GA Interview Questions

[leocarp]

Hi all,

I'm about to head up to the Top End to look for my first GA gig this coming March.

I just wanna know from anyone who has gone through the interview process themselves, from CP's or anyone else involved in the interview process - is there a particular area of theory or set of questions that I should look at studying to prepare for the technical side of any interview? I've been having a read of the VFRG, Part 61, 91, 135 MOS etc and I just want a bit of guidance on what type of questions to expect during an interview.

I understand that the interviewer may ask questions regarding the type of aircraft I have flown recently, their operations, etc however are there any parts of aircraft technical knowledge, principals of flight law etc that I should put more emphasis on?

Thanks in advance :)

[Clare Prop]

You may already be past this, but make a good first impression.

A cover letter addressed to "Dear Sir" will go straight in my bin. "Dear Sir or Madam" is even worse. "Dear Ms Prop" would mean I would keep reading.

Research what the company does, its origins, take a genuine interest, talk to some of their pilots.

To me as an interviewer, the ability to get on with your work colleagues trumps a lot of the other skills which can be honed along the way. No point having someone who is the most accurate in a check flight and best exam results but is clearly going to be a bully and could cause you to lose other staff.

Good luck.

[BronteExperimental]

You may already be past this, but make a good first impression.

A cover letter addressed to "Dear Sir" will go straight in my bin. "Dear Sir or Madam" is even worse. "Dear Ms Prop" would mean I would keep reading.

Research what the company does, its origins, take a genuine interest, talk to some of their pilots.

To me as an interviewer, the ability to get on with your work colleagues trumps a lot of the other skills which can be honed along the way. No point having someone who is the most accurate in a check flight and best exam results but is clearly going to be a bully and could cause you to lose other staff.

Good luck.

I wish I had the prescience to correlate a polite, if impersonal, introduction to one’s ability to do the job or get along with colleagues.
no wonder the industry is a backwater.
the fish rots from the head.

[lucille]

Clare, I would agree. If only more people realised that there’s no “I” in “Team”.

No company has any use for a Chuck Yeager with the personality traits of Josef Stalin.

The fact is a freshly minted 200 hour CPL, has no real useful skills to offer. All he or she has is a piece of paper allowing him or her to fly fare paying passengers.

Thus fitting in is, as you say, the primary criterion. Let’s hope that there are more CPs who are mature enough to recognise this.

I’ll wish the OP the best of luck,

[mmm345]

Fitting in as the others have mentioned is number 1, shortly followed by how you would interact with customers/clients, then flying ability. In that order. All three of those areas have to meet a minimum standard.

In terms of the interview, some topics can include from my knowledge/experience:

Aircraft speeds/limitations etc
AIP knowledge such as VMC, ENR 1.1, flight planning, weather, alternates
Fuel planning requirements CASR/MOS P135 etc
Typical CPL flight test ground component items
'What would you do' type questions of typical issues faced in day-to-day operations
Last light/latest departure time calculations
Passenger operations- including pax brief requirements, seating capacity, emergency equipment, and items along those lines.

The most important thing in my opinion is to demonstrate sound legal/technical knowledge in the interview, along with flying ability on a check flight, whilst clearly projecting your ability to fit into a small, team-based environment that won't ruffle the feathers of the existing pilot group, whilst being capable of turning it on for customers/clients.

Hope this helps.

[glenb]

Look competent. Prepare.

study ERSA
know runways, taxiways, special procedures.
”bump” into the refueller for a chat
listen to radio procedures on a handheld,
watch how they start up, taxi and secure aircraft.

make it look as seamless as you can, if a check ride throws itself your way

[Aussie Bob]

Here's a thing then woke brigade won't discuss: Three people turn up for a job interview, one is around 75kg and slim, another is around 100kg and the third is obviously over 100kg. All have similar experience. Who is more likely to grab the CP's attention?

Bear in mind that the CP operates 206, 210, Airvan or similar aircraft, or the operator has a skydiving or seaplane operation.

Do I need to spell it out? Sorry, but it is true, weight makes a difference, a huge difference to operators that wish to remain legal.

Of course, this question is not asked anymore but the judgement is still prevalent. Dress slim, loose weight if need be.

[AussieNick]

Here's a thing then woke brigade won't discuss: Three people turn up for a job interview, one is around 75kg and slim, another is around 100kg and the third is obviously over 100kg. All have similar experience. Who is more likely to grab the CP's attention?

Bear in mind that the CP operates 206, 210, Airvan or similar aircraft, or the operator has a skydiving or seaplane operation.

