Background Question
 

So I'll just throw this out there and see what your thoughts are on it.

I was in public safety for the past 5 years. About 2 months ago, a girl I had been having an affair with came forward to my agency's administration and told them about our affair. I suspect she did this because she was upset that I recognized I wasn't going to leave my marriage. I am well aware of how terrible and disgusting this behavior was and it is the biggest mistake of my life. She also reported to them that she suspected I was involved in other affairs, which isn't true, but they still suspended me pending an investigation, so there is probably some documentation in my file of alleged other indiscretions.

I had already been considering a career change for the last 6 months and viewed stepping down as the right move. I resigned and intend to pursue aviation. I was not asked to resign and I did not resign in lieu of anything. I simply resigned for 'personal reasons' and the investigation stopped.

Now I do NOT intend on lying about anything, but I also don't intend on providing any extra information if it isn't asked. If it is asked I intend on being completely honest.

Hypothetically (and I imagine in all reality) this comes to the attention of a background investigator for an airline. Where am I sitting with a regional and a major? What about a regional that offers automatic flow through to a major?

If I do get selected for a regional, is it plausible to think I could spend 5-8 years there before applying at a major and the major would only contact the regional I spent my time at?

I know I messed up big time. I'm not proud of this and I'm well aware of how lucky I am to still have my wife with me and encouraging me to pursue this. What are your thoughts?

Thanks

Regionals won't care about the affair. Majors might, but only if it became public in a very big way (ie sliver @ frontier). They're hiring pilots, not priests...

The potential issue is rehire. Employer reference checks these days usually only respond with dates of employment or rehire eligibility.

Are you eligible for rehire?

Or can you confirm that the past employer will not provide that info on any reference check?

I haven’t asked them if I’m eligible for rehire, but I resigned so I don’t know why I wouldn’t be?

The news of the affair obviously made its way around the agency but it certainly isn’t known by the general public.

I’m not sure what my employer would say. Certainly they would release the info to another public safety agency, as that’s required by law here, but I’m not sure what they would say to a private sector employer.

Would a regional that flows to a major, like Endeavor or PSA, be as apt to jump on me as say, SkyWest?

Resigning doesn’t mean they can’t put you in the record as “not for rehire”. You might ask, as that and confirmation of employment is usually the only releasable information.

GF

If I was listed as 'not for rehire', would that squash me to a regional or major?

If your previous employer releases information about a rumored affair you were having in your personal life, I would sue the sh*t out of them buy my own jet with the settlement I would inevitably win :)

Here is what I got today from HR. "It depends what is requested and what you sign off on. In all circumstances we would only give that you worked here, dates of employment and job. If you sign off on a waiver for additional information to be released then we would release what is requested."

Never had an interviewer ask me if I had ever been involved in an extra marital affair.

Current problems would be a bigger, like a recent DUI or failed drug or alcohol screenings.

By the time you get to the regionals, this will be a thing of the past. Lot of pilots are not saints.

Not going to be an issue...

Regional, no unless it was for a gross aviation screw-up.

Majors, maybe depending on circumstances and how long ago.

Got fired for spilling the fry grease at Burger Bobs back in HS in '88? No problem.

Got fired for theft, fraud, sexual harassment last month? Big problem.

They have you sign waivers for past employers for PRIA data.

I have never seen a waiver for non-PRIA information, I think they just use the past employers default employment verification process, which is usually "The Work Number" portal these days.

PRIA does not apply to non-aviation employers.

PRIA essentially doesn’t apply to Part 91 operators. I’ve called for employment info and some didn’t call. Just supplied the most recent FAA certificate action, that is, the type rating record, and employment data. Corporate chief pilots could get a “not for attribution” question answered

GF

Sort of. PRIA does not require 91 operators to maintain records, but if they DO maintain records they are required to furnish them in response to a PRIA request. Airlines are required to send a PRIA request to ALL past pilot employers, including part 91 and foreign employers. Similar process for government agency employers, but different forms.

Most 91 operators maintain records, but there's no real accountability, or way to know if they do, so some simply ignore PRIA requests.


This is the wild-card in reference checks, and why you should never lie. Mom-and-Pops are likely to do this. Larger companies will have policies to prevent this, but if somebody has an existing relationship with the person in question, or if the person has a big enough grudge you never know what might transpire.

You'll likely get asked: " What will Joe Blow say about you if we call him?"

You should know the answer because prior to the interview, you should have already had this discussion with all of your recent bosses. If things were a little rough when you left, good chance you can smooth it over a bit now that some time has passed. Worst case, you'll have a sense as to where you stand.

Don't fail to check in with past employers, if it's been a while they might not remember you very well.

Rickair777,

I might been more precise in my post. JB and FDX called about two former pilots of mine and, as we kept records, I offered and was only asked for FAA check rides and presented the pilots in question they’re rating ride results. Another former pilot of mine went to FDX later (funny how that happened), they never contacted me. As we were not 135, technically, the recurrents didn’t matter and those airlines didn’t want them.

Yes, my company (large) had specific rules on what to offer on former employees. I didn’t have anyone where I would have had to give a negative reference; I probably would have done so for a corporate operator. I wouldn’t have wanted to be in the position of having a future dealing with an operator where my “glowing” reference for someone who didn’t deserve it came back to haunt me. I was in a somewhat unique place where that was not unlikely.

I did get a “glowing” reference for a F/A that didn’t reflect my reality, to my regret. OTOH, I did get the facts, good and bad, on a pilot who later replaced me. It’s unfortunate that lawsuits have pretty much eliminated honest references, but I understand. Like a lot things, abuse occurred resulting in good people being punished.


GF