Should I forget about the majors?

[Caveman]

Fred,

Thanks for the rest of the story. It now makes a bit more sense to me. Having only 6 months airline experience in one airplane and then trying to upgrade to Captain in the Brasilia is IMHO a fairly daunting task. All you are guilty of is biting off a bit more than you could chew. History is chock full of very famous folks that had multiple big time failures and yet are mainly remembered for their final successes. Own your failure and use it to your advantage. If nothing else it will make for an interesting topic of discussion at your next interview. You'll get to talk about what you actually learned and experienced instead of answering another canned 'what if' question. Don't sweat it. You'll be fine in the long run.

 

[donger]

Fred,

I have a very close friend and fellow pilot who had one of the blackest marks a pilot can have on a record.

A CRASH that resulted in the complete loss of the aircraft. No deaths or injuries (key).

He is now flying G-IVs for a large company in California making a very nice living.

Sure his confidence was low and he thought to himself "who would want a pilot that crashed a plane on landing?!"

It is absolutely amazing what a positive attitude and goal setting will do for a career. He learned from his accident and moved on with his life.

Encouragement from your peers is important and helpful, but the real power lies within you. Your desire to fly will have to be the flame that carries you through this little bump in the road. You may have to question whether or not you are flying because you truly love it and want to do nothing but fly, or if you are flying because you are afraid you can't do anything else.

It is only normal to spend time on the pity pot, but eventually you have to flush. So fisinsh up, get the job done and GET OUT THERE!!!

Donger

No more yanky my wanky
The Donger need FOOD!

 

[BlondAmbition]

Fred,

I just heard yesterday that the Flight Engineer for that NWA flight where all the flight crew were drunk is now a pilot for American Airlines. Also, an astronaut got turned down at SWA. Don't let all of these comments shape your future! YOU shape your future. If you hold your head high and go on proudly, then so will your career.

Best of Luck

 

[Russ]

Who knows, this could be a hidden gift. Not being away from your family four days a week isn't that harsh a punishment. You probably wouldn't have made it this far without a great degree of ability. Channel it twords some other field and you will find success. Good luck.

 

[80/20]

This can happen to anyone. I know of similar cases with happy endings! Don't give up.

 

[CALformerCALX]

First of all...sorry you were let go. Should not have happened and any smart company would put you back in the right seat for a pre-determined amt. of time and allow you a later shot.

But with that said. Having lots of both Check-Airman time and now union leadership experience I can tell you that my recommendation on probation is never create unnecessary risk. In other words if you had waited just 6 more months your check ride would more than likely been past the one year mark.

At CALX years ago, early nineties, we saw this with guys/gals on probation. Just wait. You hired on at shi**y pay so deal with it for 366 days. No reason to lose a possible career over 6 months or less.

So where do you go from here. I say right back in the fire. CALX will soon hire. Comair is hiring, as well as others. Get in there. Explain it and someone WILL hire you again. You have excellent experience. But if I was a recruiter and saw you went to the regional from the military then went back to the military with your head between your legs I would question your desire to pay the price in commercial aviation. Make this a positive. I F^%$ed up! Got up and I'm back to make it right. I'd hire you in a minute with that attitude. Plus you probably will spend a little longer time with this second comapny and they will like that oportunity. Let's face it. You won't be leaving for a major as quickly as another guy with your experience in the military.

I would almost guarantee that if you went to an AirInc. seminar and got face to face with some top regional interviewers you'll be back in training in no time.

Hope this helps...

 

[CALformerCALX]

Gee, let me guess, you must of been an AA flowbAAck! You guys are a bunch of losers. You AArogangt bastards think that we are not good enough to fly jets, well you have PROVEN that you are not good enough to even fly our "little" "barbie" jets! What a joke, go back to the military and fly the Fred, like that's going to help!

You know nothing about professionalism or unity. Attitudes like yours is why pilots have lost ground to the public, polititions, and corporate bean counters over the last three decades. Pilots like you are why at times nothing gets accomlished to further our profession. You relish failure by others that make your failures seem less. I'll bet you wear a Rolex or a Brietling as well.

 

[roadrunner]

SKYW Pilot:
SkyWest sure as heII does have an up or out policy! I know personally one guy that failed out of sim last year before he even got to the checkride! They never even told him it was his last shot, or gave him the option of going back to the right seat before using his last shot in the sim. I have heard that they will give you many opportunities to pass, but it didn't work out that way in this case. Unfortunately, a year later, the guy can't even come anywhere near another flying job. I feel pretty bad for him.

 

[SKYW Pilot]

Sorry to break it to you, but at Skywest you have the CHOICE to upgrade when you'd like. If you don't think you're ready and you choose to go anyway, YOU (not the company) are putting your job in jeopardy. If you are uncomfortable with the airplane or not ready to assume the responsibility of a captain, then WAIT and choose to upgrade at a different date. The company hires Captains... not First Officers. But at Skywest, you always have the option to wait. The company has a very fair training program and if the pilot's here have a good attitude... I repeat... GOOD ATTITUDE and want to succeed... the company will do what they can to get the person through training. After investing all that time and money into a pilot, do you really think the company wants to fire pilots? Don't think so... Take care!

By the way... I'm sorry the guy was fired. It really sucks. It's never a good thing to have a pilot out on the street. God knows there are WAY too many jobless pilots right now with families and mortage payments. I knew when I was going through training that my job was on the line. I started studying for upgrade a year before I knew of the class. Even though I thought I was ready, I was still scared #%^less about my job. It's that fear that scared me into studying and preparing til my head was about to explode!

 

[Dieterly]

I was still scared #%^less about my job

Gotta be a great place to work at...

 

[SKYW Pilot]

Skywest is a great place to work at! If you've never been scared of a checkride... you need help or you're super pilot! And after everything was over, I wondered why I worried myself to death. My experience with the training department at Skywest was great! I'd like to know the airline out there that allows you to fail your ATP/Type ride AND ground school two or three times and still allow you to fly there. I'll fly somebody else!