Do I need to spell it out? Sorry, but it is true, weight makes a difference, a huge difference to operators that wish to remain legal.

Of course, this question is not asked anymore but the judgement is still prevalent. Dress slim, loose weight if need be.

Ran into this back in '07. Got asked my weight by an interviewing CP. When told him the response was along the lines of "That's alot of freight I can't carry if I hire you over someone smaller...."

Mind you this was coming from a guy who i'm pretty sure hadn't seen his own knees over hit guts even when sitting in years....

[Lead Balloon]

< No company has any use for a Chuck Yeager with the personality traits of Josef Stalin. > Well, except in management that is...

[mikewil]

Ran into this back in '07. Got asked my weight by an interviewing CP. When told him the response was along the lines of "That's alot of freight I can't carry if I hire you over someone smaller...."

Mind you this was coming from a guy who i'm pretty sure hadn't seen his own knees over hit guts even when sitting in years....

Do as I say, not as I do. Pretty common mantra in aviation.

[compressor stall]

“More weight less freight” was the mantra I heard back in my day. At 6’ and 72kg then (😩 ) I was OK and got the hours. .

[compressor stall]

Know your current type. Be prepared for a question on it to see what you know, especially if the interviewer has flown that type before.

Know the operation you’re applying for and the rule set under which is going to operate.

Embrace the “tell me about a time when you….” question. I like these as it tells me about a candidate’s ability to tell a story, communicate, and what they took away from it (lessons learnt etc). Its not really about the event.

[Clare Prop]

I wish I had the prescience to correlate a polite, if impersonal, introduction to one’s ability to do the job or get along with colleagues.
no wonder the industry is a backwater.
the fish rots from the head.
That is something that you can glean from a resume and confirm in an interview.
For someone who went straight from high school to flying school with nothing else to say about what makes them stand out in the crowd it would be difficult to tell, so unlikely to get to interview. It's the non aviation things on a resume that I would generally be interested in, eg previous jobs, sports or qualifications that show dedication, teamwork, commitment and attention to detail, most of all loyalty, not going to backstab their employer or work colleagues to further their ambitions. Pretty easy to tell that type if you have effective interviewing skills. So I'm not sure what your point is. I'm just trying to answer the OPs question.

[BronteExperimental]

That is something that you can glean from a resume and confirm in an interview.
For someone who went straight from high school to flying school with nothing else to say about what makes them stand out in the crowd it would be difficult to tell, so unlikely to get to interview. It's the non aviation things on a resume that I would generally be interested in, eg previous jobs, sports or qualifications that show dedication, teamwork, commitment and attention to detail, most of all loyalty, not going to backstab their work colleagues to further their ambitions. Pretty easy to tell that type if you have effective interviewing skills. So I'm not sure what your point is. I'm just trying to answer the OPs question.
I was probably a bit harsh. Apologies.
you raise a good point that because you need no more than a year 10 education (if that. does anyone check?) to get a license, you’re likely binning a large number of eminently capable people at the first line because of “dear sir”.
I assume you do actually read beyond the first 2 words and look for a few more clues.

[Clare Prop]

I was probably a bit harsh. Apologies.
you raise a good point that because you need no more than a year 10 education (if that. does anyone check?) to get a license, you’re likely binning a large number of eminently capable people at the first line because of “dear sir”.
I assume you do actually read beyond the first 2 words and look for a few more clues.

The point is, that if someone is using a scattergun approach to sending out resumes, particularly to operators who have not advertised, then they will have less of a chance than someone who has actually bothered to find out the name of the person they are sending it to and what kind of operations they fly.

Not that difficult to understand, surely. In an industry with hundreds of homogenous people coming out of the "big schools" all the time then I understand the OP is looking for advice from people involved in the interview process, which I have been for the last 35 years, but instead of sneering at me why not give the OP some of your good advice?

[Ixixly]

The point is, that if someone is using a scattergun approach to sending out resumes, particularly to operators who have not advertised, then they will have less of a chance than someone who has actually bothered to find out the name of the person they are sending it to and what kind of operations they fly.

Not that difficult to understand, surely. In an industry with hundreds of homogenous people coming out of the "big schools" all the time then I understand the OP is looking for advice from people involved in the interview process, which I have been for the last 35 years, but instead of sneering at me why not give the OP some of your good advice?

