Flying skydivers in a Cessna 182 (or a 205 or 206) is a great way to start a piloting career. You can log lots of high-performance time and get paid while you’re at it. And it’s about the most fun flying you can do. Best of all, it’s accessible to low-time commercial pilots.
But be sure you want the job because it can be hard work and requires huge responsibility. You’ll be expected to be the first one at the drop zone—often before sunup—to pull the plane out of the hangar, and to fuel, prefight and run it up, so the plane is ready before jumping starts. If it is good weather and a busy day with lots of jumps booked, you may fly from sunup to sunset, with breaks only to refuel or relieve. You’ll learn to eat your lunch during a 20-minute climb. A gusty crosswind? Jump pilots are expected to handle it. Broken clouds? If there is enough space between the clouds to climb and descend VFR, and to drop the jumpers in between, you’ll be flying. When the jumpers are done for the day, the jump pilot will still need to fuel and oil the plane for tomorrow, log the day’s flights, write up any squawks, then tuck the jump plane away. Oh, and if the morning weather isn’t so good, you’ll still arrive early and be expected to hang around until jumping is called off for the day, often not until the afternoon.
Still up for a jump pilot job? Here is how to get one.
First, produce a one-page resume that is aviation-focused. It should include your certificates and ratings, total time, and a breakout listing your time in different aircraft. Provide the flight schools where you trained and contact info for them. If you have jump pilot training or experience, or Cessna 182 time, be sure to highlight it. Just briefly list non-aviation training or job history.
Next, get your resume out there. The US Parachute Association website, uspa.org, has a DZ locator of some 220 DZs around the US, along with web and email addresses. From a DZ’s website, you can determine which jump planes they regularly fly; if a 182, 205, or 206, go for it! Also check out Chris Rosenfelt’s website, https://avwrk.com/jumpilotjobs.html .
Once you target one or more DZS, send an email with your resume attached. DZ owners get lots of resumes from pilots without any jump training or experience, or even any 182 time. If you have any of that, you want it to stand out, so put that in the subject line of the email so the recipient doesn’t miss it, for example “Trained (or Experienced) jump pilot available,” or “20-Hour C-182 pilot available.”
Finally, be the squeaky wheel. DZ owners are extremely busy and they get lots of emails and phone calls. Follow up to confirm that they received your resume, resorting to phone calls if necessary. After confirmation, send an email reminder of your interest every week. If it’s in season and the DZ is nearby, drop in and ask to speak to the owner, leaving another resume. In short, be bothersome until someone tells you to stop.
Luther Kurtz operates eight DZs around the U.S., using eight 182s and two turbine PAC 750s. He starts hiring pilots beginning in late February and early March. But he will accept emails and phone calls before then. In fact, he doesn’t mind if pilot candidates email him every week. “It shows me that they are interested.” Kurtz looks for pilots with between 300 and 600 hours total time. “Anyone with less than 500 hours should already have some jump pilot training, such as from Jumpers Away.” He also has a pilot weight limit of 200 lbs., even though all of his 182s have the Wing-X wing extensions that increase the182’s gross weight to 2,950 lbs.
Kurtz likes to conduct an initial interview by phone, and if that conversation goes well, he will make a conditional offer and invite them to relocate to the DZ. What’s the condition? “Ability to fly and attitude. Almost everybody can fly, so I look mainly for a good attitude. I want pilots who show up on time, are willing to learn and fly the way I tell them to.”
Steve Alsobrook is the chief pilot for Skydive Key West, which has five 182s and operates seven-days-a-week year-round. Don’t even call him until you have provided a one-page, professional looking resume that is aviation-focused. He likes pilots with less than 1,000 hours, “and we’ve had all kinds of pilots with under 250 hours.” If he has a job opening and likes your resume, he will conduct a phone interview, then maybe invite you down for a face-to-face. Then he might put you in the left seat for some slow-flight and jump door opening and closing exercises. Just don’t blow the landing at their 2,700’ x 12’ asphalt strip. What’s he looking for? “The ability to fly, but also a personality that will fit in.”
Most DZs in the northern tier of states either close for the winter or slow way down, and then start back up in April and May, so they will begin hiring staff in January and February. January is not too early to start your job search. But don’t worry if you don’t get a job during the spring hiring spree; there is lots of turnover and many pilots are hired throughout the season.
Now, get that resume together, get it out there, and be the squeaky wheel until you get that job offer.
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