Thinking of going to an Academy

[logansun]

I read the responses about the ATP Academy and thought there were more positives than neg's. I recently spoke with RAA (Regional Airlines Acadamy) about their op's, and as expected they thought they were the best. Has anyone attended their facility? Could anyone recommend any other academys?
Love this web site. 1st timer.

 

[satpak77]

what do you mean "an Academy"

if you mean some marketing spin that is placed into slick ads in Flying Magazine, that does not make them a good flight school.

Do you have college?

 

[logansun]

Hey satpak77, Yes I mean the glossy high priced "slick ad" schools. I'm frustrated with my FBO (Frikin BO..) College? I have an assoc. whenever I can finish my ratings. Let me paint the picture. There are about 20-30 wannna B a pilot and two 172's, one which is on the fritz most of the time. The "College" as they call themselves have been through 4,FOUR...QUATRO FBO contracts since I began two years ago. If anything I upset with myself for putting up with this. Under the circumstances, getting my assoc. has been inexpensive. I do see, however, my debt taking off faster then my c172 and probably slipping by the slick schools cost by the time I get "the interview".
I'm just doing the research, which I thought I did with this school. So fellow advanced pilot any knowledge you or anyone could offer would be extra arsenal for my journey

 

[mayday1]

well, if your profile is accurate, you're doing pretty darn well to have your private and instrument at 105hrs.

if you think your debt is skyrocketing now at your FBO, it'll likely only to get more at one of the big 'academies.'

Also, you need to consider your circumstances.. e.g. do you have a job right now that provides and income stream that offsets some of the training costs? At an academy you'll not only need to finance the cost of training, but also the cost of living.

And where are you training? Are there no other FBO options in your area? Is this place the only one?

 

[Goose Egg]

Skip the academies. I'd see about a different state school, perhaps one that has their own fleet. This is a crucial move for cost containment. It worked for me.

And while you're at it, why not see about a BS too?

-Goose

 

[Lucky]

The "College" as they call themselves have been through 4,FOUR...QUATRO FBO contracts since I began two years ago. If anything I upset with myself for putting up with this. Under the circumstances, getting my assoc. has been inexpensive. I do see, however, my debt taking off faster then my c172 and probably slipping by the slick schools cost by the time I get "the interview".

What "College" was this?

 

[acaTerry]

One thing I must tell you as an airline pilot...don't try to break in to the airlines without that college degree. I mean a 4 year degree, in ANYTHING. Just have it. You will never, ever get to the majors without it.
Trust me on this, you will wish you did it later. I have had to fall back on my degree once before. Don't be tricked into that BS about "now or never" hiring. Jobs will be there.
The regionals may sound like the end of the rainbow to you as a new pilot. But believe me, the airline business is at best unsatble, at worst hopeless. Most majors have no retirement plan, have huge paycuts and the regionals are even worse.
The job is good, but your future will suffer greatly. Get the degree. Finish flight training while doing it. The airline lifestyle of having all kinds of free time to pursue a degree or other things is all over. With 11 days off a month, which are difficult to plan, it will be nearly impossible to get the degree once hired, and the dream of a major airline job will be bye-bye.
Forget the online degrees. You will be too tired to do it.
You have your whole life and career ahead, plot it out smart.

Best of luck to you.

 

[mayday1]

yip....?

 

[satpak77]

get your degree, 4 yr, period, and get it in something you can fall back on when your airline furloughs you or the EKG machine misses a beat and you suddenly have no more FAA medical

 

[dutchfb98]

Im finishing my 4 year degree at a small liberal arts school in the midwest. Now I need to find somwhere to get to my airline goal. Academy such as Pan Am or Delta the best choice for me. I will graduate in 1 year. Just looking for the best option, I am very very goal driven and want to achieve big things. Just looking for some sound advice. Thanks!!

 

[capt. megadeth]

get your degree, 4 yr, period, and get it in something you can fall back on when your airline furloughs you or the EKG machine misses a beat and you suddenly have no more FAA medical

YES! Or to supplement your income when you are stuck as a commuter FO making less than $20K a year.

