closing thoughts & one last evidence

Well, I haven't blogged in quite some time. Truth be told, I had to let it go. Sometimes the dream becomes a nightmare and it starts to take you apart bit by bit. Well so aviation has become a heavy weight for me. I am moving on to my idea of greener pastures and that means quality of life. I am sad to say that the condition of general and commercial aviation is so bad it just grieves me to look at it daily and have no ability to make any dents for change. I had hoped this blog would get some attention and get folks talking, but alas I am powerless after all! If you are finding this blog for the first time, please read it through, and if you post any question or comment- I will gladly respond. But at least for now- I won't be adding anything new to this blog unless it is requested. Perhaps one day I will get to be paid for writing on the subject--since writing is one of my great passions just as aviation has been. In the mean time I can be found making a difference elsewhere. One day at a time, One smile at a time. I DO have one final parting story on general aviation that gave me another eye rolling pathetic laugh (completely true story). As well as a few comments that will follow in regard to Commercial Aviation.

A close friend of mine recently was looking to rent a light multi-engine in this area. I won't be using any aircraft, company or other names as I don't wish to be caught in any of that sort of politics- (disclaimer-disclaimer!)
So, said friend (from here on referred to as "CF" short for close friend,) is making a few calls regarding renting a multi engine. When she calls a certain (un-named) place (from here on referred to as "WTF" short for use your imagination! LOL) in regard to the certain (un-named aircraft type from here referred to as ME, short for-- yes- multiengine) they have for rental.
The conversation went like this- This is a direct cut and paste from my email - so as told by "CF" (close friend) text in peach,, with comments from me-- because I can't resist- inserted in purple text, so you can tell it was me- not CF who made the comment. Also I have replaced certain words so as not to identify anyone specific with the proper changes- found inside (parenthesis ).. this ones - just well-- sigh-- pathetic.


Okay - here's the conversation I had this morning with a local flight school. I was calling to inquire about getting checked out in their (ME.) Yesterday when I called (during posted business hours), the phone rang and rang. When voice mail finally came on, it sounded like a personal number so I didn't leave a message.

This morning when I called, it was answered by an older-sounding woman.

Me: I'm calling to get some information on the (ME) you have for rent.
Her: Okay. (hmmmm, just "OK"? not- great! I can help you with that- who am I speaking to? have you ever checked out in any of our aircraft before? )
Me: Can you tell me what the check-out requirements are?
Her: What's a check-out? (OMG - here it is, this isn't happening!)
Me: Well, usually depending on the insurance company, specific hours and experience are required to rent a plane and I just wondered what those requirements were for the (ME).
Her: Oh, okay. Do you have your license? (DUH? no I just wanted to rent your ME to see how she goes!)
Me: Yes ma'am.
Her: Are you multi engine certified? (rated?)
Me: Yes ma'am.
Her: How many hours do you have?
Me: About 2000.
Her: Oh. That's more than enough. (Oh my dear- I haven't even made that many pies! uhm, clearly we don't know what our insurance policy says)
Me: Are there specific requirements for me to have a certain number of hours in a (ME) or a complex airplane or something like that? Different insurance companies have different requirements so I was wanting to know what I needed to rent your (ME).
Her: Um...you might be better talking to one of the flight instructors to get more information.
(why do your flight instructors know more about your insurance requirements than you? Perhaps you should get back to your baking granny)
Me: How easy is it to schedule a flight instructor?
Her: Usally 2-3 days is great. I don't keep their schedules cuz I've got other things to do. They keep their own schedule. (what are those other things? Laundry? )
Me: Oh, okay.

Then she gives me the name and phone number of one of the instructors, saying he's available evenings and weekends and would probably be the best one for me to talk to. (okaaay- your PART time CFI knows MORE than you about the insurance requirements for your ME than you do? I'm gettin' scared -- next question is- is your CFI ME rated? and does HE have the requirements set by your insurance company? Alarm going off in head- these guys are not going to be around long--don't give them any large downpayments on block time!)

Me: Okay. And I just tell him I'm interested in getting checked out in the (ME)?
Her: Yes. And then if you don't mind, just give me a call back so I can put it on the schedule. (WHAT?? wait a sec- WHO'S keeping whose schedule? I'm confused- I thought you had pies and laundry going? What about I need you to come in during normal business hours so I can get copies of your license & current medical, as well as make a proper file for you according to HSA/FAA requirements?) (please God please let the TSA come in and audit these people-- please? )

Then the usual end of conversation pleasantries.

