Letters of recommendation....or walking

[duksrule]

OK while reading various posts I have come to a question. For all of the people who have given the recommendation or for the ones who have gotten it, how do you know the person? What type of relation ship is there between applicant and recommender (I know that's not a word)? Here is the type of response I am looking for.

-I have known Billy all my life. We went to school together and got our licenses the same day. We are still close and I even married his sister. It was my pleasure to help him get into XYZ where I work.

_or_

- This crazy guy stopped me in the street and handed me a resume. I figured since I was on my way to the office I would drop it off.

The reason I am asking is because I am going to try to get into the industry after I retire from the military. Thing is I only personally know one guy who is flying for the airlines right now. He flies for SWA and I haven't seen him in a year. The other pilots I knew that got out I am sure are flying but we have lost touch. I am just wondering how some of you have made your contacts.

Thanks

 

[Eagleflip]

To answer your first question, all of my references have been in the first category--"I've known Billy Bob for 50 years and would trust my sister to his hands...etc" I've had one guy contact me for a recommendation that I didn't know personally; he contacted me through a mutual friend. I would not write him a recommendation since I had no firsthand knowledge of this guy's qualifications.

The bigger issue is your lack of contacts. I would think that everyone on this board will admit (some grudgingly) that contacts make getting a job in this business possible in many cases.

If you've been in the military long enough to retire but don't know but one person in the industry, then you probably haven't been in the flying end of the game. OK, that's a small problem, but do-able.

Looks to me as if you have been a maintenance type in the military--great! That's a superb way to begin the process. My guess is, though, that you need to cultivate more friendships with pilots still on active duty who may well be able to recommend you later. A great way to meet folks and actually gain their respect in the flying game is to join the local miltary flying club. That will give you a few folks to work with who may soon enter the industry.

Your best bet? Simply fly as much as you can and build hours of the appropriate type. The best contacts, military or civilian, will be of no use to you unless you have the requisite qualifications to meet the hiring criteria for whichever airline you seek employment with.

Best of luck--and keep working!

 

[bobbysamd]

LORs

You might ask your flight instructors for LORs after you've been training a while. I was an ERAU instructor several years ago and had a number of students ask me to write them LORs. Not that my name carried any weight but for internal ERAU hiring, an LOR by instructor for student is still a reference. Besides, most flight instructors move on to other things, i.e. becoming an internal contact for you at a company in which you may be interested.

I put the shoe on the other foot, too. I tried for several years to get on with SkyWest. A former student who had gotten on there offered to walk in a fresh app. I took her up on it, and to make sure that I hadn't fallen through the cracks I included another app fee. Got my check back, proving that I hadn't fallen through the cracks, but no interview.

As well as pilots, you can approach friends and acquaintances you've made through maintenance for references. An LOR means something if it comes from most anyone within your target company(ies). It doesn't necessarily have to be from a pilot.

Good luck with your efforts.

 

[Skank]

Just my experience. I had no references within my current company (Jetblue, if it matters). Beware of the bogus recommendation. By that I mean just having letters on file as a result of networking. If you really don't know someone and hangout with them, their recommendation may do more harm than good. It's better to get quality recommendations, no matter where they come from.

 

[chase]

duksrule

If your trying to get LORs from folks what I would recommend is to first of all contact the folks that are still in that you served with & check with them if they might know the whereabouts of the individuals you are looking for. While getting a LOR from someone from within the company you are applying for is good, it certainly is a requirement. A very strong LOR from a previous boss/co-worker is better than an average one from someone within the company IMHO.

As far as getting in touch with folks at other airlines you could possibly contact some of the labor unions (most have websites) & ask them if they could check their databases for specific folks. Again if you don't know if they have gone then your next option is to contact AFPC & check to see if they could get you their address/phone number.

I'm currently an FO at SWA but will be happy to look up anyone you need. Just PM me & I'll be happy to do it, thanks,