As of the time of writing, airline jobs are readily available for qualified applicants (in the US). The availability of jobs allows people wanting to make that step to be pickier for whom they want to work. That being said, there are still a few important things to take into consideration when applying and preparing for the interview. I'd like to provide you with some tips that can help you nail the interview and make your application stand out.
Integrity
One of the requirements for ATP applicants is to be of good moral character. This comes straight out of the FARs, making this one of the most important tips of all. Airlines run thorough background checks on each of their applicants, and they will find out if you've had any failed checkrides or incidents among other things. The best action you can possibly take is to be completely honest with everything on your application. Some people believe that they can hide checkride failures or things like FAA investigations. Believe me, the airline will find out, and that'll be grounds for instant disqualification. If you aren't willing to own your own mistakes, how can they expect you to follow procedures and execute safe flights on the line? The best course of action instead is to take ownership for your mistakes. Think about what you've learned from such events (if you have any) and talk about it during the interview if asked.
Keep Your Logbook Updated and Clean
When they review your logbook, they don't want to see a bunch of scratched out numbers and mistakes. Don't panic if you're just starting out and your logbook isn't totally perfect; perfection is not the expectation. What we do want to do is to make sure that they occur as little as possible going forward. The key here is to build a habit of being slow and deliberate when filling out your logbook. It is a legal document after all! Staying up to date on entries is a good way to support this because you won't feel tempted to rush through multiple pages of updates if you get behind. As long as you carry this habit with you as you train and build time, your logbook will be impeccable. If you do make a mistake, simply cross out the mistake with a single line and initial it. Then, put whatever the new value is right next to it. The idea is that whoever is reviewing the logbook can see both the mistake and the corrected value. We want as much transparency with this as possible, so avoid things like whiteout as well.
From what I understand, these days most companies are ok with digital logbooks as long as all the required information/signatures/endorsements are there, but I actually prefer to use both side by side because it's far easier to catch discrepancies when you're comparing two logbooks constantly. A little more work, sure, but worth the extra time.
Prepare Beforehand As Much As Possible
If you're interviewing with an airline, they're going to want to see how much you know about turbine systems, high altitude aerodynamics, and other common jet systems before you begin training. They do not expect perfection (especially if it's your first jet job), but they will want to see that you've done some homework beforehand. I'll link to some resources at the bottom of this article that will help with your preparations. They're also going to ask about some of your aviation experiences, so have some stories ready for the interviewer along with what you learned from each of those experiences. You can sometimes include non-aviation stories as well, particularly when it comes to teamwork and leadership experience. Make sure you can explain how it's relevant to aviation though. Finally, be ready to talk about why you want to work for the company that is interviewing you. A great place to start is looking into each company's growth potential, financial stability, and culture.
Make Your Resume Clean and Short
Your resume must be clean and no longer than a page (unless they ask for it). Make sure you put aviation-relevant experience on it, and make sure your ratings and flight times are at the top. I included my education, academic achievements, and GPAs on my resume as well. This goes without saying, but make sure there are exactly no typos of any kind! A clean resume is a simple way to demonstrate your attention to detail.
Be Enthusiastic and Ask Questions
Funny story: when I interviewed for my current position, I was pretty excited because I've wanted to fly since I was a little kid. Before the interview, I drank too much coffee (they had one of those bean to cup coffee machines and it actually made decent cappuccinos) and totally jacked myself up on caffeine. Fortunately the only effect was that my excitement came through more. While I don't necessarily recommend this, I do recommend allowing yourself to be enthusiastic during the interview! The majority of people with whom I fly and talk seem to truly love aviation. These are the kinds of people that the airlines want to hire because they're so much more likely to succeed both in training and out on the line. They are also looking to see what kind of person you will be in the flight deck, and people with contagious enthusiasm and positive energy are far more fun to fly with. Don't be afraid to ask questions either! This shows that you are truly interested in the position.
Hopefully this is helpful to those of you looking to make that step into the airline world! These tips also apply to any other job in the aviation world. See the links below for some helpful tools for studying.
Note: some of the links in the article may be affiliate links; if you make a purchase through them, I may make a small commission at no additional cost to you. This allows me to continue creating content for this site.
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