The idea of a career as an airline instructor probably is one that escapes most pilots. After all, people with pilot certificates are destined to pilot, right?
But what about aviators who, for whatever reason, cannot pass the airlines? rigorous flight crew hiring standards? Or, after adding up their flight hours, have 6,000 hours in single-engine airplanes, but only six hours of multiengine time. Or, aren?t turned on by the idea of spending too many nights in far-flung motel rooms each month when they?d rather cuddle with the spouse and have the kids down the hall. Or ? imagine this ? they just love to teach!
Whatever your reason, you could be an airline academic instructor candidate. You could be affiliated with a major or not-so-major air carrier and enjoy an adequate salary; health, retirement, and travel benefits; and have the personal satisfaction that flight crews flying people or boxes from point A to B are doing so safely because of the expertise that you imparted.
Broadly speaking, airline flight officer training comes from the hands of two distinct instructor corps. These are the pilot instructors (PIs) and the academic instructors (AIs). Although different companies may use different terms to describe their educators, the generic designations within the airline industry are simply PI and AI.
PIs are experienced line pilots who have opted to spend the bulk of their chosen career in the airline?s training center. These instructors conduct the heavy-duty simulator training and school pilots in flight techniques and procedures. PIs hold seniority numbers and are expected to fly a minimum number of trips each month to remain proficient and current. PIs are considered management at many airlines, and receive a compensation package that takes their flight and instructional duties into account. In short, PI pay at a major carrier is often deep into six figures.
Generally, AIs teach aircraft systems, procedures, and, depending on the airline, conduct initial flight training device and/or elementary simulator sessions. Academic instructor qualifications, compensation, and responsibilities vary from airline to airline.
At present, United Airlines employs approximately 120 AIs (now officially titled ?fleet training instructor?) at its Flight Training Center in Denver. They routinely work 18 to 20 days a month on schedules that include weekend and evening teaching assignments.
Ed McHale, United?s Boeing 737-300 fleet technical specialist, works with the 13 FTIs assigned to that aircraft. A B-737-300 FTI serves in a supportive role to computer-based training (CBT) devices, McHale says. ?The pilot transitioning for the first time to the 300 will be engaged in six days of computer-delivered systems training. The FTI, who serves as a resource to the trainee, is available to answer questions during CBT. Also, the FTI conducts systems reviews, teaches classes on basic performance, and instructs flight crews in fixed-base simulators (FBS). In two 5.5-hour FBS sessions, the FTI introduces cockpit set-ups, basic flight, systems management, and irregular procedures. By the time the pilot has completed both 737-300 ground and simulator training, he or she will have spent about 30 days in the flight center learning the airplane. Of course, new-hire pilots have additional training in basic indoctrination, company policies, cockpit leadership resource, flight manuals, and more.?
And, McHale says, ?All of United?s 737-300 pilots visit the training center annually for Continuing Qualification Training, which is a three-day review and simulator checkride. Our FTIs provide a systems review as part of that activity.?
United FTI teaching duties differ somewhat depending on the airplane. The venerable B-737-200 and the DC-10 are vintage aircraft without CBT programs. The ground instructors for those machines act more as traditional ?stand-up lecturers? and conduct full classes on the aircraft systems that last about two weeks.
The application process for an FTI job that pays in the ?low thirties? at United is straightforward. An applicant sends a resume and letter of application to the United Flight Center Human Resources Department in Denver, Colorado.
Addressing the position?s qualifications, McHale says, ?A college degree, although not necessary, is preferred. We look more for a person with demonstrated technical instructional experience. Have they taught technical subjects with competence? A career military instructor is a good example. If this person has had experience teaching powerplants and hydraulics, well, that?s what we do. Obviously, if a person was successful in that endeavor, we presume that he or she could be successful as an instructor at United. Or, perhaps the applicant was a high school automotive teacher. Fine! We?ll evaluate the applicant?s ability during the interview process by having that person teach a short session on a technical matter. We do not require a pilot certificate to serve as a ground instructor at United. Having experience in aviation, though, as a line person or mechanic certainly does enhance the credentials.?
Some flying career aspirants feel that becoming an FTI for a year or two at a company like United could ultimately lead to an opportunity to transition full-time to the cockpit. McHale says, ?It sounds good in theory, but we tend to hire people who don?t long for a pilot seat. You see, it takes four to six months to train a good ground instructor, and we?ve found that it?ll be a year before the FTI is truly comfortable. If a person wants to be a United pilot, then the person should apply for that position. This policy provides the company with the ability to attract and maintain a well-qualified group of instructors. Although we?ve had some instructors make the transition to the pilot seat, it is not a common occurrence.?
At US Airways the AI?s role and company philosophy toward ground instructors is somewhat different. With more than 100 academic instructors, US Airways has a number of ground instructor teams, each with unique duties. The non-aircraft-specific training section teaches general topics such as wind shear, safety and emergency procedures, ditching, weather radar, and indoctrination for new-hires. Another group of instructors teaches international procedures training, including navigation, foreign operations, etc.
Like United and other airlines, US Airways assigns its ground instructors to a specific aircraft fleet, with some notable differences. During a pilot?s CBT training, an instructor is always available in the classroom to provide assistance, which helps minimize the pilot?s frustration level. If a pilot has difficulty understanding a particular item, the AI is there to help.
