Hi all,

I have a friend that is interested in the regionals. He's really overweight right now though, around 300 lbs, probably 5'11''. He probable put on 60 lbs since finishing his flight training 2 yrs ago. Anyway, do you all think this excludes him from a job possibility? I know employers want to see neat and clean appearances.

Hopefully he can drop the weight, but in the meantime do you think he'll get shot down if he interviews?

 

First impression counts 50% at every interview. So i say yes you need to look presentable before you can actually try to sell yourself.
Good luck

 

In the current climate, he might have a shot at getting hired at a lower-tier regional. But his long-term prospects would be poor, because he would have a very low odds of getting on with a major, and high odds of medical disqualification down the road.

Should your friend interview now or try to to lose weight first? He might be able to get on with a regional now and then lose weight over time. The problem is that if he has preferred employers, he might poison the well with them forever by showing up overweight, thereby limiting his future options.

I would suggest making weight loss and fitness a priority...do a permanent lifestyle change now. If your friend is serious about this career, the social, self-esteem, and health benefits will be well worth it. If he is really pre-dispposed to putting on the weight, he might want to take up an endurance sport to keep the weight off for life (biking, running, rowing, etc). This works for me...I like to eat, so I just have to work out a lot.

 

Aside from any job prospect the health benefits from shedding the extra weight should be motivation enough. Adult Onset Diabetes, Hypertension, Stroke, Sleep Apnea, Cardiovascular disease, and many more obesity related diseases are a disadvantage regardless of the job title.

 

While shedding the extra weight would be very beneficial to your, err his, long term success in life, it should have no impact of getting a job with a regional.

There are plenty of overweight pilots in all levels of aviation.

 

Actually, the first question from the interviewer would probably be, " I see you're very overweight. What major airline were you a Captain at before applying here?"

 

Most of them did not get hired while overweight. Once hired, you cannot get fired for packing up the pounds (until a medical problem comes up).

 

Do you have the statistics in front of you?

I was over 300 pounds when I was hired at each of the 3 airlines I've worked for. I've since lost a lot of weight, but I was hired at every airline I've interviewed with while overweight.

While the average pilot may not be overweight, I don't believe for a second being so has any bearing on getting hired.

 

fat chicks even get hired, go figure.

 

It has a lot to do with the market...airlines are going to be hurting for pilots over the next few years. Demand is up, supply is down, so requirements go down. When things get tight, those extra pounds might make the difference.