ATP & MEI Ratings

Towards the end of May I flew to Texas for a week to fly a twin engine Piper Seneca.  A friend of mine who used to fly F-16s has this plane and is a certified flight instructor (CFI).  As Lana and I were wrapping up our time in Germany, I was looking for a flight school to get my airline transport pilot (ATP) license and multi-engine instructor (MEI) license.  The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) has military equivalency options for some ratings based on military flying training.  In order to get these ratings I had to take a knowledge test and practical test.  Once the knowledge test is complete, there's a 24 month window to complete the practical test and I had to complete them this summer with aircraft mechanics school starting in August.

Although the ATP and MEI are not required to serve with Pacific Mission Aviation (PMA) , it made sense to get them while I had the opportunity.  The MEI will come in handy to train PMA pilots who do not have much multi-engine time since 4 of the 6 airplanes they currently have are twin engine.

Flying a propeller aircraft is A LOT different than the F-16.  The lack of thrust and slower speeds are a given, but controlling RPM, manifold pressure, and fuel mixture are a bit of an art.  The instrument layout is different as well, but it didn't take too long to get the hang of it.  The 10.8 hours of training / checkride time will be a benefit as I transition to propeller aircraft.

My friend and I did the training in Corpus Christi, TX and then flew the airplane up near Houston, TX to meet the check pilot.  After 3.5 hrs of flying I was ATP and MEI checkride complete!  Thank you God for good weather and Air Force training that gave me the opportunity to get these ratings.