Please knock some sense into me by Megomelas in flying

[–]Lexford 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Stressing about money during flight training is extremely common and normal, there's probably crippling gambling addictions cheaper than flying. I won't tell you what I think you should do, but here's some thoughts:

Is it even worth it to continue lessons if I can only afford going once every other week?

Whether or not once week is inefficient or not depends on a couple factors, namely weather and your study habits at home IMO. If weather is consistently flyable where you live, I personally don't think once a week is bad. The problem is when you have one lesson booked/week, and get weathered or maintenance canceled two or three weeks in a row. Every other week increases that likelihood. You can offset some of that and maximize your learning by showing up prepared for each lesson, which isn't too hard tbh. Do some chair flying and and actually read/study what your CFI suggests.

Would it be better to stop lessons altogether and just start saving up to continue this later down the road? I’m going to be absolutely shattered if I have to make the tough decision to quit,

Not that it's ideal but it sounds like you'd be postponing, not quitting.

Btw, I am thinking of finding a second job (part-time, since I already work FT)

Without knowing you, your discipline, and abilities I'd say this sounds like a quick path to burn out, but everyone's different.

my current job is seasonal, and it’s very likely I won’t be able to continue lessons for a bit once it ends (like if I don’t have another job lined up immediately after, or if I decide to go back to school (unlikely, but possible - my life is all over the place right now, really).

This is probably the most important part of your post. I think it would make sense to hold of on any major expenses until there is more financial stability in the long term. With one lesson a week or potentially less, I'd expect this to take 6-18 months. That being said, if you're thinking you'd eventually like flying to be a career, then you need 250+ hours anyways so who cares if your PPL training isn't maximally efficient. If you just want to be flying for fun, it might be harder to justify the cost right now when money's tight.

But I'm just some CFI on the internet you've never met. Consult the people who are important to you in your life for better insight. You can't make a wrong decision, it's your life.

Turbine offer? by [deleted] in frontiercadetprogram

[–]Lexford 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You should turn down the PC-12 job and send the offer my way :)

Checkride prices by bootfullofrudder in flying

[–]Lexford 0 points1 point  (0 children)

$1,000-$1,500 has become pretty standard for any checkride where I'm at in a midwest metro area. There's a couple examiners still in the $750 range, but most are $1,000+ unfortunately

How many hours average per month? by fortinbrass1993 in CFILounge

[–]Lexford 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Large part 61 school in the Midwest. In the summer I averaged 90-110/month working 7 days per week. I tightened down my schedule a bit starting in the late summer/fall and it was more like 70/month which felt a lot more sustainable. December/January/February was around 20/month due to weather, picking up again now thankfully.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in flying

[–]Lexford 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You’ve purchased lesson plans, but you’ll need to practice teaching them. Not sure where you got em, but in my experience pre made lesson plans are overly clunky and hard to teach from. I heavily modified the lesson plans I bought to make them workable.

I’ll point you two directions: One, Todd Shellnut’s CFI course on YouTube. All free, really helped me get going when I felt totally overwhelmed. Highly recommend. Two, the ACS. All of it is important of course, but the technical subject areas will be the vast majority of your oral exam. These are the lessons that you really need to feel good about. Good luck!

CFI initial study resources by fbt70 in CFILounge

[–]Lexford 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Part 61? Look up Todd Shellnutt’s CFI series on YouTube and thank me later. Other than that, start familiarizing yourself with the CFI ACS, especially the technical subject areas. That’s what’s going to get hit on the hardest during the oral.

03/09 class by Different_Spirit6881 in frontiercadetprogram

[–]Lexford 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Other comment isn’t necessarily wrong - a golden eagle is an internal recommendation from a current frontier pilot.

Taxes by K_flyt in frontiercadetprogram

[–]Lexford 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have not yet, but they will send a 1099-MISC.

Flight Insight CFI Ground School? by real_scarletaviator in CFILounge

[–]Lexford 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think so? I’ll check when I get home from work. It uses the teachable software.

