What Next

[MattyB]

I'm finishing up my instrument rating this week and wondering what I should do next.

I plan on completing all my instructor ratings. My plan is is do my Commerical SE then my Commercial Multi then the instructor ratings.
Is this the best way of doing it or is there a better way of doing it that I don't see?

Thanks in advance

[Maurus]

If you are working toward being a career pilot then yes, that is the most efficient (less money) way.

[mojo6911]

I did it that way as well.

[JulietBravo]

Thats the best/most logical way of doing everything. As far as the commercial goes, it is much easier doing your ME first with a SE add-on. That way, you do not have to do your SE in a complex plane and everything. Not sure whether your doing everything 61 or 141, but I did my Comm 141 and it was pretty easy and slick to do and saved me money cause I only needed 15 hours in a ME. But other than that, as soon as your done with your Comm, get going with your CFI, that way you are up on your manuevars. Also, I recommend towards the end of your commercial, start doing some flying from the right seat and get used to it. It was really tricky for me. Hope this helps!

[MattyB]

I am doing it 141.
So you can do the commercial ME first than the SE add-on?
How many hours for each?

[JulietBravo]

Originally Posted by MattyB

I am doing it 141.
So you can do the commercial ME first than the SE add-on?
How many hours for each?

You need the 120hrs total for the whole thing. Start it off SE... build up all that time with all those xcs, practice all those manuevars, get your 55hrs of dual, etc... then when your at 105hrs, start your ME (which you only need 15hours in). Your ME training counts towards your 120hrs total commercial. Then when you take your check ride, take your ME 141... then do an SE add-on (basically a SE ride under 61).

[Blackhawk]

Originally Posted by JulietBravo

You need the 120hrs total for the whole thing. Start it off SE... build up all that time with all those xcs, practice all those manuevars, get your 55hrs of dual, etc... then when your at 105hrs, start your ME (which you only need 15hours in). Your ME training counts towards your 120hrs total commercial. Then when you take your check ride, take your ME 141... then do an SE add-on (basically a SE ride under 61).

The one thing I would add. Get your commercial MEL; then get your commercial SEL in a tail wheel airplane. Probably will add 5 hours of flight time, and be fun to boot. You can use something like a Citabria or a Champ.

[milski]

Does the ME commercial still require similar cross country experience to part 61 when done under part 141? If yes, I would get my ME private first. That will allow you to log all of the traning for the commercial as PIC which will allow you to get your MEI sooner. Otherwise you have 15 hours of PIC to build after you get the ME commercial.

[PatrickCPS]

If you are looking for a career in aviation, I would recommend getting your Private Multi Add-on as that way the hours you log once rated are PIC. Then do your Multi Comm, then your Single Add-on.

[MattyB]

I'm just looking at the most efficient (read cheapest) way to get all my instructor ratings. I'm not looking at getting a regional job as soon as possible, I want to gain experience and build some time as a flight instructor first.

So the only benefit that the Multi Private is that you get to log Multi PIC from the training for Multi Commercial and MEI ratings right?

If I don't get the Multi Private and only the Multi Commercial, I'll have to do at least 15 hours after the Multi Commercial for the MEI course to get the 15 hours PIC required for the MEI right?

[JulietBravo]

Originally Posted by MattyB

I'm just looking at the most efficient (read cheapest) way to get all my instructor ratings. I'm not looking at getting a regional job as soon as possible, I want to gain experience and build some time as a flight instructor first.

So the only benefit that the Multi Private is that you get to log Multi PIC from the training for Multi Commercial and MEI ratings right?

If I don't get the Multi Private and only the Multi Commercial, I'll have to do at least 15 hours after the Multi Commercial for the MEI course to get the 15 hours PIC required for the MEI right?

Yes. You need 15 hours PIC ME to get your MEI. However, I believe you only need 5 hours PIC in the airplane used for the MEI checkride. So there are ways to get that PIC. Your Comm ME counts as PIC, and you will probably spend 5-7 hours on your MEI prep.

As for the rest of the time, I found it helpful by having my old flight instructor take me on a couple charter flights. Of course, it was empty legs, so it was 91 and he gave me instruction, so I got to log that as PIC. I worked at an FBO last summer that allowed the line guys to fly with the cargo pilots in 402s. The cargo guys usually allowed you to fly the empty legs so you could log that as well. There are different things out there where you can get time for FREE!! You just have to find them.

[kgflyboy]

I'm building cross country time to get a CSEL (part 61). I was planning on getting my CFI after that and getting my CMEL and MEI while I instruct. This would allow me to earn a little money for flying while I work on the multi stuff.

[Nihon_Ni]

Originally Posted by MattyB

I'm finishing up my instrument rating this week and wondering what I should do next.

I plan on completing all my instructor ratings. My plan is is do my Commerical SE then my Commercial Multi then the instructor ratings.
Is this the best way of doing it or is there a better way of doing it that I don't see?

Thanks in advance

How much total time do you have? You might consider things like getting a tail wheel endorsement or a glider rating as a way of building quality flight time. Both of these things will make you a much better pilot and a better instructor when the time comes.

I got a sport glider rating for $1875. (I was already a CPS&MEL and CFI) I did it in 4 full days of flying and studying. After that, I rented gliders for $35 / hr plus a tow from another airplane for $29. A 3 hr flight (my longest) costs me $134 (~$45/hr). The longer you can fly on a single tow, the cheaper it is. However, the hour I spent in the traffic pattern learning to land is the most expensive hour in my log book. (Each flight was 0.1 hrs: $35 rental, $65 for CFI, 10 tows = $290. Total of $390 for that hour! YIKES!) Fortunately, I didn't spend that much time in the traffic pattern. The whole ticket was 6.1 hrs of flight time (including the check ride) -- about 2/3 dual and 1/3 solo. Since getting my sport rating I've gained enough experience to upgrade it to a commercial license if I ever want to do that. Most importantly, it's a wonderful way to fly and has made me a much better pilot and instructor.