Scyther Posted June 28, 2016 Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 As a US citizen who is currently living and working overseas... I've been wondering if it would be a good idea for me to head back to the states, get a CDL and become a truck driver for a while. That way I could pay my way through flight school and I'd have something to fall back on throughout my flying career. I know some would say trucking isn't exactly glamorous or high paying but driving trucks is an aspect of my current job that I really enjoy. Plus I am in the wrong country to be paying for flying lessons and I am desperate to get back in the air. As far as I can tell, I could move back to the states tomorrow, start a CDL course the next day and have some kind of a driving job by the end of the month. Well, maybe not that quickly but pretty fast anyway! Does anybody here have any experience in the US trucking industry? BTW I am aware this is a forum for helicopters but I'm sure many of you played with toy airplanes, helicopters and trucks when you were kids! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rotormandan Posted June 29, 2016 Report Share Posted June 29, 2016 Any job would be good to do while training and fall back on if flying doesn't work. Just pick your poison. However if you get a cdl, having a hazmat and tanker endorsement could be useful in the future. At a lot of places you'll drive a fuel truck, even if just from the hotel to helicopter and back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r22butters Posted June 29, 2016 Report Share Posted June 29, 2016 (edited) Youtube is your best friend, tons of info there on trucking,...and R44 pilots doing stupid sh*t! You're right though, it is a helicopter forum... ,...this guy makes me dizzy! Edited June 29, 2016 by r22butters 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scyther Posted June 29, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2016 That guy has a tractor unit parked on his own driveway whaaaat... Sometimes I forget how much more space there is in America compared to here in the UK! Yeah cheers for the advice guys, I have been looking into stuff too but I just wanted to see if there were any pilot/truckers on here so I could pick their brains. Butters, is that an example of good flying or bad flying? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r22butters Posted June 29, 2016 Report Share Posted June 29, 2016 I believe its what they refer to as "hot dogging", which I've been told by a few operators is bad flying,...well unless you're at an airshow, or spraying maybe? ,...by the way sorry to hear about your breakup with the EU. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yamadoopolcat Posted June 29, 2016 Report Share Posted June 29, 2016 Youtube is your best friend, tons of info there on trucking,...and R44 pilots doing stupid sh*t! You're right though, it is a helicopter forum... ,...this guy makes me dizzy!I had an engine failure on take-off and ended up doing a very quick auto into a bunch of black spruce.There was an easier take-off route, just about level, and the ship was heavy, but it meant taking off out over a very cold deep lake. The closest bit of civilization was 100 miles away. So I took the safe route, up hill and slow, and lived to talk about it. So did my parents that were on board that day.I also have a float endorsement, and learned to be very careful around the kind of glassy water in the video, because you simply don't know how far you are above the water. Lots of aircraft have been lost in the water because the pilots thought they had lots of height.I don't see anything of value in this video, just an idiot putting people at risk that don't know any better. Dumb. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r22butters Posted June 30, 2016 Report Share Posted June 30, 2016 A "float endorsement"? I've heard of night endorsements and R-44 endorsements, now one for floats,...just how many endorsements do you guys have anyway? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yamadoopolcat Posted June 30, 2016 Report Share Posted June 30, 2016 The float endorsement is for my fixed wing license. I don't know if there is a float endorsement for helicopters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r22butters Posted June 30, 2016 Report Share Posted June 30, 2016 Ah' I figured you were one of the European pilots who gets endorsements for everything that we include in our Private training,...would not surprise me though if there were a float one! Flying over glassy water does suck, you can get disoriented pretty easily looking down at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scyther Posted June 30, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2016 Oh yes the wonderful Brexit... And now the GBP is at a 31 year low. *head hitting brick wall Where do you guys get the money to get all these rotor wing/fixed wing/float plane/astronaut licenses, endorsements and ratings? PLEASE TELL ME YOUR SECRET!!! Must. Resist. Taking. Out. Massive. Loan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wally Posted July 1, 2016 Report Share Posted July 1, 2016 Oh yes the wonderful Brexit... And now the GBP is at a 31 year low. *head hitting brick wall Where do you guys get the money to get all these rotor wing/fixed wing/float plane/astronaut licenses, endorsements and ratings? PLEASE TELL ME YOUR SECRET!!! Must. Resist. Taking. Out. Massive. Loan. My rich uncle paid for my training. I had to promise 5 years, he was real bossy acted like he owned me, insisted I wear green and be real unfriendly to some other fellas... If you have the assets to secure a loan, sell'em. It's better to do without than pull a big debt tail around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r22butters Posted July 1, 2016 Report Share Posted July 1, 2016 Where do you guys get the money to get all these rotor wing/fixed wing/float plane/astronaut licenses, endorsements and ratings? PLEASE TELL ME YOUR SECRET!!! Must. Resist. Taking. Out. Massive. Loan. ,...best six months of my life! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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