Just a couple of final points-

• To be clear, my family and I do not have unlimited money - far from it. The majority of the grants I'm getting are from merit, because I've worked my behind off throughout school, and I now have an extremely high GPA/SAT. It's from hard work, not mommy and daddy's pockets.
• I really have done research on ERAU. Unfortunately, around here, there are extremely biased and disgruntled folks complaining about ERAU just for the fun of it. I actually have been PMing with an ERAU graduate who went to a regional straight after graduation, and he gave me loads of advice/opinions as well, that aren't biased, but truthful. The fact is that for flying, ERAU really is a very good institution to attend. Also, I've done campus tours and that kind of thing, and the campus is beautiful as well. I think a final benefit of ERAU is that it's all-aviation, all the time. While this is miserable for some, I love it and I enjoy being around like-minded people.

Ok, preach over :)

http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:A...6Jyuk6M9A8acH2


Always good to see pilots with little to zero experience making their points based on research and not experience. When you base your research on ALLATPs website and ERAU and the like you will find what you want to find.

Our research is built on thousands of hours of experience starting at zero and culminating at being hired at numerous airlines or other commercial operators.

As for 1500 hours, that is supposed to be the fun part. What ever happened to people wanting to be a pilot? For most, being a pilot now simply means getting to an airline as quick as possible. Everyone wants to skip the "crappy" part that is flying around in light singles and building time via the various methods out there.

Since you like to use one chart from one airline and the thoughts of one graduate that you are conversing with as basis for facts, would it help you if I put you in touch with numerous people on this very forum who attended ERAU and now feel like it was a huge mistake? I mean if the word of a single person is enough for you to make a decision maybe you need to hear from another with similar experience - OR - you may only want to hear from those that validate a decision already made ;)

USMCFLYR

Sure, if you are willing to do that, that would be great!

Here are some simple steps to led you down the path, though you will need to put aside your preconceived notions and truly be willing to listen.
Step 1: Type ERAU into the Search engine.
Step 2: Read numerous threads pertaining to ERAU.
Step 3: Make a list of users who have both good and bad things to say.
Step 4: Start networking (a very important part of navigating the profession).

USMCFLYR

Regional new hires
 

I had 3800 hours when I was able to get hired by my first regional and I was the lowest time guy in class. A few years before I got on I was told that they were hiring 5000 hour guys.

A year later I was teaching basic indoctrination and there was a guy sitting in class with 190 hours total time and 45 of that was in a simulator.

The regional made a choice to hire low timers. Market conditions did not warrant it.

Skyhigh

I'm glad you have do well academically for yourself, that will certainly serve you well wherever you go. I still think it would serve you well to apply some critical thinking skills to this discussion and not simply accept the answers which provide validation to the notions you wish to support. That kind of thinking in an airplane will get yourself and others killed.


Because they couldn't possibly have any valid reasons for complaining about it? Ask yourself - WHY are they so biased? WHY are there so many of them? "Because they're all *********s" probably isn't the correct answer.




Let me see if I have this straight:

1. He is favorable toward the school, so he isn't biased, but those with less favorable opinions are biased? Hmmm, seems odd...
2. He went straight from ER to an RJ, so he has no knowledge of what myself and others are telling you in this thread; yet his input is valid (and he's been in this position for how many years), while ours is not? (I'm just guessing, but I'll bet you have well over a half a century of combined experience relating their thoughts with you on this thread)
3. I don't think any one here said ER was bad - I know I didn't; like I said I've flown with a number of pilots from ER, they were fine. I don't doubt it's an acceptable school, but I have great reservations about it's cost:value ratio. The fact is, for flying, there are dozens of good institutions to attend (and I DO NOT believe that ER is head and shoulders above them). It's a school with a very, how should I put it - motivated marketing department (again, ask WHY).

I haven't toured the campus, I'll take your word on that. Certainly DAB is a decent location. Based on everything I've read and heard from grads, be aware that everyone in the community will have you pegged for one of the "aviation dweebs" about five minutes after you get there (though that's not completely different from many other campuses, where you have the college kids vs. the townies).

Being around people who only share your interests and are "like-minded" misses the whole concept of what a university is supposed to be. It should be an amalgamation of many interests, different viewpoints, and backgrounds. Again, based on everything I've read about it, ER falls well short in that category. You should have to work on and English project with a psychology major who has a worldview which is diametrically opposed to yours, and learn how to make that happen - that's part of the whole experience.

I know that isn't what you meant by that, but you should give that some consideration as well.

I'm really not trying to talk you out of going to ER - frankly I don't care where you go; but you should be going with open eyes as to what you are getting out of your experience there.

