Very nice Mark! Congrats Kyle, it goes without saying that you're a natural choice here (there).

Congrats Kyle!

 

I think you will be an perfect fit to the PMDG team. 

Nice addition Robert B)

Congrats Kyle!

 

Well done Kyle and Good Luck

When Paul and I sat down (in candor: we actually stood in the door of the hangar sipping rum and coke and watching the sun set while we were talking...

So that's the reason Kyle was hired :He He:  (sorry couldn't resist Robert B))

 

Congrats!!  The Care Bears & Rainbows are just a distant memory now.  I've always thought Kyle was a perfect fit for the PMDG team and now it's official.  Maybe Kyle can afford that million dollar townhouse in Alexandria after all

Thanks everyone!

 

I'm honestly surprised this made it to 3 pages, and I really do appreciate the kind words despite being known as somewhat of a thick-skinned...well...you get the idea.

 

 

 

While I'd love to answer all of these individually, I saw this one and wanted to explain, as, despite being here for ages, a lot of people don't know what I've been doing away from the forum. Since RSR alluded to my background as well, I figured I'd explain a bit:

 

 

 

Just out of curiosity I was wondering what your plans were with a possible career in aviation?

 

I've actually been in the aviation industry for quite some time.

 

[Long post follows - there's a TL;DR at the bottom =P ]

 

While still at university, I took a position with Atlantic Coast Airlines (ACA) as it was becoming Independence Air (IDE) at IAD. It was there that I learned a lot about ramp operations, for a regional / low cost carrier at least. ACA, for those who recognize the name, was where RSR flew the JS41, though neither of us knew each other at the time.

 

A few years later, as a university intern, I spent a little time as an aviation/airport planner, working on projects for various airports on the East Coast. This is where a lot of the approach/charting knowledge comes from, as planners/engineers are required to design airports and adjust the environment around it to meet the various TERPS Surface requirements of the FAA. TERPS Surfaces define the various clearspaces required to accommodate margins of error for approaches (and protect signals from interference, and all of that stuff).

 

[i got my PPL somewhere in here - 14 April 2007]

[This is also where I picked up a bunch of law knowledge. I'm no lawyer, but I did study it as part of my degree. It certainly helps with interpreting the regs.]

 

After university, I went to work for a United Express (UAX) ground handling carrier at IAD as a rampie again as a "summer job" (though they didn't know that) before heading off to what I thought would be pilot school. I picked up a lot about the variation between carriers in terms of SOPs (UAX at the time was made up of at least five carriers), and even more about the politics of it all. If you ever see an "aviation isn't as rigid as you'd think" it usually has its roots here.

 

I left there when I moved to Phoenix (DVT, specifically) to go to a pilot academy. The economy was poor at the time, and the loan company started picking up on the fact that they were loaning about $100K to people for pilot training, but the income level of those who finished was pretty poor, which made for a poor investment in their minds. So, aviation lending got closed up and I never ended up going to get my ratings/licenses there. To rub a little salt in that wound, the only job I could find was fueling the flight school's planes with one of the FBOs. I did learn about fueling (something I never had to deal with at the IAD jobs) and corporate aviation, though. I worked their PHX location a couple times, too, which had a lot more corporate than GA.

 

From there, I moved inside as a dispatcher for the flight school. While this wasn't a position that required the FAA Dispatcher License, it did give me an opportunity to see how flight schools worked. Plus, since I had to work the night shift, I spent a lot of time researching the regs to answer my own questions out of sheer boredom. It was about this time that I applied to be an Air Traffic Controller as well. As part of that I spent some of the nights combing through ATC info (and occasionally watching Netflix...shhh).

 

When I got back to VA, I took a position back at the UAX carrier on a supervisor level. It didn't offer me much more knowledge/experience other than seeing things a little more from a management level instead of down in the weeds. The ATC process continued and I ended up getting dropped at about the time we selected our geographical preferences (the lady I talked to said my application got lost in the mix).

 

A little later (after taking a break from aviation to go teach computer/tech classes), I took a position helping the FAA with some NextGen initiatives. That brought more SID/STAR/Approach knowledge into the mix, along with ATC/TM, and airline decision-making strategies (if any of you saw the video I did about understanding delays, it's dripping with all of that stuff. That was a really cool job, because it gave me a ton of knowledge about how the "system" works, and how it's actually more airline-driven than you'd think.

 

 

 

Since then, I've been out of the industry with the exception of participating here and flying myself around. I also reapplied to the ATC process back in February and I got a tentative offer letter for that, along with a pretty intense background investigation. I'm keeping passively involved in that until I get more information from them. I do have a few other options on the table, back in aviation, that seem a little more interesting to me, but we'll see.

 

 

 

TL;DR: I apparently decided that the most circuitous route into aviation was an awesome idea, and combined it with some computer skills.

 

 

 

Maybe Kyle can afford that million dollar townhouse in Alexandria after all

 

haha - yeah, maybe I'll finally catch up to my little brother in that regard (just got himself a place in that area).

 

 

"If you're not first, you're last!"

Shake n' Bake!

Congrats KR...well-deserved buddy!

Congrats KR...well-deserved buddy!

 

Thanks MF!

 

At first, I was like "who is using my OI on the forum?" and then I looked at the signature...

Congrats man! Now you can tell people to read the manual on a whole new level! 

        

 

 

Now let's get the party started....where are the ladies and the drinks?!  

Congrats Kyle!

A good selection. You should be proud and feel honored that PMDG has selected you.

Well done Kyle and well done PMDG, this is a rare case in life when it's a win-win situation for both sides. 

Congratulations Kyle

 

I've learned a lot from you over the years. Enjoy the ride!

 

Rob Marton

Congratulations Kyle

 

I've learned a lot from you over the years. Enjoy the ride!

 

Rob Marton