Rob Finklea Associate in Science, Professional Pilot Technology Florida Community College, Class of 2001

A Non-Stop Destination to Success

Rob Finklea
Associate in Science, Professional Pilot Technology
Florida Community College, Class of 2001

It takes Rob Finklea roughly two hours to get to work from his home in Jacksonville. That might sound like a tough commute, but when your job’s in Houston, Texas, it’s not bad at all. Rob is a pilot for ExpressJet, a regional airline based in Houston, but he enjoys living in Jacksonville and being close to his family. “I’ve actually lived in the same house since I was born and my parents still live there today,” he says. “I’m one of three sons to the best parents children could ask for.”

Rob wouldn’t swear on the exact date he first became fascinated by airplanes and helicopters, but he’s pretty sure it all began at the Boy Scout event “Scout World” at the naval air station in Jacksonville (NAS Jax) when he was seven. “I was absolutely amazed at all of the aircraft and pilots. My mother still reminds me to this day that she had to drag me out of the cockpits because of the other kids in line wanting a chance to sit in them too. I think that’s where my love for it began.”

When Rob graduated from high school, his parents gave him a firm choice; if he wanted to continue living rent-free, he had to get a full-time job or go to college. He chose college. “I decided that working smart instead working hard was the thing for me,” he says. Flipping through the pages of a Florida Community College catalog, he spotted an A.S. degree called Professional Pilot Technology. “I was intrigued that I could become a professional pilot without being in the military,” Rob says. “I had always associated those two; I just assumed that all pilots were military or retired military.”

While taking classes at FCCJ, Rob went through flight training with a private company (the College did not yet have its current contract with Sterling Flight Training). After graduating with his A.S. degree in 2001, he transferred to the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT), where he completed his training and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Aviation Management in 2004. “FCCJ prepared me well for FIT, and I believe they accepted almost all of my transfer credits,” Rob says.

His first job out of college was as a flight instructor and corporate pilot for Flightline Group, Inc. in Tallahassee. It was the hours flying as an instructor (about 900 in all) that qualified him for his next job. Last year, Rob was hired by ExpressJet Airline, Inc., which has provided regional flights for both Continental Express and Delta Connection for several years and is now flying under its own name.

“We’re trying to do what no other regional airline has been able to do — to go out on our own and be successful,” Rob says. “I think we’ll be the first!” ExpressJet Airlines recently started service out of Jacksonville to five destinations non-stop, including New Orleans and Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. Rob holds the position of First Officer and shares equal flying time with the flight captain.

“I truly love my job,” Rob says. “I will be upgrading to captain in May 2008, so only a year to go. My long-term goal is to fly for FedEx some day, and I believe I will achieve that.”