How to Become a Pilot – How to Get Your Pilot’s License With Flying Colours?

How to Become a Pilot? Let’s discover the answer.

Just dream, everyday wake up early in the morning and get ready to go to your most beautiful office in the world and your job is to fly through the milky clouds and spectacular sights and brightest sunshine.

Imagine, wouldn’t it be amazing if you could go rent a plane on the weekends and go for a leisurely flight with your friends and family into amazing locations for fishing, hunting, camping and sightseeing?

There is nothing like the feeling of flying, being in control of a big gigantic plane, passing people, mountains, rivers, forests over 30000 feet sitting in your comfortable cockpit.

This is many people’s dream along with one big question in their mind “How to Become a Pilot”?

Let’s not kid ourselves, the reason so many people are reluctant to commit to something like obtaining a pilot’s license is, it is not a cheap hobby and it is not an easy hobby. Pilot training can cost several thousand dollars, it can take months before you are ready to get your own plane and fly solo.

There are certain pilot’s license requirements involving facts which I have mentioned below for a quick refer to, this might help to take the first step towards “Becoming a Pilot”.

• Eligibility: As directed by FAA the candidates should 17 years old and he or she should have a 3rd class medical certificate, this might differ in different countries.
• Expenses: The private aviation is often seen as a luxury given only to the rich. Luckily, this is not the case, scholarships and educational loans are not just for the scholarly. There are many organizations vigorously involved in funding new aspiring pilots. Just keep an eye and an ear open, be on the lookout for good deals on flight training and be on the lookout for ways to secure funding for your training.
• Instructor or School: There are, you are likely to find maybe a half a dozen different instructors or schools. It may seem like a hassle trying to narrow it down. You should prepare yourself with a basic checklist of requirements for selecting your flight or school.
• Reputation.
• Distance from home.
• Facilities.
• Price.
• Experience of the instructor(s).
• Passing Your Tests: There are actually a few different tests you will need to take, including your final exams. However I have listed out some of the tests conducted in the training.
• Trail Instructional flight.
• PR-Solo, PR-Area Solo, and B.A.K – Exam.
• Aircraft Exam.
• Written and Practical Tests.

However, I would like to mention, the above mentioned points or the topics are not inclusive of all the points and is no training course for passing your pilot’s exams. Rather, the purpose of this article is to equip you with the right attitude, the right information, and the right way to approach getting your pilot’s license.

Cover Letter Sample — For the Corporate Flight Attendant

Writing a cover letter to send with your résumé can be both confusing and frustrating. What exactly should you say? Are you saying too much? Are you only speaking about your needs vs. the company’s needs? Oh, what to do! In this “short” piece, I will list some ideas on how to craft your cover letter. I have also provided some important links — for additional assistance — particularly if you find yourself still needing outside help.

Basics

* Make sure you use exactly the same type of paper you use for your résumé. White with white is best, business paper is strongly advised, especially paper containing 100% cotton. Cheap 20 lb. copier paper is a terrible idea!

* A matching business envelope {#10} is acceptable. Tri-fold your copies separately; when you place the cover letter inside the envelope, make sure that the letter is shown first [when you lift the flap of the envelope up] followed by your résumé. Fold it so that your name and contact information is the first thing the recruiter sees.

If you choose to use a kraft envelope make sure that is no smaller than 9×12 or bigger than 10×13. Place an attractive computer generated label on it with your return address shown appropriately. If you must write on it, PRINT your information and do not be fancy. Remember: you want the post office and the company’s mailroom to be able to read what you wrote! Otherwise, important time may be lost in the process.

* If you are emailing your information make sure that the job listing stipulates that attachments are okay. If not, don’t you dare send attachments! Instead, within the body of an email message you can write your cover letter [a brief introduction] and then cut and paste your résumé. I cannot tell you how many files never get read when the person does not do as instructed. You can also follow up and mail in a hard [paper] copy if an address is provided.

Beginnings

* Match the header on your résumé with the header on your cover letter. They can and do get separated! An example header should look like this:

• Jane Doe
• 14 Star Lane
• Smithville, NC 27777 USA
• Telephone: 919-555-1212
• Cell Phone: 919-555-1213
• Email: jdoe@nc.rrs.com

* Include your personal website address only if that information is valuable. If you host a site that is weird, inflammatory, adult oriented, or otherwise controversial, simply do not expect any response from the company.