Absolutely this, it takes a little more time but it's how I approached my resumes. I had 2 fairly generic paragraphs but the first paragraph was always aimed at the Operator, so looking at their operations and drawing links to my experience, for example, if they did Scenic Flights I'd mention my history in Hospitality and Tourism, if they did Freight I'd bring up my forklift licence and warehouse experience etc... the second paragraphs were more generic about who I am and what experience I had at the time because you want them to get an idea of the sort of person you are, relevant hobbies and such that will make you more likely to fit in and ability to work in the environment they operate in. When I was a fresh CP and doing my first recruiting I vividly remember the number of "Dear Sir/Madams" I'd get and invariably the next few sentences seemed to be based on working in an Airline which we were not and showed they didn't have a clue who or what they were applying for and whilst I wouldn't bin a resume just for using it, seeing it set the tone for the rest of the resume.

Aviation is a lot like Hospitality at the beginning, a good CP can teach you most of the things you need to know and will do that before letting you loose, they expect you to be a raw CPL and have to be taught a bit before being happy to let you go, what I didn't have time for though was correcting a couple of decades of bad behaviour, poor attitude, and unwillingness to take that just little bit of extra effort to at least look at who we were and what we did which was as simple as going to the website and reading the job description.

[IFerr]

If you know how to work the community fence for a back charter, you’re shoo-in.

[compressor stall]

Agree with Clare, If you haven't got the time to at least ring reception, ask for the CP's name, (and confirm the spelling) you don't really want to work there do you?

And following on from ixixly, even worse than rabbiting on about why you really really want to fly for an airline when you're applying for a C210 job, for god's sake don't put an image of a 747 on the front cover of your resume.

[Uplinker]

Blimey, this all seems a bit harsh !

New pilots looking for their first job are probably going to be young and a bit "innocent" about the world of work, and it seems a bit punitive to expect them to know exactly how to address people and the command structure of companies. Or how to go about impressing people.

How many good people have been 'put in the bin' because of some perceived but unintentional sleight, I wonder ?

At least "Dear Sir/Madam" is respectful and polite, (and non sexist). And how is a prospective new pilot employee to know if it is OK to directly address the CP, or if the CP will be personally opening their letter ? It might be the deputy CP, someone in admin or HR.

Using someone's name without knowing them might be regarded by some as being a bit over-familiar or a bit cocky.......? Maybe it is different over there.

Good luck to the OP.

[compressor stall]

It’s normally a little piston Cessna operation with half a dozen aircraft, not Easy Jet. These companies are not normally infected with HR.

[redsnail]

I think there's a world of difference in addressing the chief pilot and or boss.
"G'day Compy" versus " Dear Mr Stall".
"To whom it may concern" sounds like a letter from the council about your bins.

A freshly minted CPL holder can do a lot to help themselves.
For starters, your backs aren't knackered yet so should be able to lift stuff. If you don't know how to lift safely, learn. (It's all about bracing the core so you don't strain yourselves). Many of my colleagues in the bizjet world have stuffed their backs because they don't know how to lift safely.
As many have said - get your Dangerous Goods cert, a First Aid cert, maybe bus ticket, if it still exists, Night VFR (easier to keep current than an Instrument rating).
Hospitality experience is useful - either for a job while you wait or if you do scenics etc, just learning how to talk to people.
Learn about the area you're in. Eg, if they haven't historically taken low houred pilots, don't go there. You're wasting your time. (Hint: if it's a nice place to live, they probably don't take new CPLs)
If you can, get some experience doing basic maintenance. You'll be the one doing the 50 hourlies. You'll also be the one assisting the engineers doing 100 hourlies.

Re weight. That's making me giggle. I weighed 60kg back then, a colleague weighed 100kg. He was a big strong lad. He could happily push a C207 around but he found clambering around a C207 removing/installing seats a pain. We played to our strengths. He could push my C207 where I needed it while I installed/removed his seats. Voila. Teamwork.

To the OP and other new CPLers, good luck, you'll need it as well as a sense of humour....

[Clare Prop]

Blimey, this all seems a bit harsh !

New pilots looking for their first job are probably going to be young and a bit "innocent" about the world of work, and it seems a bit punitive to expect them to know exactly how to address people and the command structure of companies. Or how to go about impressing people.

How many good people have been 'put in the bin' because of some perceived but unintentional sleight, I wonder ?

At least "Dear Sir/Madam" is respectful and polite, (and non sexist). And how is a prospective new pilot employee to know if it is OK to directly address the CP, or if the CP will be personally opening their letter ? It might be the deputy CP, someone in admin or HR.

Using someone's name without knowing them might be regarded by some as being a bit over-familiar or a bit cocky.......? Maybe it is different over there.

Good luck to the OP.

I learned all this at school, the importance of addressing people correctly, how to write a job application letter, even how to fold the paper before it went into the envelope so that it opened nicely.. Is this no longer taught and if not then why not?

