academy?"

The guys running the place are ex-Airline Training Academy chief pilots.

 

[Long Time Gone]

Naw.....you're thinking of Tab Express, also in Deland. RAA is run by Mike Youcum....ex-pres of Comair Academy in SFB. Tab has Mitch and Al there plus a couple of instructors...maybe more than that now. They have an agreement with Colgan (at least they did over a year ago) as far as training and interviews is concerned, but no certified courses thru the airline. Same stuff as ATA.

 

[350DRIVER]

Naw.....you're thinking of Tab Express

Eagle Jet Intl. also has some sort of agreement with Colgan to PFT somewhere and get the interview at Colgan... I won't dispute the above since I also heard the same holds true for Tab grads...



3 5 0

ps>> anyone know if that one "specific" ground school instructor/F.O is still around at Colgan.??

 

[TriDriver]

Naw.....you're thinking of Tab Express, also in Deland. ..... They have an agreement with Colgan (at least they did over a year ago) as far as training and interviews is concerned, but no certified courses thru the airline......

LTG

TAB wishes they had a thing going with Colgan (or any other airline), but they don't!!!

In the summer of 2001 they got a deal going with American Eagle to interview the grads, but then 9-11 happened. I think TAB had a couple pilots that actually started with Eagle about a week before 9-11, but got sent home. American Eagle hasn't hired since.

TAB has placed about 6 or 7 grads at Colgan - about 4 or 5 a year ago and another 1 or 2 recently (actually, the recent ones may be in a pool). There is no "arrangement" with Colgan. Colgan has been down to visit and likes the operation of the flight school, and I believe the low-time TAB grads they have hired have done well in training/IOE and I guess flying the line. TAB has also placed at least one grad at ACA, and I'm not sure if one went to Great Lakes or not. Anyway, not a real great track record, but not bad considering the industry these days and the fact that TAB has only graduated about 30 or so over the last year.

There is a developing situation at TAB that I'll fill you in on as it developes. TAB is getting an FAR 142 Certification. 141 is an FAA approved flight school and 142 is the part that governs "Training Centers" that generally provide training in large airplanes. Simulator Training Centers for type-rating in Boeings and Airbuses are approved under FAR 142, and then they can usually do training for "any" airline, if they use that airline's procedures, pubs, checklists, etc.

TAB is apparently going to be a "satellite" of Lockheed-Martin/Premair in Orlando. As a "satellite" training center under 142, they will be able to do training for any airline that would want them to. TAB has a couple of Beech 1900 sims, and they could turn out a pilot that was almost completely ready for IOE for any airline that operates that equipment. They would probably only need a final company sim check and maybe some company oriented ground school. The students are all trained in the B-1900 sims anyway, so if some company might want to interview some, TAB could train a class to that airline's procedures.

I don't know how this might develop, but I think it would be that some airline like Colgan might say: "We're getting ready to need 5 new F/O's, so send a class of your students through the B-1900 training using our pubs/checklists and we'll interview them and see if we like any of 'em. If so we might hire a couple".

So, as I see how the thing might work, there will be no gaurantees of a job - maybe only the prospect of getting an interview.

But, what do I know. I'm just a part-time instructor there and am just reporting some of the latest news I've been hearing.

TriDriver Bob

 

[Iced_up]

ps>> anyone know if that one "specific" ground school instructor/F.O is still around at Colgan.??

Unfortunately he is still there. They took away his teaching gig real quick and just flying as an FO now. It only took part of a re-current ground school for Colgan to stop his nonsense.

 

[350DRIVER]

Iced-
I was just curious.... Thanks- That doesn't surprise me, the same thing pretty much happened at GLA & COEX where he didn't even make it to the line.. He was a very sharp stick though at Great Lakes from what I have heard from a few others so I guess it could be worse- LOL


3 5 0

 

[Iced_up]

Hey 3 5 0

His flying is decent. He just can't keep his mouth shut. Hopefully one of these days I will have as much experience and knowledge that he has.

