How long between jobs?

[David_Lid Air]

Hello.

What is the longest period that you have been on the ground after being laid off?

I have been unemployed for almost 2 years now and sometimes it feels like I wont ever get a flying job again.

I flew domestic routes in Sweden (SF340) between 2007-2008 and it was a blast, however I was laid off in early 2008 and have not been able so secure a job since then .

A few days ago I didnt get a job that I applied for because that I havent flown commercially for almost 2 years . Feels pretty bad to not be hired bacause of that.

So I wonder how big of an issue it is to not fly commercially for a longer period of time?

I apologize if my english is bad, I havent used it for a pretty long time now.

[toolowtoofast]

Maybe you'll have to slum it with the drop pilots and glider tug guys for a bit.

[Knee Trembler]

Was out of work for almost exactly 2 yrs 2004 - 2006. Finally managed to 'buy' my way back in by working as a contractor for XL. After the pain of the £20k type rating I have had no problems moving back up the ladder to be where I want to be now.

Nevertheless, I am now low on the seniority list of my present employer and expecting to lose my job in the new year. Then I don't think any amount of cash will solve the problem. .

KT

[Finals19]

Almost two years for me too. I do fly as a drop pilot about 15-20hrs a month, but not sure if that would count as commercial time with an employer?

That said, surely if you have a sim check and a thorough interview, there has to be a greater criteria than the last time you flew commercially?

[powdermonkey]

Coming up to 10months for me now, I too am worried, no longer current on ANYTHING except my medical. Think its pretty sh!t to be left out of the loop due to currency when there is clearly nothing one can do about it ( in terms of commercial multi-crew). Not much comfort because it will take a while, but a shortage of pilots is on the cards eventually, hopefully airlines will look upon us favourably in time....right now it feels like we're just a nuissance! lol

[Dan 98]

Coming up on 9 months now since i flew, I think I would be pretty rusty which i do find a little gutting, flying is such a perishable skill.
Not looking too promising for spring 2010 either. Anyone know how long it takes to get back up to speed after not flying commercially for this amount of time, a few hours in the sim or a whole lot more?

Good luck

[Knee Trembler]

To those who mentioned staying current, a few words of hope.

I had a sim ride on a 737, which I passed, after 18 mths not flying, (I wasn't 737 rated at the time). I was very pleasantly surprised to find that it really was like riding a bike.

I moved back to my old type after three years away and it was like putting on a favourite pair of shoes - very familiar and comfortable. It's amazing how deeply trained the basic skill become.

IMHO, don't waste money paying for sim time unless you have an interview coming up, just use Microsoft Flight Sim once a month to keep familiar with identifiers, frequencies etc.

And good luck to all of us.

KT

[Lord Lucan]

Agree with kneetrembler.

I have been a professional pilot, on and off, for (holy ****!) 38 years, and have had a number of extended periods when I didn't fly at all. More than a couple of years on 2 occasions.

Though I never felt particularly confident when resuming flying, in fact it has never been much of a problem. Skills were not forgotten. Procedures, however are a different matter. But since they are frequently different from one job/country to another you usually have to learn new ones anyway.

Don't worry too much about being rusty, it is not that big a deal. Good luck with getting re-employed. (The best way, in my experience, is - be prepared to move to a new place, and do not disdain the less fashionable flying jobs. They can all be good fun, after all, and sometimes, are even well paid!)