Find the best deals on multi engine time building with BestAviation.net. It can be hard to build the flight time required to land that perfect job. This is especially true when multi engine hours are required. Finding cheap multi engine time can be a cost-effective way to gain valuable flight experience. We do not approve of pay-to-fly schemes where you pay for flight experience while operating as a commercial crewmember. Such programs are highly discouraged.

Building pilot time in multi engine aircraft can boost your career. To better understand what multi engine time building involves we have created a short guide for you.

A pilot’s flight experience is in many ways his or her ‘job security’. The more experience you have, the easier it will be to get considered for a job. But how do you build multi time when even jobs in the smallest multi engine aircraft require some experience before you are considered?

Firstly, when it comes to applying for a job, your total flight experience doesn’t count for everything and neither does your total multi engine experience. It is the combination of your combined flight experience that matters. It is also worth noting that the hours in your logbook [and on your resume] will most likely only get you considered for employment and won’t alone get you a job. You still have to convince the company you’re applying for why they should hire you. Therefore, think of the experience you gain as more important than just the hours you can build in your logbook.

What is a Multi Engine Time Building Program?

To keep the hourly rental cost down, some schools offer time building bundles in multi engine aircraft. By buying a set number of hours and following their program guidelines you will be able to build multi experience at a much cheaper rate than buying the hours individually.

Why do I need Multi Engine Experience?

Companies will always seek to employ the most experienced pilots they can find. Requiring a minimum number of multi engine hours is therefore a common way to filter out applications at an early stage in the recruitment process. There may also be insurance reasons why companies require a minimum number of hours before they will consider you.

Benefits of Multi Time Building

The best way to view time building is to look at the experience you gain instead of the hours it will put in your logbook. While hours are always advantageous, and may give you an impressive resume, they won’t help you if you didn’t learn anything from your experience. Apart from the added complexity of flying a multi engine aircraft you will also gain experience flying over longer distances and in more challenging weather conditions. This is experience that will make you more attractive to a future employer. Adding some multi engine experience in your logbook may give you the competitive edge you need to get the job you want.

Who is it for?

The typical hour builder is a commercial pilot looking to compliment his or her flying experience in order to advance his/her career. It can be a flight instructor with a large number of hours in single engine aircraft or a low-time pilot wanting to get a competitive advantage in the job market.

A Few Things to Be Aware Of

Most companies who offer Multi Engine Time Building Programs offer packages in the same way you build single engine aircraft experience to become a single-engine commercial pilot and there is nothing wrong with renting an aircraft to gain additional experience. There are however a few things you should be cautious about.

Aircraft Used in Commercial Operations* – Beware if you are offered to buy flight hours in an aircraft that is used to fly commercially (charter flights, cargo drops or scheduled airline). Most countries have rules against pilots paying to fly an aircraft that is used in commercial operations. As tempting as it may seem, it may be illegal and you are occupying a pilot position that would otherwise be a paid job. The rule is – if the flight is commercial, the company should pay you and not the other way around.

Safety Pilot Experience – This is not an uncommon way to gain experience at a reduced rate by ‘sharing’ the cost with another pilot who in flight will be wearing a view-limiting device to practice instrument flying skills. It is a perfectly legal way to gain experience in the United States but some other countries may not recognize the hours flown while operating as the safety pilot. It is therefore best to check your country’s requirements if you plan to apply for a job outside the United States.

Co-pilot in a Single-Pilot Aircraft – Most light multi-engine aircraft, small turboprops and even some small jets do not require a co-pilot to operate. Though some operations in single-pilot aircraft may require a second pilot, it is most likely for Commercial Ops reasons (see above) and should therefore be fully investigated to ensure its legality or avoided.

*There are companies who offer 6-months or 1-year contracts with partner airlines after the completion of a Type Rating course on airline size aircraft. These are not paid-for hour building programs but low-paid ‘internships’ to allow the pilot to gain airline experience. Some airlines run these programs directly and you pay for the Type Rating, not the flight hours.