Originally Posted by
gbntpilot
I've read the gouges on aviationinterviews.com. But, the one thing I'm still curious about is the sim ride. What type of plane does the sim represent? I've heard it's a very old sim and there are no visuals at all. The only other sim ride I've done for an interview was at ASA, which was in a CRJ700 level D (which went very well). I'm very comfortable with glass, but from what I gather, Mesaba's sim is far from it. Can I at least expect an HSI in this thing?
Second question: I was turned down by ASA because in my job history I was fired from a car dearlership three years ago before I even got into aviation. A few years prior to that, I resigned in lieu of termination from another company. Neither of them involved any kind of intentional wrongdoing. They just came as a result of honest mistakes and substandard supervisors who passed the blame for their own shortcomings down to me. I'm trying to avoid a repeat of the same situation I had at ASA where everything went perfectly throughout the entire interview, and still got turned down because of those events. I've considered writing a statement to attach to my application explaining both situations in detail. On one hand, I believe in being totally up front about them and portray myself honestly. I'm almost positive it will come up in the HR interview, and if I was the interviewer or decision-maker, I would appreciate having a full statement explaining the situation. But, on the other hand, I don't want to draw any unnecessary attention to those facts if I can avoid it. What do you think?
Don't sweat the sim. We are looking for your scan, knowledge of IFR procedure, and basic stick and rudder.
Here is my advice. IF the job history comes up in the interview, then by all means offer your side of the story. DO NOT EVER, even hint at the fact that you were a scapegoat for management shortcomings. Right or wrong, you were terminated. There was cause. Explain the cause, admit your mistakes, tell them what you learned from it and move on. It doesn't matter who or how bad your supervisors were. Those people exist everywhere, even here. Not everyone gets along. That is the way it goes. If you hint at "it wasn't my fault" you will not get hired here. Those stories are for peers, not airline HR. The interview process is much like your oral with the examiner. Answer the question and don't dig a hole. Accept responsibility, tell us what you learned from YOUR mistake (even if it wasn't all yours) and tell us how you have changed because of it.
Good Luck.