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Its almost time for me to begin working towards my Private Pilots License, to one day hopefully become a 737 pilot. Just wondering what your experiences were like when you were getting your pilots license?

Any tips for being successful in becoming a pilot would also be greatly appreciated!

Go for it, but don't tie yourself to just the 737. There are plenty of good airplanes out there to sample.
You can learn a lot from listening to other pilots at the airport, mistakes they have made as well as just some fun stories.
Search through some of the old threads here, plenty of questions have been asked just on this website alone.


John in Saudi

Ok thanks a lot! And yes I haven't tied myself to the 737 yet, its just something that I would eventually love to do.

Thanks for your help!

The job you REALLY want is flying a rare Gulfstream II around the Middle East. Porterjet can hook you up right now!

Yup. It's really fun when some young airline pilot that was behind us on the taxiway says in a very worried voice after we take off "Hey, your engines are smoking, is there a problem?" We get to say something smart like "That's good news, that means they are running and turning kerosene into noise at a great rate."

If you can, try to get a flight school where you will be able to keep the same CFI for your entire training. If you go to a school where the CFI's are just trying to get hours to trade up to a better job, you can get stuck with 2 or 3 different instructors which isn't always best for flight training.

Good luck and have fun.


-Case

Or just give the levers a bump up to 90% and make Mr. Smarty deaf!

Hi jason121,

I wish you well on your quest. The first thing I will tell you is that earning any pilot certificate, Private, Commercial or Airline Transport Pilot is a lot of work and will take determination on your part. Set aside a place and the time to study. Then really study. I sat next to an airline recruit on a commercial flight from Boston to Dallas. I was still a student and he was a new ATP (Airline Transport Pilot). He was going to his second interview for his first airline job. From the time he sat down next to me and we exchanged hellos to the time we landed he studied a 4 inch thick pile of index cards with a mix of hand written questions on Regulations, Aircraft Systems components and general ATP knowledge subjects. The questions were on one side and the correct response was on the other. I adopted this method for preparing for the Oral portion of the check ride. It works pretty well.

You can also buy a home study course from Sporty's, Gleim, ASA or King Schools. There are others but, these are the big players in knowledge test prep books and computer based training courses. The FAA just changed the entry level hour requirements for being hired at the Airlines. It is now back to 1,500 hours. It was 500-800 hours with 50 or so twin time. Most airline pilots worked through Private, Instrument, Commercial, Multi Engine then Certified Flight Instructor. Then when they met the hours requirements to be hired by an airline - poof- they were off to fly heavy metal. Now, with the regulated requirement of 1,500 hours they will be sticking in the CFI position longer. If you teach at active flight school you should be able to build that time in a few years.

It all starts with that first step and a commitment on your part. If you really want to make a path to the airlines I would start with a 4 year degree program at an aviation centric college. You will finish with at least a commercial pilot and have a real education. That will help you find employment no mater what you end up doing.

Best of luck.

Keith Woody
CFI IGI AGI CP-I

I agree. The more you hang around the airport and more you talk to pilots and listen to stories, the more you get addicted. That's what happened to me, and now I can turn almost everything in life into something aviation related. I am unable to fly again until I finish school, but I still run to the window when I hear a plane go over head, and spend way to much time on Flightaware at work.

Good luck, I wish you the best.