I would not waste a dime on any academy or program where you "graduate in a year". If you have the money for that, you might as well fly at the local FBO, get your licenses and save a lot of money while doing so.

 

[dutchfb98]

I will graduate with my BA in a year. What are the huge negatives at an Academy that I wouldnt want to go there. Also where did you get your licenses? Thanks!

 

[satpak77]

I may catch some heat on this but the only "1 year" program I would send my own offspring to (and I wouldn't..., but since you asked....) would be the Flightsafety program, Airline Track or whatever its called.

Or get your 4 yr and go to American Flyers or Spartan. You want to go somewhere that has signigigant alumni and contacts to help you in the hiring world. Acme Fast Track in 1 year School may not have that. They, yes, may get you some physical paper tickets PPL-->COMM MEL however you need more than that

To be hired at most corporate/airline places, you need

4 yr degree, period
Network/contacts/who you know
Actual experience
ATP
Good flight related training/education
Luck also helps (right place, right time)
In this market, If you can find a Jet-A job paying $100K+ a year you should consider yourself lucky

you need to do obtain the above, at which point your resume can now "get in line" with the 5000 others at SWA/FDX/UPS/etc

 

[satpak77]

additionally....

Im finishing my 4 year degree at a small liberal arts school in the midwest. Now I need to find somwhere to get to my airline goal. Academy such as Pan Am or Delta the best choice for me. I will graduate in 1 year. Just looking for the best option, I am very very goal driven and want to achieve big things. Just looking for some sound advice. Thanks!!

Highlighted by me for emphasis

1) What makes you want the "airline goal?" Define this for the flightinfo forum, as you may have incorrect beliefs about the job or aviation profession in general.

2) Achieve big things? Again, explain yourself. 3000 guys at AA got hired and their "achievement" actually RESULTED in being unemployed. Not their fault, of course not, but you must be aware of the reality of this business. My former CFI was a corporate captain flying a Lear 31, making NBAA Lear 31 pay, with benefits, medical, and fairly stable environment. However AA called him, and he "achieved" by getting hired at a major. Now he is on the street selling mortgage insurance, from a cubicle. His departure from a brand new (at the time, 1996-ish) Lear 31 and into a "major" job again RESULTED in a lesser situation.

Be careful what you wish for, and be cognizant of what you have

 

[logansun]

Thanks to all that replyed. I have promissed myself a 4yr degree. And your all right needing it to fall back on. Through this,and other web sites I have gotten "the big picture" about the industry. I hear alot of negative stories about what to expect, but I know where my heart is. I would rather go happy then be looking up from six feet under wondering. This is valuable advice that will help in my decesions. Look forward to collaborting with you'all in the future. I'm inTexas if anyone knows of a great flight school.

 

[PC12Cowboy]

Logan....
I will probably get flamed on this ut Airman is the only program where one price covers it all....I went from private pilot to CFI CFII and MEI.
it was quick, the course is of course based on what you put in it and get out of t...but it was a great experience...if you want more info PM me and I'll relate all the info I can

 

[minitour]

Be careful with Airman on how long they "guarantee" though.

They're telling CFI/II applicants 3 weeks and it's right around 8 right now.

A guy came in for his MEI add on (already had the 15 PIC)...they told him 3 days...he's been here 5 weeks...and he's only gotten 2 hours in the Duchess.

Quick? Yeah, quicker than some.

Fast? It used to be faster.

-mini

 

[ShyFlyGuy]

PM from SHYFLYGUY to LOGANSUN about DCA

I was PMing logansun about DCA and thought so fondly of it that I thought I'd share it with you's guys. Enjoy:

So SupaFly, what did you think of DCA? Did it benefit you? meet your expectations? would you have done it differently? I think your the first person that has emailed saying they actually went through the academy. Appreciate your feed back. logan

Hey, no problem. If I had it to do over, yes, I would do it... but I'd also do a few things differently.

