Originally Posted by freezingflyboy

Even though I am a low time guy applying to the regionals I agree with you guys completely when it comes to quality of training/experience. One of the reasons I came to UND and one of the reasons UND guys get hired with such low time (and survive training) is quality of training. Any putz can get his commercial certificate by flying around in clear blue skies in a C152 every Sunday morning and build 1500 hours doing that but has he learned anything? Just look at the training contracts we have had from around the world. Starting next year we will be training pilots for ANA. Last big contract I know of was for China Airlines. Currently we have a contract running with Aramco. Must be a reason they come here (anyone who says more sunny days a year=better training environment is fooling themselves). Now I understand landing a CRJ or a Beech 1900 or an EMB 120 full of people or cargo on an ice covered runway with a 15 knot crosswind at night is a lot different than landing a Seminole with a student on the brakes on an ice covered runway but it is still a good place to learn how to deal with less than ideal conditions. I know instructors back in California who have never seen ice on an airplane or think you can't fly in snow because it constitutes "known icing" (just because snow is frozen precipitation does not mean it will stick to your airplane). But here in North Dakota, we deal with ice, we deal with thunderstorms, all that stuff that increases that pucker factor. The only thing we dont have are mountains. Personally, I'd rather fly into some really bad weather with someone who has 800 hours and been there before than with someone who has 1500 hours and never seen the inside of a cloud. Anyone can push buttons on an autopilot, and with some basic flying knowledge, fly the airplane from A to B. But when your autopilot is MELd, an engine quits on you and you may or may not see the runway at mins on this ILS, thats when you need the skills that count.