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Life after turbo props

  • Thread starter Thread starter bell47
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bell47

shoveling the dream!
Joined
Sep 28, 2005
Posts
231
I was wondering if turboprop pilots are at any disadvantage when interviewing for a major airline? If someone flys a saab or a beech for say Colgan do they have less of a chance than some guy who flew an RJ. i would think that the jet time would have some sort of advantage, although I don't think it would really make someone a better pilot. I know before the RJ's became so popular that lots of regionals flew more turboprops, so there were more "prop" guys out there interviewing. Now with all the RJ's there are probably more RJ guys interviewing for major positions than prop guys. What do you think??
 
Went from Saab to DC-10. Not a problem.

I don't know any more former RJ captains than T- prop's at majors.

It's the PIC time that counts. But even more than that, it's the connections you make at the company you are aiming for.

The only reason you will see a trend towards more RJ guys gettting hired is simple math. They make up the majority of pilots looking for jobs, just as it was T-prop guys back in the day.
 
I didn't want to turn this into a "my jungle jet is better than your prop plane" discussion. Thanks, CF34-3B1 for your input, That's more of what I'm looking for. I'm sure being a check airman didn't hurt, but what about plain ol' line pilots? Keep it coming!
 
I have several friends at Southwest, Continental, US Airways before they were furloughed, and plenty here at NetJets, who went straight from line pilot on a 1900 to their respective jobs. No problems.


What they all had in common was Turbine PIC time, not jet time.
 
SkyWest lost about 140 CA's last year, 99 RJ and 39 BRO. Considering that there are about 180 CRJ's and about 60 BRO's at SKYW, if you do the quick and rough math, by percentage (99/180 < 39/60), it looks like to T-PROP guys/gals had no problem getting other jobs.

fdah
 
Two pilots walk into an interview. Both pilots have very similiar flight times except one is on jet and one is in t prop. The t prop got his PIC turbine time most likely in a shorter amount of time and probably did more challenging stick and rudder flying in bad weather, out of the way airports, more legs, tougher schedules, older equipment with less support etc. Making it happen as a Captain with bare bones. Very valuable experience no matter what anyone says because that is time honored experience that builds skills that dont come from a book. Dont try to argue because I am right. The jet guy has more experience with jet speeds, jet systems (that get learned from a book), longer legs (being able to hook up a DVD and watch videos in cockpit), staring out the window at FL360 down at featureless terrain, looking at the wonder boxes and saying what a neat toy, turning on autopilot, letting trailing link gear make them look good at landings, but they have a jump start on the kind of flying that anyone who moves up will be doing. So who does the job go to???????????? The better PERSON for the job. The flight time and equipment just show you can be trained and you can fly the line. They hire people and if you are a mental case, basket case, ego maniac, a**hole, have trouble playing with the other kids, a background of deviant behavior, bad reputation as an employee, know the chief pilot's wall paper by heart, or come across as someone the interviewer would rather jump out of the plane rather than spend a 4 day with then you could take all your t prop time or all your RJ time and see if they fit up the dark hole sideways cause that is about as good as it will do you. Then of course if you know someone really really really good and suck up really really really good.... well then you can be a retard with a couple hours and someone will slide you in the right seat at the grown ups table. That sh*t was funny
 
I'd say the ones at a disadvantage are ones flying King Airs, Conquests, MU-2 Ect. (ones that don't require a type) or ones with the prop mounted on the roof (helicopters)
 
I've flown 'em all...props and jets, and I have to say that nobody will ever be as good a pilot as they were when flying those 19 seat props with no FD, no autopilot, no nothing. Shouldn't be a problem getting hired.
 
EXPERIENCE

Believe me, when a HR department looks at a stack of apps and they can weed out the non-turbojet, non-EFIS, low-time applicants, they will--UNLESS--you know someone. The exception is the regional carriers, who right now, are desperate to find bodies with a 98.6 degree temperature.

It takes a lot less in training costs to bring a guy up to speed in your equipment if he is already qualified in that equipment, or who already has been flying and is familiar with the same sorties somewhere else. Even FSi can punch them out, some with a couple extra hours of SIM. But, when it takes 45 hours of IOE to spool them up on line, they are noticing.

T8
 

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