But what does PRIA have to do with the testimony of one's clients as to one's performance in a non-aviation industry?

I'm sure there is some inherent level of comfort with self-employed folks in that industry...ie, their work or reputation is known or hard to fake.

Or maybe all they care about is that you can sell something, including yourself ;)

Well, it is a very small industry, so people tend to know each other. I suppose that makes up for the lack of diligent background investigations. Also, you do have to show your actual work samples. Although there's also the advertising version of falsifying logbooks, which would be trying to pass off another guy's work as your own. I caught someone doing that once. What he didn't know, was that the work he was presenting to me as his own, was actually my work from a few years back. :eek: I sort of enjoyed that interview...

Much harder to do now with Flight Aware, etc. Last guy I know that got busted got discovered because the company typed the N number into Flight Aware and the origin and departure in the logbook did not match the ATC record.

Another means to investigate is NOAA weather historical data. "Really? You did pattern work that day? Funny, the weather report said it was a quarter mile visibility in snow all day."

Well, getting close to class date...and that question is the the most difficult to answer "What do you want to happen when that call is made?"

So, the airline will investigate my employment and they will already know I am on a LOA. However, my non aviation employer will then discover the reason of the LOA, not family related or other made up reasons but to pursue an airline career. Shouldn't a simple employment verification be enough or the regional has to call my previous non aviation employer and ask questions?

Just to be clear, I don't think the airline will have any problem with you being currently employed at some other employer. Seems normal enough to me, you are employed with the old company until starting work with the new company. They are going to ask for your dates of employment.

In a very large company, the person receiving the request might get 100 of these calls per day and doesn't think twice about it, doesn't tell anyone. But in a small company, the person taking the call is going to talk to whoever just on gossip principals alone.

Well the non aviation company I am leaving is a big corporation, going to a small regional (one of the ones "growing").