Hi, im a private pilot and i am going to be starting on my instrument very soon and then on to my commercial. However the flight school that i will be attending offers these courses in a multi engine plane for just about $2000 more. What are some pros and cons of flight training in the multi. It will be more expensive now, but it the long run i think it will be cheaper because you need to build multi time some time to get anywhere in your career, so why not start now, right? i figure by the time i get my AMEL, instrument multi, and commercial multi, i should have close to a 100hrs multi time. where will that put me in the job outlook field? i know i will still have to cfi for a while but would i get to priority cfi'ing in a multi if i have my mei or anything? thanks for any input!
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pro/cons of doing training in a multi
- Thread starter celi95
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In my case it also helps to know the right people, but I had to have the twin time for insurance. I split my time between flight instructing and flying an Aerostar. Funny thing about insurance is I'm covered in the Aerostar, but at the same time I didn't have the TT to fly our P210. Go figure.
bobbysamd
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Training in a multi
It is a good idea if you can afford it. Many of the major schools train students for their initial Commercial-Instrument in multis. FlightSafety and Riddle are two examples that I know well, because I worked at both.
You are put in the multi as soon as you have completed your Commercial cross country requirements in singles. You begin by getting your Private multi. Then all further multi training to Commercial-Instrument is multi PIC. Depending on the program, you finish with the 200 hours for Commercial, with 50 multi and 40 as multi PIC.
What a lot of people do after that is get into the right seat and earn their initial CFI as MEIs and CFI-Is in the multi. They then go back and get their CFI-A in a simple single. I like that plan because it is a great way to maximize your multi buck. And, you're right, you'll be further along in building multi time if you spend a fair amount of it training in multis.
In that regard, be forewarned that some of the multi mins you see for the commuters are just that - minimums. Realistically, you will need far more multi time to be competitive. For example, Mesa's requirement is 100 hours of multi. You might have 100 hours of multi when you apply to Mesa and meet that requirement on paper, which, theoretically, justifies an interview, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you will be called. 500+ hours of multi PIC is far more realistic in the current hiring environment.
Hope that helps. Good luck with your training.
It is a good idea if you can afford it. Many of the major schools train students for their initial Commercial-Instrument in multis. FlightSafety and Riddle are two examples that I know well, because I worked at both.
You are put in the multi as soon as you have completed your Commercial cross country requirements in singles. You begin by getting your Private multi. Then all further multi training to Commercial-Instrument is multi PIC. Depending on the program, you finish with the 200 hours for Commercial, with 50 multi and 40 as multi PIC.
What a lot of people do after that is get into the right seat and earn their initial CFI as MEIs and CFI-Is in the multi. They then go back and get their CFI-A in a simple single. I like that plan because it is a great way to maximize your multi buck. And, you're right, you'll be further along in building multi time if you spend a fair amount of it training in multis.
In that regard, be forewarned that some of the multi mins you see for the commuters are just that - minimums. Realistically, you will need far more multi time to be competitive. For example, Mesa's requirement is 100 hours of multi. You might have 100 hours of multi when you apply to Mesa and meet that requirement on paper, which, theoretically, justifies an interview, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you will be called. 500+ hours of multi PIC is far more realistic in the current hiring environment.
Hope that helps. Good luck with your training.
TriDriver
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Re: Training in a multi
bobbysamd said:It is a good idea if you can afford it. Many of the major schools train students for their initial Commercial-Instrument in multis. FlightSafety and Riddle are two examples that I know well, because I worked at both.
bobbysamd - thanks, I'm glad to see an eminent forumite such as yourself sanction our program with such glowing words!!
Actually, at TAB Express we are about to undergo a significant change in the syllabus. We just had our first student take his initial Instrument Rating checkride yesterday in the King Air. He got his Pvt SEL in the C-172, got his Pvt MEL in the Seneca, then got his Instrument in the King Air yesterday. Now he will take his Comm MEL in the King Air soon and he will be done with our program.
