Become a Commercial Airline Pilot
There are a number of ways you can become a commercial airline pilot. One of the most common ways to become a commercial airline pilot is through military service. By receiving pilot and flight training in the military, you become on the fast track to being qualified to pilot a commercial plane. While serving, for example, in the air force, doesn't qualify you to become a commercial airline pilot, it does give you an advantage when it comes time to complete the training process and become licensed.
Beyond the military route, there are specific ways, in the United States that you can become a commercial airline pilot. You can become a commercial airline pilot through a university aviation program, through an aviation academy program or through a flight school that operates on a commercial basis.
The first option for civilian training to become a commercial airline pilot is often the most appealing. By choosing to go to a university aviation program, you are able to not only earn your pilots license and fly commercially, but in the process you also earn an undergraduate degree. During the process of this training, you can also earn your private pilots license, you can earn your flight instructors certificate and you can also earn instrument and multiengine ratings.
There are a number of aviation academies that are associated with some of the regional airlines. For example, delta connection academy trains commercial pilots to fly for delta airlines. You're likely to see advertising for these academy programs in flight or airplane magazines. With these types of programs, you get the same types of licenses and the same types of ratings that you would get at a university aviation program, but you do not get the undergraduate degree. In addition, these academies also provide an interview with the airline to which they are connected. Even if that particular airline doesn't hire you, you may have the qualifications to be hired via other companies.
The final way to become a commercial airline pilot is through a local commercial flight school. Often, this is the most affordable way to become a commercial airline pilot. Some areas have these flight schools, but many don't. In addition to flight schools, there are not for profit flight clubs that operate very much in the same way.
Ultimately, whether you are able to become a commercial airline pilot depends on the availability of training in your area, as well as your aptitude for flight.
