Flight express newhire bases

[JP13]

What base can a newhire expect at Flight Express?, and do you have any influence as to which base that could be. Also it looks as though Baron upgrade is running at a year or more if you're super flexible could this change?


Thanks in advance.

 

[WrightAvia]

Also it looks as though Baron upgrade is running at a year or more if you're super flexible could this change?

How FLEXIBLE are you?

Why would a guy with times in these planes, want/have to wait a year to fly a Baron?

Flown: CE-525,KA-B100,PA-31,PA-27,PA-34,PA28R-201T,PA-28-161,180,181,C-182,C-172,C-152,C-150,Cap10,Citabria

 

[labbats]

For that matter, who would bother flying a Lance for a year, all night, just to get a chance to fly a baron (all night)? It's rough, but not that rough out there.

I hope I'm thinking of the right outfit. At any rate, any job UPGRADING to a baron after a YEAR is ridiculous.

 

[WrightAvia]

I think flight express is the freight outfit out of Orlando Executive that uses mostly C-210's.

If a guy has multi time already, I don't know if backpeddling a year to get into flying a baron is the best idea, unless you really need the job.

There must be other freight outfits out there that start you out in twins. Even the feeder operations at FedEx have been doing some limited hiring. At least there you can make a real wage and fly a turboprop, even if it is a single.

Have they filled that Beckley WV job at MAC? I'd take that, over making a lot less in piston singles.

Also JP13, have you tried Freight Runners out of MKE? They might start you out in a 207, put you in a 402 and eventually get you in the Beech 99. If you got to work a while in piston singles, at least let the carrot of twin turbine time be the thing to work towards.

Here is a link to their website JP13...

http://www.DELETEDMYLINKTOFREIGHTRUNNERS.com

...good luck!

 

[wingnutt]

lol...you two are strange

so, if he were to get lucky enough to get a ride in the 2 seat version of the F16, and put it in his aircraft flown section then asks around about a job flying anything less than an F16, will you guys ridicule him some more?

dang guys, lighten up. you know its a stinker out there when even Airnet wont give you the time of day unless you have a 4 year degree

JP13...yes, Flight Express is a good company to fly for. the 210 for a year does kind of blow, but if you are down on options, can stick it out for awhile, youll have some really good references and some great contacts to move on with....that is if that Freight Runners thing dont work out

 

[JP13]

Well here's the deal I've got less than 190 multi I've been instructing for 13 months and flew nearly 1000hrs last year. I have an interview with Flight Express soon and I just wanted to get an idea of where I would be located, granted I pass the interview and training. Flight Express is an excellent company with an excellent reputation, Airnet is good also but you better be current in a multi and have a degree, Airnet is being extremely picky right now because they can be.

Flight instructing is not making me a better pilot right now, flying a 210 in actual with a schedule to meet will, bottom line. I must consider the alternative, which is getting beat up in the pattern watching somebody else fly or flying for a real company in a faster aircraft where the gear actually goes up. I choose the latter any day.

Now could a real freight dog refer to my original post and help out a littl, I know what the 210 bases are but I would like to know where guys are being sent right off the bat.

thanks.

 

[WrightAvia]

Now could a real freight dog refer to my original post and help out a littl, I know what the 210 bases are but I would like to know where guys are being sent right off the bat.

Oooops...sorry I listed Freight Runner's website up there in my last post...seeing as they said they are hiring and have turbine twins and all. I better go up there and delete that reference...sorry!

 

[JP13]

Flight express is growing. Freight Runners isn't. Flight Express has nearly 100 aircraft including 30+ Barons. Freight Runners has 11 aircraft total with no movement in the system whatsoever, frieght runners is too much of a mom and pop operation for me to invest my time into, besides the hiring info you have is outdated theyre accepting resumes but no class dates in the future.

 

[millhouse21]

Most of the resent New Hires have gone to Kansas City or St Louis. Also, a year is a bit optimistic for the Baron upgrade. I believe the guy who just upgraded is something like 1 year, 8 months. Its a great company with decent pay but don't come here expecting to fly the baron any time soon.

 

[210FR8DOG]

sorry it took so long

JP,

Sorry it took a while. My computer went down again. This thing is an old piece of donkey dung!

I've been with Flight Express for almost 2 years. Started in the 210 making $115 a day right from the start.

The 210 is a bad little dude. It's only 20 knots slower than a Baron. I learned a boatload doing this job about weather, ATC, staying awake at all hours, 2 gear failures (in the same week!) etc. all in the 210. The only thing additional I've learned in the Baron is reading two gauges and grabbing two levers instead of one. As for a starting base, it's totally up in the air. It only depends on what run is open when you finish training. It could be any of our bases and not necesarrily(sp?) a minimum pay run. I think the one run we do have open now or beginning Sept. 1 is in Cincinatti and it is minimum pay ($75) a day.

