FlyCRJ.com

Here is the scenario…You have just spent the last two years, maybe more, on getting your bachelor’s degree and all your aviation pilot ratings:

• Private Pilot: Single- and Multi-Engine
• Commercial Pilot: Single- and Multi-Engine
• Instrument Rating
• Certificated Flight Instructor (CFI) Rating
• Certificated Flight Instructor-Instrument (CFI-I) Rating
• Certificated Multi-Engine Instructor (MEI) Rating

You have spent a bundle of money!

So much money that you are thinking that with the state of the economy, your money would have been better spent getting a Master’s Degree in Underwater Basket Weaving.

I know where you are coming from. I left a lucrative programmer’s job to follow my flying professionally dream and then immediately got furloughed when I achieved it.

But, now you have the hours. You’ve been flying freight for the last year in airplanes and weather that would scare the hell out of Chuck Yeager. Or, alternatively, you’ve been living just as dangerous of a life as a flight instructor, teaching neophytes how to control a Cessna 152. Either way, you’ve put in your time, and now you want to move on and get that airline job.

But what do you do next?

Well, no doubt your resume and logbook are up to date. You’ve reached that coveted 1000 hour total time mark and you have your 100 hours multi-engine time. You have done your research on the airlines you want to fly for and have sent them your resume… but each and every airline has sent you back that “company” letter thanking you for your interest in their airline, “but in light of the present economic recession, they currently aren’t hiring but they will keep your resume on file” letter.

I know…it’s frustrating, but hang in there.

Now, though I am no Nostradamus, I have seen this before…and I am confident that it will pick up again. And when it does pick up, then you will be interviewing like crazy, and all the anxiousness about wanting the airline job will be replaced with the nervousness of attending ground school.

Interviewing for the CRJ or Other Regional Airline Jet Job

Which brings me to my point. You may be feeling like you need to do “something” to improve your chances of getting hired. What I’m going to tell you is…don’t spend any more money on flight training! Especially flight training on an airplane that you ”think” you will be flying! If you have bought into the whole Jet University and PanAm Academy and Gulfstream Training Academy propaganda, you will just be wasting your time and money.

These companies promote such things as:

• 12 hours of CRJ systems
• 28 hours of CRJ-200 FTD
• Glass Cockpit and Flight Management Systems (FMS) Training
• Job Placement
• And much, MUCH more…

Don’t believe it! Here’s why!

No flight school training company, that I’m aware of, can get you hired! Do not believe it when they say that they “GUARANTEE” you an airline job! They can’t! And don’t believe them that you won’t get hired if you don’t go through their program! It’s just not true!

Here is the reality. Each airline has their own way of hiring. When they call you in for an interview, they want to know a few things:

1. Do you have your hardcopy logbook and your electronic logbook up-to-date?
2. Do you have your Pilot Certificate(s)?
3. Do you have a current First Class Medical certificate?
4. Do you have a current and valid passport?
5. Do you have a current and valid driver’s license?
6. Do you have copies of your resume?
7. Do you have your Restricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit?
8. Have you updated your online resume with the latest flight and personal information?

BIG NOTE HERE: Have at least three copies of everything mentioned above with you when you go to the interview!

The rest of the interview is all about do they like you, did you come prepared, did you wear a suit, what have you been flying before and do you know your Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR). They also want to know about your life experiences.

Occasionally, they will want you to fly a simulator, but you don’t need to have spend hundreds of dollars on learning to fly the CRJ. Usually the simulator or Flight Training Device (FTD) used for the evaluation is of the type that almost every flight school uses these days. Buy some time with an instructor you trust, running you through a few ILS’s, holds, and go-arounds will benefit you way for than wasting time on expensive CRJ training.

It is not going to impress the hiring committee that you attended a “CRJ Transition Course.” Save your money and invest in yourself in other ways while you are waiting for the interview.

The Reality of the CRJ200 Training

Like I said before, if you go to one of these schools that “teaches” you about the CRJ200 and it’s procedures, you are wasting your time and money. That is because, when you get your airline job, the company that hires you is going to train you THEIR way and therefore you are going to have to re-learn and unlearn everything you just learned.

The airline I fly for will ultimately spend nearly $30,000 to train you to their standards. Whatever airline you hire on with, you will be attending one of the most comprehensive, fast-paced ground school and simulator training programs that you have ever seen. Believe me…it is both exciting and exhaustive. Furthermore, depending on when you did that non-airline CRJ200 training, chances are you aren’t going to remember most of what you learned anyway.

When I was going through captain upgrade, my first officer was a new hire who had been the stud flight instructor at his school. He was because he told me so. Anyway, he spent hundreds of dollars to go through a CRJ Transition Program before he came to work. Did it help him? Nope! Not at all. He still struggled all the way through training partly because he had preconceived knowledge of what was suppose to happen in the airplane that conflicted with what he was now learning. It caused more confusion than helping him. Would this be the case with you? Hard to say. Everyone is different.

What You Can Do To Prepare for Training

Now if you are like me, you can’t just sit back and wait. You need to feel like you are making progress towards something…anything. So here is what I recommend.

First, study for and take your Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) Part 121 written. It will benefit you immensely during the regulation portion of your interview.

I recommend that you pick up one of these study aids:

+ ASA Airline Transport Pilot Test Prep Book – Includes ATP Part 121 and 135 Airplane, Helicopter, Add-On Ratings tests, and Aircraft Dispatcher tests.

+ Gleim Airline Transport Pilot Written Exam Guide – The easiest, fastest, and least expensive means of passing the FAA Airline Transport Pilot (Part 121 or 135) knowledge tests

+ ASA ATP / Flight Engineer Prepware – Comprehensive preparation and study software for the Airline Transport Pilot, Dispatcher, and Flight Engineer FAA Knowledge Exams.

+ Gleim ATP Test Prep Software – CD-ROM- Gleim ATP Test Prep Software – CD-ROM

+ Oral Exam Guide – Airline Transport Pilot – Contains the most frequently asked questions by FAA examiners and the appropriate responses.

Then go find a place to take the ATP written, click here to find a CAT testing facility near you.

Now, if that is not enough, and you know what you are going to fly, pick up some books and/or videos on turbine airplanes or specifically the airplane you are going to fly.

Here are my recommendations:

+ The Turbine Pilot’s Flight Manual – Everything a pilot is expected to know when transitioning to turbine-powered aircraft. Includes bonus CD-ROM.

+ Advanced Aircraft Systems- This book explains the theory, components, and practical applications of systems in turboprop, turbojet, and turbofan aircraft.

+ Jeppesen Aircraft Gas Turbine Powerplants- Newly revised to include the most up-to-date information on aircraft gas turbine powerplants and updated coverage of jet engine technology.

+ Jeppesen Transport Category Aircraft Systems – A system-by-system approach to understanding jet transports.

+ Turbojet Systems Made Easy DVD – If you’re preparing for airline interviewing and testing and haven’t flown “heavy iron” lately, you really need this course!

Finally, prepare for the technical interview portion of the ATP by picking up one of these books:

+ Airline Pilot Technical Interviews- Ron McElroy’s study guide for the pilot’s technical interview.

+ FAR Flashcards for ATP (Parts 121)- ASA Flashcards keep cockpit skills sharp and help pilots prepare for that important test, checkride, or interview!

These will keep you going for awhile. Remember to keep your logbook up-to-date and fly safe. That airline job will find you eventually, but you have to keep working at it. Just don’t spend your precious money on Jet Transition courses that you are not going to need.

Be safe and get that airline job…

Jeffrey

Two forums you should be following:

• Thirty Thousand Feet Aviation Directory
• Airline Pilot Central Forums

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