CFI vs King Air

[SV_741_India_Bravo]

Hello everyone,

Given the choice between flying a King Air B200GT (initially right seat) for 10 years, or getting a CFI/II/MEI for a job at a flight school and then hopefully a shot at the airlines, what would you do?

The King Air is based in Asia, flies about 500 hours a year, and there are 3 pilots on it at this time. Local CAA regs dictate it will be a two pilot operation.

Thanks in advance.

[flarepilot]

are you obligated for 10 years? I wouldn't do it. stuck for 10 years? I have one hour in a kingair...and I sure didn't need kingair time to get an airline job.

cfi, atp and work like heck

[flyboyike]

10 years is a tad much. Especially for a business turboprop, right seat no less.

[His dudeness]

Next May I´ll be flying KingAirs for 24 years.... I did fly it for 8 years before getting a freelance gig on a Citation beside my KA job (boss allowed it), then went on after 14 years to flying the mighty KA only occasionally. Always a joy and big big fun for me, just love it. A real pilots aeroplane.

The B200GT is a very fine machine, but IF you are an 'airlines guy', then this job might not be what you want... (what are the conditions is the big question IMO)

Given the market I wonder how easy/sure it is to get a job at a flight school, let alone an airline job with 'just' some teaching hours (which is way more demanding than flying an airliner from A to B if done properly, but....)

[OhNoCB]

I would go with the King Air gig unless the conditions are terrible.

[Parson]

Presumably the FI route will amount to a fair bit of SE time before you get to ME - and moving up requires a min no of ME hours to start with.

If that is your position, twin always wins against single.

[SV_741_India_Bravo]

Thank you all for your replies.

flarepilot, yes I will be obligated to serve for ten years. There are personal relationships involved in this and I cannot leave the company before completing this period of time.

His dudeness, no freelancing allowed. GA is very limited, meaning a dozen or so jets/turboprops around with everyone knowing everyone else. I'm not sure I want to stick to a relaxed routine of flying 20-30 hrs per month, and ofcourse being confined to my country at this stage of my life. Like every kid ofcourse, my dream is an airline too. The situation isnt that bad here, 800-1000 hrs total time (even single engine) have landed people on 737 in the past. Whether that will continue is a wild card.

OhNoCB, thanks for your input. The conditions are not bad. Pilots here are admired and respected in society. The pay is what possibly the top 10-20 percent of the population makes. What concerns me besides the 10 year period, is SIC time in a King Air, and very little flying (20-40 hrs per month). Then again, flying is flying right. Better than not flying at all!

Parson, if I do get an MEI rating on my own expenses, I will be able to start flying a seneca right off the bat.

Again thanks everyone for your valuable time.

[stilton]

Isn't a King Air classified as a single Pilot Aircraft in most of the world ?


I realize you are saying that local Reg's specify the need for two Pilots with the operation you are discussing and that may be accepted as a required pilot for log book purposes there but I doubt it would be elsewhere.


My point is you may be logging time as a second Pilot that could be useless for upward mobility.


I would make some more enquiries.

[yambat]

My two cents worth

MEI Seneca

Despite the turbine time of a King Air being good, its right seat time in a single crew aeroplane (despite the fact you operate 2 crew)
If you get command soon, the 200 is a fine aeroplane.
Also 10 years, good grief, surely turbine opportunities will come over that period of time.
So much depends on personal situation and where you are, my choice may not help at all, its based on my situation (well previous, with similar choices, years ago, when I think we had more opportunities than a lot of folks today)
ME Instructor has always been useful to me.
Good Luck

[flarepilot]

say no to the kingair and get into that seneca with no strings attached....fly safe though...esp when instructing...

multi engine instructing has NO room for error.


I know one person who bought a beech travel air to teach in it...screwed up a one engine go around and crashed, killing the student and harming the instructor for life.

I did multi instructing for quite awhile and everything was ok...just never, never let down your guard esp at low altitude.

seneca is a nice plane

[SCSflIer]

I would take the MEI job for a couple reasons. The 10 year "contract" is way to long, and as most others have said, right seat time in a 200 maybe useless when applying for jobs. The MEI is far more useful in regards to training and your development. Teaching ME is much more demanding on you which will hone your interpersonal skills, abilities, and general knowledge of basic flight physics. Not speaking from experience but when job hunting in your future, a resume with 1000+ hours of teaching ME aircraft will look much better than 500 hours of right seat time especially with no commander time. Also, you can leave when a new opportunity arises. As flarepilot said watch enigne out procedures. After teaching for 6+ hours and wanting to get that last student in, your mind will wander. More than once a student has reached for the mixture controls and at the last second I looked over and caught the mistake before it turned ugly. The Seneca is a nice light twin docile stall characteristics. But the smell of jetA burning is mighty nice... Good luck

[stilton]

In another life I was flying a Baron single pilot finally logging invaluable multi engine time carrying freight.


Our company, impressed with it's payload and speed bought an MU2 but needed a second pilot to warm the right seat for insurance purposes, they offered me this 'position'


Right seat in a single pilot aircraft is as useful as t*ts on a bull, no thanks, I told them then and I would give them the same answer today.


Nothing has changed.