The plan is to apparently get rid of the Seneca altogether. After the Pvt SEL, the students will get their Pvt MEL in the King Air, then progress as mentioned above - Instrument in the King Air and then Comm MEL in the King Air.
As you know, that is the extent of our training program at TAB - there is no CFI training at all in our program.
TriDriver Bob
bobbysamd
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Commercial-Instrument-Multi in a King Air
I'd bet a King Air is a terrific and extremely stable platform for instrument training. I wonder how much wear and tear the engines can take from pulling them during S/E ops.
I was with IASCO in Napa, California, very briefly 10 1/2 years ago. The place had fleet of BE-90 King Airs which were used for advanced cross-country LOFT training and perhaps for instrument and multi training as well.
Hmmmm. Despite my reservations about the TAB program, I must admit the notion of taking Instrument and Multi in a King Air appeals to me, though it would be pricey. I believe the Army at Fort Rucker has used King Airs for fixed-wing multi/instrument transition training.
I'd bet a King Air is a terrific and extremely stable platform for instrument training. I wonder how much wear and tear the engines can take from pulling them during S/E ops.
I was with IASCO in Napa, California, very briefly 10 1/2 years ago. The place had fleet of BE-90 King Airs which were used for advanced cross-country LOFT training and perhaps for instrument and multi training as well.
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TriDriver
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Re: Commercial-Instrument-Multi in a King Air
bobbysamd
The Navy uses the T-44 (C90 King Air) for their ME trainer for pilots going "maritime/Patrol" (P-3 and C-130 pilots). They go into the T-44 after about 100 hrs. of primary training in the T-34C (SE turboprop).
As far as pulling engines, that's why TAB is planning on getting away from the Seneca - they're having a hard time keeping the Senecas maintained with all the single-engine work they do.
The PT-6 on the King Air can be slammed to idle without it hurting the engine at all. The other engine generally doesn't have to be run at max power while maneuvering around for a single-engine approach, either. So, a turboprop engine doesn't get shock cooled when you simulate an engine failure and can be brought right back up to speed without babying it to warm it back up, and the operating engine is running at something less than full power. A good deal all around.
TriDriver Bob
bobbysamd said:
bobbysamd
The Navy uses the T-44 (C90 King Air) for their ME trainer for pilots going "maritime/Patrol" (P-3 and C-130 pilots). They go into the T-44 after about 100 hrs. of primary training in the T-34C (SE turboprop).
As far as pulling engines, that's why TAB is planning on getting away from the Seneca - they're having a hard time keeping the Senecas maintained with all the single-engine work they do.
The PT-6 on the King Air can be slammed to idle without it hurting the engine at all. The other engine generally doesn't have to be run at max power while maneuvering around for a single-engine approach, either. So, a turboprop engine doesn't get shock cooled when you simulate an engine failure and can be brought right back up to speed without babying it to warm it back up, and the operating engine is running at something less than full power. A good deal all around.
TriDriver Bob
TriDriver
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Re: Re: Re: Commercial-Instrument-Multi in a
bobby
By the time they get in the airplane, the students have done dozen of starts in the sim with every malfunction that might occur, especially hot/hung starts.
In the airplane, we do all starts with a power cart, so the engine spins up real nice.
When you train in the King Air the way TAB does, basically like the military or an airline with lots of ground school, lots of simulator training, and a structured syllabus, the students are ready for a hot start or any other malfunction - they know the systems and they know the procedures when they get to the real airplane training.
TriDriver
bobbysamd said:
bobby
By the time they get in the airplane, the students have done dozen of starts in the sim with every malfunction that might occur, especially hot/hung starts.
In the airplane, we do all starts with a power cart, so the engine spins up real nice.
When you train in the King Air the way TAB does, basically like the military or an airline with lots of ground school, lots of simulator training, and a structured syllabus, the students are ready for a hot start or any other malfunction - they know the systems and they know the procedures when they get to the real airplane training.
TriDriver
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