Getting Financed

DefensorVindex · September 26th, 2005, 18:16

Hey all,
Brand spankin' new to JC. Great site, Doug. Really well put together and a great resource for the aviation community.
Can ANYONE help me figure out how to get financed to go to Pan Am? I am discharging from the Air Force in December and will have VA benefits but can't seem to find anyone willing to cosign a monster $80K-plus loan for me. The problem stems from not having a lengthy credit history, which I am finding out is nearly worse than having BAD credit history.
On another note, I toured the academy a few weeks ago and met with Jeremy Brown and the department heads at the DVT campus. I was pretty impressed with the level of professionalism displayed there, and will admit to having that pull at my military discipline strings a little more than the advertising Pan Am does.
Does anyone has suggestions for alternative financing? Key Bank seems to be the biggest financial partner most flight schools use, but aren't there others? I have checked with Sallie Mae, but they seem to be a little skiddish about loaning for the full amount PLUS bare bone living expenses (i.e. truck payment!) as well.

Lima_Charlie · September 26th, 2005, 21:52

With your VA Benefits, will you still need to borrow that large of a sum of money?? Did Jeremy break down the VA cost for you? If not you might want to give him a call. Most of the people I know used a cosigner with a solid credit history. Key Bank, a cosigner w/ a GREAT credit rating, and a respectable credit rating for yourself are the keys...

LC

project7 · September 26th, 2005, 22:06

I'm not exactly sure how the VA stuff works, but has Pan Am been 141 long enough for you to be able to use your bennies there? Also, and someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think VA pays a percentage of the total costs, so the chunk left for you to pay could still be substantial.

What other academies/FBOs have you looked into?

Lima_Charlie · September 27th, 2005, 00:54

Pan Am is 141, and many'o former service people attend. Yes you are correct that the VA will only for certain ratings. Private pilot is not one of them... Beyond that I don't have very much info to share.

DefensorVindex · September 28th, 2005, 00:22

The best estimate from Pan Am was approximately a program cost of $70K, minus VA bennies of $30K. Apparently, the ACE course (CRJ sim time, basically) has been added in for "free" as a veteran "thanks". Without VA bennies, that alone is nearly $6K. I have checked into RAA and Delta, but am a little skeptical of Delta, especially after the announcement of Chapter 11 reorganization. RAA doesn't appeal to me for reasons I won't get into here. So, as it stands, I'm just plain stuck without financing!

And, I realize that I'm going to have to borrow against the total amount, PLUS living expenses, which makes me wonder if I can even pull this off WHEN/IF I get financed...

project7 · September 28th, 2005, 17:37

I guess if you don't have to pay for the "ACE" thing then it may not be all that bad. Still, there's plenty of places where you'd spend a lot less for the same result.

dapittsta · September 30th, 2005, 19:37

Yes, I seem to be having the same problems. It looks as if the banks dont care what your beacon score is, they only want a cosigner. Which makes it difficult for some people like me. I could not figure out a reason why the bank would deny me, I have a beacon score of 790. I don't even have anyone in my family that has a better score than that, or anywhere close

It is making it difficult to pursue a career in aviation. Last time I checked Sallie Mae the rates were ridiculously high. Not so sure about that now.

If anyone has any hints or info, please post!!

project7 · September 30th, 2005, 19:49

You may have a high credit score, but they also look at your credit history. If the reason your score is high is because you have a limited (albeit good) credit history, then a high score doesn't mean a whole lot.

I, like many others who have done it, would recommend staying as far out of debt as possible in flight training. I know people who financed the academy programs, and I know people who paid as they went at an FBO. They all ended up in the same place, and those who stayed out of debt don't have a crazy loan payment to make on a very low salary.

BTW, 70K-30K is still way more than flight training should cost. I'm sure you could put your VA money to much better use.

dapittsta · September 30th, 2005, 20:50

yes, but is it really not that important to a major that you graduated from Comair academy or "XXXX Flying School" (ie a law student from harvard would have a better chance at getting a job then a student from Pheonix Online) My thought is that you pay more now but have a much better chance at landing the job you want.....which may be incorrect, I am not saying that is factual....

project7 · October 1st, 2005, 00:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by dapittsta

yes, but is it really not that important to a major that you graduated from Comair academy or "XXXX Flying School" (ie a law student from harvard would have a better chance at getting a job then a student from Pheonix Online) My thought is that you pay more now but have a much better chance at landing the job you want.....which may be incorrect, I am not saying that is factual....

I'm not sure if I understand you correctly, but the first part of that post is right on. I think you are referring to getting a job at a regional/cargo carrier in the second part, which is a misconception that the academies try to use to their advantage. Either way, most regional/cargo pilots I know agree that the pay, QOL, and future prospects are so poor that getting to that first 121/135 job a year earlier isn't worth getting yourself into financial burden. But hey, whatever floats your boat...

DE727UPS · October 1st, 2005, 01:03

"but am a little skeptical of Delta, especially after the announcement of Chapter 11 reorganization"

You mean DCA, the flight academy? But being owned by Delta makes all the difference....

Honestly, being owned by Delta makes no difference, but you shouldn't discount the school cause of DL's chapter 11. VA benne's are a great thing and I wouldn't discount DCA cause of DL's situation. If PanAm is the best thing for you, then fine, but don't leave DCA out cause of the bankruptcy. You wanna leave them out cause their marketing is misleading as crap, then great, but PanAm isn't any better. I was impressed that you saw through that and had a positive experience in person. Carry on.....

mattdc · August 23rd, 2006, 17:42

Yeah, I am in the same boat. I get out of the Marines in April, and want to go to flight school, but haven't started looking into getting financed yet. I'm wondering if I should finance everything or just work construction and pay as I go. I know it will slow down my training quite a bit, but it might be worth it in the long run.