I AM trying to talk you out of being a [.....] and taking the absolute shortest route to an RJ seat, thereby bypassing some of the most valuable experience you'll have the opportunity to get. The term character building comes to mind - and that's not a bad thing. To be the best pilot you can be, you need some character building experiences. I've already given examples, I won't bother repeating them - but perhaps you should go back and re-read them and contemplate that.

Ultimately, you aren't getting paid to fly people somewhere. You're getting paid to NOT fly them somewhere when the circumstances dictate. You are being paid to be your passenger's last line of defense; over company management, over chief pilots, over schedulers, dispatchers, mechanics, even over the passengers themselves. You need to have the experience and the knowledge to know when to say NO, when to say YES, and when to say MAYBE - and to have and continue to develop multiple contingency plans during the operation.

YOU CANNOT AND WILL NOT GET THAT EXPERIENCE IN A HIGHLY STRUCTURED FLIGHT SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT, AND IT WILL COME AT AN EXTREMELY SLOW RATE AS A FO IN THE HIGHLY STRUCTURED WORLD OF SCHEDULED 121 OPERATIONS!!!

I believe anyone who tells you otherwise is a liar. An aviation school exists to give you the foundation, framework, and basic knowledge to flesh out and make these concepts your own reality, but it is not the reality in itself. It's the foundation and the framing of the house if you will.

A 121 operation exists to transport passengers and cargo at the highest levels of safety, utilizing highly structured operations, procedures, and experienced crew members (or at least it should to fulfill it's intended mission). You certainly will gain experience at a 121, but that experience isn't the drywall or the siding that forms the wall of the house - it's the final layer, the stucco, paint, or trim. If you don't have intermediate level, there isn't anything for the finish work to adhere to.

Okay, it's not a great analogy, but it's what I've got.

I guess I'm probably done here, it seems you have your mind made up and would prefer to not be confused with the facts; or at the very least the insights of numerous people who have decades of experience in the matters of which we are speaking.

Good luck to you where ever and whatever you end up doing (I mean that sincerely).

I guess I don't understand. How the heck does training in a slower fashion build character? Whether you like it or not, in ANY career, from ANY college, the goal of a graduate is to have a steady paycheck as soon as possible. This is the real world - if it means that I don't have the best "character," to your definition, then so be it. I'll be happy when I have a seniority number at a regional and am earning a paycheck (which is meager, mind you) at 22 years old.

Quite frankly, I think it builds more character to even be eligible to become a new hire regional pilot by the end of college. It takes a ton of hard work - flight instructing as much as possible, including the summer, and maybe squeezing in an internship as well.

I recognize and accept that people here have different opinions on flight training. But it's not acceptable to call somebody a "dumbass" because they value real-world career goals rather than building whatever concept of "character" that you have in your mind. I'm never going to be the very best pilot in the world. But if I can operate the aircraft safely, comfortably, and efficiently while working well with my captain/first officer and flight attendants, I'm happy. Whether you like it or not, ERAU and other "aviation colleges" have produced thousands of people just like that, with good character, decision making skills, and knowledge needed to fly safely. That's probably why during 2006-07 at ASA, approx. 75% of applicants who came from structured approaches were hired, while less than 27% of non-structured applicants were hired. And the interview process includes a simulator portion, where applicants need to deal with a variety of emergency situations, exactly like what you were mentioning.

Character is who you are when nobody is looking. I was taught that in kindergarten, and I've followed it ever since. It is NOT, however, going to Mom 'n Pop's Flight School of Fun rather than ERAU, and becoming a regional pilot at age 24 rather than 22, going through "character building exercises" along the way.

Oh, and by the way - my PM contact who went to ERAU did not say all positive things about the school, far from it. But because of his first-hand experience, he could provide me information that somebody who hasn't even attended ERAU can't provide.

At least half?
 

By my guess a good portion of those who go to fancy aviation university programs really do not hold much intention of going to work as a pilot. If grandma leaves you a small fortune to go to college on why spend it on something useful like business or accounting? Just go and blow it on something fun like getting a degree in winter sports (skiing and snowboarding), advanced ballistics and accuracy (shooting) or aviation.

Once college is over you can go home and work in mom and dads furniture factory. My Alma matter is on life support right now by giving playboys a place to go and blow their future. Few real dreamers are left who can afford it.

If I were dean I would fill the university catalog with useless self indulgent programs to fill classes with trust fund kids who are looking for a place to have fun but still make it look like college. On second though perhaps they already do that now. :rolleyes:

Skyhigh

Pilot SHortaGe
 

If anything is going to create a pilot shortage it will be due to the fact that it is not worth the long time horizon it takes to get there anymore.

I understand why young people want to go straight to a regional. The prospect of wasting half a decade on instructing is not worth it at all. Then add 7 years in the right seat and forget about it. YUK All for less than mailman wages.

Skyhigh