For our second Q&A session, Aidan was joined by Era Alaska’s 2nd shift (Clint, Kara, Ben, and Steve) and Johndale of Ryan Air. The conversation took place a few weeks ago in the plush Era Alaska pilot house on the other side of the ramp from Ryan Air.

The different views provided by the diverse group certainly made the answers more interesting.

The wide-ranging conversation covered:

• Aidan’s planes to shoot a CASA walkthrough video
• Working for Northern Air Cargo and Everts Air Fuel
• The Air Tractor
• Fire fighting
• The Era Alaska hiring outlook and the Caravan co-pilot program
• The hiring outlook for the big airlines
• Low-time right seat jobs in Alaska, and getting PIC time
• Flying for Ken Borek in Antarctica
• The different kinds of aviation training programs and the associated costs
• Opinions on the best kind of program if you want to fly in Alaska
• The benefits of starting out in gliders
• Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (thanks Jenna!)
• The benefits of taking the (non-pilot) enlisted military route
• Can you support a family with an oddball flying job?
• The best time to start looking for a flying job in Alaska
• The Skytruck
• Getting a work permit to fly in Alaska (or elsewhere in the U.S.) if you’re from another country
• Getting a work permit to fly in another country if you’re an American

Audio

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Right-click to download the MP3 file (51 minutes – 23.4 MB)

Have questions of your own? Add a comment below (or in any post). Or, send us a message using the form on the Contact page. We’ll try to get you an answer in our next Q&A session.

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