PSA: Private aviation is booming right now
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PSA: Private aviation is booming right now
Hey everyone,
I really do come in peace. I'm just a PPL holder, but I work in the business/private aviation sphere. I know there's a lot of you struggling right now and airlines all over the world are dying a slow (quick in most cases, let's be honest) death....but I just wanted to say, that private aviation is booming; we've never been busier. Long story short, people who can afford it, who would otherwise fly 1st Class/Business, are now chartering private jets...and business is near record levels. I'm not a commercial pilot, a recruiter, or anything like that....but if you want to fly and have never considered private aviation...it may be the best option you've got. And if you get the right gig...it could be a hell of a lot better than anything you had previously in the airlines.
Something to think about perhaps.
PS. Even if things get back to normal..I'm sure these folk who used to fly first/business will enjoy private so much they'll never go back.
I really do come in peace. I'm just a PPL holder, but I work in the business/private aviation sphere. I know there's a lot of you struggling right now and airlines all over the world are dying a slow (quick in most cases, let's be honest) death....but I just wanted to say, that private aviation is booming; we've never been busier. Long story short, people who can afford it, who would otherwise fly 1st Class/Business, are now chartering private jets...and business is near record levels. I'm not a commercial pilot, a recruiter, or anything like that....but if you want to fly and have never considered private aviation...it may be the best option you've got. And if you get the right gig...it could be a hell of a lot better than anything you had previously in the airlines.
Something to think about perhaps.
PS. Even if things get back to normal..I'm sure these folk who used to fly first/business will enjoy private so much they'll never go back.
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I also tend to agree that for some time there will be more opportunities in business aviation than in airlines. Most, if not all business jet pilots I know in Europe have been flying quite steadily since the first stage of border reopening in June. I would say that charter ops are better positioned than owner right now because the ownership costs may be a deterrent in times of cost-cutting. Many charter companies offer some seriously good loyalty programmes with great discounts for pre-paid blocks of flight time, so their use makes sense even for someone who flies frequently. Also, in charter ops, you as a pilot are never on call 24/7. You have a roster like in airline which does include standby time, but also fixed days off, planned flights which are known about weeks in advance and provisions for booking your annual leave in advance. And, if the client is happy, you might get some tips after the flight. So, if you're looking for your next flying job - that's another opportunity worth looking into.
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I think many pilots came to the same conclusion. The number of former airline colleagues suddenly messaging me on platforms like LinkedIn and asking for help with their first biz jet job are steadily rising.
Unfortunately it seems hard to comprehend for some that plenty of left seat time on an A380 will not automatically get you a job. And while it sounds great to fly for a pleasant company or an owner in a shiny Falcon/Gulfstream/Bombardier, most biz jet jobs are tough work and might be a bit of a culture shock for some. It’s competitive and without connections there is almost no way to land a job, unless you’re type rated I‘d say.
Let‘s hope the aviation industry picks up sooner rather than later...
Unfortunately it seems hard to comprehend for some that plenty of left seat time on an A380 will not automatically get you a job. And while it sounds great to fly for a pleasant company or an owner in a shiny Falcon/Gulfstream/Bombardier, most biz jet jobs are tough work and might be a bit of a culture shock for some. It’s competitive and without connections there is almost no way to land a job, unless you’re type rated I‘d say.
Let‘s hope the aviation industry picks up sooner rather than later...
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Absolutely true. While the skill set required to fly a business jet from A to B is similar to the one required for any other transport aircraft, it's the personal skills and attitude that make or break the deal. In the airline world, your role as a pilot is a lot less versatile. You follow the same routine, fly to the same places over and over again and there are plenty of other personnel to take care of the non-flying tasks for you. In corporate, you can also enjoy fantastic ops support at some charter gigs that's of the same or better level than in an airline - but you can also be faced with the situation where you have to take care of almost everything by yourself. You'd better be confident with flight planning, mass and balance and performance as you might end up having to take care of some of that by yourself. You might also find yourself booking hotels and transfers as the magical option of calling crew control and letting them sort everything for you might not be available. You will be interacting with your passengers far more than in any airline. Which doesn't mean just shaking hands with celebrities. It might mean having to convince said celebrities why landing at airport X is not safe or why the aircraft is AOG despite still having both its wings on. It might also mean loading bags and catering, especially in light jets with no cabin crew to take care of the food. Oh, and did I mention that you will get a working knowledge of how to put on and take off an engine inlet cover? So, it's an interesting job, it can make you shake off the routine and rediscover some things in aviation - but be prepared to work hard and do many things which airline pilots don't normally do.
Much like getting a good job in other walks of life, a large chunk of chance is involved. Be in the right place, at the right time, with the right qualifications (these days in bizjets read as type rating) and be known/ liked by the right people.
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According to the Eurocontrol periodic reports on the traffic situation in Europe, business jet flights have reached their pre-COVID number week-on-week and have exceeded it by 2%. The only sector doing better is cargo, with a 12% increase in flight numbers week-on-week, as compared to August 2019.
Those are the numbers on a pan-European scale. The question is, can their distribution help you? While some corporate charter companies are booming right now and doing double the amount of flights from last year, the relatively small overall increase likely means that other players are out of business. Whether they are charter outfits with poor marketing and cost management or owners looking to trim non-essential expenditure remains to be seen. The second half of the question is, how sustainable is this trend going to be in the long-term run? Is it going to stay that way when social distancing is no longer a thing or when more airline flights become available? On a similar note, is the cargo trend going to stay when the number of airline flights goes further up and availability of belly cargo capacity improves?