When is your interview? Good luck let me know if there is anything I can help you with.

labbat- maybe things are that bad. I take it kind of personal when you talk about how ridiculous it is to wait a year for a Baron because I waited a year and two months....and I love it. Maybe when you FINALLY get 1200 hours you'll see what I mean. We have a LOT of resumes from guys with much more time than you that would love to fly the 210 for a year or so and then get in the Baron. JP is on the right track and if he comes on board he will gain a lot of experience and be a better pilot for it in the end. I hope you land a job in a Lear or whatever but don't knock those of us who are paying our dues with what we were dealt.

I hope we crew a plane together someday. When you start twitching in your seat about the storms and icing and 1/2 and 200, I'll just put down my Tostidos, wipe the cheese dip off my chin and tell you to have another beer and relax, I've done this a time or two before!!! By the way 1/2 and 200 in Freight Dog terms is 200ft visibility 1/2 a foot off the runway!! We get sh#t done, period. Good luck.

Jeff

 

[WrightAvia]

Flight express is growing. Freight Runners isn't. Flight Express has nearly 100 aircraft including 30+ Barons. Freight Runners has 11 aircraft total with no movement in the system whatsoever, frieght runners is too much of a mom and pop operation for me to invest my time into, besides the hiring info you have is outdated theyre accepting resumes but no class dates in the future.

Mom and Pop? What the hell does that mean?

 

[Freightdog75]

My .02, stay as far away as you can from Freight Runners. Had a bad experience there. Best of luck to you though whatever works out.

FD75

 

[wingnutt]

Mom and Pop? What the hell does that mean?

lol...please tell me your kidding, right

 

[labbats]

There's no need to question my skills as a pilot because I don't want to wait a year or two of single engine frieght to get an opportunity to move up to a twin.

I've ridden 40+ hours with frieght dogs. I've flown the dead legs. That's minimal compared to a full time pilot, but enough that I get the point. It's a tough business, and tough enough with full de-ice and two reliable engines. I have a lot to learn yet, but I already know what I will and won't accept in my pilot career. I see no reason for anyone to dedicate 2-3 years of their life as a freight dog, when 1 is sufficient.

I won't PFT, and I'm paying my dues eating Ramen Noodles and crying over student loans. I'll continue to pay my dues, but not any more than I have to.

 

[YODA]

I have been with Flight Express for 2 years now and I am still in a 210 because I like where I am based and I enjoy the run. For those of you who think that is wrong, get with the program! This industry is not doing well and having any flying job is something to be thankful for. The Baron run open up every now and then, they are easier to get if you are flexible and want to move to a base like Cincinatti. If you get on, take what you get and make the best out of it, bigger and better things will come. It is a great company to work for, nice people and you will gain some great experience that you just can't get from instructing. The last I knew, whoever scored the highest on the 135 written test got seniority in the class an got to pick which base they wanted out of the ones available of course. Good luck...

 

[wingnutt]

There's no need to question my skills as a pilot because I don't want to wait a year or two of single engine frieght to get an opportunity to move up to a twin.

well, then the opposite should be true for you as well. theres no need to question his wanting to "wait a year or two of single engine frieght to get an opportunity to move up to a twin". you are after all, the one who questioned him first... "For that matter, who would bother flying a Lance for a year, all night, just to get a chance to fly a baron (all night)?"

I already know what I will and won't accept in my pilot career. I see no reason for anyone to dedicate 2-3 years of their life as a freight dog, when 1 is sufficient.

some of us would rather do exactly that than sit in the left side of a 172 for ~1,000 hours flying nice square patterns, fighting for position with 18 other student pilots, sweating your butt off because you are below 3,000 feet the entire time you are in the freaking plane...need i go on?

I won't PFT, and I'm paying my dues eating Ramen Noodles and crying over student loans. I'll continue to pay my dues, but not any more than I have to.

again...some of cant fathom why you would do anything else. sure, it may take a year or two, but with not much going on in the way of significant hiring right now, might as well enjoy the climb, eh?

 

[WrightAvia]

How do these threads turn into a plssing match. Nobody was picking on freight dogs that fly single engine planes for a living. I fly a single engine plane in freight and have no plans to move on. We get paid well and the planes are nice, they get good maintenance and the schedule I have is awsome.

I just suggested freight runners cause they have twins and turboprops. And small is sometimes better. The more domiciles you have...the more chance you have to move.

As far as the commment about mom and pop...We have less pilots and planes than Flight Express and we are not mom and pop. We are a holding company that is owned by a publicly traded company on the stock market. With share holders and the whole nine yards. Flight Express is owned by a private owner. Private ownership of a business is MOM and POP. So whatever. Colgan Airlines is a MOM and POP operation.

 

[labbats]

I started typing a big response, but after posting, just visualized someone using the quote feature to butcher my points.

We can go around and around. No one wins.

Best of luck on the job to the original poster, my first post was indeed questioning his choice, as I wouldn't make the same one. But without different pilots making different decisions, the aviation world would all be astronauts.

 

[JP13]

Interview is tuesday, if everything goes well ground school starts the same day. Thanks to 210FR8dog, Wingnutt, YODA, and FD75 for the positive feedback, wish me luck.

 

[Freightdog75]

Good luck brother!!