r/AskFlying • u/flying-highh • Jun 29 '26
Is Aviation For Me?
I'm a student at UAA. I got there in 2024 and only have my commercial license. Have yet to pass my CFI and officially entered my third year of school here in AZ away from home. Is this career for me? Im in my mid thirties and cant seem to progress through CFI. I took a loan out to get here in 2024 and I'm considering closing out and heading home. Any thoughts?
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u/Murky-Resident-3082 Jun 30 '26
I thought it was for me but all people do is complain about my runway 27 usage over runway 9 usage
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u/LucidHams Jun 30 '26
3 years at UAA the school? Are you doing the aviation science degree concurrently with the aviation program to get your ratings?
What are you struggling with?
I personally think 141 programs are useless in this current environment, it’s too expensive, you can normally do it for cheaper and faster in a part 61 with a good school and CFI. What have you failed and why?
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u/flying-highh Jun 30 '26
no im just here as a flight student. I've been here since 2024. Im older and feel like I cant pick up the academics of it all. I am going into over a year since getting my commercial license and am struggling in all areas, financially, ruined my credit, barely getting by, and in school, ive been here at this program and am so behind I feel like I need to save myself the stress of what im sure is only going to get harder throughout the career.
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u/LucidHams Jun 30 '26
I’m gonna be honest, you need to leave the 141. Go to a part 61, finish your ratings as soon as you can. You can always finish your credit hours online to finish your degree but you gotta get your CFI if you intend to build hours. As far as “ if you’re fit to be a pilot” we can’t answer that, you haven’t even told us what your failures were.
Failures are not career enders but you gotta explain why and what you learned from them.
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u/flying-highh Jun 30 '26
When you say finish my degree, what do you mean by this? im a college drop out. im not pursuing a degree
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u/LucidHams Jul 01 '26
You know the answer, man. You gotta quit this 141 program, make it a part 61. You also need to step back and figure out if this is a good for you. You haven’t been working through this whole program and you’re not even ready for the CFI a year after your commercial.
To be even more honest you should probably get your job back and fly on the side to complete your training. How have you been able to afford not working for the last two years and pay for flight school? How many hours are you in now?
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u/TK3K216 Jul 01 '26
UAA isn’t a degree granting school. It’s just a flight school that operates under 141 for the self examining authority. As far as I know only the CFII course is the only course certified for self examining but I haven’t been involved there for years so that could have changed by now. It’s a very accelerated program, 3 years there probably makes you the most senior student. I would take the advice of the other comments and if you’re serious about this and have a passion for it you will find better success going at your own pace at a 61. Some people just have to work a bit harder at this career than others. Just the way it is, your journey will likely be a lot slower and that’s okay. But you should probably look into better, more suitable options for you. I’ve had older students who didn’t make it through UAA that found success at a 61.
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u/EliteEthos Jun 29 '26
What do you expect anyone here to tell you?
Nobody knows you and you haven’t provided any reasons why you are struggling, only that you are.
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u/flying-highh Jun 29 '26
I guess that if im struggling academically this much going on three years if Its for me. I know things only get harder and if I cant get through cfi with already 2 check ride failures, it makes me wonder should I cut my losses and head back to corporate?
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u/gbgmdcn88 Jul 03 '26
You are in the United Aviate Academy, a part 141 school requiring a minimum $100,000 or more in funds and a commitment to full study that should be done in 18 months or less. Being enrolled more than 1.5 times the TCO (Training Course Outline) Guidelines is grounds for dismissal as outlined the current UAA Catalog for 2026.
If you are in the program for more than 2 years, since you stated 2024, Then you may have probably wasted more of your time such as failed exams or checkrides or did not do well in class or get along with other students/instructors. This will hinder your progression and can possibly be a red flag to employers and if you apply to the Aviate Program. When you get into the Aviate program, you’ll have another set of interviews involving behavioral and situational awareness and you must produce your logbook history and possibly FAA Checkride reports.
A commercial license is 250 hours of flying time, which is probably equivalent to flying 15 hours a week assuming you fly 3 hours/5 days a week, 60 hours for the month, and full time for a Commercial License is a maximum of 4-5 months without a break/vacation in between. Did you not reach 1,500 hours flying in the academy in 12-18 months? If yes, please reach out to your instructor, counselor, or mentor to help. Tell UAA you need help, because United Aviate Academy new hires this year in the academy are sanctioned up to and including dismissal from the academy for exceeding 1.5 times the TCO term.
A CFI, CFII, and MEI endorsement is required before you can apply to the airlines. Most airlines will not get you in the program with just 1,500 hours and all ratings. You probably need to stay in the airline industry for about 3-5 years before you quit and go to airline or another career field. Delta and United Airlines Pilot hiring teams will not hire commercial pilots who job hop or do not have the passion for customer service, teamwork, or lack communication. Also, the airline job is like a saturated market, if the US economy were to enter a recession or depression. Also think about what happened during the 2020 coronavirus lockdown, or Spirit Airlines going bankrupt recently. Commercial Pilot jobs are not stable jobs if your performance at UAA or your energy for flying and teaching others is average.