September 26th, 2005, 18:16	#1
DefensorVindex Newbie Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 2	Getting Financed Hey all, Brand spankin' new to JC. Great site, Doug. Really well put together and a great resource for the aviation community. Can ANYONE help me figure out how to get financed to go to Pan Am? I am discharging from the Air Force in December and will have VA benefits but can't seem to find anyone willing to cosign a monster $80K-plus loan for me. The problem stems from not having a lengthy credit history, which I am finding out is nearly worse than having BAD credit history. On another note, I toured the academy a few weeks ago and met with Jeremy Brown and the department heads at the DVT campus. I was pretty impressed with the level of professionalism displayed there, and will admit to having that pull at my military discipline strings a little more than the advertising Pan Am does. Does anyone has suggestions for alternative financing? Key Bank seems to be the biggest financial partner most flight schools use, but aren't there others? I have checked with Sallie Mae, but they seem to be a little skiddish about loaning for the full amount PLUS bare bone living expenses (i.e. truck payment!) as well.

August 23rd, 2006, 17:42	#12
mattdc Newbie Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 7	Re: Getting Financed Yeah, I am in the same boat. I get out of the Marines in April, and want to go to flight school, but haven't started looking into getting financed yet. I'm wondering if I should finance everything or just work construction and pay as I go. I know it will slow down my training quite a bit, but it might be worth it in the long run.

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September 26th, 2005, 21:52	#2
Lima_Charlie Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 563	With your VA Benefits, will you still need to borrow that large of a sum of money?? Did Jeremy break down the VA cost for you? If not you might want to give him a call. Most of the people I know used a cosigner with a solid credit history. Key Bank, a cosigner w/ a GREAT credit rating, and a respectable credit rating for yourself are the keys... LC

September 26th, 2005, 22:06	#3
project7 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 430	I'm not exactly sure how the VA stuff works, but has Pan Am been 141 long enough for you to be able to use your bennies there? Also, and someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think VA pays a percentage of the total costs, so the chunk left for you to pay could still be substantial. What other academies/FBOs have you looked into?

September 27th, 2005, 00:54	#4
Lima_Charlie Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 563	Pan Am is 141, and many'o former service people attend. Yes you are correct that the VA will only for certain ratings. Private pilot is not one of them... Beyond that I don't have very much info to share.

September 28th, 2005, 00:22	#5
DefensorVindex Newbie Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 2	The best estimate from Pan Am was approximately a program cost of $70K, minus VA bennies of $30K. Apparently, the ACE course (CRJ sim time, basically) has been added in for "free" as a veteran "thanks". Without VA bennies, that alone is nearly $6K. I have checked into RAA and Delta, but am a little skeptical of Delta, especially after the announcement of Chapter 11 reorganization. RAA doesn't appeal to me for reasons I won't get into here. So, as it stands, I'm just plain stuck without financing! And, I realize that I'm going to have to borrow against the total amount, PLUS living expenses, which makes me wonder if I can even pull this off WHEN/IF I get financed...

September 28th, 2005, 17:37	#6
project7 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 430	I guess if you don't have to pay for the "ACE" thing then it may not be all that bad. Still, there's plenty of places where you'd spend a lot less for the same result.

September 30th, 2005, 19:37	#7
dapittsta Newbie Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: ATL, from DTW Posts: 3	Yes, I seem to be having the same problems. It looks as if the banks dont care what your beacon score is, they only want a cosigner. Which makes it difficult for some people like me. I could not figure out a reason why the bank would deny me, I have a beacon score of 790. I don't even have anyone in my family that has a better score than that, or anywhere close It is making it difficult to pursue a career in aviation. Last time I checked Sallie Mae the rates were ridiculously high. Not so sure about that now. If anyone has any hints or info, please post!!

September 30th, 2005, 19:49	#8
project7 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 430	You may have a high credit score, but they also look at your credit history. If the reason your score is high is because you have a limited (albeit good) credit history, then a high score doesn't mean a whole lot. I, like many others who have done it, would recommend staying as far out of debt as possible in flight training. I know people who financed the academy programs, and I know people who paid as they went at an FBO. They all ended up in the same place, and those who stayed out of debt don't have a crazy loan payment to make on a very low salary. BTW, 70K-30K is still way more than flight training should cost. I'm sure you could put your VA money to much better use.

September 30th, 2005, 20:50	#9
dapittsta Newbie Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: ATL, from DTW Posts: 3	yes, but is it really not that important to a major that you graduated from Comair academy or "XXXX Flying School" (ie a law student from harvard would have a better chance at getting a job then a student from Pheonix Online) My thought is that you pay more now but have a much better chance at landing the job you want.....which may be incorrect, I am not saying that is factual....

October 1st, 2005, 01:03	#11
DE727UPS Old Skool Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Spokane, WA Posts: 6,522	"but am a little skeptical of Delta, especially after the announcement of Chapter 11 reorganization" You mean DCA, the flight academy? But being owned by Delta makes all the difference.... Honestly, being owned by Delta makes no difference, but you shouldn't discount the school cause of DL's chapter 11. VA benne's are a great thing and I wouldn't discount DCA cause of DL's situation. If PanAm is the best thing for you, then fine, but don't leave DCA out cause of the bankruptcy. You wanna leave them out cause their marketing is misleading as crap, then great, but PanAm isn't any better. I was impressed that you saw through that and had a positive experience in person. Carry on.....