Clinton

If anybody could help me out that would be great thanks.

ive been doing tons of research since august last year and would like to get my training going ASAP but yet you forking out a lot of money its always best to first get an idea of what schools are out there and what qualifications you need to get accepted into an airline. got friends who are pilots for airlines and they told me even, to take the time know what the schools are about if they fully credited schools etc as theres a lot of schools out there that will promise you the world.

im a British citizen got zero hrs of flight training would like to become an airline pilot and was wondering by the professionals what is the best and quickest way, i know there might not be a quicker way but theres schools that you train for 2 years and others you train for 4 years. I've been looking into flight schools across Europe, America and Australia i tried a month ago to get into the flight school SFA in Brussels but missed the pass mark on the selection test to be accepted in the academy by one point sucks but owell no point crying over spilt milk. i can go back in 6 months and try again but id like to get started with training ASAP, no point on waiting around for one school when theres loads more out there just thing is you need to find the descent ones out there out of all the other thousands that you could be wasting your money on and get no where.

im somewhat pretty familiar with the industry in europe on what schools offer and what airlines are looking for im at the moment in the states and been in contact with some schools here and getting to know how it works here where you do minimal theory work but need to work on your flying hours and get 1000hrs before an airline here in the states will hire you compared to europe where a lot of schools do 750hrs of theory work and 250hrs of flight time and dont need to have a CFI rating and in the states they say you dont really need to have a frozen ATPL like in Europe, looking into australia its pretty similar with the states.

thing is im still just trying to figure things out properly and get the right facts.

so if anyone can tell me what qualifications you really need for an airline to accept you in the states and australia. i know some airlines ask different requirements like you need a 4 year college degree maybe need 1500 or 3500hrs etc but the important qualifications that one needs to be accepted. like i saw a school which had an air traffic control course part of the airline pilot training program so what does that help just more money to waste.

also ive heard here in the states that a lot of pilots once they graduate they go straight into the corporate jet businesses and flying private jets before they go into the airline industry is this true? i know in europe theres no chance you can go in the corporate industry instead you can go work for an airline as a FO in a 737,300 , as no insurance company will insure you or the corporate company with minimal hours flying a gulfstream or learjet etc unless you have connections like so much in life its not what you know but who you know.

plus does anyone know if they hiring pilots in Europe or is it still on hold?
are they hiring in America and Australia?

also does anyone know of any good schools that can get to where i want to be an airline pilot?. either in america, australia or europe. i know people tell me i have to ask myself where do i want to be based and flying really i dont care as long as im training in a great school and know im getting the best qualifications and i get to where i wanna be and flying.

these are the schools i been looking into in the states
https://www.deltaconnectionacademy.c...aditional.aspx
Become An Airline Pilot
ATP Flight School: Airline Career Pilot Program (From Zero Time — Includes Private)
Flight Training Department Home, Daytona Beach, Fla. campus Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University 4 year deal

and here is a school i looked into thats in Australia
About Airline Academy of Australia

Thanks for your time and really appreciate any help.

Take care

Grumble

First thing is first.... don't believe any flight school that tells you when you graduate you're going straight to work for an airline. It's total BS and designed to get you in the door and fork over all your cash.

You may have an advantage doing your training in the US with the exchange rate these days.

Some questions I would ask right from the get go:

How old are you
Do you have a college degree
Is the military (i.e. RAF an option)
Are you ready to fork over a giant sum of cash for a mediocre job with lousy starting pay, and no job security
Do you have a family/married

Twin Wasp

And in the the US, there's no such thing as a "frozen ATP." You have to have 1500 hours to take the written test.

First question would be where do you want to work? Different countries have different certificates (it's not really a license in the US.) So if you want to fly if the US, you need a US FAA certificate. If you want to fly in Europe, you're going to need to have a JAA (or whatever their name is this week) license. And of course if you want to work in the US, you're going to need the right to work in the US, if you want to work in Europe, you'll need European rights.

Spoilers

No you don't!

Clinton

thanks for your help guys

I'm 23
single/ no kids
British citizen
dont have college degree
tried the RAF in england but i haven't lived there for so long and i need to have already lived in england for more than 3 years to be accepted which i haven't lived that long in england so air force is out that was my first choice plus im turing 24 in a couple months so im already to old as RAF only take between 17 and 23 and 122 days old something stupid like that.