* Put today’s date on the cover letter.

* Next, include your contact’s information, which can include:

• Ms. Ellen Snow
• Human Resources Coordinator
• FlyByNight Aviation, Inc.
• 1234 Orville Wright Lane
• Serendipity, NC 27776

* Your salutation comes next and should look like this

— Dear Ms. Snow:

Body

* Keep in mind that your cover letter must not be lengthy. You can say all that must be said in no more than three, maybe four, brief paragraphs.

* Here is a sample:

Attached, please find a copy of my résumé for your review. I am interested in the position of corporate flight attendant listed online at http://www.flybynight.com.

I believe my three years of international flying experience along with my culinary background and language skills makes me the ideal candidate to serve FlyByNight’s distinguished clientele. Currently, I work as an independent contractor and have flown to top destinations in Europe as well as throughout the U.S. and Canada. FlyByNight’s need for a dependable, trained, and highly experienced team player is exactly the type of position I desire.

I look forward to meeting with you in person to discuss your particular needs and how I can help FlyByNight successfully carry out its mission as the best operator of private jets in the world. Feel free to contact me at your earliest convenience; I can be reached at 919-555-1212 or by on cell phone at 919-555-1213.

Byes

* Sincerely,

Jane Doe

Leave 3-4 lines from your “Sincerely” to your name. Your closing shouldn’t include other words including Regards [too plain], Cheers! [too British], Love [too personal], etc. Remember, this is a business letter.

In summation, keep it short and specific. Have three or four main points you can emphasize about your strengths, particularly, those points which match with the points listed by the company in their job details. In this particular case the candidate emphasized her culinary, language, and international travel experience, as well as her availability. All four points were stressed in the company’s job listing which read:

“…international jet operator is searching for an experienced cabin attendant. This position involves serving our on demand charter clients from east coast locations to destinations in the U.S. and abroad. Must have exceptional food service skills. Current training with FACTS, FlightSafety or similar training vendor; French or Spanish language skills: a plus…

You cannot avoid talking about yourself, but you can control how you talk about yourself.

Do not…

1. …beg for an interview.

2. …mention money or benefits. If the job listing “demands” that you list your salary requirements, simply state that salary is negotiable.

3. …overly boast about your skills: think about what the company’s needs are, do you think they care that you were the recipient of an NBAA scholarship? It is, however, okay to list scholarship awards on your résumé.

4. …name drop. Unless, you already come highly recommended by someone they know and like. Your mentor may be well known in this industry, but not universally liked. You can use them on your list of references, however.

Tying it all together, this is what your cover letter could look like:

• Jane Doe
• 14 Star Lane
• Smithville, NC 27777 USA
• Telephone: 919-555-1212
• Cell Phone: 919-555-1213
• Email: jdoe@nc.rrs.com
• March 21, 2005
• Ms. Ellen Snow
• Human Resources Coordinator
• FlyByNight Aviation, Inc.
• 1234 Orville Wright Lane
• Serendipity, NC 27776

Re: Corporate Flight Attendant Opening [this is optional, but it can be helpful especially if the company has multiple openings available.]

Dear Ms. Snow:

Attached, please find a copy of my résumé for your review. I am interested in the position of corporate flight attendant listed online at http://www.flybynight.com.

I believe my three years of international flying experience along with my culinary background and language skills makes me the ideal candidate to serve FlyByNight’s distinguished clientele. Currently, I work as an independent contractor and have flown to top destinations in Europe as well as throughout the U.S. and Canada. FlyByNight’s need for a dependable, trained, and highly experienced team player is exactly the type of position I desire.

I look forward to meeting with you in person to discuss your particular needs and how I can help FlyByNight successfully carry out its mission as the best operator of private jets in the world. Feel free to contact me at your earliest convenience; I can be reached at 919-555-1212 or by on cell phone at 919-555-1213.

Sincerely,

Jane Doe

Commercial Pilot – Why The Fat And Generous Pay?

