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Welcome to the Inspirational, Informational, and Transparent Aviation Careers Podcast.  Today we answer the question Can I Make a Living As A Flight Instructor in 2021?

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Listener Mail:

Greetings! I got my CFI and CFII right before we moved to the DC area in 2019, hoping to start teaching. But childcare and other expenses made it unaffordable to teach and then COVID hit and the local schools don’t have the volume to support a full-time transition to CFI for me. I will get there.

Talking Points:

• Can I Make a Living As A Flight Instructor in 2021?
• Why jobs will increase for flight instructors in 2021.
  • Airlines are hiring again.
    • Why airlines are hiring even though they are not making money.
    • It is all about the block hours.
  • People are being called to start training for their Conditional Job Offers (CJO’s)
    • Listener mail from a coaching client: 
    • I just wanted to take a moment and thank you. Today I received a CJO from PSA, I wouldn’t have been in a position for that to happen if it wasn’t for your career coaching. 
    • I maintained my cadet status with Envoy all throughout last year even after I was laid off from a large flight school.
    • Envoy wasn’t hiring yet they worked out a deal for cadets based on seniority to interview with PSA. 
    • You told me to do whatever I could to maintain the cadet status and it paid off. Thank you again for the advice and all the great content you’re producing.
  • Travel is increasing.
  • Career seekers are realizing the best time to get into aviation is right now.
• How To Make A Living As A Flight Instructor.
  • Certificates increase your audience.
    • Some schools won’t hire you unless you have your CFII.
  • Networking.
    • Make sure your LinkedIn Profile looks good.
    • Find a course or coach to help you build a profile.
  • Marketing.
    • Business Cards.
    • Attend Air Shows like Sun N Fun.
  • Student Retention.
    • The customer is #1.
  • Referrals.
  • Charge for all of your time while teaching.
    • Pay rates start pay around $25 and move up depending on the school.
    • Paid only when teaching.
    • Based on 5 hours a day, 5 days a week, 50 weeks a year of work: $31,250.
    • If you are able to teach 8 hours a day that equals $50,000.
    • Some hire paid instructors can make up to $90,000 but these are the top 10%.
    • Some schools you might only make $20,000 because they pay low and guaranteed many hours and don’t charge for ground instruction. 
    • Do your research.
  • Ground and Simulator training are very important aspects of teaching so get paid for pre-flight, post-flight, and sim training.
• Suggested Reading:
  • The Savvy Flight Instructor: Secrets of the Successful CFI https://amzn.to/39XVYD2
  • The Flight Instructor’s Survival Guide: true, witty, insightful stories illustrating the fundamentals of instructing. https://amzn.to/3wSfbA6 
• Take Action Now!