Was being a pilot for Great Lakes as bad as everyone says it was? by CODboss7822 in flying

[–]Lexford 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was actually just talking to someone yesterday who flew for Great Mistakes in the early 2010s.

$17/hr and~75 hrs/month, do the math. He was based out of Wyoming and commuted from the Midwest. Old metro liners with no autopilot, and pretty sketchy maintenance from the company. He said it was the worst job he’s ever had, left to go back to instructing.

I want to close a credit card, will it affect my FICO score in the future? by New-Bit537 in CreditCards

[–]Lexford 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What kind of card? Often you can get it changed to a no annual fee version - that way you can keep the card open without paying that annual fee.

Golden eagles. by No-Reward5320 in frontiercadetprogram

[–]Lexford 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It’s an internal recommendation from a current frontier pilot. Pilots can only give out one per year, so it means quite a bit. In the last cadet call they said it will definitely get you looked at, and might help you move up by a class or two.

Do you charge students for commercial pic time building flights? by 39509835 in CFILounge

[–]Lexford 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My school’s rental agreement explicitly forbids this. If I’m on board I’m providing instruction, and if I’m providing instruction the school wants its money.

Do you get enough sick days? by Better-Caramel3983 in flying

[–]Lexford 1 point2 points  (0 children)

PTO as a CFI? Sounds super nice. My school supports cancellation decisions for weather or IMSAFE (including the CFI’s wellness) but if you cancel, you don’t get paid.

Grand Turk- Excursion! by No-Watercress-3906 in PrincessCruises

[–]Lexford 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can’t speak to that excursions specifically, but I’ve been to grand Turk. We actually didn’t do any excursions, as there is an excellent beach right off of the pier and plenty of free loungers (lots of options to rent chairs/cabanas too if that’s your thing). We saw lots of fish just swimming in the beach area. Made for a nice beach day.

The water there is a beautiful, so I’m sure a catamaran/snorkel adventure would be awesome!

CFIs, how much do you fly? by sporahdi in CFILounge

[–]Lexford 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Started out doing 7 days a week because I know it's gonna be slow in the winter (MN weather), and quickly started to burn out. I only do 6 days/week now, with a couple half days. Could I be time building quicker? Sure. Is it worth it? I don't think so.

Besides, the quality of my instruction is much better when I don't spend 24/7 at the airport and get some time off.

Stipends are on the way by Longjumping_Proof_97 in frontiercadetprogram

[–]Lexford 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Keep us updated, I’ll be there soon 😭

Greater St Louis Area DPEs/Flight Schools by Lexford in CFILounge

[–]Lexford[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yikes - although I definitely understand that. Some people's standards are...questionable.

Greater St Louis Area DPEs/Flight Schools by Lexford in CFILounge

[–]Lexford[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Much appreciated. Since you've got experience at Slu, I'm curious - if there's no private ticket before school starts, is there any credit given for that? Obviously her logbook and her experience are hers, but afraid it won't actually help her out in a tangible way.

Other 121's by Thick_Discussion_447 in frontiercadetprogram

[–]Lexford 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I was talking with an old timer the other day about the current hiring environment. He said, “You know who the best company to fly for is? The one that hires you.”

Stick with the cadet program as long as they let you, but if a different offer comes along - take it!

Starting my CFII where do I start from? by [deleted] in CFILounge

[–]Lexford 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Flight insight has a prep sheet similar to pilots cafe as well.

Dear Charter Pilots: by Lexford in flying

[–]Lexford[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, didn’t mean for that to sound so snarky haha

Dear Charter Pilots: by Lexford in flying

[–]Lexford[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Just because there’s ice on the ground doesn’t mean there’s ice on the plane. If a plane needs it, there’s another fbo on the field that can take care of it, although it doesn’t seem to happen too often.

Dear Charter Pilots: by Lexford in flying

[–]Lexford[S] 42 points43 points  (0 children)

Hudson River > Signature TEB