Regionals or sim job

[yankee22]

I was hoping to hear some feed back.

My brother has the option of taking on a regional flying job or working the sims for CAE. He has good total time (4000 hrs TT, 2000 jet). He wants to move on to the majors some day but he's tired of the regional pay and BS. He's still an FO as well, waiting for an upgrade ....

I'm a little out of touch as I've been on family LOA for a while. I'm not sure what else to say to him but I know he's frustrated.

His big thing other than the money ($80,000 vs $25,000) is that sitting him in a sim will prevent him from furthering his career because he's not building total time, current and qualified, etc. What do you think..... Does being a sim instructor hurt you in the hiring process at bigger companies???

 

[Buschpilot]

I dunno about the career path and how the sim would affect it, but I'd much rather be in a sim for more money and home at night than on the road as much as I am for as little as I get out of it.

The sim probably isn't as much fun though, huh?

 

[SLFLYHI]

This is a great question. Anyone who answers on here, unless they've actually done it, or is an interviewer at a major, will only be speculating. That said, here's what I know:

A very good friend of mine was an offline sim instructor at our regional for many years. He was a great guy all around. He got hired at FedEx just about a year ago with relatively low time (4700tt) because so much of his career here was in the box. There have been much higher time guys from here that have been shot down at FedEx. So who knows?

Does your brother have 1000 PIC at his regional? If yes, I say go for it. If not, I would guess that without it, he won't stand a chance at a big airline, even with lots of instructor time. (BTW, my buddy had about 1500 PIC here).

Good luck to your brother - it's a tough problem.

T2S

 

[Flyerjosh]

One thing to consider is that being a sim instructor, you meet a lot of people that have influence over jobs... particularly if he becomes an instructor for corporate operators.

I know of several offline instructors that have met future employers though sim training they conducted.

 

[Guitar Guy]

T2S - re-read the initial post. Yankee says his brother is an FO, still waiting to upgrade.

Yankee22 - I think it really depends on what your brother wants for his career. If he wants to fly bigger planes for a bigger (better?) carrier, either cargo or passengers, he'll need that PIC time from his current company. Giving up his seniority number would likely spell the end of that portion of his career.

However, as another respondent pointed out, if the money's good and he'd prefer being home much more, the CAE job might not be bad. But he should realize that he might have some very screwy schedules and hours at the sim job. I have a friend who taught at Simuflite for several years and his schedule was all over the clock, if you will. But he was home every night and he said the pay and benefits were good. I think there might also be a little more stability in the training area than at an airline, depending on the aircraft program one is in.

Another avenue could open up for him, though. If he's instructing in biz jets or turboprops, he might find himself able to pick up some ad-hoc work. Again, my ex-Simuflite friend did this on several occasions. And your brother might also find a good corporate job through CAE also. So he might consider that as well. There are very good jobs in aviation besides airlines and the big freight companies.

Good luck to your brother in his decision.

 

[WhiteCloud]

Losing 55K a year and hoping for the prospect of upgrading at your current job (when?) and then working for another two years to get to 1000PIC and then maybe getting a call for a job that will pay you what the sim job pays you in few years? Is that what you're asking? Ask yourself this question again the next time you sit down to work on bills or want to buy something reasonable like a modest house/condo that you just can't swing on poverty wages. Better money living at home and maybe adding a couple types with an employee discount sounds better to me.

 

[yankee22]

Thanks for the info... some very good answers... lots to think about.... I'll pass it along.

Much appreciated!!!

 

[FN FAL]

...but I'd much rather be in a sim for more money and home at night...

Sims don't make money if they are sitting still...time is money and there are 24 hours in a day. You might be surprised how many sim sessions are taking place at 2 in the morning.

 

[Flybet3]

The sim probably isn't as much fun though, huh?

Not much fun??? it is the sh*t! I did the contract instructing in the lar for a short period of time and I had access to the sim whenever I wanted. So I would take some of their SIC that wanted to build some more experience and jum in the sim for a good couple of hours and have fun. Plus like Busch said, which is very true. Set schedule, great starting pay, home EVERY day, great bennies, great retirement and you get to do some contract work if you want to as well. I loved it! I think for ME that is a career choice. Some guys like being out and not stuck indoors. I personally love it.