Regional vs Corporate?
 

Hey i'm just trying to get some ideas from people that have experience in the corporate and regional airlines. I am a CFI based in RDU in North Carolina. I have 400+ hours, so i'm starting to plan out my future. If anyone can give me tips or advise on anything dealing with corporate or regional airlines that would be greatly appreciated.

-Thanks a bunch

Regional vs Corporate?
 

Regional is easy to get into and corporate is extremely difficult to get into. Must have connections or time in type.

This is very very dependent on where you live, how personable you are, and how well you keep in touch with people you've met.

corporate usually wants someone with a type rating. if you are a girl, type ratings are given out like candy on halloween

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadia_Marcinko

Not true at all. The dozen or more guys I know who've gotten into good corporate gigs didn't have any type or time in type.

Corporate typically has higher minimums due to their individual insurance policy. Look at Climb350, alot of RIGHT seat King Air 350 or Lear 60 jobs want 2500 TT, some turbine time, and even some time in type. Yet if you have 1000 TT and a 4 year aviaiton degree, every Regional in the country will take you.

Your best long-term bet will be fly your butt off and build as much time as quickly as you can - regional airlines are great for this.

I was hired by a regional flying CRJs with 1100 hours and 23 months later got a Part 91 job with 2400 hours, which was enough time to qualify on insurance as PIC in a Citation II without seeing an increase in premiums.

Many 91 jobs fly 200-400 hours per year; if you were to get hired on at a decent corporate job with, say, 1000 hours it doesn't take a Ph.D in mathematics to figure out you aren't going to be very competitive for other jobs for a number of years.

I'm with a regional and have been tempted with a couple corporate/91k/fractional opportunities that would be much better in the short term, but those mainline pay scales keep luring me to stay. Then again, I could never reach mainline, so it's a tough call. Over the course of a career, it seems like a 121 pilot might earn more, but corporate has other things to offer that can be a better fit for some people. I've heard stories of non-121 pilots making the jump to mainline carriers, but no specific examples.

Ive heard some interesting stuff about her, things of the like that shes so well off and has all these side projects and owns her own Cirrus at age 29, uptown Manhattan apartment because people are trying to keep her quiet money. Like she used to be apart of a sex ring or something. idk, dont take my total word for it but there was an article I saw not long ago talking about her.