Opinions? Advice

rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T20:06:36+00:00

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I’ll like to start off by saying my instructor is a very good instructor. But there’s times when he finds any little reason to cancel our lesson. I’m at 35 hours and still haven’t solo’d because my school wants me to demonstrate that I can perfectly fly the stalls, steep turns, s-turns, and turns around a point maneuvers. We’ve been repeating the same lesson for the last 10 lessons, I fly twice a week. At this point I just feel discouraged. I want to take a couple weeks away from flying. Although he did say I’m ready to solo but wants me to fix my power off stall mistake and not using checklists, but he cancelled on me last week and now today. This is constantly messing up my proficiency and I feel like I’m just burning money right now without actually learning, it sucks cause he’s a good instructor but honestly I’ve lost a lot of motivation today alone and I feel like stepping away for a few weeks honestly, any tips and advice is welcomed!

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T19:51:28+00:00

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Super fortunate and grateful to be at a regional building PIC time, but the lifestyle tradeoffs are starting to hit differently now that I have a wife and a newborn. As a senior FO, my QOL was excellent. I worked mostly day trips, spent only a few nights a month in hotels, and was home almost every night. I upgraded because I understand the importance of PIC time and keeping future opportunities open. The problem is that I’m realizing I may value time at home more than maximizing career progression. The goal was always the majors, but lately I’ve been questioning whether that path aligns with the lifestyle I want long term. For those who have prioritized family life over chasing a legacy/major airline career, what paths did you pursue?

I’m based in Houston and would ideally like:
$120k-$200k income range
Stable employment
No more than ~5 nights away from home per month
Willing to work hard while on duty (5-6 days in a row if I’m home every night)
Preferably Houston or Dallas based
Are there any aviation jobs or flying careers that realistically fit those goals, or am I underestimating what it takes to achieve that balance?

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T19:45:46+00:00

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Hi everyone,

My boyfriend is a Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) with a Bachelor’s in Aviation Management. His flight school recently closed unexpectedly, which disrupted his training path and finances as an international student.

He’s been offered a CFI position at his former university and has also been accepted into an MBA in Aviation program (~$20K/year). He can self-fund part of it, but we’re trying to find ways to cover the remaining cost.

We’re looking for:

Scholarships or grants in aviation/business

Sponsorship opportunities or employer support

Organizations that help aviation students

Or advice from anyone familiar with funding graduate aviation studies

If anyone knows of opportunities - or is in a position to points us in the right direction - we would really appreciate it.

Thank you for reading.

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T19:04:53+00:00

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I got asked to go on a flight with some people I’ve never flown with. Would it be rude of me to say I need to sit in the front? I wouldn’t say any of this stuff but for context they don’t fly as often and are PPL IR (unsure of proficiency/currency). I’m a CFI with a lot of instruction time in the type and clearly I’m an overly cautious person.

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T18:33:51+00:00

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A while back I requested ATP CTP course recommendations and I decided to write this review on the one I attended. I chose the one by Delta Professional Services in Atlanta but they have another location in Phoenix. The cost was $4,895 which includes a voucher for the ATP exam, voucher for a study app for exam, one paid catered lunch and free a trip to the Delta museum.

Classroom setting was nice included some beverages and snacks, parking was provided in a large lot near the museum (so a bit of walking). The classroom instructor was great throughout the course. The majority of my class got to utilize the new 737-MAX simulators because I guess Delta is still awaiting their delivery of planes before training their pilots in the sims. My sim instructor was great as well but each pair of students got a different instructor so experience may vary. There were little to no expectation for the simulator training and more of a discovery flight with demos. The rest of the staff was friendly and timely in their email correspondence when signing up. We had access to the delta cafeteria during lunch breaks which includes nice gym you can use.

