Originally Posted by
Macchi30
So i was in the exact same situation as you a year ago. I was seriously considering ATP. But, I ended up just staying at my local small school. My thoughts over the past year
Small school:
Pros
-I saved about $15,000
-guaranteed CFI job (with medical and dental benefits)
-small school vibe, they actually seem to care about my progression
Negatives:
-slow. What I could have done in 6-7 months at ATP took me a year
-Our fleet isn’t as big as our demand for airplanes. So when an airplane goes into maintenance it messes up a lot of bookings
so I don’t really know. Sometimes I wish I did ATP because I would have finished a lot sooner. But at the same time, my school has some students who had previously been at ATP and most have horror stories
I have ultimately decided against ATP as well. I found a local flying club to build time and a local flight school with an expanding 141 college program for after I get my CFI. The plane is simple, but it's IFR equipped and extremely economical.
In the end, I just could not justify paying ATP so much extra. Especially when I don't see much benefit to the extras (with the hiring situation as it currently stands...airline partnerships don't seem to be worth much). Plus I can keep working full-time and save some money.