what does it take to become a airplane pilot?
Filed on Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 under Aviation FAQ By aviator
do you need a High school diploma? 4 year degree? im 14 i attend a technical school and im not interested in any of the things they teach here, i just want to know the specifications of becoming a pilot. thank you
im not looking foward to college.. so i guess i should give up on the pilot idea then
lmao, thanks rick
it can be anything associated with aircraft piloting, nothing military though, maybe comemrcial airlines or private whatever, aslognest it pays haha
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Tags: Airplane, Become, Pilot, Take
March 10th, 2010 at 8:01 pm
go to a good college
then apply for a good university who offer a course in piloting
get accepted
apply for the piloting course
usually 5-7 years as it requires alot of skill and training
find a job with an airline company
March 10th, 2010 at 8:28 pm
No you don’t have to have a high school diploma. Just go to you local airport, not a big city one and there should be someone there that gives lessons. It is not cheap. You have to do a lot of book learning before you are even allowed to fly.
March 10th, 2010 at 8:37 pm
take flying lessons my stepson did last summer a got his Private pilot license.
or there are schools that have aviation courses if you complete them with good grades they have job placement programs .
March 10th, 2010 at 9:37 pm
go to college.
March 10th, 2010 at 9:40 pm
You don’t need a diploma or degree. Go to the airport and take flying lessons, at your age, I would suggest getting a job there washing planes on weekends, that will get your foot in the door.
Ignore the people that say you need to go to college, you don’t. The guy who is president of Cessna Aircraft never went to college. There are pilots out there right now that never finished high school and fly passenger jets all over the world.
Never give up. If you do, I’ll find out where you live and put a big sign in your front yard that says “QUITTER LIVES HERE.”
March 10th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
You don’t specify what type of pilot you wish to be, but as far as college goes, there are only two flying careers that a 4 year college degree will be required. One is the military, and the other (although maybe not technically required) is major airlines. If you wish to fly for a major airline someday, although I can’t think of one good reason why anyone would want to, you will be facing a very large applicant pool for a limited number of pilot positions. Those with degrees will get the interviews, those without will not.
March 10th, 2010 at 10:47 pm
College is NOT mandatory. As a matter of fact, there is not one single question about college on any FAA application. You need never have attended school at all, other than flight school. You do need to be able to read, write, and speak English.
If you choose to become a pilot without the benefit of college, you are limiting your ability to ever work for a major airline, or for that matter, even most regionals only hire those with college. On the other hand, it is all supply and demand, so there are exceptions.
I would recommend that you go to your local airport, find a flight school that gives you a “warm fuzzy”, has clean airplanes, and comes off as professional, and take some lessons. You will either fall in love, or you will decide that it is not for you. If you decide to continue, then finish your private, and make three commitments.
1. Stay in school and get your 4-year degree.
2. Stay away from drugs
3. If you drink, NEVER drink and drive—a DUI is a career killer
OK, we know that you will probably/maybe not do 1, but be certain to comply with 2 and 3.
Flight Training:
Go to an aviation college, and get the training along with the degree. I am a little concerned with what an aviation degree does for a person who suddenly because of health or other issues, can’t fly. San Jacinto has a 2-year program that gets an Associate Degree, and all the ratings. After that, you can move to another college and finish out a 4-year degree in some fall-back area.
Assuming that you have the 4-year degree, or you have decided to forgo college, then attend an accelerated program such as ATP, where you will spend 50-70K, loans are available, and get all the ratings in about 3-9 months.
Go to your local flight school, and take the training there. This will sometimes be a little hodge podge, and the schools can be all over the map in terms of quality of training and equipment. I live in a major metro area, and I know of only three local flight schools where I would/have sent my children. These schools, no matter what they say, just aren’t geared to getting you through quickly. Plan on at least 2 years from start to finish.
If you get your 4-year degree, go to the military. The upside is that you get to fly some really neat equipment and serve your country. The downside is that, if you are not s..t-hot, you may find yourself flying some really mundane equipment, and you are still committed to a long time in the service. I think the current commitment is 10 years, Did I mention that you might get shot at!
IMHO ATP is the best way to go because it will get you done in a very short period of time. Remember the clock on the end of your career is already ticking.
Another point for ATP. When you finish at ATP, you will have 200 hours of multiengine time. At most flight schools, you will graduate with maybe 10-15 hours of multi time, and can’t even be insured. You will spend months trying to find a way to “bag” some time so that you can get on the insurance so that you can teach in the twin. On the other hand, at ATP you are drinking from a fire hose, and not everyone is committed enough or even capable of doing that.