Many new pilots choose to become flight instructors for their first aviation job. [iStock]
Key Takeaways:
New pilots face a common challenge: needing flight hours for professional jobs but struggling to get flying positions without prior experience.
A variety of non-flying jobs (e.g., FBO work, ramp operations) can help student pilots fund training, build industry connections, and gain initial aviation insight.
Initial flying roles such as flight instructing, banner towing, charter flying, or survey flying offer diverse opportunities to accumulate flight time, gain specialized experience, and advance towards long-term career goals.
New pilots in the United States find themselves in a predicament. They need more flight time to get a good job, but they can’t build that time without a flying job.
Luckily, there are a number of routes a new hopeful pilot can take to progress toward their long-term career goals.
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John McDermott is a student at Northwestern University. He is also a student pilot with hopes of flying for the airlines. A self-proclaimed ""avgeek,"" John will rave about aviation at length to whoever will listen, and he is keen to call out any airplane he sees, whether or not anyone around him cares about flying at all. John previously worked as a Journalist and Editor-In-Chief at Aeronautics Online Aviation News and Media. In his spare time, John enjoys running, photography, and watching planes approach Chicago O'Hare from over Lake Michigan.