Also, US Airways? ground instructors conduct all of the FBS work, which encompasses six to nine days of training in those devices and covers such subjects as navigation problems, flight management computers (FMC), route changes, diversions, and approaches.
Bill Gray has functioned as a US Airways flight crew training instructor (AI) since 1984, and serves as the president of Local 547 of the Transport Workers Union, which represents the airline?s academic instructor contingent.
With a background in general aviation, Gray joined USAir, the forerunner of US Airways, as a DC-9 ground instructor because he ?liked airplanes? and ?wanted to teach.? At the time, he was an instrument-rated private pilot, and during his career with US Airways, he advanced from the DC-9 to the MD-80 and then to the Boeing 767.
Gray says US Airways is in ?the hiring mode? and seeks to add up to 50 flight crew training instructors in 1999. The airline will be moving to a predominantly Airbus fleet, which means it will not only have to continue its training in traditional aircraft, but also transition its pilots and instructors to the new equipment. ?Also, we?re offering early retirement to a large number of pilots, creating even more vacancies,? Gray adds. ?It?s said that for every one slot created due to attrition or retirement on the most senior airplane, the trickle-down effect generates about six training moves precipitated by pilots bidding up the seniority ladder. That equates to lots of training.?
US Airways prefers pilot-qualified applicants because their AIs shoulder added flight training responsibilities. Says Gray, ?In order to understand the environment that the pilot-trainee operates in, we feel that a certificated pilot who flies within the system, even if that person is simply an instrument-rated private pilot, has a better grasp of what those flight officers have to contend with.?
Traditionally, Gray says, ground instructors came from a background that could have been as a DC-8 or DC-10 flight engineer, or as a military systems instructor. In those days, systems training was the focus. Now, with the new technology, US Airways is redirecting its focus wherein the instructor must be more in tune with what happens in the cockpit and how to manage the airplane as a crew. ?This doesn?t mean that an instructor should not have a good systems background, but he or she does not have to have a mechanic?s background either,? Gray says. ?A good instructional work history, though, is a given.?
This philosophy is embodied in US Airways? ?Career Opportunity Bulletin? for the position of Flight Crew Training Instructor:
Minimum Qualifications: An associate?s degree or two years of college. Two years in a recent aviation-related field. Ground instructor certificate or substitutable experience. Classroom and/or flight procedures instruction. Proficiency in the use of a personal computer for normal office functions and curricula development.
Preferred Qualifications: Bachelor of science degree. Two years? experience as a flight training device pilot instructor or two years? experience as an airline pilot. Documented experience in aviation-related curricula development.
On average, FCTI?s will administer up to 100 hours of instruction over an 18-day month on a variable schedule, including weekends and evenings. Some travel may be required. At present, instructors begin at a salary of $3,178 per month.
Regarding instructor advancement to the cockpit, Gray says, ?Good instructors are hard to find and keep happy. Naturally, we?d like to see the ground instructor in the business of instruction for the long haul. But, if circumstances are such that a ground instructor wants or needs to move into the airplane, and the company can use him or her up front flying, who better to fly it than the guy or lady who has been teaching other pilots to fly it??
Of course, the need for quality instructors extends to the regional airlines as well. On the commuter level, the duties and responsibilities of AIs are virtually identical to those at the jet airlines.
Bill Boice is Skywest Airlines? director of flight standards, and he leads a team of five Brasilia and two Canadair Regional Jet academic instructors. ?At Skywest, AI candidates come from two sources,? Boice says. ?On the one hand, mature, seasoned pilots and instructors who have worked in the air carrier environment apply, many simply wishing to relocate to the St. George, Utah [Skywest?s headquarters], climate and spend their ?autumn years? working in the west. On the other, Skywest pilots themselves have opted for a temporary career in the training facilities. In the latter instance, as a trainer the pilot will spend two or three years building seniority, because all instructors have a seniority number, and will eventually return to line flying as a captain.?
Boice says he prefers that applicants have a four-year degree, and have some regional or major airline background. ?If they have been a general aviation instructor, it?s a big step into our technical world. Having said that, I?d accept a resume from anybody who is interested.?
The interview process is quite unusual, Boice adds. ?Anyone who?s interested in becoming an academic instructor goes through the pilot interview process. It includes a 50-question IFR test and a simulator check. In the formal portion of the process, I ask the applicant to come prepared to make a 10 minute presentation on any technical subject of his or her choosing. It doesn?t have to be airplane related.?
Is a stint as a Skywest AI a good path to the cockpit? ?Absolutely!? Boice says. ?We support the ambitions of our instructors. If they are qualified and interested in flying, then we will work with them toward advancement.?
As a general rule, Skywest ground instructors work a 40-hour week, Monday through Friday. Starting salary is about $28,000 annually, although the top-paid Skywest AI earns $45,000 per year. Traditional company benefits also are part of the compensation package.
The foregoing provides a glimpse of academic instruction opportunities and differing hiring philosophies at just three of the more recognizable names in the airline business. Whether it?s the mega-carriers such as American, Delta, and Federal Express, or relatively small companies like Access Air, Vanguard, or Frontier, the present hiring boom means a boom for those with a keen interest in a training career. Finally, bear in mind that every pilot flying an airliner today is a product of a ground instructor somewhere. It?s academic!