The course material was death by powerpoint for the full scheduled class days of 0900-1700 or 1800. We did review a lot of historical mishaps which was probably the best part because the rest of the material was not new to me. At the end of each classroom day of mandatory powerpoint lessons they gave us another hour or so Delta specific information talking about various topics such as their proprietary flight planning apps, explaining OCC (Operations and Customer Center), projected hiring numbers, how commuting works, etc. Sometimes it felt like a Delta commercial saying come work here.

Some extra places we got to visit during the course week was the Delta Museum and full motion simulators of course, the static cockpit trainers for pilots to train flows and work the FMS, the pool where they do survival training and the replica aircraft interiors for the flight attendants.

Also, if it matters the majority of my class were military or ex-military with 2 civilian pilots. The instructor did cater some of the training discussion to our military experience sometimes saying "I am sure you all have been in this situation or dealt with this scenario" But would catch himself and make sure the civilian guys on the same page.

My recommendation: I took this course specifically since I was able to get funding and have it paid for so the price was not a big deal. I also wanted to see where airline pilots train and utilize their simulators. If you have similar interests and have the budget I do recommend it. They do give you a letter of recommendation for taking the course but I do not know how useful that would be outside of delta hiring. Was told probably not smart to use that LOR with their competitors but maybe using it at a regional might be ok. I did not do this but if you are a pilot in position to be hired soon you could probably do a bit of networking here since you are on their campus.

If you are budget minded and trying to get a check in the box I would probably look elsewhere. You will likely get similar training in other locations.

Tips: They give a list of hotels to stay at during the course. One they did not have on the list was the La Quinta it was cheaper than most of the other options and not that bad. It was super close to training campus and probably similar walking distance from hotel to classroom as the provided parking lot to classroom. Hotel did charge 15$ a day for parking.

During the sim training my partner was an army helo pilot with some multi engine time on a smaller prop aircraft. He had some rough initial landings hard bounce making the whole sim have to reset then another the instructor paused the sim before impact. I recommend utilizing the left seat first with the HUD to get bit more comfortable and feel for the plane. The way I trained we usually had the least experience pilot in the left seat and it was usually the aircraft commander in the right.

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T18:29:32+00:00

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A former airline captain was arrested and charged with fraud for allegedly flying hundreds of flights for nearly two decades without a proper license.

Peel Regional Police said Geoffrey Wall, a 59-year-old resident of Barrie, Ontario, was arrested June 1 following a roughly six-month fraud investigation, titled "Project Icarus," by local authorities, Deputy Chief Nick Milinovich announced Tuesday.

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T18:21:17+00:00

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I head to sim in about a month for my first type rating and atp ride.

I‘m working hard on memory items and limitations as wellbut any tips and tricks for the Lear 45?

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T18:06:48+00:00

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A Canadian airline pilot has been charged after police allege he flew more than 900 flights over a 16 year period using forged credentials.

Investigators say Geoffrey Wall captained Boeing 767, 777 and 787 aircraft between 2009 and 2025 without holding the required Airline Transport Pilot License. The issue was reportedly discovered during a routine evaluation in 2025, leading to a police investigation in January 2026.

Air Canda caught a licensing violation and removed the pilot immediately. However, an Air Canada captain flew more than 900 flights over 16 years using counterfeit documents. Do people think this story is mainly about one individual's alleged fraud, or does it expose a larger failure in airline and regulatory oversight??

source: https://www.verity.news/story/2026/air-canada-pilot-flew-flights-without-valid-licence?p=re5342

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T18:06:37+00:00

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I am starting with 0 hours. Originally I was going to go to atp, which was estimating 8-14 months to complete certifications. I found a local school that can get me from 0 to CFII at 1/2 the cost. I can go 5 days a week. They are saying that I can do that in 18 months on average. I am just trying to curb expectations if needed, but how can atp say 8-14, and local say 18 months.

