Guides

Plain answers, written down.

These are the questions people show up with. I wrote them the way I talk: the FAA rule where a number matters, and a straight answer where a brochure would rather stay vague. None of this enrolls you in a school.

I’m Austin Reed. I’ve been flying since 2009. I’m a flight instructor, I was Assistant/Chief Pilot at a major Part 141 school. Two regional airlines, currently CA on the Airbus 320 at a legacy carrier. If you want the person rather than the pages, that’s About. If you want to talk, the contact form is how you book a call.

Where to start

You haven’t started

Read how to become a pilot, then the pages on cost and Part 61 vs Part 141. The order of the certificates matters less, at this point, than whether you want the life.

You’re changing careers

Start with becoming an airline pilot later in life, then the timeline. The rules are the same. Your week is not.

You’re getting close to an airline

The interview guide is about the logbook, the record, and the kind of questions that show up. It is not a script, and it is not a promise of a job.

All of the guides

How to become a pilot
Whether the career fits, the usual certificates, and what to ask a school before you spend the money.
Talk to an airline pilot
What a one-on-one career call with a working airline pilot is for, and how to book one.
Part 61 vs Part 141
How the two training rules differ, what the hour minimums say, and the restricted ATP fine print.
How long it takes to become an airline pilot
The path from zero time toward a regional and a major, and why the FAA minimums are not a schedule.
How much it costs to become an airline pilot
Where the money goes, the ranges people quote, and how to read a school’s number.
Becoming an airline pilot as a career changer
Starting later, with a job or a family: age rules, the medical, and the pay gap while you build time.
How to prepare for an airline pilot interview
What airline interviews tend to cover, and how to prepare your logbook and your stories.

These are not a syllabus

The order on this page is for reading. Your order depends on where you are. If a page and a regulation disagree, the regulation wins — the pages that use a number link the FAA or the Code of Federal Regulations. I don’t invent a national average when I don’t have one.

If you want this applied to your week, your quote, or your logbook, see what a session covers and then write me. I’ll write back, and we’ll schedule a video or phone call.

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