Isn't that a trip?????? I had to bite my tongue not to laugh. (oh CF you did so much better than I would have-- I would have had my head spinning like Linda Blair, spewing out obscenities about her responsibilities to help keep this country safe, while wild sarcastic laughter punctuated each point declaring the likelyhood that she would soon found herself jobless as this place is definitely on the DARK side! ) If she's doing things other than scheduling (which, of course, she's allowed to do), they really shouldn't have her answering the phone. Especially if she has no information in front of her - - like an information sheet on the planes, their prices and rental/check-out requirements. And what's with having a potential renter call her back to get on the schedule for a check-out? I would have thought the instructor would do that???? (I'm so sorry CF, I can't understand this either- it's like we are in the twilight zone! I think granny should be left to baking her pies!)

Can you imagine if I'd been brand new to aviation or more intolerant in wanting to get checked out?

I'm still chuckling.......
(end of email here)

I personally feel motivated to say a prayer for anyone who might come in contact with this un-named place- I wonder who is keeping track of maintenance requirements? Furthermore- please God don't let anyone who wants to learn only how to take off and fly straight and level find them!

Now as promised some words on commercial aviation- wow- the commuters are actually canceling flights due to pilot shortages, They are desperate to get warm bodies into the flight deck- the requirements are scary low- and just to add insult to injury-- think about this-- Joe Blow, straight out of an expensive flight school applies, gets hired, sails through ground school cause they are used to studying and haven't ever stopped cause they went straight from high school to flight school compliments of mommy and daddy, (these are the ones you commonly see that look about 15 years old and like they are playing dress up in their daddy's uniform) have very low actual experience time, are hired with 50 ME hours, then they get to the sim-- and have a 50% fail rate,,because they have minimal actual experience-- true story!
Now, consider this next scenario. Seasoned pilot, high times, including ME time, older than the rest of the class by a decade, had to work their way through all their ratings one at a time, while CFI'ing, very qualified- very desirable for that cockpit position, but they are older so they gotta study twice as hard as the youngsters to get through ground school, and then they bust on the oral. Why did they bust? Major pressure- short ground school, not enough training expertise from the airline to get them through it- and they never see the sim- where they would KNOCK THE SOX OFF THESE YOUNGSTERS! Cause nothing takes the place of experience!
God help us! this is so wrong- I can barely tolerate it.
Next complaint-- Okay big corporate fat asses! AKA CEO's CFO's etc. of airlines-- it must be nice to make such a huge paycheck- bonuses, etc, while screaming all the while how the airline is in trouble- here's a suggestion! IT"S NOT WORKING! TRY SOMETHING ELSE!
For Gods sake- if passengers knew the truth they would pay a few extra bucks for their tickets, they WANT meal service, movies etc. Your low budget flights only matter to a small percentage of your clientele. Entertain them, feed them, charge them more- and stop being so damn greedy! PAY YOUR FLIGHT CREWS! Need pilots? well they are gonna have to come from somewhere! Informed people don't decide to be pilots when they find out that they will be lucky to make $18,000.00 a year to start! Take a lesson from Southwest, let your employees have fun, get a decent wage and be happy- don't overwork your crews with bad scheduling, and your passengers will be happy and come back too!
If you have any doubts- regarding how bad it is in the regionals, just leave me a note on this blog- and i'll tell you stories that will make you wonder where the hell these corporate fat asses came from,, cause they are about dumb as rocks.
The end! unless of course someone comments- at which time I will respond with more of my sharp tongued sattire. AND as for my buds, Don't get any wise ideas about sucking me back into this with an anonymous comment!
Fly safe- and make sure you know the ins and outs of your chosen flight school!

