I'm no expert but I did get hired by FedEx into the MD-11 so I must have done something right.

2 1/2 years is about the right time to start. Get your 1st class medical and keep it updated.

Next, get a list of all the guys you know at the airline you want to fly for and start contacting them. It took me almost 6 months to track down and contact some of the guys I needed to talk to. Then it took some of them a couple of months to get the recommendations in. Almost a year for this seemingly simple step. The reason for this is; you would be surprised who you know flying at some of the airlines. The airline where you have the most contacts may not be the one you wish to fly for, or may not be currently hiring. It takes a while to gather all the information for all the guys you have been friends with the last 20 years. When I did finally cantact one of my sponsors and relayed this problem his response to me was; now you know what christmas cards are for.

If the airline will allow you to submit the application 2 1/2 years out, do it. Some will not. The generally accepted practice is to apply as soon as you meet the minimums and then keep it updated every coupe of months. Almost all the applications have some sort of a field with your availability date, make sure it's accurate.

A couple more things to start doing:

Get a professional e-mail address, not one like [email protected]. [email protected] works well.

Go through your logbook to jog your memory on those memorable flights. Make a list of these, not the whole story just something to jog your memory. This will come in handy during the interview and any interview prep you do.

Lastly, as to your deployment question. I got called for an interview with UPS and then had to cancel due to a deployment (long story but I couldn't get out of it). The caller was real nice and said call when I get back. First thing I did when I stepped back on US soil was call him; his response was, you had your shot already. So try to keep your last year clear, if you can.