Flight Training - December 2013 - 52

CAREER PILOT»

THE SAME GAMES PLAYED IN THE CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS
MAY FIND THEIR WAY TO THE FLIGHT DEPARTMENT-DON'T BE
SURPRISED IF THE SQUEAKIEST WHEEL GETS THE GREASE.
great, but you'll be home more than
the guy flying a Gulfstream to every
corner of the world.
For any prospective employer,
it's best to analyze the retirement
situation. I'm not talking about
researching the company's 401(k)
plan-I mean checking out how
many white-haired pilots you see
in the crew lounge. Your quality
of life, pay, ability to get days off,
et cetera, depend entirely on how
quickly you move up the seniority
ladder in an airline or flight department. More white hair equals more

retirements and, ultimately, a better
career path for you. For example,
some of the legacy airlines have
thousands of pilots who will reach
age 65-and mandatory retirement-in the next 10 years; their
departures will allow new hires
to quickly move up the seniority
list. Some newer airlines, however,
have a much younger pilot corps
and will see a comparative trickle
of pilot retirements over a longer
period of time.
Regionals, fractionals, and
upstart companies typically

have the youngest pilots, which
means slow advancement until
those senior to you retire. At the
regional airline level, most of your
advancement comes from pilots
being hired by the majors, not from
retirement. Conduct the same
research at corporate flight departments or charter companies. How
old are the pilots on the roster?
Are they likely to stay for life or go
elsewhere? How long until you can
become a captain? Your quality of
life will depend on those who were
there first.
Also consider the shop where
you can advance to captain as
soon as possible. Most companies
hire the candidates who have the

CAREER ADVISOR

THE PHONE IS RINGING

What to do when the airline calls
» By Wayne Phillips

» Q: I finally received the call! I have
an invitation to interview with my
top-choice regional airline. Do you have
any suggestions?-Rod from Oakland,
California
» A: The interview is the make-or-break
event for anyone coveting an airline
career. It is also one of the most stressful
activities associated with finding a job,
ranking up there with the commercial
or CFI practical test.
All of the important elements that
apply to any type of job interview are
relevant: professional grooming and
dress; positive demeanor; honesty. However, it is impossible to dispense wisdom
specific to each air carrier because each
airline has its own interviewing philosophy. Some companies have applicants
complete a written test based on the
federal aviation regulations; others may
require the completion of a psychological profile. Certain companies interview
in groups, whereas others interview one
on one.

52 /

FLIGHTTRAINING.AOPA.ORG

The best strategy to employ is getting
the inside information well in advance
of interview day. The most effective
way to mine this information is to
locate a recent new hire. This is why
networking is so important in the airline
game.
Aviation colleges, schools, and academies would serve their students well by
developing online bulletin boards where
graduates of a particular institution
could post their interviewing adventures for the benefit of those to follow.
The best source for interviewing gouge
is the person who was hired last week.
Thanks to the Internet, there are several sources for interviewing scoop. Two
of the best seem to be www.aviation
interviews.com and www.willflyforfood.
com. Postings on the Internet can be
deceiving, and there are a lot of socalled experts out there. However, the
info contained on these two websites
appears to be pretty useful.
An interview is a sales presentation.
In this event, you are both salesper-

son and product, and the airline is the
customer. Any marketing professional
will key into several strategies: Come
prepared, know the customer, and
anticipate objections. Advance preparation is critical. Doing homework on
the company; relearning the systems of
a particular airplane that could be the
basis of several interview questions;
reviewing the Federal Aviation Regulations/Aeronautical Information Manual;
expecting and rehearsing the inevitable
psychological questions-all are all part
of the drill.
And what if you have had a blemish on your record? Let's say that your
employment track record is somewhat
unstable or you've had an FAR enforcement action. Are you prepared to
explain, take responsibility, and show
how you've learned from mistakes?
The interview process is daunting,
but there is a lot of help available. As in
all aspects of life, a little luck doesn't
hurt, either. In your case, may it all be
good.
Wayne Phillips is an airline transport pilot with
Boeing 737 and Falcon 20 type ratings. Send your
career questions to careers@aopa.org and we'll
publish the best ones here.
http://www.aviationinterviews.com http://www.aviationinterviews.com http://www.willflyforfood.com http://www.willflyforfood.com http://FLIGHTTRAINING.AOPA.ORG
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