aviation careers

So you are thinking about aviation as a career? Well, now that I am back on task, let's talk about what your options are and what the journey is going to look like. I am feeling the enormity of this subject, and trying to figure out how to say it without droning on and on! I also want to give you both the positives and the negatives, and achieve some balance here. First off the line, as I said in an earlier blog, don't be thinking this is where you are gonna hit the cash cow. Aviation has many attractive perks, but big paychecks is not one. Aviation doesn't provide decent wages until you have been doing it quite a while. First year, regionals offer in the neighborhood of, $20,000.00. OUCH! Hard to make a living off that! This of course comes as a shock to many "would be" pilots, (not to mention the general public) and is enough to send them off to a technical school to learn about computer programming, that is if they find out the truth before they are 20 grand into their training investment. There are other better money makers than starting with a regional, and make no mistake, you will not get hired on at a major airline until you have paid your dues in the small time! No ifs and or buts about that. (to be fair- generally your second and third year at a regional will see pretty decent raises, and upgrades to Captain will boost you up to around 50 grand the first year as PIC) Also don't get yourself thinking you are going to work for Fedex right off either, they take the cream of the crop, high time pilots only. Yes - they pay extremely well. Cargo and corporate flying are better paying right off the line than a regional, if you get on with the right company you could start out at around $30,000.00 first year, or possibly more if you happen to be in the right place at the right time. But keep in mind that the more you are making, the more difficult your schedule could be. If you are on call charter, this is a difficult way to live, you will never know when to sleep or eat because you never know when you will get that call. These charters tend to be 20 days on and 10 off at worst, so for those 20 days on- forget about having a beer, unless you have flown your maximum legally and can't fly for at least 12 hrs. Many charters require you to be wheels up in 30 minutes from the call time. Cargo routes tend to be night flying, which is great for your resume, bad for your personal life!
Back to Commercial Airlines, this is an all time high for hiring, seems there just isn't enough pilots to fill the seats, gee, could it be that the cost of training and the payoff are not attractive enough? (check out the all Atp's website for a listing of who's hiring) Hmmmm, I hope this sends the pilot wage back up to a decent living again. Sad but true- that in the 70's and 80's Pilots made considerably more money than they do now-- and the cost of living was less,, just makes me wanna thank Jimmy Carter (gift basket of poo?) for deregulating the airlines and creating this mess. Side note: Truth time-- passengers WILL pay more for their flights if airlines offer more service! Southwest has the corner of the market on bare bones flying and always has since they started. But not everyone wants what SW offers, -- there are people who miss the meal service, friendly flight crews, and littel creature comforts.
This is also a business of "who you know." Make a point to know people, meet the right people and it's much easier to get in. Nothing makes for a faster interview than the captain who walks your resume in. In the end the "make or break" of your goal will be all about ME (multi engine), turbine, Jet, and ultimately, PIC (pilot in command aka Captain) time. You are probably wondering about a college degree as well, and I will address that in another blog. But for now- no you don't have to have a college degree, but it tends to help sometimes. Your flying skills and experience are more important than a 4 year degree in "whatever." trust me, the training and cost of flight training are their own degree! Yes, it does look good on your resume to be able to say you attended Embry Riddle or NDU, Westwind, All ATP's and Flight Safety etc. But like everything else it has it's moments when it ISN'T helpful and if you are so proud of it you are arrogant about it, well, nobody wants to work with that personality. Yes, your training will be excellent, you will be well educated, and you will be paying your loans off for a loooong time! On the other hand you can be properly educated and experienced for less money as well, but you have to learn what the pitfalls and the shortcuts are. Unfortunately, there is a major shortage of smaller schools with ownership that cares about the quality of your flight training enough to treat their customers and CFI's with the respect they deserve. So I intend to help you recognize the traits of a good school and how to avoid the common lack of concern for your investment, and finally,, CYA! (cover your - - -!) Middle of the road school-- yes there are a couple -no I'm not naming any names-- disclaimer disclaimer! -- buyer beware- high prices don't neccesarily mean better training here,, check out all the options- I will go over them in the next posting. But just a taste-- look at their aircraft, consider age and engine time- consider who owns these aircraft, are they leasebacks? are they fully owned? Who is in charge? Who is making the big decisions that affect you? Are they financially stable? Are you required to pay up front for the entire course? Are there alot of foreign students? Are the CFI's treated well and are they genuinely happy? These things all effect your flying experience, don't underestimate these details! I'll explain why- next time!
next blog will be on what to look for and what to avoid in smaller schools.
I hope this is all going to really be helpful for alot of people, and I plan to keep exposing the truth! Last comment for today- one of my past CFI's (employee) told me that she has students considering leaving the school she teaches at due to too much stress, they are thinking of going to another school with not such a great reputation, (just a different bad reputation-) she is going with them to teach them there if this happens-- she said- and I quote, "at least it can't be worse, and having no one paying attention at all, is better than having a jerk cheif pilot and bad management paying attention with a bad attitude!" Ouch, good flight instructor, bad schools. (sigh.) I am going to say it again- owners, management, cheif pilots, SET THE TONE! And,, make or break the school and customers dreams. Thats it for today- fly safe!