MUKILTEO, Wash. — Simulation Flight in Mukilteo now has a unique piece of machinery available to pilots.
“The nice thing about a simulator in deference to a real plane is number one you’re not going to fly a jet like this to train and learn,” said Michael Haynes who is the chief instructor at Simulation Flight, he is also a retired FAA regulator and airline pilot.
The 737 Max simulator took two years to get FAA-certified and is the only one of its kind owned by a private business. A feat largely spearheaded by Haynes, “I know a 737 very, very well.”
Projections from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics show there will be 16,800 openings for commercial and airline pilots each year for over a decade. While the FAA said airline pilots are increasing year over year, it’s still not enough to cover those projections.
“We thought we could help bridge the gap between commercial pilots, flight instructors or charter pilots and help them make the jump to ATP which is Airline Transport Pilot,” said Peter Hickey, who owns Simulation Flight.
A private pilot can get their license in 40 hours, but to fly for an airline, a pilot needs 1,500 hours.
“As a former regulator, when I look at someone with 500 hours, it’s not anything near the performance level I’d see at 1,500,” said Haynes.
Paying to fly those hours is costly.
"I shudder to think what it costs to take a 737 up and around the patch. You’re in the thousands of dollars and that just doesn’t happen, that’s versus our hundreds of dollars,” said Hickey.
The simulations won’t account for all the time you need, but it does count towards some of them.
“We hope to increase the number of pilots entering the industry,” said Hickey.
There are options for people who aren’t pilots in an entertainment capacity. If you want to be professionally trained on the 737 Max, you have to be a registered pilot.