Well here goes nothing...career change about to begin

Busflyer said:
Third post you said most instructors were getting 80 hours a month. Sounds like you were right on track up until this week. You’re always going to have weeks that are slower than others but just have to push through. I’ve forgotten your ultimate goal but with the way things are these days it shouldn’t take long to be able to move on.
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Yeah, well that's 80 hours flight time not billable, sorry I should have clarified that. I'm hoping its just a fluke with the weather and my timing, but if not I'm just going to have to find some kind of job to supplement (a third job) or I'm going to have to find somewhere with better weather to instruct I suppose. Students aren't really the problem here, most weeks I'm booked up a good 30-40 hours a week (again billable not flying) but weather has really cut that down. I've lived here for 13 years so I know Maryland weather isn't the best, but I swear it gets worse every year and this is one of the worst years I can remember. Washington Post recently did an article about how the DC metro area has had more cloudy days this year than London, and more rainfall than London and Seattle :(
 
Just curious, with 80 hours flight time a month what would the billable hours average? Been a long time since I instructed and we never flew that many hours a month.
 
I do the CFI thing on the side, I have had plenty of work but not many flyable days this month. SO I do ground when appropriate, otherwise I just wait. There is more work here than anyone can handle, but the full time CFI's almost immediately end up at an airline, and most others are part time guys like myself. Some day's/Months it is worth it, and some it isn't.
 
Busflyer said:
Just curious, with 80 hours flight time a month what would the billable hours average? Been a long time since I instructed and we never flew that many hours a month.
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Eh about 120, figure conservatively .5 per flight hour of ground, some will be more, some will be less but that seems to be about the average.
 
First of all, I would have considered seasonal issues prior to making the jump if you're instructing in Maryland. I'd think there's a not-insignificant impact on the volume of flight training in the winter months. It's a problem that southern states don't likely deal with as much. So, the reduction in "billable hours" is likely to hold until Spring, unless you work for a puppy mill. So, move to FL/AZ/CA/TX, etc. if you want lesser variation in those things. There's a reason most of the puppy mills are located where they are.
 
kayoh190 said:
you're coming at it from the POV of a guy that flies f***ing fighters for a living.
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But he also flew buffs, which equally skews his perspective. I doubt any informed pilot would equate B-52 to airline flying. Not a criticism but they are hardly comparable.

Also, trainers and fighters may look similar from outside the cockpit, but they aren’t remotely the same in terms of piloting. I think being an IP in a jet trainer is one of the best jobs in the world, but it’s radically different than being a fighter pilot.
 
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Wait until the winter hits;). You’ll be begging for a day off when you have 6 students in a row each doing pattern work.
 
texasclouds said:
It seems to me CFI work pays a ton of money, it just never passes through your pocket. Earning 1000 hours in one year is equivalent to renting the plane and flying yourself for a total of $130 x 1000 = $130,000 plus that $20-25k salary the school is letting you have to pay for your Ramen noodles.

What I don't understand is how the old timer CFIs are making it. They don't need the hours, and surely they are getting a better salary than the ATP pass through kids.
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For most of the old timer CFIs it's just scotch money. Retirement job.
 
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