Originally Posted by Flying Elvis

Folks waiting for class, here are some numbers for which to be prepared. Take with a grain of salt based on my earlier attempts at math in public.

New-hire salary through IOE: $3750/mo

Uniform: ~$500-550
- 3 different vendors ranging from ~$375-425 for a newhire package. One ($407) offers 5 shirts, the other 2 in the deal. I bought from Crew Outfitters and with an upgrade to their coolmax collar on the shirts, 3 extra so I wouldn't scare anyone out of the cockpit on day 5 of a trip, a new belt, and a zipper vs clip-on tie, it cost about $500 shipped home (no tax).
- Add in another $45 for hat pin, wings, and nametags
- $50-60 Navy SDB jacket you will get altered
- I already had plain black leather shoes

Lodging during sims:
- Hotels: ~$1600-$1700 (21 nights at $70-$75 + tax). If you've got a car, you can drop that by going a bit further away. There are a couple places a bit cheaper. Best rate with Breakfast in walking distance seems to be Fairfield Inn ($69ish + tax). Most have doubles available, so split it with your sim partner and you can cut this in half.
- Crash pad: $300-500 or more. They're booked pretty solid, but there are some available. I found one in walking distance for me and my sim partner.

Food and drink obviously extra. You're pilots... you'll find the discounts.

Don't buy a laptop just for training. Surface is on the way. If you have a Mac, they'll give you a full-up version of Windoze 7.

I'm Not complaining AT ALL - just thought some of you in the pool might want a good idea of how financially prepared you'll need to be.

As a comparison, JetBlue pays for the hotel all the way through initial training and provides uniforms (you can talk to a JB pilot about how that's going). However, new-hire pay is $1000/mo less. I figure it comes out about even, and then after training obviously two paths diverge into the woods.