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Hi everyone!
Today, I want to answer a question I get asked all the time. Sometimes people switch careers later in life in hopes of chasing a dream that they’ve held since childhood all along. Some people never chase their dream thinking that by the time they are willing to do it, it’s too late because they didn’t start out early enough.
While an early start in any career is helpful, and sometimes essential (model or dancer), it is possible to make a career switch later on in life. How later on depends on many factors, and there are never any guarantees, but if you have a good plan and do your research, you will have a good shot.
With a mandatory retirement age of 65 in the US, Part 121 companies (airlines) that employ pilots want to make sure that when they hire someone, they will get someone who is going to be around for a good amount of years. How many years depends on the supply and demand for pilots at the time – becoming a pilot for the airlines depends a lot on timing.
However, there are other operations that don’t have a mandatory retirement age, but these are rarely advertised and mostly obtained through word of mouth. For example, some corporate flight departments operating under Part 91 may choose not to retire their pilots at age 65, but they would do this on a case-by-case basis.
The key in becoming a professional pilot when you’re starting out later in life is to get your pilot ratings and flight time as soon and as fast as possible. Unfortunately, this is extremely difficult because you are probably dealing with many responsibilities that your typical 18 year old student pilot doesn’t have to – a family, a mortgage, a full time job in another industry, etc.
My advice to someone in this position is to seriously consider flying internationally. There are some pilot programs in foreign airlines that will take applicants with little to no flight time and train them to start flying as Second Officers in Boeing and Airbus airplanes in about two to three years. These programs are extremely competitive and challenging, but if you think you’ve got what it takes, they are worth a shot. The catch is that after training you, you owe them a certain amount of years of employment, 6-8 years is typical but vary by airline. The goal, of course, is to be upgraded to Captain within that timeframe.
To find these opportunities, you have to do quite a bit of digging, but as an example, check out the Cathay Pacific pilot program.
These programs would most likely require you to move, as their flight training takes place internationally. Since English is the official language in aviation, I wouldn’t worry about having problems due to language. Moving to a foreign country is a big decision, however, and if you have a spouse and/or family, the decision is not yours alone.
If foreign airlines aren’t your cup of tea, then you will just have to take your chances here in the US, where most people slowly build up flight time by working in low-paying jobs, such as flight instructing, banner towing, or flying traffic watch flights for your local news station. In this situation, you should really hone in on your networking skills and try to get rides with ferry pilots or corporate pilots. You will need to capitalize on the one advantage you have over a younger pilot trying to build up time, and that is your network of people that you have built up over the years.
Ask friends and family to put you in touch with anyone they might know who works in a flight department that is of interest to you. If you’re coming from another profession, pay particular attention to corporate aviation. Some corporate flight departments are so small, they are made up of a 2 or 3 pilots who might be willing to take you on flights as a right seat safety pilot. You wouldn’t get paid much, but you’d be able to build up time in twin turbine or twin jet airplanes.
I know a few pilots who started their flying careers later in life and have succeeded in finding a full time flying job after making a switch in careers. In future blog posts, I plan on interviewing some of them and will be asking them to share their inspirational stories with you.
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Just Google “Cost of Private Pilot License” and you’ll be presented with a several flight schools estimates enticing you to choose them for your flight training needs.
Their prices will vary from $4,000 to around $8,000 for the cost of a Private Pilot Certificate. They will even tabulate all the different costs that will look something like this:
| Exam for FAA medical (student pilot certificate) | $65 |
| Supplies (charts, books, flight computer, plotter, etc.) | 120 |
| Written test fee (computerized) | 80 |
| Ground School (to complete written test – based on self study) | 0 |
| Airplane (C-172 @$113/hr for 40 hours) | 4,520 |
| Flight Instruction (30 hours @ $35/hr) | 1,050 |
| Ground instruction for flight lessons (10 hours @ $35/hr) | 350 |
| Flight test (examiner $250, airplane $170 based on 1.5 hours) | 420 |
| TOTAL ESTIMATED COST | $6,605 |
You should think of this as getting an estimate for a complete remodel of a house. The contractor will quote you all the minimum costs based on everything going perfectly during the remodeling of your home. No delays, no problems that require re-work, no surprise hidden charges.
