Originally Posted by
Indyflyin
Thanks Sliceback for another reply! I have some additional questions that I wrote down. The numbers correspond to your answers
#4 On layovers, what is the minimum time?
#7 Do you often run into people again on another flight? Can you put any input on who you want to fly with or is it up to chance?
#10 are confidence maneuvers a required part of flight training?
-I remember when I was flying into Barcelona over the summer and we flew over the port, it is something I will never forget. Also, when making landings in places like San Fransisco where the runway goes out into the bay, are those landings/takeoffs extra difficult and do they require any extra precaution?
#11 When I am flying before a regional airline, would I be working as a flight instructor?
Answers -
4. Basically about 10-12 hrs. Being at the absolute minimum typically isn't build into the schedule because a slight delay inbound generates a delayed start the next morning. The overall goal is to restart the day as close to 100% as possible and naturally it decays somewhat during the day due to reality of moving complex machines across the world dealing with Mother Nature.
7. It depends. Some guys you see multiple times in a month if you're on the same schedule and don't trade your trips around. Or you'll fall into a pattern of bidding the same trips month after month. Once I flew four of seven months with the same FO. Thankfully he retired in the 8th month...
Or you might have the same schedule for a month and both of you trade away enough trips so that you never fly with each other. Had that with a friend, scheduled to fly three months, two back to back, and a third month four months later. We never flew together until we both traded for the same trip in the fifth month.
If you're in a small bid status, with perhaps only 15 CA's and 15 FO's, you'll fly with the same guys all the time. If you're in a bid status of 500 guys in each seat you might not see the same guy for months or years.
10. In the USAF it's a requirement. I called it the 'scare the ****z out of the student maneuver' until I got to like it.
11. That is the typical career progression - CFI then regional FO. But there are other ways to get the 1500 hrs. Banner towing(lots of flight time each month), sight seeing rides, pipe line inspection, etc. But CFI (Certified Flight Instructor) is probably the most common.