aeronautic1
Virgil_Tracy
- Joined
- Sep 9, 2003
- Posts
- 716
I am now at the point in my flying career where I will have to pony up the funds for sim. No one seems to be offering me, a 2500 hour total time pilot with over 1000 hours SIC in turbojet with excellent fitreps, school. I did not have to go to sim for my last Lear 135 job (approved in-house training) but now everything is insurance qualified, not pilot qualified.
Sure, I can pay for a type ride program with several of the operations around here ($7K) then go to recurrent ($7K), but when I do the math, the numbers come up almost the same as going initial. $11k+ for SIC and $15K+ for PIC.
Now, I know that PIC would be a waste of time because my total time would preclude me from a PIC job. But with seat swapping, that all important PIC logged time is a consideration.
But, what I am up against is the age old, "chicken or the egg," thing. I cannot get a 135 SIC job without sim school yet I will not spend $11+/$15K+ (and that's with "a deal") for sim school if there is not a job at the other side of school. An operator here wants me to go to school but all they are offering is contract work afterwards, no salary.
Then there is this Roger Griggs guy who is forming a consortium of pilots (AeroSolutions?) with the idea of gaining leverage for school pricing. Yet everytime I inquire about pricing, I can never get a straight answer.
I have plenty of SIC time in Hawkers, Lears and Citations and perform all ops evolutions. Please, no PFT flames. I am worth more than that. 47 years old, military vet and NOT being supported by mommy and daddy.
What the heck can I do?
Frustrated in FLL
Sure, I can pay for a type ride program with several of the operations around here ($7K) then go to recurrent ($7K), but when I do the math, the numbers come up almost the same as going initial. $11k+ for SIC and $15K+ for PIC.
Now, I know that PIC would be a waste of time because my total time would preclude me from a PIC job. But with seat swapping, that all important PIC logged time is a consideration.
But, what I am up against is the age old, "chicken or the egg," thing. I cannot get a 135 SIC job without sim school yet I will not spend $11+/$15K+ (and that's with "a deal") for sim school if there is not a job at the other side of school. An operator here wants me to go to school but all they are offering is contract work afterwards, no salary.
Then there is this Roger Griggs guy who is forming a consortium of pilots (AeroSolutions?) with the idea of gaining leverage for school pricing. Yet everytime I inquire about pricing, I can never get a straight answer.
I have plenty of SIC time in Hawkers, Lears and Citations and perform all ops evolutions. Please, no PFT flames. I am worth more than that. 47 years old, military vet and NOT being supported by mommy and daddy.
What the heck can I do?
Frustrated in FLL
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