It's a pretty opportunistic thing even in the best of times, let alone now. I know people who got jobs in growing charter companies in the past months. I know others who got jobs with new owners who found a cheap aircraft being sold by someone less fortunate and said to themselves "why not". However, there are likely others in the sector who lost their jobs - and the fact that I don't know anyone of them doesn't mean that they do not exist. So, as with any other walk of life, it's largely a matter of the right time, right place and right contacts (of course, combined with the right skills, attitude, conduct and appearance).
Those are the numbers on a pan-European scale. The question is, can their distribution help you? While some corporate charter companies are booming right now and doing double the amount of flights from last year, the relatively small overall increase likely means that other players are out of business. Whether they are charter outfits with poor marketing and cost management or owners looking to trim non-essential expenditure remains to be seen. The second half of the question is, how sustainable is this trend going to be in the long-term run? Is it going to stay that way when social distancing is no longer a thing or when more airline flights become available? On a similar note, is the cargo trend going to stay when the number of airline flights goes further up and availability of belly cargo capacity improves?
It's a pretty opportunistic thing even in the best of times, let alone now. I know people who got jobs in growing charter companies in the past months. I know others who got jobs with new owners who found a cheap aircraft being sold by someone less fortunate and said to themselves "why not". However, there are likely others in the sector who lost their jobs - and the fact that I don't know anyone of them doesn't mean that they do not exist. So, as with any other walk of life, it's largely a matter of the right time, right place and right contacts (of course, combined with the right skills, attitude, conduct and appearance).
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For whatever type the employer operates. Could be as trivial as C525 (thousands of them all over the world, multiple training providers with competitive course prices) or as exotic as G150 (just a handful of aircraft built and only one training provider, charging an arm and a leg). There's no universal truth and sometimes jobs on more "exotic" types come in greater numbers than jobs on "mainstream" types. Oh, and there are also corporate jobs requiring a B737 or A320 type rating.
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At the moment, without having seen any stats, I would say something you generally don't want to be on in the long term. I presume the booming market is the entry level jets, "small cabins". No one starts to fly a Gulfstream 650 as a first private jet. Another thing is that even the small cabin type ratings can be very expensive, especially the recurrent which quite often is nearly the same price as an entire new type rating. To give you an example, a recurrent for a Gulfstream 650 and Global 7500 lies around 80 000 USD... for a LPC renewal..............Initial around 130-140 000 USD.
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The point concerning TR revalidation is an important one, certainly worth considering. It might not be much of a bugger for as long as the owner or operator is footing the bill for you - but what if you lose your job and have to either do it off your own back or end up without any valid type rating on your licence? To begin with, simulators for most business jets are not as widely available as the ones for the A320, B737 or some other popular type. You might find out that the only one in the world is in the USA - and then this starts getting expensive even before you have paid a single cent to the training centre. And, once you've travelled half of the globe for your LPC, you'll get charged an arm and a leg for the actual check simply because the training centre has a complete monopoly on this type and you don't have anyone else to go to for training.
That is amazing! So some pilot‘s LPC costs 70,000 plus dollars yearly? Is that when are no sims and this is all done on the aircraft? if this is the price for sim training then that looks to be a good business to be in.
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Private aviation.. must be doing great if they asking this......"Self-sponsored small business jet First Officers required for our client in Europe. You will be required to pay for the training.
Cost of the training is £35,000 GBP. This includes type training, Upset Prevention and Recovery Training and mentorship on the line for 30 hours.
Upon completion of the training, you will paid as a First Officer.
Remuneration is as follows:
Basic salary: £24000 per calendar year. In addition, there shall be flying day pay and lay over pay calculated as follows:
Days 11-15: £50 per day
Days 16-20: £100 per day
Days 21+: £150 per day
Requirements
You must hold the as minimum the following qualifications:
FAA Commercial Multi-Engine and a minimum of 250 hours total time. "
35K hard earn English sterling for type rating with guarantee job.. (they advertised a Eclipse 500) and linetraining. they must have quarantine fever.. cost less for FAA SIC typerating....etc
Cost of the training is £35,000 GBP. This includes type training, Upset Prevention and Recovery Training and mentorship on the line for 30 hours.
Upon completion of the training, you will paid as a First Officer.
Remuneration is as follows:
Basic salary: £24000 per calendar year. In addition, there shall be flying day pay and lay over pay calculated as follows:
Days 11-15: £50 per day
Days 16-20: £100 per day
Days 21+: £150 per day
Requirements
You must hold the as minimum the following qualifications:
FAA Commercial Multi-Engine and a minimum of 250 hours total time. "
35K hard earn English sterling for type rating with guarantee job.. (they advertised a Eclipse 500) and linetraining. they must have quarantine fever.. cost less for FAA SIC typerating....etc
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The cheapest business jet type rating I've seen was about €12,000 for the old-generation Cessna Citation (aircraft type C525), offered by a pretty reputable Central European ATO. But there are two substantial factors making it as reasonably priced as it was. First, abundant supply. It's not one school in the world holding the monopoly on training for this type. There are multiple ATOs in different parts of the world which offer it. Second, this jet is not exactly top-notch. It's small, relatively old and far less impressive than the average "pocket rocket". It's a great workhorse of private aviation, but it won't make you stand out in the way a Gulfstream or a Global will. Hence - reasonable instead of "premium" pricing for the rating.