How to Become a Pilot

Whether you want to be a professional pilot or just be able to take friends flying on the weekends, the process starts here. There are basically two paths to becoming a pilot. One way is through the military and the other is through civilian general aviation. While the military can be very rewarding and you might fly some very exciting equipment, all while getting paid to do it, some drawbacks are that it is a significant commitment of time and loss of control of where you may be living during your service commitment. You may not necessarily be trained on the type of aircraft you desire either. Also, you may not accumulate as many flight

hours as your civilian counterparts. If you want to become a professional airline pilot, getting as many flight hours and the qualifications as quickly as possible will allow you to be eligible to be hired sooner. Getting on a pilot’s seniority list at an airline is very important. A pilot's seniority can affect your entire career with regards to income, what equipment you fly, your trips and schedule, vacations, what holidays you may have to work, etc. There are also many other pilot jobs besides being an airline pilot. There are  nice corporate flight departments as well as other organizations around the world in need of pilots. Regardless of your end game, the civilian route starts with the Private Pilot License, or PPL.

Learning to fly in the civilian market can be expensive. However, some flight schools can accept the GI Bill. Other institutions have financing. Shop around to find solutions that work for you. You need to find a flight school that is flexible and can accommodate your schedule. Even if you are currently using another flight school, unlike a lawyer, our advice is always free. Contact us if you have any questions. Once you get your Commercial License and Flight Instructor Rating, you can start flying and teaching other people how to fly and get paid to do it rather than paying somebody to fly. This is a good way to build up flight time and experience and gives you valuable foundational skills that you will have throughout your entire lifetime.  If you just want to take your friends for a ride and not make flying a career choice, there are two other pilot licenses that we'd like to mention. They are: 

Recreational Pilot

and,

Sport Pilot

These licenses are more restrictive than a PPL so, unless there's a reason you're unable to obtain a PPL, we recommend that you complete the training required and get the full PPL.