Longbow64

Hi, I'm getting out of the Army in about 1 year! I'm a mechanic on the Apache helicopter! I can use my VA benefits for college, 141 flight training etc! I narrowed my flight school search between Mesa Pilot Development (MPD) and PanAm flight academy! Both of them seems like a good choice! If I choose MPD I don't have to instruct and get hired faster, but without a CFI rating! With PanAm, you get about the same hours, but also a CFI rating, and you get hired by PanAm to instruct other studens while you build your hours for an interview! Both of them are part 141 flight schools so I can use my VA benefits! I'm leaning towards MPD because they have location in Midland, TX! Since I'm already stationed at Fort Hood, I can change my state of address to Texas, so I don't have to pay out of state fees! PanAm have only locations in Florida and Arizona! My plan is to pay for college using GI Bill, and pay for flight training with my money. If I choose PanAm I'll have to pay out of state fees! Please help me choose! All comments are appreciated!

de727ups

If you get your CFI and instruct for a while, you'll end up a better pilot for it. MAPD is joke. 300 hour pilots don't belong in jets. Ari Ben in Florida takes VA. Don't limit your options to MAPD or PanAm based on fancy marketing.

Pilotpip

If you fail out of training after going through MAPD you're left with few options. Basically those options amount to getting your CFI or quitting flying. You won't have nearly enough time to be competative anywhere else.

My strongest suggestion would be to read some of the other threads regarding the rather negative opinions of academies and even more negative attitude towards Pay For Training (PFT). You'll quickly see that it might not be something you want to be associated with because most of the more experience pilots here, the ones that could be on the hiring board, can't stand it.

Another thing I'd do is take a look at local flight schools. You could still blast through your ratings and chances are you won't be paying a premium associated with a name. I'd also think long and hard about the fact that at Pan Am you're being taught by people that just went through the program themselves and don't have a ton of flying experience to share with you. I've learned much more from experienced instructors and as one myself I've noticed that even with a couple hundred more hours experience I'm much better at the job myself.

If it were me, and I only had the two options you present, I'd go Pan Am and instruct while working on my degree. I'd have my degree finished with more than enough time and experience to be considered competative at one of the "better" regionals rather than making a lateral move after a year or two of experience for a couple reasons. For starters, first year pay sucks, I only want to be on it for one year. Second, I don't think that having 50 people sitting behind you is exactly the best time to be learning how to fly an airplane. Third, I fail to see how paying that much money for a job that's going to pay so little is worth it. And fourth, there's no way that I would want a PFT program attached to my resume.

preludespeeder

I wonder why some on here seem to think that bigger flight schools are the root of all evil. The one thing i have noticed is that at the bigger flight schools there are many different levels of instructors in one place and that creates a pool of knowledge. At your local FBO you may only have two instructors and if they got it wrong then your also got it wrong. In the bigger academies, which are 141 approved there is specified training courses which teach you everything you need to know and then some and there is checks involved. Checks mean that throughout your training other much more experienced instructors fly with you and gauge your progress and the instructors ability.

My suggestion to longbow is go to whatever school offers the CFI rating. That will be of more use to you then a pft ever will be. Being a CFI myself I have become a better pilot not in flying skill but in seeing the whole picture and recognizing things that I never saw as a student.

SkyHigh

I say Big school, buy job. Real pilot skills are unnecessary. The only thing that really matters is if you can convert your training into a valid form of pilot employment. As a CFI you have a chance but if you can buy a seat in a turbine of some kind you will slingshot far ahead of your competition.

SkyHigh

BURflyer

Dude, let me explain something about MAPD. Usually what happens is you will graduate and unless you do something stupid the job is yours. That's when things go downhill. Mesa is the WORST airline out there and working for them is compared to slave labor. Why do you think they have this academy in the first place?? 0 time to Jet in a couple of months. Not many want to end up at MESA. On top of that things are going to get worse soon because their contract is going to be up for negotiations and it will get ugly. I am very serious when I say that MESA has ruined the lives of good people. A lot become depressed about their life and some actually quit flying all together.

Second of all, think about it. The Icao upgrade time to captain position will be at 3000 hours. If you graduate with 300 hours how long are you going to have to be a FO? 4-5 years. You don't want to be a fo at mesa for more than a few months if you can help it. You're thinking of gaining turbine experience instead of becoming a CFI but I guarantee you that the CFI experience will be 100 times more valuable to you than the worthless second in command turbine time that you will get at MESA in the meantime. On top of that first year you will make 19 an hour to fly a CRJ900 a 86 seat plane!! with bascially no time off, this is where slavery comes in. But as a CFI you could make up to 40 an hour with your own schedule.

So anyways I hope you consider what I've told you. Good luck just remember that if you become a CFI you will have all the options if you go to Mapd only 1 if you actually make it. Thanks for your service. If you want to go into direct into the hell hole just go to mesahub.com and ask those poor guys about mapd.

de727ups

"In the bigger academies, which are 141 approved"

141 is a joke. It's FAA bureaucracy at it's finest. It's overly restrictive and puts unnecessary constraints in the training process.

You can find CFI's at some FBO's and flying clubs that are superior to a big academy. Sometimes retired airline pilots or highly experienced pilots just doing it for fun. Sometimes not. You gotta shop around.

141 is no guarantee of anything, I think.

Pilotpip

And most smaller schools have a part 141 curriculum anyway. You can drop the comm requirements to about 195 hours vs 250 under part 61. However, the size of the school doesn't matter as most are 141 approved because of insurance/BS aura of increased quality.

KZ1000Shaft

PanAm is no longer in Florida. Phoenix is your only option there.

WhiteH2O

Yup, I am an instructor at an FBO that does both 91 and 141. In my oppinion, 141 doesn't gain anything unless you want to get the commercial total time requirement dropped, but you still have to get the time somehow, and you don't have to do private 141 for that tt break. I try to get my private students to go part 91 because it gives so much more flexability, and can take less time and end up costing less.