dada9898

I'm looking for some career guidance/info? I have less than 2 yrs in the Navy before I retire. I'm looking to get on with the Airlines (hopefully United based out of D.C.) when I retire. From everything I have read the 65 mandatory retirements MAY open up jobs for guys like me. I have about 2300 flight hrs (P-3C, T-44 King Air, and T-34C Instructor), but that was all before 2006. I will get current (100 + hrs) here over the next year or so before applying. I will have my MCI (CFI/CFII) and ATP complete (No type rating). BS and MBA.

What are my chances with the majors? Will the "big" gap in my flight time hurt me? I will fly for the Regionals if I have to.

Thanks in adavance.

USMCFLYR

How much of time is ME PIC?

dada9898

T-44A/P-3C: 1000 ME (600 PIC)
T-34C: 1300 SE (1200 PIC) Instructor time

USMCFLYR

Low TT and coupled with real low ME PIC.
Got any strong recs?
I'm only speaking from what I've seen peers going through, but that looks like a tough road for you.
I notice you didn't add MEI to your MCI quals.
I would have thought that with your T-34C/T-44A IP time that you would have gotten all of the instructor quals.

Lobaeux

Hello dada9898 and welcome to APC. First off, thank you for your service and congrats on your upcoming retirement. Your first career will be over, on to your second, it's gotta be exciting and a little nerve wracking.

If you were retiring tomorrow, I'd say apply at every regional you could. The majors, United included, probably wouldn't give you much of a chance with those times. Hate to bust your bubble, but it's pretty tough out there right now. But, you're not retiring tomorrow, so you've got time. 100 hours won't make much of a difference, but two years can!

If it was me, I'd jump on getting your ATP as soon as possible, or at least a year before you retire. With new rules coming into effect, you won't even be able to apply soon without an ATP.

Then, I'd start networking like a madman! Start finding buddies you've flown with who are at the airlines and keep in touch with them. Let them know you're getting ready to retire. Start asking your buddies at the airlines to take a look at your resume, especially those who've recently been hired. They can give you some good advice. If you're still instructing, start talking to guys at FBOs when you come across them, a corporate gig just might come out of a chance meeting.

Start compiling some stories and significant events from your flights. If you submit flight recaps or write ups, start developing some stories to answer the standard "Tell Me About A Time" (TMAAT) questions they ask at interviews. There's plenty of examples from different airlines in some of the threads here. Don't wait until the last minute to get sme idea of what to say.

Any chance you've got to do a leadership position, evaluator, Chief Pilot (or Naval equivalent) is huge. Try to get one of those. Fly as much as you can, get as much instrument time and approaches as you can. You'll need those numbers for applications.

Go to airlineapps.com, get an account and start filling it out. You don't need to target any airlines, but you'll be able to see what's important on the applications.

Get in some volunteer opportunities. Not only does it make you a more rounded person, it shows a sense of community involvement to the airlines, and that's becoming a big deal to the airlines.

Finally, don't do anything dumb! Don't scrape a wing, don't bust a checkride, don't even get a speeding ticket.

Two years is a pretty long time in the airline industry, as I understand it. A lot could happen and by the time you retire, the airlines could be begging for pilots.

Good luck! You're doing the smart thing by starting this process before you retire.

Disclaimer: I'm not an expert and all my advice could be crap, I haven't gotten an interview yet, so take it for what it's worth!

kdogger

The majors are usually a tough road without 1000 TPIC. There are exceptions, but they're usually for things like high pilot time, great qualifications, etc. Unless you know somone in HR, I'd say the majors will have to get much less 'choosy' before you're likely to get a call.

The regionals will salivate for you. If you're willing to do that, it'll be easy. They're having a tough time finding qualified applicants, and you're over qualified for them.

forgot to bid

dada make sure you throw your app in anyways. Let them decide if you meet their time requirements. Delta's fwiw was not 1000 TPIC last time around, it was lower and you would have met it.

dada9898

I thought there was a difference between TT (total time) and Turbine Time? All my time is Turbine Time. I've also been told the Airlines will mulitply military time by a multiple conversion of 0.3 pushing me up the ~3000 hours.

The landscape must have changed drastically since 2006? I know at least a dozen buddies who got out after the ten year mark after two tours and they are all got hired by the Majors right away and thier times were identical to mine?

dada9898

I certainly will - I got 2 buddies I served with that fly with Delta. Thanks for the reply!

dada9898

Thanks - I'm willing to do the Regionals if need be. I also have buddies that I served with at United, Delta, SW, and JetBlu.