Why cant we low timers CFIs get a job?

[i4iq]

ToTall

Your weight is not a problem in the Schweizer. You just have a smaller market to choose from. As you have your R44 hours, that shouldn't be too much of a problem either.

[cl12pv2s]

gulliBell

T_F_S, yeah, why? I went to a Catholic junior boys school and had my backside whipped almost daily with a leather strap stiffened by hacksaw blades. Then I went to Military College and got whipped there too. Now I have discipline. Those were the days when teachers had the authority to do that, nowadays it seems kids are treated with kid-gloves and teachers are more on the whipping end.
ToTall is a teacher but he hasn't been handed a whipping, certainly not by me. Just passed on some of my 20 years flying experience to someone who asked.

Sorry buddy, that is the biggest crock of s**t I have read all day / week / year.
It certainly goes to show how much you know about pedagogy and education theory. I hope to God you aren't in instructing or teaching of any sort.
In fact, I don't even know what qualifies you to talk on such a subject with such conviction, when you come out with such dribble.
Give it up.
Buitenzorg
Good post. I'm sure that will be very useful to ToTall.
cl12pv2s

[Whirlybird]

When I got my FI rating, I phoned round all the flying schools in my area. Most said no, but one said, "I don't need anyone, but you're welcome to drop in for a coffee if you like". I did, trying to look the part, and doing my best to make a good impression...."I may not have done any flying instructing, but I've worked with people all my working life", etc etc. He then said he'd like to help me, and if I could find my own students I could teach them on his helicopters. So I advertised, wrote articles, put up cards, talked to people, and so on. I got a few takers, though no-one carried on for long....but then the school started giving me the odd trial lesson. And then when I next phoned around, I could say I had experience......

Keep trying, keep networking, grab at any straw you're offered as you never know where it'll lead. Good luck.

[Hiro Protagonist]

simple research would have told you that r22 cfis need to be under 180lbs

Where I taught we had 15 instructors, and most were between 190 and 210 lbs. so that research would have been simple indeed. From what I remember, most r22s will be on the edge of the cg envelope with 400 lbs in the seats, so myself at 195 lbs. could fly with students up to 205 lbs. in most of our aircraft (with about one hour twenty minutes fuel to reach max gross weight.

simple research would have told you that many schools use pathfinder insurance and hence, require 300 hours.

Simple research may well show that NOW, but we don't know when TT decided to get into this racket, and this requirement is very new. I started training in '01, and the standard practice in the US was to hire CFIs at 200 hours. I taught in '04/'05, and this was still the case then, though it was starting to change. For someone who has already made the huge commitment of $50 or $60k to get 200 hours to suddenly be required to pay fifty percent more....well I'm glad it didn't happen to me, as I'd have been grounded.


TT, look for schools flying Bell 47s or Schweizer 300s as your size wont be an issue anymore. Some small schools around the US are flying 47s, but you probably wont easily find them on the internet as they show signs of not rapidly modernizing their operations

Good Luck.

[chopperpilot47]

A number of things to consider. Our insurance company won't insure at 200 hours. 300 is definitely OK. It is also a matter of timing, right place, right time. The last three instructors I hired called me at just the right time. I don't have any problem with accents. I have employed British (2), Norwegian, Australian and USA. The weight things does restrict pilots, not just for training but for later employment, EMS etc. Don't give up trying, right place, right time!

Chopperpilot 47

[ToTall]

Keep the good ideas coming :-) I have no doubt that I will get a job as CFI using the ones I have got allready.
Thanks guys.

Cl12pv2s: Everybody has different upbringing and different experiance. This dont make them a better or worse persone. I dont like spanking of kids and not in a cocpit but some enjoy that :-)

whirlyebird and Hiro Protagonis: I like that u take this post seriously and come with good advice. Life has changed since 04/05 and thats just life. The thing I am wondering the most is how to get the extra 100 h without paying to much? Keep on flying safe :-)

chopperpilot47: U was one of the few which answered me back last year when I was looking for schools in the US. Pity u did not have J1 visa. If u need a new CFI just let me know I will be on my way in the blink of an eye

[Heli-Ice]

ToTall

Here's how you can gain these extra 100hrs without paying to much. Come and fly my Schweiser and sure as h*** you will not be paying to much for it in my opinion

I might even be willing to fly with you and talk dirty to you in Norwegian as a bonus...

[mortennb]

Accent or not

I wish you good luck.

Gullibell
The other thing that is a bigger problem than your low experience is a Norweigen accent. I have previously flown with 2 other Norweigen pilots and their accent is almost impossible to understand. I can understand Chinese pilots far more easily than Norweigen!

