Originally Posted by
Mox Nix
I attended the Ameriflight Open House in DFW this past weekend. Started with a basic presentation about the company from the pilot recruiter, followed by some good open discussion among all those present. The discussion wasn’t really a formal Q&A, it was more casual/social conversation as people filtered in and out, got a cup of coffee, etc. Around mid-morning the Dallas ACP showed up and contributed to the informative side conversations.
The CP held one-on-one discussions in a separate room for those who wanted to interview. During my meeting, I kind of felt like it wasn’t so much him interviewing me, as it was me asking him more details about the company and what it’s like to work there. He didn’t ask me much because he felt I was well-qualified based on my background & experience.
Not to re-ignite the debate about “whether Ameriflight is a good company to work for”, I’ll give some thoughts below. Personally, I feel that just about any company or organization has its ups and downs, its good and bad points, good people and not-so-good people to work with and work for. One person’s idea of “a good company” may be completely different than another’s, and it’s primarily based on your expectations and personal goals, and the attitude you bring to the job.
That said, here’s my take-aways from the Open House – from the perspective of an experienced AF guy getting ready to transition out of the military:
The company prides itself on their niche in the industry... both in the service they provide, and the career opportunities they offer to the pilots they hire. On the first point, they like to boast that they’re the largest FAR 135 cargo operation in the country, and that they have a 97% dispatch reliability rate. One side discussion was about how Ameriflight won a contract after having orignally lost the bid to another carrier... the other carrier didn’t meet the customer’s expectations of delivering the goods on time, so the company came back to Ameriflight and awarded them the contract after all – because of the value of the service they provide.
As for the second point above, the career opportunities, they recognize that they are a step in the career ladder – in fact they advertise themselves that way, as a place to build PIC turbine time before you move on to another company, bigger equipment, etc... whatever your personal goals happen to be. They’re happy to help you get there, and they tout the fact that your single-pilot PIC experience will be valuable to you as an aviator because of the seasoning and decision-making experience you’ll get...compared to someone who starts out as a regional FO at the 500 hour mark then spends years as SIC with little decision-making authority.
And from a different angle, an experienced guy like me transitioning out of the military, I also like the opportunity to jump right in to a PIC position. Most jobs out there, part 121 or corporate/fractional, would require starting out as an FO. Even with the pay and benefits of a legacy (if I’m lucky enough to even get called out of the 8-10 thousand applications they have on file), I’m not sure I want to be stuck as an FO for the forseeable future. So I see Ameriflight as an opportunity to break into the civilian/FAR 135 world as PIC, and see where life leads me next... perhaps into a 135 corporate or fractional job, or perhaps other possibilities I don’t even know about yet. I’m sure there will be good networking opportunities, and in general I think it will be good exposure to the civilian world after all my military experience. I’ve told a few AF co-workers that there’s opportunities out there that most of us don’t even know about because we’re not exposed to it during our military experience. The mind-set seems to be “do your AF time then go to the majors... or the regionals while you’re waiting for the majors to call”. So here’s a different path to explore to see what else might be out there.
As I said in my previous posts, my personal experience was not great at all.
I left the Air Force for familiar/personal reasons and I'll retgreat it everyday.
First of all, I should not leave the AF.
Second If you really want/need to do it, AMF is not the best way to go.
As a military you should know better than any other on this forum that a recruiter can sell you and tell you everything you'll want to hear.
If you had been flying in the AF you should already have your turbine PIC time and not need to do more. You just need to build some experience in the civilian world, which is what I did.
You may not see all the down sides of AMF until you don't leave to go somewhere else. Once inside you better do, what you are told because otherwise they'll prevent you from being hired in other places. Recruiters know each other and that's what happens to me.
If you want to go for a Job at a major you could go: AF reserve, go for a regional job, so that you get familiar with the part 121 world and when the time comes you'll have an interview in a major. Than maybe you can leave the AF.
If you want a corporate job, a CRJ type rating may help you more than a turbine PIC time in a BE99 where you are the capt of yourself.
The turbine PIC time that maters is when you upgrade from FO to Capt. and your are the PIC of a crew.
As I said the recruiter will tell you whatever in order to have you on board but the reality is made of an horrible schedule, rude people to work with, old planes with steam gauges, an overall experience that is not worthed your time.
My suggest for you is DON'T leave the AF but if you do it, don't do it for AMF.
I should also be careful to leave the AF for a corporate job because they may not last as much as a good stable job in the AF can be.