It's just basic good manners, knowing how to address people. Plus you want to have an edge over all the others, so make an effort. "Dear Sir/Madam" is about is polite as "Dear Whatsyername" and shows a laziness that could reflect the work ethic.

[Mach E Avelli]

If it’s a small GA outfit with only a few aircraft the Chief Pilot could be your age, or maybe younger, with only a year or two in the industry. While it’s important to make a good impression with this person, it’s unlikely he or she will have.the power to hire pilots. This means you will need an intro to the real boss, most likely the owner.
Having said that, do NOT attempt to bypass the CP. Show respect. Ideally the boss will also show respect by involving the CP in your interview. If the boss does not include the CP, it may well be that the CP is only a token “fall guy” who is there to appease CASA.

[Kundry]

stay out of mischief with the white fella customs. address the CP as wawa, slap a big salty barramundi on the desk. will get you a job guaranteed.

[Clare Prop]

Hiring and firing is a CP responsibility

[megan]

Chuck Yeager with the personality traits of Josef StalinChuck believed his own fiction.

[Cedrik]

Hiring and firing is a CP responsibility
In smaller companies usually the owner operator, most bigger companies I know the CP is only in title, real world he does what he's told. You don't have a job otherwise.

[PiperCameron]

Chuck believed his own fiction.

He was American - they do that. So do folks over here who watch too much TV. :}

[Mach E Avelli]

In smaller companies usually the owner operator, most bigger companies I know the CP is only in title, real world he does what he's told. You don't have a job otherwise.
Unfortunately this is all too often true. Small companies often run as dictatorships. Larger companies are sometimes run by bean counters and human remains. CEO and commercial interference in technical and safety matters happens more frequently than CASA would ever be likely to realise.
That’s when Chief Pilots should walk.
Be wary of companies that frequently advertise these posts.

[Uplinker]

I learned all this at school, the importance of addressing people correctly, how to write a job application letter, even how to fold the paper before it went into the envelope so that it opened nicely.. Is this no longer taught and if not then why not?...... No, it isn't - well it wasn't taught to me at school or flight school - but the Union should be able to help with this. And teachers at my Secondary school were addressed as Sir or Ma'am.....It's just basic good manners, knowing how to address people. Plus you want to have an edge over all the others, so make an effort. "Dear Sir/Madam" is about is polite as "Dear Whatsyername" and shows a laziness that could reflect the work ethic.

Yes, I am agreeing about good manners, but simply concerned about the number of good people like this who were put in the bin because they made a perceived rookie mistake - they are rookies !
I don't agree that it necessarily shows laziness, and 'Sir' or 'Madam' might be awkward, but it is not impolite.

But I would like to think that a CP would understand this, and - given the time and money the hopeful new pilot has already invested - would read beyond the polite, (albeit completely anonymous), introduction, to see what the hopeful actually had to offer, and their life skills etc.

With your mentoring, they might develop to be your best and most loyal pilot !

[mikewil]

No, it isn't - well it wasn't taught to me at school or flight school - but the Union should be able to help with this. And teachers at my Secondary school were addressed as Sir or Ma'am.

Yes, I am agreeing about good manners, but simply concerned about the number of good people like this who were put in the bin because they made a perceived rookie mistake - they are rookies !
I don't agree that it necessarily shows laziness, and 'Sir' or 'Madam' might be awkward, but it is not impolite.

But I would like to think that a CP would understand this, and - given the time and money the hopeful new pilot has already invested - would read beyond the polite, (albeit completely anonymous), introduction, to see what the hopeful actually had to offer, and their life skills etc.

With your mentoring, they might develop to be your best and most loyal pilot !

I agree with Clare Prop on this one. I mean sure, you may have put a potentially good application in the bin, but if you have 100 resumes on your desk, all who meet your minimums, how are you going to cut down the number to select a handful to invite for an interview. I would be far more likely to select someone who had bothered to research my name and something about my company than someone who just did a copy/paste job with the "dear sir/madam" routine. Now I would probably read a bit further than instantly binning at the point I came across Dear Sir/Madam, but they wouldn't be doing themselves any favours and wouldn't be likely to make any kind of shortlist unless they had something particularly stand out on their resume.

I am far more sympathetic to those who have reached airline hiring minimums, with a stack of multi/turbine time who miss out because they aren't good at the "tell me about a time when" HR B.S. Now there would be MANY great candidates for an airline (or other large aircraft) type job who miss out because of this nonsense.

What we are talking about here is pretty easy to do and it is quite unbelievable that you need to do very little these days to 'stand out' as a low hour job seeker. Name of CP/owner at top of cover letter, 20 hours in a C206/C210/C182 and BAM you are in the shortlist for an interview. Who would have thought.

