Thank you - my (poorly developed at this point...) 6th sense tells me I would benefit from flying 135/91 as prep for 121, but there’s lots of angles from which to look at this.

 

In a perfect world I would say CFI to 1200 then 135 for sure, makes you a better pilot.

But the world's not perfect, two identical pilots one of whom has a checkride bust on his record, can have two very different career paths.

Regionals today are mostly pretty much geared to get CFI's through training... they simply can't afford to waste any seat meat.

Do your homework, at least make sure any employer has a good training program. The old school programs often just gave you a bunch of books, some canned lectures, minimum canned sim sessions, and you were on your own to pass the oral and checkride.

 

There are some exceptions, thankfully. My previous 135 had an excellent training program (way better than my 121).
Do your homework.

 

It does not matter what path you take. You should be taking the one that gets you in this industry an seniority the quickest. Any other path is foolhardy unless it is something you really want to do.

 

Not quite that simple. Different paths have different risks.

A military FW aviator with a clean record is virtually a shoe-in for a legacy job. But there's a lot of attrition on the way to acquiring several thousand hours of mil time.

 

True, but I am talking about the path specifically to get to ATP mins and hired by a Regional.

 

Everyone takes a slightly different path. No such thing as "ideal path."

When you think of flight time think of "experience." In your gaining of experience process (time building) try to get the best experience you can. Where you live and the airports close by tend to dictate this ability.

Some things to keep in mind.

Aviation is a small community. Widen your circle a bit and look to meet new people to gain more opportunities and more experience.

Look for opportunities to build more credentials. CFI, II, MEI, AGI, IGI, Glider, Sea plane. Why? You never know what avenues will open up to you. Be prepared for as many as you can.

In 1994 I was hired as the youngest pilot in my new hire class for a commuter. I also had the least amount of flight time. However, 2 college degrees and CFI, II, MEI, AGI, IGI, SES, Glider, ATP. All that stuff added up in the interview process and I was hired.

I know. Different landscape today. But the principles still apply. All of those ratings were experience. They all added up. What I lacked in flight time I made up for in other areas. I did have 2 years single pilot night freight, and that was very good time in multi engine airplanes. but, back in 1994 Lots of guys had more time than me. 2500 hours in 1994 made me barely competitive for a turboprop FO job.

The best asset a prospective airline applicant can have is strong instrument skills. knowledge, scan, procedures, and airmanship. That's the best preparation you can have. Leading up to my major airline interview as a regional pilot, I flew for a month, hand flying every leg with no auto pilot, 4 to 7 legs a day. I tightened up my scan and I think it was a big help. auto pilots make you lazy.

 

And as “Sergeant Foley” told the new recruits: “You gonna owe us six years of your life. Lotta things can happen in six years.”

 

My first thoughts on that homework are to poke around on a site like this and try to connect with pilots already at the 135 I’m considering. Other ideas?

 

Today is much easier to fly than years past. as long as you can handle the programing, you'll be ok.