| Deciding on where to obtain your pilot | | | | relationships with. If you can afford the |
| training is one of the most important | | | | step tuition that these specialized places of |
| decisions you'll make on your way to becoming | | | | learning charge, this type of school may be |
| a pilot. The first question you need to ask | | | | best for you. |
| yourself is what is your goal in aviation. Do | | | | |
| you want to become a fighter pilot for the US | | | | If you want to become an Air Force pilot, |
| Air Force? Do you want to fly a Boeing 747 | | | | there is really no need to obtain any sort of |
| for the airlines? Charter pilot? Or, are you | | | | aviation training in advance. If you end up |
| interested in aviation not as a career, but | | | | at the US Air Force Academy, as I eventually |
| just to be able to fly yourself and your | | | | did, you will find that right now Embry |
| family around? | | | | Riddle is the Academy's contractor to provide |
| | | | flight training to seniors at the Air Force |
| I remember when I knew that I wanted to learn | | | | Academy. Of course, once you make it through |
| how to fly. I was 13 years old and had just | | | | the Academy and get to Undergraduate Pilot |
| taken my first discovery flight at the local | | | | Training (UPT), the Air Force is going to |
| airport. Because funds for my pilot training | | | | give you all the training you'll ever need to |
| were limited to what I could make washing | | | | fly a Mach 3 with your hair on fire. |
| airplanes and pumping gas at the local | | | | |
| airport, I did not have an overabundance of | | | | Just want to fly around on your own with |
| choices when it came to learning how to fly. | | | | possibly your friends or family on board? |
| I pretty much had to go with whatever flight | | | | Believe it or not, pretty much any old FBO at |
| school was at the local airport. Luckily, it | | | | your local airport will do the trick just |
| worked out just fine for me. | | | | fine. At that point, it's important to try |
| | | | and end up with a flight instructor that you |
| If I had to do it all over again and knew | | | | think you'll be able to get along with and |
| back then that I had wanted a career as a | | | | learn from. If you don't feel a connection |
| professional pilot, I probably would have | | | | within a few hours of training, you're |
| attended a four-year college that offered a | | | | probably best off looking for another |
| major in aviation or an aviation-related | | | | instructor. If you don't mind the limitations |
| science. Looking back, I can imagine the fun | | | | imposed by the new Sport Pilot certificate, |
| I would have had flying for the Western | | | | then you might want to take advantage of this |
| Michigan Flying Broncos flying team. | | | | new, less expensive way to get into the air. |
| | | | |
| All you have to do is thumb through a flying | | | | Todd Snively is a Commercial Pilot, Certified |
| magazine or other similar publication and | | | | Flight Instructor and Certified Instrument |
| find places that offer professional aviation | | | | Flight Instructor with Airplane Single and |
| training. These places specialize in not only | | | | Multi-Engine Ratings. Mr. Snively has been a |
| giving the future career commercial pilot the | | | | licensed pilot since 1977 with 6,000+ flight |
| best training, many of them will guarantee | | | | hours in numerous aircraft, gliders and |
| interviews with airlines they have | | | | helicopters. |