Originally Posted by
stinsonjr
Definately think he shouldn't be a CFI. The crop duster remark ("you will earn the same as digging ditches") is innaccurate. Crop dusters are pretty well paid, and I think there is a mis-informed notion that they are not skilled. In fact, I would out the pure flying skills of a crop duster against that of airline pilots - they absolutely know how to fly - and actually manipulate the controls of an aircraft to make it do what they want, as opposed to monitoring an auto-pilot.
Crop dusting requires skills, but they almost unrelated to the skills routinely used corporate and airline pilots. Not better or worse, just different...professional transport flying is more about information transfer and analysis and IFR operations, and less about stick-and-rudder skills.
Sprayers make about as much as regional airline captains, but it's harder to get into spraying...it has to be something you want to do, and an agricultural background is almost required. It's mostly farm boys who want to stay with what they know and get to fly too.