Originally Posted by
worstpilotever
You are right...average guys wont get called. The guys (and gals) getting called do something to make themselves above average.
Went to job fairs, networked, took on extra responsibility at work or in the community to make them above average. If you just put in an app and update it once every months you probably wont get called. If you put in an app and update it constantly and have stuff on there that makes you above average, you will get a call at some point.
And frankly that is what I want. I want people that go the extra mile to come here and want to be here. I like it here and want good people who like it also to come here.
This is spot on. In my new-hire class at UA, every single person brought something to the table that made them a step above "average." One had flown in Viet Nam for a few years, all of us had been check airmen of some sort, except one, and that one had been heavily involved in ASAP work. Most of us also had some sort of community service on our resume, and ALL of us had been to at least one job fair, and most to two, and all of us had a 4 year degree. When the (then) head of hiring came in to say hello to us, he made it clear that those standards will stay in place--and they have. Special emphasis was placed on attending job fairs, so that recruiters can get some face time with you and see beyond what is on the resume.
Also, only 1 person in my class was military. The rest of the 11 off-the-streeters like myself were civilian (there were 5 furloughees returning as well).
Average flight time was over 12,000 hours.
As for importance of TPIC....it's still there. I know of one person who was hired without it, and that individual had at least 1,000 hours of wide-body international time flying cargo. Another friend of mine with thousands of DC-8 and 767 FO time also got invited for the interview, but didn't get past the Hogan test. If he had, I'm sure he would have gotten hired. So, either have a competitive amount of TPIC or some wide-body international time.