Let’s see how this game plan has been working for airline pilot newcomers thus far: After earning all of the coveted FAA certificates and ratings, the aspiring airline pilot’s first job on the line is most likely as a first officer for a regional jet operator, earning $20,000 to $22,000 in the first year.
This program was not going to work forever. With regional jet captains jumping ship to the big-money jet airlines and fewer candidates, primarily because of the FAA’s ATP rule, the regional airlines are now compelled to put more money on the table to attract pilot candidates—and to entice the employed airmen to stay. Otherwise, RJs and turboprops sit on the ramp with nowhere to go for lack of flying talent—yes, this is happening.
Regional airline pilots are beginning to benefit from sign-on bonuses and retention pay. One small regional airline, Silver, which flies only turboprops, is offering a $12,000 sign-on bonus for those who will forego jets for its Saab 340s. The former Pinnacle, now known as Endeavor, has set the bar even higher for regional carriers—for each pilot on the property, long term and new hire, the company will pay a $20,000 annual retention bonus for each of four years. That means a new hire will realize first-year earnings in the $40,000 range.
ATP Flight School sums up signing and retention programs at various regional carriers in the table on page 49, subject to change.
Note that a $5,000 ATP tuition reimbursement is added to retention bonuses offered by ATP’s regional partners GoJet, Mesa, Trans States, and Compass. In an unusual approach to making the regional airline career path more desirable and affordable, it is possible for pilots in ATP’s Fast Track program to receive financial support for training directly from those partner airlines. With 39 locations throughout the country, the school can take an individual from zero time through single-engine, multiengine, and instrument flight instructor certificates (CFI, II, MEI)—and 250 hours’ total time—in 180 days for a guaranteed $69,995. But, here is where it gets really interesting and rewarding.
Fast Track graduates are guaranteed employment as a CFI with a $1,000 monthly retainer. This locked-in compensation, plus an additional hourly rate, means an ATP instructor can earn about $24,000 annually. Instructors can reach that magical 1,500 flight hours to qualify for the airline transport pilot certificate after about two years.
Paired with an online college degree, these qualifications provide an attractive alternative to traditional four-year collegiate programs that, in most cases, get you a degree, a CFI ticket, and 250 hours after 48 months.
Once the CFI at ATP gets to the 500-hour mark, a guaranteed interview with one of the four partner carriers is offered. If the instructor and airline agree to employ the instructor once he or she reaches the 1,500 hour mark and earns an ATP certificate, there’s more money to be made. Here’s how it works.
At 500 hours of total flight time, that CFI receives additional monthly payments based on flight time acquired at an hourly rate of $5 per flight hour. That adds up to $5,000 over the next 1,000 hours of flight time, paid by the airline. Once the pilot is hired by the regional carrier, there is a fixed monthly payment of $500 for a minimum of 12 months, topping out at about $6,000—possibly more, depending upon the airline. For instance, from your date of hire, Mesa Airlines pays $500 per month until either a total of $12,000 has been paid out as tuition reimbursement or you make captain upgrade.
What has prompted this welcomed paradigm change? ATP and its partners recognize that the cost of earning 1,500 hours of flight time is one of the biggest barriers to entry for pilots pursuing an airline career. The tuition reimbursement program helps ease the financial burden associated with gaining that experience and aims not only to improve the quality of life for pilots, but also to make the airline pilot career more obtainable.
There are many flying professionals who traveled the airline career track over the years and dealt with crushing debt and no job guarantees. That was then. This is now, and the landscape has changed for the better. For those who can reap the benefits of the present-day circumstance, fate, timing, and the creative thinking of institutions like ATP Flight School now provide incentives that the industry has never seen. What are you waiting for?
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