My First Airline Pilot Job Interview

A First Airline Pilot Job Interview That Changed Everything

This first airline pilot job interview story begins before I ever set foot in a Pan Am cockpit. Like many pilots of my generation, I paid for my own training — with the GI Bill covering much of it — and worked as a flight instructor to build hours. That stepping stone eventually brought me face-to-face with a Chief Pilot who had one simple question: “Do you want the fricking job?”

Zantop C-46

From Flight School to Opportunity

After earning my Commercial, Instrument, and Flight Instructor ratings, I taught flying in Detroit, across the hangar from Zantop Airlines — a cargo carrier hauling automobile parts. When I had enough hours, I applied to Zantop and was told they’d be hiring soon.

One day, the call came: report for an interview!

The Interview

The Zantop Chief Pilot asked:

Q: “What are you looking for in a job?”

A: “Job security.”

Q: “What do you mean by job security?”

A: “Year-round work without being laid off twice a year.”

His reply was direct: “You’re hired. Now here’s what you need to do…”

The Ultimatum

He told me to:

1. Go downstairs and get on the airplane for three takeoffs and landings.

2. Come back for two hours of ground school.

3. Report at 9:00 p.m. for an 11:00 p.m. flight to St. Louis.
   

I hesitated, explaining I had a student scheduled in two hours. His answer was blunt:

“Do you want the fricking job? Then get your ass on that airplane, or I won’t hire you.”

I needed the job, so I called a fellow instructor to take my student. The flight school wasn’t thrilled, but they understood and remained supportive.

Working for Zantop

Zantop was run by three hard-working brothers who built the company from five leased C-46 aircraft to a fleet of C-46s, DC-4s, DC-6s, and the Argosy AW650. I would later make a belly landing in an AW650 — a story for another blog. Zantop eventually became a major military cargo contractor, hauling for the Logistics Air Command (Logair).

The Path to Pan Am

That first airline job was a critical step in my career. Seven years later, I was hired by Pan Am, where I spent 28 years as an international airline pilot.

If you enjoyed this Pan Am first airline pilot job interview story, see my other posts. And visit my other blog pages for more stories from the cockpit.