|
April 20th, 2006, 14:12
| #1 |
| Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Colorado
Posts: 38
 |  How did you guys do it
How did you guys afford going to ATP? i mean loan is a way but im just looking to see what ways are out there. Also, Is it better to get a degree before going to atp or after? I mean ATP gets you transferable credits. im gonna get a degree just before or after is what makes the difference, it will be an online program though to make life easier. Any advice on how to pay for the Costs. Sry for all the posts, just am really excitied to hopefully go to a flight school. Not nessacarly ATP, but they seem to have the best pricing, all my local FBO's are well into the 50K+ Thanks for all the advice Dylan |
|
|
April 20th, 2006, 15:24
| #2 |
| Old Skool  Join Date: May 2005 Location: Dirty Jerzey
Posts: 2,109
|
Dylan, How old are you? I would really make sure you explore your options for financing. I financed through Key bank (I'm 25 btw), and now I'm struggling to refinance because the Key Bank loan is variable rate and recently went up to 8%. A variable rate loan might not be bad initially, but certainly not something you want on your shoulders in the long haul. I'd recommend a secured loan. If you parents own a house, ask them to take out a home equity loan, since they'll probably have to co-sign on a loan anyway if your young. Jumping into a $60k loan is NOT fun Dylan, trust me - I speak from experience. That aside, if you can find a way to get a secured loan with a decent rate, I would highly recommend ATP to anyone looking for a career as a professional pilot. Just look at ATP's website and see how many graduates they place with the airlines. ATP is a tough school, it certainly requires a HIGH amount of dedication. Their programs are structured to prepare you for a professional career, not just flying mom and pop on the weekends. They expect you to study very hard and they expect you to be a fast learner in the airplane. The instructors and equipment at ATP are top notch. The best thing is the price, whatever price you sign the contract with, is the price you pay. Nothing more, nothing less. I was in the program during a major price hike due to fuel costs, ATP never asked for more than what I was quoted to pay. There are no hidden costs and ATP doesn't steal your money. I look at students at other schools, and they've paid nearly twice what I have in some cases, taken twice as long to complete the ratings and most importantly, they don't have a fraction of the multi time that I do. Just like anything else, do you homework. Both on what school to choose and how to pay for it. There are a lot of good flight schools out there, ATP is just one of them. Explore your options and educate yourself on the flight training industry. After you do that, I'm sure you'll be talking to ATP about a start date.  Goodluck! |
|
|
|
April 20th, 2006, 16:36
| #3 |
| Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Colorado
Posts: 38
|
Well im getting ready to turn 17, finishin highschool in Decemeber, and was plannin on going to ATP in Jan/Feb, but am tied to gettin a degree possibly first. I have $23,000 stored for College/Schooling. I want to have a career as a pilot as i feel it be one heck of a fun job to do. ATP also looks like a kickin school. The only holding me back is the money. I fear the price is gonna skyrocket this summer as fuel is supposed to hit 3+$ a gallon. How far in advance can u have a priced locked at? Thanks for all your help. |
|
|
|
April 20th, 2006, 16:50
| #4 |
| Senior Member  Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: DXR, Connecticut
Posts: 1,177
|
ATP is a great school. My deal was a bit off the beaten path. I got my private at a cheapo school in the northeast (EVERYTHING was just over $4000)- I then worked for a year and a half in an office job, stashing the money away for training. This is all post college, as I probably would not have had the job without the degree. I saved up enough to pay about 2/3, then took the rest out in loans. Yeah, its not the "quick" way to do things, but it seemed to me to be the smartest. Plus, all that time in the office working and flying on weekends gave time to read all the aviation publications and FAA pubs, which gave me a better knowledge base in the long run. Now after that explanation, ATP cost me $32k back when I did it, about 3 years ago. I don't know what the price is now... I know they raised it just after I had finished.
__________________ CFI/CFII/MEI ATP, SF340 |
|
|
|
April 20th, 2006, 16:55
| #5 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: DXR, Connecticut
Posts: 1,177
|
OMG $44,995!?!?!?!? $2,400 for examiner fees!? You have got to be kidding... I remember my checkride in Stuart bitching out an examiner for his exhorbitant prices! Uniforms!? I guess ATP has changed a bit...
__________________ CFI/CFII/MEI ATP, SF340 |
|
|
|
April 20th, 2006, 17:05
| #6 |
| Senior Member  Join Date: May 2005 Location: at work
Posts: 954
 |
theyve been saying that uniforms are required for a while, but as of today, they still dont have the uniforms. I put my deposite in for a May 15th start date and nothing was said about uniforms. I wish I would have started 4 years ago when in was still 32,000 but I got my degree first. Seemed like the smart thing to do at the time, but now I wish I woulda went to ATP right out of highschool.
__________________ Commercial Pilot, CE-500 Gold Seal CFI.II.MEI IGI Future GoJet Pilot.  |
|
|
|
April 20th, 2006, 19:28
| #7 | |
| Junior Member  Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: DTW/DXR/JFK
Posts: 216
| Quote:
| |
|
|
|
April 20th, 2006, 22:54
| #8 |
| Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Colorado
Posts: 38
|
o and im gettin ready to turn 17, i will be hopefully 17 1/2 when i attend ATP, i know its young, but hey im passionate about my future. Also does anyone know how long in advance u can lock a price in? |
|
|
|
April 20th, 2006, 23:07
| #9 |
| Old Skool  Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Spokane, WA
Posts: 6,546
|
You should check out the local FBO option and take your time, save money, check out Metro state for a degree. Don't be in such a big hurry and don't fall for a fancy website that makes promises that might not pan out. There are other ways that lead to the same end.