I have to say I am pretty shocked over this theory/experience. People from Scandinavia are usually well known for speaking english pretty good as their second language.
Where the chinese pilots you know born in the US or?
I am from Norway, and have lived in the US for 1.5 years. Most people can't even hear that I am from Europe.

I am also one of the new pilots who not to long ago had 200 hours and a CFII license. I was lucky and got a job, and have now moved up to my next job in Canada.

I just wish you good luck in your job hunting Totall.

[mikelimapapa]

there is hope

ToTall,

I just got hired yesterday with 188 hrs so it is possible to find jobs with not alot of hours. I was actively looking for work for 3 months before it happened though; every day was spent on VR and justhelicopters looking for new postings, emailing my resume to every HR department I could find, calling the other CFI's I know that were already working. I even traveled down to heliexpo, which nobody was looking for CFI's there, but I did make some more contacts so it ended up being worth it. In the end, I got this job because one of my friends called me last thursday night and said his chief pilot was looking for another instructor. So, 8am friday morning I was on the phone with his boss and emailed him my resume. At 11am friday, I got a call back to come down for an interview. I packed up my car and left syracuse, ny by 5pm. I was in orlando by sunday afternoon, had an interview yesterday morning and got hired. Anything is possible, you just have to be willing to go anywhere on a moments notice and make as many friends as you can!

[ToTall]

Congrats, thats good to hear.

Good luck in ur new job and I will follow soon :-)

[B Sousa]

You can fly Robbies till the cows come home, but until you make your bones in a Turbine outside the traffic pattern, your only going to be good for a CFI/CFII.

[ToTall]

Heli-Ice: When can I start? I love Icland and would love to come.

Normaly it taks years to become a teacher and here we do it within two months.

Hopefully will I one day become as good pilot as all u guys :-)

[B Sousa]

"there are plenty of R44 tour/ENG etc pilots around"
Maybe, but if they want to move on, most will have to start at square one in Turbines.
"put the average las vegas tour pilot in an r22 and tell him to teach someone 180 degree autos, they would struggle."
I bet your right, but why would anyone in their right mind want to step DOWN into a Robbie??
"putting an r22 CFI in an EC120 and telling him to fly a tour."
Thats called progress and NOBODY is going to get turned loose without proper training......
"being a good instructor is a very hard job when done correctly"
We agree again and thats why most all of the tour Pilots and up from there start out as instructors and do well when Progressing..........into turbines. They know the books, just need to get some mud on the pedals and the skids..
Dont know what I will say once "Frankie and the Assemblers" come out with a turbine Robbie. But I dont see any competition in the near future for Bell or Eurocopter.

[ToTall]

I think that we all learn different and thats the same with teaching. If u have 200 h as a CFI u will make mistake as if u have 1000 or 10.000. Not the same mistakes.
I have flown with a 5.000 CFI which was bored and did not correct many of my mistakes. I did learn a lot thoug.
Let us "newbees" come out and learn more and teach others to :-)

Anybody has a job for me?
I work hard, have an accent (Sout African), I am nice and get in touch with people easy. Just let me know and I am on my way

[B Sousa]

Well Too Tall, keep up the work, dont get to "Gatvol" and things will come together in time.
Remember you eat the Elephant one bite at a time.
If you get a thousand hours and a VISA, give me a shout, who knows maybe you can fly with Hiro and I . They hire a lot of non- U.S. with the right flight time and VISA.
There are threads out here for training type Visas. I dont know much about them but take a look.

[ToTall]

B Sousa: I will take a look at the VISA page and it would be an honour to fly with u :-)

Any wabpage of what u do?

[flyby_heli]

Here is an easy way to skip that first job hunt and get straight to 1000 hours or more.....if you are willing to purposely fail a few checkrides on the way! And, of course, unless someone else jumps at it first and the company with this "great business plan" goes out of business!!!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=280094045940

[B Sousa]

Flyby, seems the thread does not come up here, maybe just my puter. Why do I get the feeling you may be behind the ebay auction.........ha ha

[flyby_heli]

B Sousa,
The day I have enough money (and enough loose screws) to make an offer like that, which is not likely to be anytime soon (at least on the money side...), I'll be in the backseat and have someone fly ME around, and not the other way around.

The link should work now.....

[13snoopy]

gullibell wrote:Take for example teaching physics (or almost any other subject) at high school level. Virtually all those teachers have College physics degrees and a teaching qualification as well before even getting back to the high school class room i.e. about 4 or 5 years experience at an advanced level before being able to teach the subject at a basic level. Because that's what it takes to become a high school teacher.

You obviously have not been to school in the U.S.A. lately.