For Air Carrier (121 ops) Safety Inspector, you need to do an eval flight in a 737-300 in Denver. For GA Safety Inspectors you do essentially what is a commercial checkride (eval ride) in an ATP Piper Seminole down in DFW.

Because inspectors are also examiners.

Probably a better answer lol.

So its just an eval flight and not a check ride?

Do they take rides in multiple aircraft or is it just the 73? What about inspectors assigned to places like FedEx or Frontier?

The Air Carrier pre-employment flight eval in the 737 is just to determine relative familiarity and proficiency in turbojet aircraft. It is similar to an airlne interview sim eval. Not a complete PC by any means.

Once you get assigned to an office, depending on your actual position, you may or may not be assigned to do certification work in a particular fleet. If you are assigned to conduct flight checks in a particular fleet, the air carrier will train you in their sims just as if you were employed by the air carrier as a pilot. See FAA Order 8900.1, Volume 13, Chapter 2 for Aircrew Program Manager or Asst. Aircrew Progam Manager (APM or AAPM) positions. These are well sought after positions at the GS-13 and 14 level. There is an agreement between the Agency and the Airline, called an MOU. If you do get to stay current in something, you will get appx 2 hours of sim time each quarter and an equivalent to a 121.441 PC each year (Dash-2) in FAA speak.

Some new hire positions may not require participation in an aircraft. For example, The ASAP Program Manager position at a CMO typically do not require aircraft currency.

Most of your time spent the first year will be getting trained on the 8900.1 and Safety Assurance System (SAS), a complicated software where the actual results of inspections are input. The POI manages the SAS program, and the Supervisor assigns the inspections.

If I can pass it, well........

LOL thanks for the vote of confidence blulavboy. I need to give you a call real quick sometime this week.

Is there a potential earning difference if you go GA vs airline?

It depends on the size of the office really. There are some big CMOs and some big GA offices. My point is the quicker you get a higher pay grade etc. Also, with the CMOs, there's the possible need to travel more if you like to do that as compared to sitting in the cube 5 days a week.