Long hours, early show and friendly pilots - Pilot In Command Tradewind Aviation Employee Review

5.0
Jul 22, 2020
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- You will get a ton of hours quickly. - Summertime is insane, but winter is fairly easy, as you barely fly. - Your fellow pilots are the best and they become your family after so many long days flying. - The salary is not bad, better than CFI and sometimes better than first year at the airlines. - Paid training - Training is hard, it is not like a walk in the park. Comparing with the training at the airlines, TW is no joke, so if you don't like to study, don't even apply at TW. The pilots that come out of training are fully qualified and I flew with a lot of fresh pilots and they were all solid. (eventually, we get one pilot that kind s**ks, but they get weed out quickly)

Cons

- Some shenanigans around the pilot contract, which is heavily bias on the company side, however, you sign it if you want it. Unfortunately, I signed and I fulfill the contract before leaving the company. Don't fool yourself, when you sign the contract they expect you to stay around 2 years with the company (SIC time + pic time , etc.) - It is a single-engine airplane when you interview for airlines, they see the Pilatus the same way they see you flying a C172, "single engine land". - There is no real career progression, and the first crisis, you are in line to be fire. - Expect to do everything, from fueling the airplane, to clean the airplane, restock the cooler, check in passengers, carry bags around, be the company face out there, etc. You may think that the vast majority of things that you do is not a pilot job, but that's the name of the game. - Overnight hotels are the cheapest that they can find. Also, good luck finding food with the $15 overnight per diem in Nantucket. - They will min rest you as much as they can, also, the rest starts at the time you land, so 8hours of "rest" is brutal after a couple nights doing it. Takes a long toll in your health.

Explore other reviews about Tradewind Aviation

5.0
Aug 13, 2025
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Tradewind is a great employer that offers tons of benefits and monthly lunch for all employees. All the people are super friendly and easy to get along with. Great work/life balance.

Cons

None so far as I have only been employed a few months. Feels like a startup culture which is great but growing very fast.

1.0
Jun 10, 2025
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Unfortunately, I struggled to find any meaningful positives during my time with the company. While every workplace has its challenges, this environment made it difficult to identify any truly beneficial aspects worth highlighting.

Cons

There was a lack of consistency in communication—expectations and directives changed daily. The company often made promises during recruitment that didn’t reflect the reality of the job. There is a noticeable culture of favoritism and nepotism, where advancement seems to be based more on personal connections than on merit or performance. Concessions and preferential treatment are routinely made for certain individuals. Ethical standards are questionable at best, and several practices could raise serious concerns if ever reviewed by agencies like the Department of Labor or the EEOC. Unfortunately, while this should be motivation to implement necessary changes, there seems to be little interest in genuine accountability.

1
avatar
Tradewind Aviation Response
1y
Thank you for your feedback; we value all team member input. Your note is very important to us, and we wish you the best in your career.
See reviews by: Helpful|Rating|Date|All