How hard is it?
 

Ok guys, I am very new to this site but I'm very interested in becoming a Corporate pilot. I've talked to several pilots (airlines&corporate) and here is what they tell me. A pilot for the Airline (Skywest) told me that their are not very many jobs for Corporate pilots and the pay is better at the airlines. A Corporate pilot told me that the starting pay is that of a caption at the airlines. He told me their are a ton of jobs out there for corporate pilots.
I don't know what to do. I'm in the process of looking into flight schools in Western Colorado. I would really like to work as a pilot for a corporate company. Are their any corporate pilots out there willing to talk to me privately about this major career move?

More posts.
 

You need to make more posts to make private messages on here. There are plenty of corporate jobs out there. You will just need to find them. I wouldn't worry about the jobs until you finish training. The only thing you need to do is start networking and start training.

There are corporate positions out there, you just have to know that many of these positions are not advertised. It is "word of mouth, or who you know". Having thousands and thousands of hours does not always get you hired either. In the corp. world customer service is everything.
The pay is as varied as the airplanes used (from a C172 to a BBJ). Like the others have said, finish your training first, then worry about where to go.

There are jobs out there, but they also often require much higher experience levels than those to enter at a regional airline. It's a catch 22- many corporate departments don't like to hire airline guys because of some of the adjustments required in terms of job description and attitude, but many won't hire you if you don't have 3000TT, and ATP and a type rating.

Ultimately though, most of them come down to who you know and being in the right place at the right time. I've found that most decent corporate gigs will be comparable or better than an equivalent airline gig.

For example, I jumped from the CRJ (which in my mind is an entry level airliner), to a Citation Encore (which is an entry level business jet). I have a much better quality of life, doubled my pay and benefits, and am treated a lot better than I was at the airlines. I might not make as much in this job as a 777 captain (although if you break down my salary by flight hour it works out similarly since we don't fly but 200 hrs a year), but the overall package is a lot better, IMHO.

Thanks for all your help.
 

I thank all of you for your replys. I would just like to chat with a corporate pilot about a few questions I have instead of trying to have them explain everything to me in text such as...
Whats the difference between flight schools that offer part 91, 135, 141 ect.

What does P.I.C and S.I.C mean

3000TT &ATP ratings.

I've researched a lot of flight schools around and they all say to talk to pilots. They are friendly and willing to help you out. But I can't find anyone to talk to personally.. Can anyone that is a Pilot email me at [email protected] so I can ask a few more questions.
Thanks a lot everyone.

flight schools. the two main ones are 61 and 141. 61 is in a more relaxed training environment, they decide their own curriculums and ways of doing things while just following the regs outlined for flight schools. You the pilot are forced to teach yourself alot outside of the class, set up flying times and so forth. It also tends to be cheaper. 141 is a much stricter type of training. The training curriculum must be under the one the FAA sets. There is a lot of classroom work outside of just the flying itself, just a lot of groundschool. You are provided with all the training materials, and it is all very outlined and very regulated. It also can get very pricey. Both really have their ups and downs. I think 61 can save you money and it teaches you how to really manage your time well and set out a schedule. 141 a lot of things are set for you once you are in the program. It's nice to have everything layed out for you, you can meet a variety of other people in the program and gain valuable contacts, and often, but not always there is a more professional feel about these places. Either way you choose though, you still end up with the same ratings, employers don't care where you got your training from, there are certainly folks out there who will stereotype and say such and such school produces these kinds of pilots, but in the end every indiviudual is different and has different abilities and weaknesses.
P.I.C stands for pilot in command. S.I.C stands for second in command i think. From my understanding, the S.I.C is the first officer and the P.I.C is the main person responsible for the safety of the flight.

3000TT stands for 3000 hours total time, in other words their total number of flight hours they have logged. ATP stands for airline transport pilot license, you have a long way to go as do I before you have to worry about this one. All the big boys require it think of the ATP as a masters in commercial flying while the commercial rating is like a degree.

Finally part 91 and part 135 you mixed up. They are two different types of flying. part 121 is the regs the airlines are required to follow. 135 and 91 tend to be for corporate, charter, small cargo companies, and private. Hopefully that helps a little...

Hey, while you are training, get a part time job at the airport. Not only will you learn alot, but you will have the opportunity to build time and meet plenty of contacts along the way.
~CC~

Corporate pilot
 

The spectrum is large for a corporate pilot. Most don't get paid or treated well at all. A few are treated like royalty. The difference is mostly luck.

My last job offer to fly a corporate King Air paid 30K and I was expected to work in the potato shed during times when there was little flying to do. No thanks !!

No matter how you slice it it is a risky venture. The good news is that some predict that the Very Light Jet will spawn a huge need for small town corporate pilots. We will have to wait and see but I can't imagine the job would pay very well.

SkyHigh

Wow SkyHigh....that sounds like a friend of mine who flies a Be90 and has to go shrimping on the side for the company when he isn't flying!

What kind of data do you have to back this up? I've been a corporate pilot for 9 years and before that, was a corporate charter pilot for 8 years. I recall only running into a few pilots in this field whose jobs truly sucked, and those jobs don't usually last long anyway. Many times it's the pilot's own fault for allowing themselves to be abused.