[Clare Prop]

And yet the Big Schools will tell them they need to just buy more and more courses and qualifications, oh and a Job Ready course blah blah when what they really need is some interesting command time in their logbook. Would you really want someone whose first timein command outside their flying school's comfort zone will be with a load of passengers in the back?

A trip around the outback, across the Nullarbor, things like that will be far more relevant that 70 hours flying within a small triangle within 100nm of home and a swag of ratings.

[theprincex]

And yet the Big Schools will tell them they need to just buy more and more courses and qualifications, oh and a Job Ready course blah blah when what they really need is some interesting command time in their logbook. Would you really want someone whose first timein command outside their flying school's comfort zone will be with a load of passengers in the back?

A trip around the outback, across the Nullarbor, things like that will be far more relevant that 70 hours flying within a small triangle within 100nm of home and a swag of ratings.
Spot on and looking back I was nearly sucked in the trap, I have flown "desired" aircraft by Darwin standards throughout my training but that doesn't matter due to the fact the aircraft HAD to be back at base an hour before last light! No allowance for multi day trips with fellow students exploring country airstrips interstate, instructors picking set routes *yuck* and laxed cancellation policies for inclement weather which was counter intuitive. My relearning perse in the BE58 and 206 had me buzzing for more but then my bank account ran dry! This all comes back to students being sold a lie at the beginning and incompetent teachings.

[Clare Prop]

Spot on and looking back I was nearly sucked in the trap, I have flown "desired" aircraft by Darwin standards throughout my training but that doesn't matter due to the fact the aircraft HAD to be back at base an hour before last light! No allowance for multi day trips with fellow students exploring country airstrips interstate, instructors picking set routes *yuck* and laxed cancellation policies for inclement weather which was counter intuitive. My relearning perse in the BE58 and 206 had me buzzing for more but then my bank account ran dry! This all comes back to students being sold a lie at the beginning and incompetent teachings.

And as the government money keeps pouring in they are now using the "we need more women in Aviation" mantra and even targeting schoolkids now too to try and suck more people in. I tell them to talk to employers and financial advisors first but the glossy sales pitches are very effective and they would rather take financial advice from a salesman or a Grade 3 insutrctor, the sort of advice that could probably lead to a real financial planner getting in some strife...

I reckon they should have a limited number of VET places, and the funding only becomes available for the next starter when someone who has got the loan has held down employment for a year. It is meant to fulfil an insutry need and it clearly isn't. After the SOAR debacle you'd think that the government would be more careful with those astronomical amounts of taxpayers money but there are some very powerful people who rely on this scheme so nothing will change.

Otherwise this will soon be the only training pathway available apart from RAAus.

[lucille]

Reading this thread, I’m amazed at the level of complication, the jumping through of hoops and the tiptoeing over eggshells that a 200 hr CPL holder has to demonstrate to get their first job. Yikes!

Comparatively speaking, we really did have it that much easier 50 years ago. Ironically, it seems the only things which haven’t changed in the intervening half century are the aircraft. We were flying 210s also back then.

[Aussie Bob]

Reading this thread, I’m amazed at the level of complication

I am with you Lucille, over the past few decades I have been involved with the hiring of more than a few newbies. For a start, virtually all unsolicited resumes are automatically chucked in the bin. The exception being one that turns up just as a position becomes vacant.

Next comes "Johny on the spot", if there's a job going he is in with a good chance. Next comes an ad on AFAP and a lucky dip of the applicants. A few get interviewed and a decision is made. A few references are checked.

Yes, it could have been done better and of all employed only around 50% have proved really good. These are snapped up by bigger companies within a year or less. The unsuited are either shown the door or leave of their own accord. I have seen the odd referee re-contacted and told in no short terms they gave a dud reference.

Nothing much has changed in 50 years as far as I see. Its a difficult industry :-)

[mikewil]

I have seen the odd referee re-contacted and told in no short terms they gave a dud reference.


That bit made me laugh out loud, holding the referee to account :D

[compressor stall]

Not so much for the first job but the second.

Your real referees aren’t the ones you have on your resume, they are the ones you don’t know about.

There is one degree of separation In the industry. Especially with social media.

[Cedrik]

Not so much for the first job but the second.

Your real referees aren’t the ones you have on your resume, they are the ones you don’t know about.

There is one degree of separation In the industry. Especially with social media.

Then there's the innuendo and bad reports of those with self interest and hidden agendas.

Numerous people I have worked with had terrible reputations but were hard workers and always got the job done.