How to get into 1) Aerobatic Competition flying? & 2) Business Jet flying?

[Bearcat F8F]

This is just completely out of curiosity. At the moment I am just concentrating on gaining a fATPL. But I've always wondered how people get into these 2 totally different areas:

1) Competition Aerobatic Flying?

2) Corporate/ Business jet flying?

And just to be clear, I don't mean what licenses/ ratings etc you need, but how do you actually end up in there?

For 1), is it a case of having lots and lots of money to play with so you can buy your own a/c?

And for 2), is it only older guys with lots of hours in airlines, that get to fly small jets?

[pudoc]

Can't talk about aerobatics but I have an idea about biz jets. To keep it short I'll do it in a list.

-Ex airline pilots with 1000s of hours on jets
-Contacts in the industry
-Working for a biz jet company before becoming a pilot
-Luck

I know flying instructors who's first job was in corporate aviation on a turboprop and then they moved up to a jet.

Many many ways to get into it. Having contacts is a big one, especially for the small outfits.

[Genghis the Engineer]

Aerobatics: do a rating and get use of a suitable aeroplane, enter a beginners level competition, get competent feedback, climb the ladder as you improve and train, and are able to get a better aeroplane.

G

[DB6]

Home page for the BAeA website

[Bearcat F8F]

Thanks for the info guys. That kind of explains it.

So to be an aerobatic pilot you need to be rich and to be a business jet pilot you need to be lucky.

[redsnail]

I got into biz jet flying because a mate had a job in a company that did fractional flying.
Fortunately, I had the right experience (lots of GA and regional airline work) and the right personality so I got the job.
Contacts are vital in the biz world. As low houred guys rarely get a start then most folks know if you can fly etc. The question is really "can I go on tour with this person for 6 days without killing him?"

[Genghis the Engineer]

Originally Posted by Bearcat F8F

Thanks for the info guys. That kind of explains it.

So to be an aerobatic pilot you need to be rich and to be a business jet pilot you need to be lucky.

To hold a licence needs money and a little talent.

Do do anything really interesting with it always requires dedication and perhaps a little luck.

Whatever you want to do with it. If you want guaranteed work once you have your licence, that you can walk into, become an electrician.

G

[The500man]

If you are looking for a future flying career, I don't think there are any professional competition pilots. Even the very best have day jobs. There are however professional display pilots that earn enough from air shows to make a living and they for the most part will have taken part in competitions at some point. Display and competition flying both use the same skill set, so display pilots often start off by flying in competitions. You don't need to be rich to take part in competitions though, you can hire an appropriate aeroplane and once you have a proficiency card for your desired level, you can enter any competition at that level. The entry fees are not very high. For display flying you need a display authorisation, there is no formal minimum experience level but you will need to convince a display authorisation evaluator that you are not a total menace! Display authorisations come with restrictions so to go pro you would need to get them removed through experience and demonstrated competency before anyone will be willing to pay you very much for entertaining their crowd.

I think all flying jobs these days are initially self funded so you will need to be somewhat well off to get into flying anything professionally.