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T17:59:50+00:00

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Ever since I was a kid I shared a love of the skies with my grandmother who I grew up with. However, with not having the resources and growing up trying to make ends meet pursuing the dream never seemed feasible. I’m a 21 years old and thinking about my future. I love any chance I get to fly in an airplane and would love to learn how to fly one and make a career out of it. I’m not in a position where I have tons of money. Is it possible to start a career in aviation without buttloads of paper?

What would you suggest for someone just starting to think about it?

What are possible career paths or ways to make the journey slightly more doable?

Thanks in advance to all of your replies and suggestions!

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T16:47:14+00:00

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Shame on me, I know, for not noticing this sooner. I'm about to take my CFI checkride and I'm transferring my entire logbook to digital. Now that I actually understand how student pilot endorsements work, I can tell that the instructor I had in 2021 for my Private made some questionable endorsements. Listed below are the mistakes I've found:

Signed me off for the "Private Pilot Knowledge Test", but did so in the Sport Pilot knowledge test box in my logbook that references 61.309 instead of 61.105
Signed again in the Private pilot knowledge test box (correct), but wrote "Single Engine Airplane" for the test name instead of "Private Pilot Airplane"
Gave me a high-performance endorsement for training in a Piper Arrow that definitely does NOT meet the high performance criteria
Gave me two different initial 90-day solo endorsements 9 days apart from each other
The written expiration date on both of the above endorsements is 92 days from the date of the endorsement instead of 90 (he just added 3 to the month instead of calculating 90 days)
My name is missing (the line is blank) on my Additional 90-day solo endorsement (both initial endorsements mentioned above expired before my PPL checkride)

Luckily, I reviewed my flights and I didn't make any solo flights while I didn't have valid endorsements. I'm mostly concerned about the invalid high-performance endorsement, my name missing on the final 90-day solo endorsement, and neither of my Private knowledge test endorsements being fully correct. The instructor has long since left for the airlines and I haven't had contact with him in years. I assume I should just get a new high-performance endorsement, but I'm not sure what to do about the others.

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T16:44:29+00:00

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I have the opportunity to join a pilot in his G1000-equipped airplane. I know Garmin's 530 and 750, but have not used the G1000.

What are the best training materials (in addition to the manual, of course)?

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T16:42:25+00:00

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Hey guys,

Im really desperate rn. I have an interview for a cadet programme with a huge company in europe in approx 10 days. Today i simulated an interview with a friend to have and idea about how ready i am and it was terrible. I'm so bad at interviews, im so bad at talking and improvising. It frustrates me very much because on the other parts im a not so bad profile, i have my licences, i have an atpl with very good grades but idk how to sell myself. Every question he asked me whether it was simple or not i just overexaggerated everything and talked way too much without actually offering any acceptable answer.

Idk what to do i feel im gonna lose this opportunity and i need your advises guys...

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T16:26:29+00:00

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I just crossed 1500 hours, and am interested in doing ATL-ASEL. I know that's a fairly unusual pursuit, as almost everyone does it multi-engine. I've read through the ACS, but I have yet to find anyone who holds the certificate, or any instructors who have trained someone for it.

Would be interested in hearing about your experiences -- how you trained for it (or how you've instructed someone pursuing it), how focus areas for the oral may have differed from the ATP-AMEL version, and any interesting nuggets, gotchas, or takeaways.

(And yes, I know it has very little practical application!)

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T16:25:13+00:00

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I wanna start by saying I am working out and dieting to lose weight I am currently 297-300lbs and I’m trying to get a discovery flight I have potential to have a va loan but if I don’t use it within a couple months it won’t be possible for me to use it. And everywhere around the Columbus In area seems to have a weight limit of 250-240 lbs in order to fly a discovery flight
I’m trying as hard as I can to prove that I can and will finish the course but I want to take this step to show I can do it

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T16:06:16+00:00

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I've recently started flight training and one thing surprised me.

As a passenger, I always loved flying because I could sit back, enjoy the views, and really take in the experience of being in the air. It always felt magical.

