Ab initio works for this partnership
Editor's Note: Mesa Pilot Development terminated its relationship with San Juan College in May 2010.
This is not a story about a regional jet cruising at 250 knots, nor is it a feature concerned with Canadair Regional Jet limitations at Flight Level 250. What you will discover here is a training program designed to propel anyone with a dream of flying for the airlines onto the flight deck of a regional jet in 250 hours of total flight time -- in as little as 18 months. And none of that time is earned as a flight instructor bouncing around the pattern in Cessna 172s on a hot August afternoon.
First, let's set the record straight. There are many superb flight schools, universities, academies, and aviation colleges. You've read about many of them right here in these pages. But, there is only one airline-owned training program that is designed to take a pilot from the first hour of flight to a first officer seat on a regional airliner in the shortest possible time. That program is Mesa Airlines Pilot Development (MAPD) offered through the airline's collegiate partner, San Juan College, in Farmington, New Mexico.
And just what is Mesa Airlines? Mesa operates nearly 180 aircraft with more than 1,100 daily departures to 182 cities, 41 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, and Mexico. Flying the colors of America West, US Airways, and United Express, the carrier operates a diverse fleet of Canadair Regional Jet 100, 200, 700, and 900 aircraft, as well as the Embraer 145. Air Transport World, a leading industry trade journal, selected Mesa as the 2005 Regional Airline of the Year because of its exemplary service to the public as well as completing a successful business restructuring during one of the most difficult periods in the history of commercial aviation.
How can this be? The answer is simply this: ab initio training. The U.S. military does it all of the time. European air carriers like Lufthansa, Sabena, and KLM have proven ab initio (from the beginning) training concepts for decades. If an individual is prepared from the very first hour as a flight professional, a truly competent professional airman will be honed in a shorter period of time. In its partnership with Mesa Airlines, that is exactly what San Juan College does.
MAPD and the college have been producing pilots for the airline ever since Mesa's founder and architect, Larry Risley, formulated the plan in the 1980s. MAPD started with just 12 pilots back then. Today's pilot population is about 150. Students have ranged in age from 18 to 50.
Students enrolling in the program can expect to spend nearly 18 months in training. They will exit with about 220 to 250 hours of flight time, all in high-performance Beechcraft Bonanzas and Barons, and with an associate of applied science degree in aviation technology. For about $55,000, the trainee receives liberal arts coursework in English, the humanities, and the like, plus the necessary ground school leading to a commercial pilot certificate with multiengine and instrument ratings, and a jet systems and FTD course.
Although ground school and traditional subjects are taught by San Juan faculty, all flight instruction, including the 40 hours of training in the revolutionary JetSim, is conducted by Mesa Airlines pilots.
San Juan College and Mesa Airlines recently developed another unique opportunity for degreed and experienced aviators who have at least 250 hours of flight time, an associate's degree at minimum, an acceptable driving record, and a first class medical certificate. A multiengine rating is not essential. It is named the Professional Airline Career Enhancement (PACE) program.
For about $10,000 to $12,000, pilots with commercial, multiengine, and instrument ratings will receive 10 hours of Beech Baron flight training, 20 hours in a Baron FTD, and 40 hours in the JetSim. Multiengine and jet systems courses are included. After an average of about 19 weeks, the PACE graduate is guaranteed an interview with Mesa Airlines. Trainees can add a multiengine rating for an additional $1,000 to $2,000.
MAPD periodically recruits CFIs to conduct program flight training. The instructors will be paid $16 hourly and, after one year, will have earned an interview with Mesa Airlines.
The success rate? According to Chief Instructor Rich Castle, the placement rate with Mesa Airlines is "at least 90 percent. This is a track record that has been established for the past 15 years."
Yes, but does the system really work?
Mike Castelli is living proof. Before coming to MAPD, Castelli was selling cars and houses to make a living. After taking a 45-minute discovery flight, he was hooked. He arrived in Farmington in January 2003 at age 23. He interviewed in June 2004 and is now flying for Mesa's US Airways Express affiliate based in Philadelphia. At the time of hiring, he had acquired 249.1 hours of total time, including 45 hours of multiengine. He estimates that he invested about $65,000. He was able to support himself, a wife, and two children while going through training by selling houses and cars on the side.
Is he intimidated by higher-time captains dwarfing his experience? "Let me tell you that the training is fabulous. Imagine taking those first hours of flight in something like a Bonanza rather than a 152 or Cherokee. The entire training curriculum is high performance. I was never trained to be a flight instructor. I was trained to be an airline pilot. Period."
Courtney Garrett is another success story. At age 20, working as a counter agent for Mesa Airlines, she decided to make the big step to a window seat in a Mesa RJ. She started MAPD in August 2001 with six hours of flight time. By May 2003, she had graduated to the right seat of a Mesa jet with just 267 hours in the logbook. She estimates that she invested $55,000 into the program.
What does she say about the experience? "Great! The best instructors! To my way of thinking, Mesa Airlines Pilot Development is the absolute best way to accelerate a career and get on line fast. At first I was a little concerned about how I would perform when compared to pilots hired off the street with more time. But, with my training specifically for Mesa, I was very comfortable with Mesa's brand of cockpit resource management, checklists, flows, and procedures. I was ready for the airline before the interview."
Freddy Cuarezema is a graduate of the PACE program. He entered PACE with 343 hours of total time and 17 hours of multiengine. After $12,000 invested, he bumped his total time to 356 hours and 30 hours of multiengine. He is in Mesa Airlines ground school as you read this.
In an environment where the average person trudging toward a career flying airliners faces three to six years of ratings and time building, the Mesa Airlines and San Juan College way, if not miraculous, is at least remarkable. You can check it out yourself online or phone MAPD at 800/232-6327.
Wayne Phillips is an airline transport pilot with a Boeing 737 type rating. He is a B-737 instructor and operates the Airline Training Orientation Program in association with Continental Airlines. He is an aviation safety consultant in Michigan and speaker for the AOPA Air Safety Foundation.
