Life in the Skies
Many people write me and ask how they too can live a life in the skies, so I answered all these questions in a DVD:

The process of becoming a pilot

The process of becoming a commercial pilot
What are all the steps?

How much can you get paid as a pilot?*

What are the different kinds of jobs?

How do you get those jobs?

What licenses and ratings do you need to get?

How do you get them?

How long does it take?

How can you find money for training?

How much does training cost?*

What’s better? Flight academies, private instructors or college programs?

What’s the future for pilots? The hiring statistics

Is flying is for you? What’s it like? Is it hard?
What if you hate math?



What are the physical requirements?


Do you need a college degree?

What's the difference between a commercial 
pilot and an airline pilot?

Should you buy a plane? What does it cost?

What organizations can help?

What is the 1st step?

The 5 things you need to become a pilot.

Other resources

Section for International people

And much more! 

Get the 2008 Edition DVD here.

Get a free ride

Besides learning the skills to control an airplane, you also need
to learn a lot of rules and facts, such as how far away do you have 
to stay from clouds and what is torque. Some people go to ground school and some people study on their own, under the guidance of a flight instructor.

In America, there's even aviation high schools, such as Oakland Aviation High School! You're never too young to start on an aviation career. 

There’s over half a million pilots in the United States. What about you? Many pilots want to help you. There are flight instructors at nearly every municipal airport who can give you a demonstration flight to see if flying is for you or check out these programs:

Learn to fly with The 99s
The 99s is an international organization of women pilots with over 6,000 members throughout the world. It was founded in 1929 by Amelia Earhart and 98 other women pilots. Today they help women become pilots through scholarships, networking, and mentoring. Check out their events, book corner, and their latest air race across the ocean at The 99s. Another group Women in Aviation International gives out a ton of scholarships. You can apply at WAI. Guys can try AOPA.org. (See below.)

Learn to fly with CAP
Civil Air Patrol (CAP) offers leadership training, technical education, scholarships, flight training and career education to people ages 12 to 21. CAP cadets comprise about 10% of the freshman class at the U.S. Air Force Academy each year.

CAP performs 95% of nation’s inland search and rescue and saves 100 lives per year. For info on CAP, call toll-free 800-FLY-2338.

Get a Free Ride!
Are there any free rides in life? Yes. The Young Eagles program gives kids ages 8 to 17 just that. Since 1992, more than 40,000 pilots have volunteered their time and aircraft to participate in the Young Eagles Flight program. They’ve taken more than 1.2 million young people for demonstration flights in their own aircrafts at their own expense.

You may know actor Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones or Hans Solo, but he is also an avid pilot. He even heads up the Young Eagles and has taken 200 kids for rides in his airplanes.

So why does Harrison Ford do it?
“Young Eagles gives kids a view of the world they’ve never seen before,” Ford said. “Each Young Eagles flight is an opportunity to excite kids by sharing your passion for flight and to show them that they, too, can learn the skills to participate in aviation.”
Veteran pilot Ken Daly often donates his Saturdays to sharing his passion. He says he loves kids and loves to fly, but he is also concerned about the future of aviation. “We also realize that the pilot population is shrinking, and the way to reverse this trend is to get youngsters involved.”

Many pilots today got their first flight through Young Eagles and that’s what set them off on a soaring life. So how can you go for a free ride? Check out the Young Eagles or call toll free at 877-806-8902.

Air Shows
Want to go to an airshow near your home and climb inside all kinds of aircraft? Check out Airshows.com and Airshows.org.

The Process
I explain the process of becoming a pilot and the journey of becoming a commercial pilot in my DVD "Life in the Skies."

To find an airport near you, check out the airport directory at AOPA, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.

Wish there was less requirements? Become a Sport Pilot!
Sport pilots fly light aircraft, utralights, powered paragliders, powered parachutes, trikes and powered hang gliders. Paul Hamilton has an excellent Sport Pilot series of DVDs where you can learn all about getting into this type of flying, what the checkride is like, and how to determine if the weather is good enough to take to the sky. You can get the DVDs from Aviation Supplies & Academics.

I hope this helps you get started on a life in the skies!

*Complied in 2008 from years 2006-2008.