Well, at the risk of being chastised for having the audacity to not quote your every word...
Originally Posted by
skylover
I guess I don't understand. How the heck does training in a slower fashion build character?
You really aren't grasping what I'm saying here. You are so fixated (and that's a bad thing in aviation) on the immediate issue of college and a quick trip to an RJ that you aren't grasping that I'm speaking more about what you do AFTER you graduate. That's why I said I really don't care where you go - particularly since you are already decided.
Right now (in CRM terms), you need to dramatically raise your SA.
Whether you like it or not, in ANY career, from ANY college, the goal of a graduate is to have a steady paycheck as soon as possible.
If your goal is to obtain a steady paycheck as soon as possible, I'd suggest you bag this entire option and head down to McDonalds. You'll have a paycheck more rapidly and it will be steadier (and quite possibly larger).
The goal of higher education (university) should be to gain a variety of life experiences and obtain highly generalized knowledge which you can apply in various contexts. This is where MANY (certainly not just ER) aviation programs fall well short.
If your goal is stated accurately, than any old pilot mill will do an acceptable job of cranking out another sausage to feed the system, and you'll be just fine going straight from ER to an RJ.
I'll be happy when I have a seniority number at a regional and am earning a paycheck (which is meager, mind you) at 22 years old.
And this is why there won't be a pilot shortage.
Quite frankly, I think it builds more character to even be eligible to become a new hire regional pilot by the end of college. It takes a ton of hard work - flight instructing as much as possible, including the summer, and maybe squeezing in an internship as well.
I don't understand why you fail to grasp what I'm talking about. The only part of this I'm cautioning against is the going straight to a regional. How about I put it differently for you:
You will be an inferior pilot for much of your career because you won't have all the experience, knowledge, and skill sets you otherwise could.
For the record, the last decade has pretty well established that all it takes to go directly to a regional is the ability to fog a mirror, so I would be too excited about that as a measure of anything.
I'm never going to be the very best pilot in the world. But if I can operate the aircraft safely, comfortably, and efficiently while working well with my captain/first officer and flight attendants, I'm happy.
How about being the best pilot you can be? That's what I'm talking about, or are you willing to settle for just PTS standards?
Whether you like it or not, ERAU and other "aviation colleges" have produced thousands of people just like that, with good character, decision making skills, and knowledge needed to fly safely. That's probably why during 2006-07 at ASA, approx. 75% of applicants who came from structured approaches were hired, while less than 27% of non-structured applicants were hired.
For about the tenth time, I'm not against aviation schools, I'm against anyone not working outside of a highly structured program for at least a portion of their early career.
I'll reiterate another point as well: I'm 100% in favor of people taking good formal ground schools on a variety of aviation subjects. Ground school courses and crew concept training don't get enough emphasis on this or other websites. Twenty five years of professional flying and I seldom look back and think about how to do a chandelle - but I routinely draw on topics such such as meteorology and CRM.
Also, the fact that more people were hired from these programs simply indicates that was the best of what they could get, not that those people were at their full potentials.
I'm NOT against formalized training, in fact I'm for it in many aspects (again, particularly the ground courses). I think it does give one a better framework upon which to build, and think it is beneficial down the road. I don't think it's vital to fly in such a program, but there's nothing wrong with doing so either.
The biggest gripe I and many others have the the cost for what you get, particularly on the flight side. If you have a full ride, then that really doesn't matter.
And the interview process includes a simulator portion, where applicants need to deal with a variety of emergency situations, exactly like what you were mentioning.
Character is who you are when nobody is looking. I was taught that in kindergarten, and I've followed it ever since. It is NOT, however, going to Mom 'n Pop's Flight School of Fun rather than ERAU, and becoming a regional pilot at age 24 rather than 22, going through "character building exercises" along the way.
Twelfth time: I'm not trying to sell you on M&P flight school.
However, I believe you are incorrect - character would be to forgo the immediate gratification (deny your SJS) and take a career route which will help you become the become the best pilot you can be, rather than being satisfied with being good enough to make it through and interview and training.
Go back and re-read what I've said in the light that I really don't care where you go to school. I was merely pointing out other viable options.
If you can't comprehend this, then it's time for me to read my own tag line.