NW Washington 141 schools

[hummelbuilder]

Hi all,

I had been thinking of going to Comair or ATP, but also want to check out some FBO's around here, so I wouldn't have to move. Once my wife gets her RN, the place she works at will start her at 25 an hour. This will allow us to keep our house while I go to school in a couple of years. Has anyone ever attended up here in the Seattle area? If so where did you go and what was your experience? I live in Oak Harbor, so Seattle is about a 2 hour commute each way with good traffic. I was thinking of Snohomish flying service since it is a lot closer at only an hour. They are slightly expensive though at 39k through ATP. Is this about right? Thanks,

Hummelbuilder

[Bluffster]

It's pretty hard to compare schools that offer a price through the ATP certificate. The only way you will build 1500 hours for the ATP is by working as a paid pilot (You will likely build only 300 hours or less during training). My employer pays me $17/hr to fly. Free-lance instructors here make $25-40/hr. Your mileage will vary. I'm not sure what ATP or Comair pay, but I would start with that.

Personally, I would go with the closest school that had the best instructor I could find willing to teach me. Sounds to me like you should be checking out Snohomish or other FBO's based at the same airport first. You and your instructor are the biggest factors in keeping costs down. It would be nice if they had more than one aircraft of each model for training as well.

I'm a big fan of paying as you go throughout your training. Prices change, instructors move on, life happens, and I've seen schools take the money and run after closing their doors.