Flight Safety

[ERJdca]

Hello,

I posted this on the training board and have not received any responses, hopefully some of you have come from flight safety. Have a friend who is interested in training at Flight Safety in Vero Beach. Any current or ex-Flight Safety guys/girls that can comment on their experiance? Do they offer you a CFI job when finished? If so pay/benefits?

Thanks,
ERJDCA

 

[Visceral]

Try here first for plenty of answers:

http://forums.jetcareers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=20

 

[atrdriver]

FSI at VRB is a pretty good place to get you ratings in a hurry. Training is good, equipment is very well maintained. After you get your CFI you interview for an intern position. This you may or may not get. Out of my class I think 4 out of 14 was chosen to be an intern. That pays about 6/hour, with no benifits. You work on your CFIi and MEI while you are in intern. Once you complete that you are elligible to begin standardization, which leads to instructing. When I was there I think instructing paid 9/hour, and I don't remember there being any benefits.

 

[Burt Reynolds]

The internship (with a FlightSafety training center other than Vero Beach) is optional, but a good option if you're interested in going into corporate flying, i.e. you get to do a lot of good networking. A lot of people just finish their CFI, interview and if hired finish thier CFIIs (w/ employee discount) before going into standardization. If you don't get hired after the CFI, you are given another opportunity to interview after completing your CFII (no employee discount). The MEI is payed for by FlightSafety once you are hired.

Good school. Expensive. But as far as academies go, one of the best in my opinion for quality of training, etc. I'm not a big fan of the "direct track" programs that the are currently offering.

 

[indianboy7]

the internship atrdriver is referring to is extremely old school....they don't have that any more.......now, it's a good place to work, 14 bucks an hour, all benefits (some better than the regional ones)......They offer an interview to anyone who goes through their cfi program....CFII and MEI are paid for if they do get hired.....

The training is very good, and the fleet is immaculate. Very good maintenance...

I'm not a big fan of the direct track programs...but their marketing department is......they offer direct tracks to american eagle, expressjet, asa and I think blowjets.......kinda stoopid to blow 25 large to sit in a pool and/or get laid off....

they have a new internship where after your CFI, or even during your employment as a cfi there, you can go to another FlightSafety sim center and have a paid intership for 3 months....great way to make connections and a lot of people are getting jobs and type ratings out of the deal......

if you need any details, pm me....imp:

 

[ERJdca]

Thanks all, appreciate the info. I will pass it on. Ive already told him to stay away from the fast track programs as i was never a fan of them.

 

[WSurf]

WOW things have changed since I left as a insturctor back in 99'!! ATRDriver is right, they really maintain there Aircraft. I went to a reunion 2.5 years ago and they had a brand new Fleet of of Airplanes.
One thing for sure, you do a bunch of flying!! And you get a tons of Multi Time! I left FSI with 900 TT and 600 Multi!! Not bad!
Plus being by the beach isn't bad either!

 

[blueridge71]

Former FSA IP here. I would recommend getting a start someplace else. When I was there (2001-2002), a PSEL cost about $10K. That's roughly twice what it costs FAR 61.

My recommendation is to get a private and about 150-200 hours, including about 35-40 hours of PIC XC before you go. It will save a lot of money in the long run.

The strength of FSA is that you earn a PMEL and then do your IFR in a twin. You rack up a lot of ME PIC that way.

The down side is that their prices for SE are way out of line. Do your time building elsewhere.

 

[igneousy2]

Former FSA IP here. I would recommend getting a start someplace else. When I was there (2001-2002), a PSEL cost about $10K. That's roughly twice what it costs FAR 61.

My recommendation is to get a private and about 150-200 hours, including about 35-40 hours of PIC XC before you go. It will save a lot of money in the long run.

The strength of FSA is that you earn a PMEL and then do your IFR in a twin. You rack up a lot of ME PIC that way.

The down side is that their prices for SE are way out of line. Do your time building elsewhere.

Be careful with trying to do this...it can byte you. A 141 school can only credit you 50% of your time toward any of their programs. So if you fly 50 hours of cross country, FSI will only be able to credit you with 25 hours, and you will still have to do another 25 hours of cross country.

Working ahead is not bad advice, however, as a former manager at a 141 flight school, it doesn't save money to try and knock out requirements ahead of time. Almost regardless of how expensive the school you are going to is...and yes, I am a FSI VRB graduate so I know how expensive it is. If you want to get ahead while saving money, the most efficient way to do it is to complete whole ratings...not just parts of ratings. FSI (or any 141 school) will only credit you a maximum of 50% of your hours but 100% of your ratings that you have completed. Technically, it is up to the school to decide how much to credit you if anything up to a max of 50%. Even if you can find a single for 1/2 of what FSI charges, you are only breaking-even if you don't complete the rating.

later

 

[ERJdca]

The guy i know has his private instrument already and is looking to do the rest. I think the one nice thing about FSI is you don't need to put all the money down, but rather pay as you go (at least thats what he told me).

Thanks for the info guys.
ERJDCA