I Made It!

Hello again everyone! It has been a while since my last update and I have lots of very exciting news to share! Since my last post, I have stopped instructing at Kent State because I was hired as a First Officer for CommuteAir flying the Embraer 145 out of Washington Dulles!

Since I started flight training in September of 2020, I knew I didn’t want to be a career flight instructor. Now that it has been 7 months since I started airline training, and have been flying the line for the past 5 months, I realize how lucky I was to be a flight instructor and would like to be a Line Check Airmen at the airlines if the opportunity presents itself. I always had passion for my work and wanted to make my students a better aviator than I was when I was in their stage of flight training. But I never fully realized just how much of an impact instructing had on my journey to get to where I am today. Throughout my time instructing at Kent, I had the privilege of flying with dozens of students to help complete their courses, and I signed off 3 Private Pilots, 7 Instrument Pilots, 2 Commercial Pilots and 3 Multi Engine Pilots. 

My last day at Kent was August 23, 2024 and it was definitely an emotional day for me. A tradition when an instructor goes away is that people can sign a frame with a picture of the airport in the middle with words of encouragement, memories and best wishes. I refrained from reading it while it was sitting in the lobby and I’m glad that I waited until my last day to read it. In addition to the frame, two of my students wrote me cards thanking me for being a part of their journey. I know that I have been a small part of their aviation journey, but I wanted to share a quote from the card my student wrote for me. “You went above and beyond as an instructor which makes you better than anyone and you don’t give yourself credit. You have made such a positive impact on my aviation career and helped me to fall in love with aviation”. I am proud of everything that I was able to achieve during my time at Kent and I wouldn’t trade any of my experiences. Saying goodbye to the chief instructors, my friends and students, taking one last look at the ramp with all the planes made me realize just how happy I was to call Kent State my home for the past 4 years. 

I started training at CommuteAir in September in Houston, Texas. I stayed for about the next two months completing my initial training. Overall, my experience training was very positive. All of the instructors I worked with always had our best interests in mind and were there to help us achieve success. I had a great class which made training that much better. We all wanted to succeed so we studied together and made sure that we knew as much information as we could going into any exams or orals. On November 7, I was officially able to call myself an Airline Pilot after two long months. Passing the checkride felt like a weight lifted off my shoulders knowing that all the hard work I had put in since I started training had paid off. 

My first trip on IOE was not an easy one, but it definitely set the tone of what being an airline pilot is like. For the majority of my first trip, I was battling nearly 30kt gusting crosswinds. These were not easy for my first flights in the jet, but I managed with the help of my captain and it was a great learning experience. One of my last legs on my first trip was IAD-CHO. It’s the shortest flight in our network and I asked my captain if he would be okay with me hand flying it to get a feel for the plane in every phase of flight. Cruising along, I took a look out the window over the city lights and I had to laugh at myself because of how happy I was. It finally felt like I had achieved my dreams and made it. Every time I fly, I realize how fortunate I am to do what I’m doing. I’m 22 years old and doing what so many people have only been able to dream of. I couldn’t have done it without the help of so many people. Everyone through FMA has been so supportive and encouraging of me throughout my journey. My instructors for teaching me so much, my students who I learned so much from, my Kent State friends and family (I miss playing the NYT games with you guys), my family, and my girlfriend who were there for my biggest moments. 

Looking back at my progress since my first flight September 4, 2020, it is crazy to think just how far I’ve come and I hope everyone has enjoyed watching my journey. It has truly been a pleasure writing these blog posts and I hope everyone has enjoyed it. If I could have gone back and done it all again, I would’ve done nearly everything the same except take one summer class in the summer of 2022 but I might not be in the position I am today if I didn’t take it. Besides that, I wouldn’t change a thing about my experience. I met so many talented and intelligent friends during my time at Kent, and I’ve enjoyed seeing how our paths have still seemed to cross. 

To all of the prospective pilots or pilots in their flight training reading this post, here are my words of advice. 

1. Make friends with as many people in the industry as you can, you never know who might be able to get you a job or take you flying in their plane for some great experience.
2. Flight training is a marathon, not a sprint. Everyone learns at different speeds and it’s okay if some topics take longer to grasp than others. Comparing yourself to others only hurts you. If you see someone who is further along, use them as inspiration instead of jealousy. 
3. At the end of the day, you are flying a plane, defying gravity, have fun with it. If you ever have doubts of continuing with training, always think back to the “Why” you started training. 

The airline life can be tough when starting out but as of now it has been a very rewarding career thus far, and I can proudly say I am happy with what I do and I can’t picture myself doing anything else.

Rented the Piper Seminole for my 1,000th hour with my parents and brother

Rented a C172S to Kelley’s Island on Lake Erie with my girlfriend

Sunset over Put-In-Bay taken by one of my students in the backseat

Beautiful sunset before an amazing day of flying

November 7, 2024 – Officially became an Airline Transport Pilot

November 21-23, 2024 – First trip on IOE

 

First Officer,

Jacob Burdette