 

[350DRIVER]

Hopefully one of these days I will have as much experience and knowledge that he has.

Makes two of us...... surely knows more than both of us combined.



3 5 0 - bet you never have more than a few "quite" moments flying with him! !

 

[ClassG]

E.T. - Like from outta space?

It's AMAZING how this person has created such a shaky reputation for himself, and it follows him from job to job. When I knew him, I hoped it was just a maturity issue, but apparently he never learns from past mistakes.

If anyone wants to PM me, I'd love to swap stories about that character with you. Usually I don't get into gossip, but on this subject I'd love an update.

 

[English]

Okay give it up guys...I worked at Colgan and I don't know who you are talking about! What's his name? Pm me...

 

[DownEast]

Colgan

Be very careful if you're considering employment with Colgan. All they care about is how much money is coming in and keep their money as long as they can before paying their bills. Also be prepared for some major out-of-pocket expenses since they use out stations with no RON. So it's either a crash pad or finding a cheap hotel room. And zero per diem. And if you don't live in base, forget about trying to get home since the flights on U are almost always over sold.

The employees are treated like crap by management, dispatch and screw scheduling. It is extremely rare to have a day that everything runs the way it should. They fix problems by looking at the small picture and have complete disregard to the larger picture. And who is the one to suffer? You!

They have become so tight with money that hotel rooms are shared now during recurrent and you have to pay your own way to the training center from the airport if the van driver is unavailable. Not to mention the pay freeze they just initiated. Convenient since almost half of the company is due for a raise within weeks of the freeze.

If there are any other options besides Colgan I would definitely consider those first. Turbine time is nice but not at the price you would have to pay at Colgan.

 

[ArcticFlier]

Speaking of Colgan, does anyone know where Dan Yost is? He was there a few years ago, and I've lost touch with him.


Thanks,
AF

 

[chperplt]

I've never heard of him.. I've been there 2 1/2 years.

 

[Buddro]

My guess is you guys are talking about "Eric The Great." I dont know the guy other than ground school. I know he pissed off alot of people though (Classmates) from being a "know it all." I guess the teaching thing wasn't his thing. Anyone know specifically why he didn't get to finish his recurrent class?

As far as working at Colgan goes good company good people. They do give you the run around as far as maintenence/scheduling issues. I enjoyed the time I was there, great flying experience. However I am even more delighted to be out of there. I must say for a flight instructor or a 135 guy who wants to learn turbines, Colgan is perfect. Working at Colgan was a interim job, a stepping stone as you would call it, just like it is for most people. Overall I liked the people I encountered there and I am thankful I was able to work there in the interim.

I hope to god Colgan does not go PFT or aquire thier pilots from a place like EJI or TAB Express. They have a good safety record. If they use places like that, it wont last for long. Not to mention other airlines will see PFT back again and decide to bring it back.

Oh and another thing:
If Colgan does not get jets with US Airways they won't survive. I think with the EAS funding getting cut back, they have to move to something else. My experiences there were that Colgan was trying to run a 121 operation like it was a mom and pop 135 outfit. Just a monkeyf**k if I may call it that. If they can't runs 7 Saabs effectively and effieciently how can they run jets at all?

 

[chperplt]

If Colgan does not get jets with US Airways they won't survive. I think with the EAS funding getting cut back, they have to move to something else. My experiences there were that Colgan was trying to run a 121 operation like it was a mom and pop 135 outfit. Just a monkeyf**k if I may call it that. If they can't runs 7 Saabs effectively and effieciently how can they run jets at all?

We like to call it a 120 1/2 outfit.

You're completely right though. The contract with U is up in 1 1/2 years. They had better think long and hard about the future of the company. If they don't, they won't have a company to worry about.

I've got 2 1/2 years invested here and have just about have my 1000 turbine pic. I got what I came here for.