� Q: I want an airline career, but there seems to be no clear-cut, simple way to get into the trade without having lots of money. Only having a private pilot certificate, I will need to do some kind of paid training, but how do I know if it’s the best route? By the way, I’m 21 without credit so it might not be possible to get a loan. I will be getting an airframe and powerplant certificate soon, but can that benefit me in the beginning stages of a flying career?—Alex H.
� A: First, there is no profession that doesn’t require a substantial investment up front for a payoff way down the road: medicine, law, education, you name it. In fact, I imagine that you are making a sizeable investment in your A&P. The good news is that you are already well on your way, since you have a private pilot certificate.
Did you see the September 2015 issue? “Career Pilot: Keep America flying” specifically addresses the benefit of having an A&P certificate. Not only can you generate some needed dollars to fund your flight training, you also can become a double-edged, added-value employee for the right industry operator.
About that money for flight training. Although it is true that commercial loans for flight training have diminished, a little bit of research might yield some good results.
ATP Flight School comes to mind as one resource that seems to have access to funding for flight training based upon relationships with Wells Fargo and Sallie Mae. Indeed, ATP has an association with several airlines in what it calls the Tuition Reimbursement Program. There, the airline partners partially fund the cost of training at ATP. I will take a closer look at this unique option in the November 2015 issue.
Another possibility is AOPA Aviation Finance Co., which offers AOPA members a flexible aviation loan that can be used for any flight school and for any certificate or type rating.
If you are unable to qualify for a loan, you could ask a family member or dear friend to cosign for you. There are flight training scholarships available; simply enter “flight training scholarships” into any search engine and you will be amazed at the variety of opportunities.
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