|
|
|
|
April 20th, 2006, 23:42
| #10 |
| Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Colorado
Posts: 38
|
the local FBO's are just as expensive, if not more with the gas money for 35 miles to and from the airport.
|
|
|
|
April 21st, 2006, 02:23
| #11 |
| Newbie Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 16
|
I don't even think that ATP would take you at 17. They in theory want you to have at least some college (which you can substitute work experince for I believe). When I spoke with them on the phone the last time they seemed pretty set on that. I had a friend who was 18 at the time and the basic vibe he got from them was to go get some work experience or college and come back. You may want to call them and see if they still seek those things but just thought I'd give you a heads up. Besides, you have to be 18 to get your commercial so you need to be at least about 17 and 8 or 9 months old to even meet the FAA age minimum by the time you are ready for your checkride, as an instructor you also need to take into account the very real issue of age descrimination. I have seen even 20 year old instructors have a reasonably difficult time finding work (at least on their terms). I don't want to sound discouraging, I just want you to really think everything through. I highly recommend an FBO for your private. It will help you put a lot of this whole business into perspective and you avoid the financial commitment that ATP requires. (if you drop out of ATP after your private for any reason, you are out $1500 in deposits for the Com/CFI program). |
|
|
|
April 21st, 2006, 02:25
| #12 |
| Newbie Join Date: Apr 2006
Posts: 16
|
BTW... I don't think you can lock in a price until you put down the deposit for the program which I think is $3000 (1500 for the private and 1500 for the com/cfi). Also I don't think they will let you lock up a price months in advance (after all, they change the prices because they need to keep their margin up).
|
|
|
|
April 21st, 2006, 09:53
| #13 |
| Old Skool Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Spokane, WA
Posts: 6,546
|
"the local FBO's are just as expensive, if not more with the gas money for 35 miles to and from the airport" Where do you live, like Estes Park or something? |
|
|
|
April 21st, 2006, 10:01
| #14 | |
| Old Skool Join Date: May 2005 Location: Dirty Jerzey
Posts: 2,109
| Quote:
Before I get jumped on let me explain why. For college, take out a Federal student loan. If you've got good grades in HS, then you shouldn't have much trouble with a parent cosigning for a Federal loan for college. The reason I say this is, you can NOT take out a federal loan for flight training, like ATP. Its not approved. Federal student loans have much lower interest rates, nice grace periods and the option to consolidate later on. Use Uncle Sam to help you. Therefore its much wiser to pay for your flight training with as much money as you can save up. Because aside from a secured loan, the only loan you get for flight training will be an unsecured loan, which = high interest variable rate. I would also recommend you take a look at the military. This is a great option that will PAY for your college, and you can save more money towards your flight training. I did 4 years in the Coast Guard right out of high school...the most fun I've had in my life! It also taught me a thing or two about the real world. I highly recommend the military for anyone graduating high school. Believe me the military is not as bad as the movie/media hype makes it out to be. They take care of you in the military. They care about your health, they care about your quality of life and most importantly, they care about your family and your education. Uncle Sam will put a roof over your head, food on your table and medical benefits unmatched anywhere. And if you're worried about going overseas, look into the Coast Guard. It's a lot of fun, yes it is military, you'll do search and rescue, maritime law enforcement and plenty of other great missions. I chose to do my flight training first, because through the Coast Guard I have $60k to spend on college. So I pretty much have a free college degree waiting for me when I have the time to finish it up. I'm very familar with online degree programs, so my gameplan was to finish flight training at ATP, which I did. Get hired by ATP, which I did. And start building flight time while completing my degree online, which I am doing very soon. There are a lot of options young grasshopper, my brother is your age too and he wants to be an electrician. I tell him the same thing. You're young, think about your options. You have plenty of time. If you want to learn more about the Coast Guard, feel free to PM me. | |
|
|
|
April 21st, 2006, 11:07
| #15 | |
| Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: DTW/DXR/JFK
Posts: 216
| Quote:
| |
|
|
|
April 21st, 2006, 13:11
| #16 |
| Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Colorado
Posts: 38
|
ive always looked at military, dont know if its right for me though. ATP, said they would accept me at 17 1/2. Which seemed cool, i have the work experience. Coast Guard seems real cool, I have wanted to be a Police officer for awhile as well. Ill check them out. Thanks for all of your kind words. PS. ATP said 90 days in advance for a price lockin. |
|
|
|
April 21st, 2006, 23:51
| #17 |
| Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Colorado
Posts: 38
|
Well if im gonna have a hard time looking for flight instructor positions after flight school ,then the military looks like a great route to take. Does the Coast guard have some kind of ROTC program, i want to become a Guardian Pilot for them, that would be a dream there.
|
|
|
|
April 22nd, 2006, 11:23
| #18 | |
| Old Skool Join Date: May 2005 Location: Dirty Jerzey
Posts: 2,109
| Quote:
If you want to fly for the Coast Guard, then you need to go to the Coast Guard Academy, otherwise you would need a 4 yr degree and 5 yrs active duty service to get to OCS. For instructor jobs after flight school, ATP hires most of their grads that want to work there. Its not a big issue. | |
|
|
|
April 22nd, 2006, 14:31
| #19 |
| Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: DXR, Connecticut
Posts: 1,177
|
Well, I wish you good luck. Let us know how it works out... I don't think if I were starting out in this industry I'd have the guts to take out that big a loan to pay for ATP.
__________________ CFI/CFII/MEI ATP, SF340 |
|
|
|
April 22nd, 2006, 16:36
| #20 |
| Newbie Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 9
|
Who was the examiner in Stuart that you had words with?? We used Dave Eaves and Bill Lumley quite a bit back late last year when I was there.
|
|
|
 |
| Thread Tools | |
| Display Modes | |
| |
Linear Mode