One, get your private first (elsewhere). FBO: $3500 | DCA: $7000.
Two, move in to the cheapest apartment you can and get to know your neighbors. I'm white, and I moved in to a black neighborhood (1505 W. 25th Street apartments: 800 sq ft 2 br. apt for $450/mo). This motivates you to spend as much time as possible at DCA, studying, working, teaching, whatever. Getting to know the neighbors will cover your ass. They had my back, no matter what. I loved the ghetto and I would HIGHLY recomend those folks. I got my truck stolen once, but they drove it a few blocks and parked it. No harm, no foul. They had barbeques and it was AWESOME.
Three, backseat, as I said before. Backseat everything! It raises Va (maneuvering speed) and makes the airplane feel more stable with the added weight.
Four, get your CSEL at the FBO again (2 hours in a C-172 plus the checkride: $150 | DCA: $1500. The way DCA structures it, you go from the 172 to the 172RG for a stage check (which is essentially your CSEL) but then move you to the seminole for your PMEL and CMEL. Backseat the ever loving **CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED** out of that thing and chairfly it. Go to a plane in MX or on the line and go through your maneuvers until you're sick of it. Then do it some more. That alone could save you a couple grand. It really isn't a big deal. None of it is. You bust a ride, it's no biggie. The only ones that count with the FAA is the CMEL... I can't remember what the other one is, but I think there are only two.
Five, get in good with your CFI who is teaching your CFI. If you buddy up with the other two or three people in your group, you can all pitch in $5 or $10 an hour and do the lessons at your hous and save another couple grand each. (DCA charges each person the going rate, at the time it was $30/hr for the CFI and gave the instructor $7/hr. DCA made $83-113, depending on how many were in the group.) My instructor, Gerry Olmeda and his brother Angel Olmeda (both now at Eagle in San Juan) only let us buy him lunch or dinner. My most fond memories were of my CFI group. It was me (Fancy Pant's little brother), Zubie (now a Capt. at Pinnacle), and Lindsay G. (A Capt. at Comair). We would put together our breifings the night before, have class in the morning, work with Gerry for lunch, each one fly with him for two hours, then go party on Church Street/Orange Ave all night (Friday nights) with each other. Again, fondest memories there.
Six, buy all your books on Half.com or Amazon.com. The bookstore was a bit on the steep side, yet painfully convient. Resist. You will save several hundred to a bit over a thou if you DON'T shop there.
I'm trying to think of anything else, but I can't. Shop at Aldi's. I don't think they had them down there back then, but they do now. A box of cereal is $1, where it's like $4 in the other stores. Have fun, collect all the notes and cheat sheets you can and KEEP THEM! I handed all mine down to my big brother as he went through and I've been kicking my a$$ ever since.

Hope this helps you out. I'm going to post it on the thread you started about DCA for anyone else who might be thinking of any 141 school and for other DCA vets to add to if they have anything.

Shy

 

[RGC]

Could anyone recommend any other academys?

If you wish for a career in flying, with the best creature comforts known among the uniformed services, might I recommend the Air Force Academy.
Or if you wish for the super-charged adrenaline that comes with taking off and landing on carriers, the Naval Academy.
Or if you wish to fly helicopters or FW Intell missions, USMA...

or if you wish to fly the gawl-darnedest (had to edit because da*n is censored) most dangerous rescue missions ever caught on the TV news...the Coast Guard Academy

A long time ago I attended both USMA and the Coast Guard Academy (USCGA on a semester exchange)...so if you have any questions...

 

[mayday1]

A guy came in for his MEI add on (already had the 15 PIC)...they told him 3 days...he's been here 5 weeks...and he's only gotten 2 hours in the Duchess.

huh? someone's sticking around for 5 weeks for an MEI add-on? don't know what's worse, the school sticking him like that, or him actually just taking it.

i've heard a lot of good things about this school, but this changes my opinion.

 

[MTpilot]

Gtu

Logansun, I would recomend Pilots Choice Aviation, they are in Georgetown, TX. I did a lot of my training there. Good school, reasonable prices on all the airplanes. They have archers, warriors, c-172 rg, beech bonanza, and three Duchess's. They only hire CFI's from within. Check it out. Good School. Bill

 

[logansun]

ThankS SUPA DUPA FLY.