Building Flight Hours When There's No Appetite for Instruction

Here are nine options beyond the CFI route that will build flight hours along the way to airlines.

Friday, April 07, 2023 at 01:35 PM ET

Verified

Flight instruction requires organizational ability, good communication skills, steady nerves, and the patience of Job. [File Photo: Adobe Stock]

Key Takeaways:

Despite a historic pilot shortage, low-time pilots (around 250 hours) still face significant challenges in securing their first flying job to build the necessary 1,500 hours.
Flight instructing is often the most accessible entry-level path, though it is demanding, offers moderate pay, and carries inherent risks.
Alternative time-building jobs exist (e.g., skydiving, ferry flying, some SIC roles) but are generally less prevalent, often geographically specific, and heavily reliant on networking.
New pilots unwilling to pursue flight instructing must prioritize extensive networking and geographic flexibility to find viable alternative entry-level flying opportunities.

See a mistake? Contact us.

It was the spring of 2001, and after years of being foretold, the pilot shortage had finally arrived.

The major airlines’ hiring was in full swing, smaller upstarts like Southwest and JetBlue were rapidly expanding, and the regional airlines’ competitive minimums had fallen well below 1,000 hours. There were rumblings about slowing business-travel bookings for that summer and beyond, but this did little to darken the sunny outlook. Flight schools everywhere were jam-packed.