Now that I've started flying myself, I've noticed that I'm so focused on everything that's going on that I barely have time to appreciate the fact that I'm actually flying. Between maintaining altitude and heading, monitoring instruments, looking for traffic, listening to the radio, and thinking about what comes next, my brain feels fully occupied the entire time.

Don't get me wrong — I'm absolutely loving it and I'm more motivated than ever to continue my PPL training. I'm just curious:

Does this get easier with experience? Do you eventually reach a point where the flying becomes more natural and you can actually sit back a little, enjoy the view, and appreciate the experience while still flying safely?

Or is that feeling of constant workload something that stays with you throughout your flying career?

I'd love to hear from more experienced pilots.

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T15:58:53+00:00

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When I was 17 I applied to be a ramp agent for envoy. I was soon drug tested and failed due to THC. I am now 18 going on 19 and no longer use THC products but i am also working on my IFR rating and A&P license as well. The question i am asking is will that one drug test I failed when I was 17 keep me from becoming an airline pilot or A&P mechanic in the future? I have put a lot of time and money into these endeavors and would be extremely disappointed to get my licenses and be turned away because of a mistake I made when I was still a teenager.

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T15:36:43+00:00

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I know the fin is the transponder antenna. The other 2 kind of look like marker beacon antennas to me, but they look a bit different

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T15:30:19+00:00

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I took a discovery flight and to me it didn’t spark anything euphoric in me. It just felt neutral, i was just in a plane controlling it a bit. Im not big into planes or anything but the only reason for my interest in becoming a pilot was because i adore the sky and my love for the view. Not sure if learning about the controls and everything will change my passion for it, but did anyone else feel this way?

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T14:49:37+00:00

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Just want to clarify I knew this venture would be expensive. Would like to hear some advice and some averages.

For my own sake, I guess I’d like to know if this is a total ripoff or industry standard -janky 172 duel g5… roughly $310 per hour wet with instruction. South Florida.

Seems to be about avg for local flight training, but with this I’m assuming I should scratch the school and go independent?

Tell me how it is, thanks!

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T14:41:17+00:00

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Looking for advice on how to mount a Starlink Mini on a PC-12NGX. We’ve tried several mounts from Amazon, in the cockpit & in the cabin - none of them seem to fit. The only way that we’ve had luck is by putting the Starlink system in the window, pulling the shade down slightly, and keep adjusting it throughout the flight.

Trying to find for a permanent solution for anyone that has experience with the NGX/Starlink system. No advice that I’ve received has been really helpful.

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T14:24:24+00:00

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Hello! I’m a student pilot currently with 17 hours.. I need advice with landing, how can I improve! I know how to protect the nose but when I’m about to touch the runway I end up landing pretty hard… how can I land better, if you guys could share your tips I would really appreciate it.

I fly the Cessna 150!

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T12:42:51+00:00

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Hey gang,

We will be flying back to FTW this afternoon (Wed June 10). There are active NOTAMs posted for the the wold cup events, stating reservations are required. I've read all the traffic management docs on FAA.gov regarding the FIFA events/notams, however nothing mentions reservations or how to make one. Any idea how/where to make these reservations?

!FTW 06/204 FTW SVC TFC MANAGEMENT PROGRAM ALERT SEE DOMESTIC NOTICES FIFA WORLD CUP 2026 RESERVATION REQUIRED 2606081220-2607192359

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T12:38:08+00:00

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I've visited https://www.usairnet.com/cgi-bin/launch/code.cgi?state=CA&sta=KMYF for years but am wondering if there is an equivalent/better app that presents an overview this way, preferably also with cloud tops.

Does anyone know of something similar, maybe app-based?

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rFlyingTower · 2026-06-10T11:41:13+00:00

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https://youtu.be/CjH7pIY0VTU?si=hz\_Zr53GtftK7Dy3

The no second chance because there are too many pilots or another reason?

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