Here is the press release:

Award-winning Jet Blue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU) today announces the creation of the Aviation University Gateway, a career-planning and mentoring program designed to identify and recruit talented men and women into the professional pilot ranks
Jet Blue is partnering with prestigious aviation programs at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to fill the Aviation University Gateway’s pipeline with top-flight candidates who demonstrate exceptional potential as professional pilots. Jet Blue is also partnering with Massachusetts-based Cape Air to be the program’s first regional airline partner, giving Aviation University Gateway participants valuable flying experience prior to interviewing at Jet Blue.

The Aviation University Gateway path is open to Embry-Riddle students with high academic standing (GPA of 3.0 or above) and recommendations from their professors. It requires a successful series of interview with Jet Blue and a regional airline partner, as well as the continued enrollment in an Aviation Accreditation Board International (ABBI)-accredited aviation program. During the Gateway program, participants will intern at Cape Air (and eventually other regional airline partners) and then serve as an instructor at the Embry Riddle Flight Department, earning 1,500 flight hours. Following that process, candidates will fly with Cape Air for at least two years, earning another 2,500 hours. With a total of 4,000 flight hours under their belt, program participants are then eligible for a final interview at Jet Blue.


I am currently a sophomore on scholarship at ERAU and I am working on my commercial. I planned on doing fast track CFI and CFI-I over the summer and working the next 2-3 years to build time but now I am wondering if I should go for the interview this week and try to earn a spot in the program.

I am just looking for advice if anyone thinks this whole bridge thing is a good idea or if I would be better off trying to get on at a regional after instructing and then take it from there.

Here is some more info: http://www.flycapeairjobs.com/industry.htm

Thanks

 

Go for it....

What have you got to lose?

 

Better plan:

Go find a job at the airport near ERAU or back home that flies Part 135 pistons or turbos. Get a line job with them and then see about flight positions when you get your multi commercial ticket. VPJ out of EVB does that a lot.

Crank out some hours, get your CFI still, and by the time you graduate you will have over 1000 hours. Then re-evaluate where you want to be in this industry and make your decisions from there.

Cape Air time is going to be worthless imo. You are going to spend approx 4 years after graduation before getting into JBLU.

If you spend that 4 years at a regional, you will have Turbine PIC to take to an interview; which I think is much more desirable.

Also, the program says you are eligible for an interview with JBLU - no guarantee of hiring or even the interview itself.

But the entire industry is one big risk. You need to get information and decide on your own, you cant expect people's "advice" here to decide for you.


Or you can forget everything I said and keep your fingers crossed about future Spirit hiring from ERAU.

On a side note, since when is 3.0 GPA something to brag about?

 

Well I guess I didnt mean to say advice. I just wanted some opinions on the program and how people would view it in the industry. I think the internships will be a waste of time that I can spend flying. Furthermore, as you said, the regionals have such low minimums now that I could instruct and then get a job flying jets instead of turboprops.

 

Ok then....go to law school, or become an MD, then you can make real money, and fly your own airplane when and where you want without having to put up with all the BS.

 

You are off to a good start, but I think being tied up another 3-4 years to try and get on with JB might be "time a'wastin". Many regionals/commuters are hiring pilots with 650 hours or so. You can get that pretty easy by instructing. Since seniority is EVERYTHING in an airline job, you can't let too much time go under the bridge or you'll be on the backside of the powercurve. Continue what you're doing, and try and fly as much as you can on the side. Try and network a bit while you're building your hours. A friend of mine once said "if you know FIVE people, you can meet just about anyone you want". I've found that to be fairly true. A lot of the time in this business it's WHO you know. Good luck to you.

 

If you do the math, this plan doesnt make any sense.

1500 hours instructing at riddle? that will take what.... about 25 months?! Guys at riddle are getting hired into regionals at 500 TT and 4 months of instructing. If you want to stick around and instruct for another 2 years knock yourself out.

Oh but wait, after wasting an extra year instructing, you get to go to Cape Air for 2500 hours of flying. Thats a good lock of what... 2.5 years if you fly your brains out. 3 years most likely. All of this for an interview at JB? Why would you do that to yourself.

It is no offense to JB, but in the time it takes to do this whole plan, you could opt out of flight instructing after a few months, go to a regional for 2 years, upgrade, and go to a major and skip the whole jail lock plan. Everyone at JetBlue seems to keep saying JB is just a stepping stone to a major anyway....

Why do more crappy flying, and take more time to get what you really want?

That whole plan looks bogus to me. But hey, im nuts.

 

Medicine is more screwed up than aviation, salaries go down every year and the BS level is stagering. Ask any doctor if you should go into medicine.

 

I don't know....I've got one former college buddy who is an MD, and one who is a practicing attorney- They are both quite happy with life, and money. Oh yeah- and when they switch firms/medical centers, or Practices, they don't start out at half the pay and minimal bennies over and over and over and over.......

So, yes. Everyone should get into flying. You'll find that the hours are long, the starting pay is low, your retirement is most likely to be stolen, and red eyes will make you prematurely old......But look at the bright side, when your employer does tank, or get bought, sold, reorganized or whatever--you get to start all over again.

Did I forget the commuting part?

 

I am inclined to think that the Jet Blue "internship" program doesn't compensate you well for the opportunity loss caused by the overall lack of flexibility inherent in the program.....If you go that way you miss out on PIC opportunities in the regional system which could bite you if you want to leave and go to a UPS or something....You will be a bit of a captive to the whims ofJet Blue. Better yet go to law school or get an MBA or med school and not be under an airline exec's thumb.....It gets old pretty quickly.