Originally Posted by
Celeste
I agree with don't go completely broke getting ME time, but on the other hand it's really hard to get...
I've been a CFI for 3 years and about 1000 dual given, and I'd say at no point in 3 years of instructing have I been drowning in ME time... and I didn't have my first multi student for almost two years.
I know it depends on where you teach, but if someone has a way to get to 50 ME time while working on their ratings I'd highly suggest it. A lot of FBO flight schools don't have a twin, or if they do, private and instrument instruction is their bread and butter and the twin will likely not get rented out a whole lot. The university program that I teach at has a multi course with only 10 hours... and not every student even ends up getting their multi, so I estimate probably only 5% of the total hours flown in our fleet is in one of our twins. But having your 50 multi opens more doors, and if you can't find a good time-building job that gives you multi time, at the very least you meet the 50 hour min for the new ATP cert. A lot (I would say the vast majority) of aerial survey, traffic, jumpers, etc, are being flown in single engine planes.
If you can't afford 50 multi you are probably screwed. There arent any multi jobs with less than 50 and as an instructor you will need 50 anyway to get a student and thats if you are lucky. Also for the atp you need 50 regardless. YOu will most likely bite the bullet and buy the 50 multi or even go into debt trying to get it. Not suggesting this but thats usually how people get it unless you do that one pilot under the foogles thing like atp does and split it. even then its still expensive.