It is almost irresistibly attractive – you get to wear a gorgeous white-clad uniform, you are regarded highly in the eyes of the public, you only need to make a few flights per day, and you get to enjoy a fat and generous salary on your payday. Yes, these are just some of the advantages of being a commercial pilot.

As such, a lot of people aspire to be one. The American Airlines for example pay rookie pilots a salary of 31,000 USD. The pay can go up to as much as 123,000 USD for experienced pilots (10th year in service). Delta and UPS reportedly pay their experienced pilots a salary of more than 200,000 USD.

It is definitely not easy to ignore those numbers. And getting to fly something like an Airbus Jumbo Commercial Plane is like a childhood dream come true. But why exactly are pilots paid premium? Here are some of the reasons:

Education Cost

Needless to say, the education attainment requirement for pilots is high. Especially for pilots that fly commercial planes, they are usually required to have at least taken advanced mathematics subjects. Aeronautical engineers usually have an advantage.

And while it is true that those with only an associate’s degree or GED equivalent may be qualified as a pilot, most top brass airlines nowadays prefer those that have a 4-year bachelor’s degree. If you have a 4-year bachelor’s degree with a strong background in mathematics (engineering, physics, etc.), you can say that you have an advantage.

Flight Training Cost

This is what really turns down most aspiring pilots – flight training courses cost a lot! You have to rent the plane, pay the instructor, and provide other peripherals required. Most families cannot afford to send their children to flight training schools.

Another problem is the number of training hours required – aspiring pilots are required to have at least taken 250 hours of flight time. And this is surely going to cost a lot. With such a costly training, it is only natural commercial pilots are paid well.

Life Risk

A 2011 statistics shows a fatality rate of about 1 for every 1.6 million flights. This is relatively low compared to the previous decades. And most people only have to face that risk once in a while. But for a pilot, he / she has to face that risk almost every day.

And the risk is relatively higher when the plane takes off during a weather depression. It is also partly because of this risk that commercial pilots are paid better than most other white collar jobs.

Additional Skills Required

In some instances, a pilot is not only required to possess advanced mathematical knowledge and skillful piloting skills. Many airlines nowadays require their pilots to learn additional skills which may include among others the following: communication skills, fluency in several languages, proper etiquette, and such.

This is in order to improve customer relations. Passengers typically feel more at ease with a pilot who can communicate himself more efficiently and with more confidence.

Part 41 or Part 161?

Once you have procured your medical certificate, the next thing that you should worry about is the school that you will go to. Private pilot flight training in the United States, as specified by the FAA, can be facilitated in two ways: Part 141 or Part 61. Question is, which one should you subscribe to? To answer your question, let us differentiate the two Parts according to three criteria: curriculum, training and expenses.

Curriculum

The biggest difference between the two is how the curriculum is structured. Part 141 is an academic approach towards private pilot flight training. Because of that, you can expect yourself to be following a strict or predetermined flow of lessons. Even when you go to school outside aviation, any academic setting will more or less follow the same formula.

On the other hand, Part 61 is more like private instruction. The curriculum is very flexible. Of course, at the beginning, you will start with the basics as your CFI will walk you through the fundamentals of aviation and how you can handle the plane. As your training progresses, however, the CFI will start putting in some leeway for you and allow you to learn at your own pace… under his supervision of course.

Training

Training for Part 141 schools is in a classroom setting in addition to the actual flight sessions. There’s a competitive edge to studying under Part 141, which can be advantageous as you try to oust your classmates for the top spot. There’s also the advantage of group study sessions. As for flight training, Part 141 generally employs a scenario-based training.

Part 61, being more of a private instruction, will be more intimate. It is just you and your instructor when you take flight lessons. Therefore, you can be more flexible with your routines and lessons, tailoring them to fit your needs as you see fit. If you feel like you’re weak in one area, or that you want to improve your skills in one procedure, the instructor can adjust your lessons to reflect that need.

Expenses

Last but not the least are the expenses. Part 141 charges fees the way a school would, but it would also include miscellaneous fees that can make aviation school a bit more expensive than Part 61. On the other hand, private instruction allows you to save money on your flight training in the long run by letting you control the number of hours that you fly for each lesson.