Mesa training.....any input?

[d_van_nostrand]

Pondering the thought of joining MAPD P.A.C.E. program. Would like to hear from people who are in the program or have first hand knowledge of the situation. Seems like a good deal for a fairly low time guy?
3 5 0 thanks for your input!

 

[mmmdonut]

lol.... ahhhh you have so much to learn

 

[plunger]

from what i hear the program works. you just have to decide if you want to work for mesa. i've heard the pay is terrible (worse than other carriers) and the ceo is a tool. but hey, i guess it's better than instructing for 2000 hrs.

 

[wheelsup]

Like plunger said, it beats instructing for 2000 hours. I have first hand knowledge and the system works well. For PACE guys, the pass rate (for hiring) is slightly lower because they haven't had the time to acclimate to the procedures etc. I believe it's around 85% or so, but don't quote me.

A round of students/graduates just left for ground school two weeks ago - guys with 250 hrs TT will be in the right seat of a CRJ. I think its funny how people say the pay sucks, but it's better than what you'd make as a CFI and a lot less work at that. I'd much rather be in a jet than a light single...

~wheelsup

 

[ROJO]

I went through the entire Mesa ab-initio program and can say that it completely delivered on its promises. I finished the program under budget a little bit, but it is still an expensive program. Farmington NM sucks, but that has a distinct advantage: you have little to distract you from your singular mission of studying and training. I finished with my ratings and 273 total flight hours. They hired me and put my into the Dash-8. Getting through Dash-8 training was probably the toughest thing I've ever done, and half my class washed out (the failures were mostly off-the-street pilots). However, if you study hard, and dedicate yourself fully, you can do it. They don't grease the training standards for the Mesa program grads. You have to pass the 121 checkrides by flying to ATP standards, just like everyone else. Anyway, I passed and flew just one bid cycle on reserve, then held a line on the Dash-8, just like that.

I thought the program delivered MORE than I expected, and the PACE program is just as good. I don't fly for the airlines anymore; I left to take a job in the foreign service. Mesa does not pay well, as you may have heard, but all my former classmates are now captains on the ERJs and CRJs, which is livable money. Some of my classmates were recently hired at SWA. Aside from the low pay, I felt I was treated pretty well by Meas, but times have changed, and most of the people there are groaning about one thing or another. The fact is, the industry is tough right now, and regional airlines, while cushier than many other flying gigs, are never going to be gravy.

Check out the program thoroughly. It's not for everybody, but it will work for you if you study hard, work hard and present yourself as a professional. It's a hard program, but it will deliver on its promises. Hope this helps. Good luck!

 

[bobbysamd]

Mesa pay-for-interview

Pondering the thought of joining MAPD P.A.C.E. program. Would like to hear from people who are in the program or have first hand knowledge of the situation. Seems like a good deal for a fairly low time guy?

I second the comments above about the MAPD ab initio program only. I taught in that program. It is a fine program because it works and is not P-F-T.

On the other hand, MAPD PACE is just another version of a pay-for-interview scheme Mesa has had for years. The pay-for-training and pay-for-job aspect aside, you have to bear in mind that you are not guaranteed a job. In other words, you might be interviewed but not hired. So, where does that leave you? Out a lot of money and with a lot of useless time in your logbook.

Mesa has taken pay-for-interview to a whole new level with its PLUS program. Cost is $6K; more if you need more sim time, at $225 an hour. The kicker here is you must have 1500 total-100 multi before you can enroll. To get right to the point, why bother with this program when the time above meets or exceed the quals required for most other commuters??? E.g, ExpressJets, where, I read on the board, requirements have been lowered to 700 total-100 of multi!

It has been said that a sucker is born every minute, though it wasn't P.T. Barnum who said it. Don't be sucked in to pay-for-interview.

 

[IP076]

Better than instructing????

Pay, lets see, I make more instructing than a 3rd year RJ FO at Mesa.

Work Rules... I make my own schedule

HOME for Dinner,
sleep in MY BED

Instructing 4, Mesa Pilot 0.....

Just the way I see it.

 

[PBRstreetgang]

Or,
The fastest single track right into the CESSPOOL.
Be careful what you wish for.
PBR

 

[bobbysamd]

Riddle instructing

Better than instructing????

Pay, lets see, I make more instructing than a 3rd year RJ FO at Mesa.

Work Rules... I make my own schedule

HOME for Dinner,
sleep in MY BED

Instructing 4, Mesa Pilot 0.....

Just the way I see it.

Good comments. ERAU was my first full-time aviation job and my best aviation job. I don't remember from thirteen years ago how much I made per contact hour, but I remember that instructors, including myself, were bonused if we billed at least one-thousand contact hours a year. It wasn't all that hard to do, once you learned the Riddle system (and runaround) and it added up to a nice chunk of change. I was upgraded to stage check pilot, which was salaried. The pay was very comparable to commuter captain pay of the day, and I did not have to worry about billing enough contact hours.

Having said all that, Mesa is a means to an end, by not by way of its pay-for-interview and semi-P-F-T MINUS (PLUS) programs. Moreover, no one says you have to stay at Mesa forever, though I know of some people who are. And, eventually, and we're talking about a long eventually, regional pay has a greater upside than instructing.

 

[sandslob]

I'm doing my flight training with mesa. I have to say they are VERY professional and I'm VERY happy. I did my research before I started. I had my reasons why I chose Mesa over others... PM me if you want more info....


Fly because you want to... NOT for the $$$.

sandslob
www.lifeisabeach.us