What is a Corporate Pilot : Part 1

Corporate aviation is a very diverse and challenging sector of the aviation industry. I truly do enjoy my job and hopefully through this blog you will get a glimpse into why and also into some of its challenges. 


I often get asked by both aviation and non aviation types if I am doing this job so that one day I can be a "Commercial Pilot" well I am assuming that what they mean is an "Airline Pilot". Quite honestly, at this point in my life I am quite happy to be a Corporate "Commercial Pilot". 
The job involves different challenges than airline flying and also different benefits. 


As a corporate pilot we have to be constantly flexible to changes in plans, be it departure time, destination or passenger requests if you can't accept change then this isn't a job for you. One of the things that we do enjoy is a variety of destinations. At Magna Corp. we fly to mostly Southern and Eastern destinations  and when we do fly we rarely do more then one leg in a day and then layover from anywhere between 24 hours and 4 days. While this gives us a great opportunity to explore various cities more often than not it is a time to turn out hotel room into an office and prepare for the next trip or manage the behind the scenes goings on of the current trip such as ground transportation for our executives (that is another blog post in itself) And I should add that more often than not a layover involves sampling the various local pubs and taverns.


While flying the jet for Magna Corp. is our primary job description, we are actually responsible for a whole lot more. As a single crew department (2 Pilots & 1 AME) with no flight attendant we are responsible for:


1. Flying
2. Flight Planning
3. Aircraft Cleaning and Care (Including the Lavatory)
4. Grooming
5. Customs
6. Catering (Arranging it or sometimes even preparing it ourselves)
7. Customer Service
8. Other company duties and errands
9. Arranging & Managing Ground Transportation & Hotels
10. Inflight Service 
11. Baggage Handling


Plus a whole lot more. 


Don't get me wrong! I am not complaining. While many pilots might cringe at the thought of doing all of these "extra" non-pilot tasks, I quite enjoy the variety and added responsibility that it brings to my job. 


Another thing about corporate flying that is often asked is how much do you fly. Some corporate pilots will fly 500-1000 hours a year. At Magna Corp. we typically fly 200-250 hours a year. Some months will be extremely busy and we may be away for as much as three weeks while other months we may not turn a wheel for 3-8 weeks. This isn't the best way to build time but like I said earlier I am not using this job to get to the airlines so it works great for me. 


What about when we are not flying? Im glad you asked! Well that is the other blessing and curse of this sector of aviation. At Magna Corp. since we are a small department and we all assume multiple roles we generally will go to our office at the hangar 3-5 days a week to complete tasks such as paperwork, cleaning polishing and planning upcoming trips. Sometimes our day entails running around town in search of our bosses favourite bottle of chardonnay for an upcoming flight. All said and done though, the job offers some flexibility and there is no time card to punch at the beginning or end of the day. We make our own office schedule as long as all the work gets done. 


Corporate flying is a great way to go for anyone who is flexible and doesn't mind getting their hands dirty and working hard. It is both challenging and rewarding!


Coming up in the next blog post: GETTING A CORPORATE JOB