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What Do You Need?

The best time to start preparing to leave the military and join civilian aviation is a minimum of a year and a half out. This is because there is a lot of work to be done and a lot of information to be gathered. If you’re waiting until you’re ready to begin applying for positions then you will likely be delayed trying to collect all the required information.

Here Is A List Of Items You Need To Begin Collecting

Let’s walk through what documents or information you should start collecting in order to be prepared to apply for flying jobs.

  • Flight Hours (Each airframe’s numbers divided up and converted to PIC/SIC using commercial rules)
  • Pilots Certificate updated (With new privileges such as CFI/CFII/MEI/ATP)
  • Military Flying Records (Have copies of all of them to include checkrides and checkride failures if there are any.
  • ATP-CTP Completed (It is great to have this completed but in some cases companies are willing to hire you without it and pay to train you)
  • Educational Records (Include GPAs and attain official copies of the transcripts)
  • Training / Education History (Collect info on all training courses (flying and non-flying, with completion dates and addresses of where it took place.
  • Employment History (10 Years Minimum – Collect info on every job or position held, each supervisors name and phone number and a list of accomplishments)
  • Residence History (A 10 Year Look Back. This includes deployments or long TDYs but needs to not have any gaps or the application sites may reject it)
  • Driving Records (Have any violations accounted for and associated dates)
  • FCC Radio Operator Permit (This is required and easy to obtain, just follow the link)
  • 1st Class FAA Medical (You will need this before you get out)
  • References (These are character references, 3-5 minimum).  Get a Letter of Recommendation from your Commander or others that can attest to your character.
  • Internal And External Recommendations (Network, Network, Network to get internal recommendations and ask for professional recommendations from coworkers and supervisors)
  • Resume / Application Prep (Find A reputable company and have them review your resume. It’s worth the money)
  • Conferences (Attending conferences gets your resume reviewed early and its possible to get a CJO on the spot.
  • Interview Prep (Find A reputable company and have them review your resume. It’s worth the money)
  • Stories To Tell (Start writing down your experiences and stories, good and bad, how you dealt with tough people or circumstances, etc. You will need these for interviews.