Bbenfica022

Hello everyone,
I'm new to the aviation industry. I'm 35 years old, going through career change. I am currently looking at flight schools. I was going to go to flight school when I was 20 years old, however the cost at that time deterred me from doing it. What suggestions/advice do you have for me regarding schools. What should I look for. Accelerated programs, or take my time at my local school starting with private pilot license.
Should I find a school and get all licenses through that school, and become an instructor at that school. Trying to figure out my options, and looking for advice on the fastest way to achieve getting to a regional airline. I know the requirements now are 1500 minimum. Any advice would be great. Thanks in advance.

Bigdog2003

I was in the same situation as you. I was 33 and ready for a career change. I did my private part 61 at a mom and pop flight school while I was still working and I only flew a day a week and it took me about a year to get it done. I then quit work and went to flight school full time and went to a 141 school that had a professional pilot program. I went through instrument, commercial and cfi in just under a year and started working at that school. I would say if you can swing it go to a 141 approved school that has a professional pilot program and get it done so you can start working and building the time. I committed myself to it like a full time job and flew 5 days a week plus spent ample studying after flights. If you are able to relocate for a flight school that really opens up your options. One thing to keep in mind about the accelerated programs is that time they show on the website is dependent on a lot of variables. Shop around and make sure you find a school that is a good value for your dollar. You will be spending a lot of time and money with them so you want to make sure it is going to be a good fit. If you have any other questions feel free to pm me.

uipilot45x

I would strongly suggest getting your private first at a mom and pop. See if you really like doing it.

Once you got that done, shop around and get to a bigger flight school that has a professional pilot track. Maybe you could qualify for a restricted ATP.

TiredSoul

First: Can you do this debt free?

Second:
No need for a pilot mill.
Get your private license at your local friendly flight school.
It’s not only your time it’s what you do or have done in this time.
A smaller flightschool with good equipment is my recommendation.
Worth a couple of hours drive.
Two days of training and spend the night at a local motel.
Allows you to continue working part time.

Under Part 61 you are required to have 50 hrs of cross country flying before your instrument check ride.
A lot misconstrue this as needing 50 hrs of drilling holes in the sky and hamburger runs.
Don’t do that.
Take 5 days off and fly coast to coast with your instructor filing IFR flightplans.
You take care of food and hotel rooms.
Fly 40 hrs and leave the remaining 10 for use during your Instrument rating.
Start with your CFI training right after you’ve completed your instrument rating.
Couple CFI training flights with a short cross country and a landing at least 50NM away.
The point is that you can have your CFI at 255-260 hrs and 150-180 hrs cross country already.
You can only do this mix-‘n-match at a Part 61 school that is willing to work with you.
A Part 141 school can not deviate from their approved syllabus.
I’m sorry, with all due respect, it’s hard to explain the value of this to some dog who is not familiar with the industry and it’s requirements.

TiredSoul

* didn’t mean dog.
That was supposed to read somebody.
I swear my phone changes words after I hit send .

Dwwhite06

Definitely quite a few ways to do this. I’m in a similar situation. I’m 31 with a 10 yr career in a different industry. Spent the last yr flying a little Part 61 to make sure it was something I truly loved. Then spent 3 months not flying to see if it was something I could live without. I’ve missed it just about every day. I’m now doing Part 141 at LIFT Academy in Indy. Absolutely stinks incurring more debt, but luckily I’ve saved some from prior career and can scale back the spending. I chose Part 141 so that I can knock it out as quick as possible and get on a seniority list. Part 141 is not for everyone and it truly has a lot to do with your learning style.

I like what LIFT has to offer and you can’t beat the price. PM me if you have any questions.

cons

First off, the poster above who said you should get your CFI right after you get your Instrument rating is incorrect. You need to have a commercial before you can get your CFI. Nobody goes from Instrument right into CFI. That doesn't make any sense.

Also, why would anyone turn a CFI training flight into a cross country flight? That doesn't make any sense either. It's just a waste of time and money for the student.

I do agree that you should try to stay local and train 2-3 times a week. That way you can still work and fund your flight training, as it gets expensive even at a mom & pop flight school. Depending on what part of the country you are in, if you can train 2-3 times a week, you should be able to get your PVT/INST/COM and CFI within two years time.