But, what they don’t want you to know about is that flight training almost never goes as planned – just like the remodeling of a house.
Flight schools know that the minimum number of hours required to obtain a pilot certificate is 40hrs, as required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). However, the national average is around 65hrs. At $130/hr, that’s a difference of almost $2,000 if you’re “average”.
You should keep these two things in mind:
I would even go as far as estimating 80hrs to obtain your certificate, especially if you’re flying 2 times per week or less.
With this in mind, you can easily look at more than $10,000 to obtain your pilot certificate.
As much GROUND PREPARATION as possible. The more you learn on the ground, the less you’ll have to learn while in the air. Here are the top 3 ways you can get your flight training done faster and cheaper:
Hi everyone!
One of the most common topics I’m asked about is the FAA medical. So, if you’re a bit confused about this topic, here is some information that will help you figure it all out!
Let’s get started….
Under the Federal Aviation Regulations, pilots are required to meet certain medical requirements. Depending on what type of pilot you are, you will need to pass a certain type of medical exam.
There are three types of medical certificates:
From the FAA’s website (http://www.faa.gov/licenses_certificates/medical_certification/faq/response4/), here is how you can determine which type of FAA medical to get:
The FAR’s (Federal Aviation Regulations) list the requirements for each type of Medical Certificate.
You can find these here:
http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title14/14cfr67_main_02.tpl
Here is a summary of what you need depending on the type of medical you need:
NOTE: this is just a quick overview, you should read the full FARs for more detailed information
Eye – With or without corrective lenses, distant Vision 20/20 for First & Second Class, distant vision 20/40 for Third Class, near vision 20/40
Ear, Nose, Throat, Equilibrium – demonstrate acceptable hearing, no disease that affects equilibrium
Mental – no personality disorders, psychosis, delusions, bipolar disorders, or substance abuse
Neurologic – no epilepsy, disturbance of consciousness, transient loss of control of nervous system, seizures
Cardiovascular – no heart attacks, heart disease, angina pectoris, or pacemakers
General – no diabetes, or anything else the examiner thinks will make you an unsafe pilot
If you have reason to believe that your application should not have been denied, you can appeal. The process is lengthy and may take several months (as does anything with the FAA). FAR 67.409 talks about the appeal process.
What if you have reason to believe that you won’t pass an FAA medical??? Are you doomed to be a ground dweller forever?
Not exactly. If you have never been denied an FAA medical certificate, you can become a Sport Pilot. The Sport Pilot Certificate allows you to fly small aircraft that are classified as LSA’s or Light Sport Aircraft. These airplanes have several restrictions, but for the most part, these are:
Cannot weigh more than 1,320lbs
Cannot have the ability to fly faster than 120 knots (about 139 mph)
Cannon carry more than one passenger
To find out more about LSA’s and Sport Pilot Certificates, Click Here (http://www.sportpilot.org/learn/final_rule_synopsis.html)
Medically, you still have to be fit to fly, however, you only need a current driver’s license to prove this.
Because the rules the duration of FAA Medicals have gotten so complex, the FAA has come up with this table (http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&rgn=div8&view=text&node=14:2.0.1.1.2.1.1.17&idno=14) to help you figure out how long your medical will be valid:
To search for a nearby medical examiner, you can search for one on the FAA website: http://www.faa.gov/pilots/amelocator/
However, since every AME (Aviation Medical Examiner) is different they have some latitude in determining whether you meet the requirements or not, be sure to ask some local pilots who they recommend.
Each medical examiner will set his/her own price for each type of medical certificate.
My experience has been that they cost in the range of $95 – $140.