I been looking at delta academy they sound good and i been looking into PEA in dayton beach they offering similar things just hard to make a decision on which one should go to.i looked into embry riddle they are awesome but its a 4 year deal. thing i dont understand some schools say get your ppl and cpl with ME, MEI,CFI in 9 months and other schools are saying it will take 14-18 months so what is true?

australia ive spoken to some schools and they tell me i do the training and then once ive finished i go do bush flying or mail runs doesn't sound like fun etc if i want to work as an instructor i need to then go look for the instructing job, the school that i do my training at they dont take you after your training. weird.

i dont have an australian passport or a green card in america to be able to work for an airline but first is first i need to do the training and find the school that is worth going to i dont care where i work or be based as long as i know im getting the right training and not getting ripped off and know i can get to where i wanna be later on.

once ive got the right training then i can start worrying about where i wanna work. thing is in 2 years a lot can happen i can get married etc thing im hoping for is while im doing my training something comes up over in europe and they start hiring pilots and i just go back over to europe and try get with an airline instead of instructing the rest of the time in the US as in europe you dont really need to get hours.

i want to know what do i really need to be looking into a course eg MEI CPL PPL i guess if i work in europe later i can get the frozen ATPL anytime as it is not required in the US but it is In australia. etc
but can anyone tell me so i got a good idea of really what i need to be looking into a school and what to have on my CV when i finish my training. ive done tons of research but every school offers something different or has a course they trying to sell you to do saying you need this in order for an airline to want you etc. i just want to get my facts right.

plus does any one know about the Delta academy and PEA which one would be best? has anyone been to any of these?

also does anyone know if UVU in Utah is that also worth checking out?

plus are they hiring pilots in the US and Australia? or anywhere for that matter?

also what's up with the corporate side i hear especially in the US that people do the whole training, instruct and by the time they have 800hrs or so they start looking or flying for corporate jets and get the hours in that before they move up into the airline side. is this true? because in europe there is no chance of flying for a corporate company with less than 2500hrs they wont take you because of insurance reasons thats why people work for the airlines as they will hire you with 270hrs or more get the hours built up and then the pilot wants something different and new they then work for a corporate company.

thing is i want to get my training done, maybe by then they hiring pilots in europe and ill get my license converted so i can work in europe as they dont ask for many hours like in the US or Australia, if not then ill stay at the school i trained at and work as a flight instructor and get my hours up and maybe by then ill be married have my citizenship to work in america or Australia and the hours to work in an airline.

thanks again for all your help guys hope everyone had a great easter weekend im just trying to get my head around all of this and trying to understand the different ways and laws in other countries so i kinda understand what they mean in other parts of the world incase i end up working somewhere else later in life.

Clinton

thanks for your help guys its helping me along the way to making a right decision to where i should train. i under stand i cant work in the US as im not a citizen unless i get married but it is cheaper to get your license here than europe plus most academies in the US you dont need to take a selection test to see if you pass and get accepted.

so i was thinking of doing my training in the US get all the qualifications, if airlines in europe after that are still not hiring i would then stay and instruct and build my hours etc if they do start to hire by the time i end my training then i would convert my license to a JAA. but by the sounds of it, it sounds like a long process and expensive but isn't converting any license going to be expensive?
i can also do my training in south africa at Pilot Training School - Learn to Fly at 43 Air School, Port Alfred its cheap there but south africa isn't a big country longest flying you'll do maybe in a 737 if you get hired is 3 hours compared to other countries plus there aren't that many airlines there to choose from plus pay is crap as the currency sucks so you working for peanuts compared to what you earning overseas which dont get me wrong is peanuts also right now but im talking about exchange rate.
but from what i hear from other pilots getting training down there isn't considered top notch, so other airlines will not really accept you.

also say a pilot for iberia in spain decides to hand his CV in to Qantas would he be hired. lets just say hes got 10 years experience flying in the airlines, i understand he would be then put to the bottom of the food chain if he changed airlines and be starting from scratch due to seniority and converting his license. but i want to know would he be hired in australia even if he doesn't have a citizenship couldn't you get a work permit/working visa.? if he does get hired wouldn't the airlines pay for the conversion of his license? it sounds like airlines only hire their own country men/women. True or False?

people are saying its time consuming and expensive to convert licenses is that only to convert to a JAA?it pretty much sounds like it
but here is my idea do my training in the US get my ppl FAA and my CPL JAA and frozen ATPL allowing me to go over to europe to work without converting right? most courses have CFI integrated would i still be allowed to do that course during the 18 months of trainaing? incase no airlines are hiring once graduated or if theres no work over there then id stay in the US and instruct and build my hours.
can it be done this way?
any other ideas?

thanks again for your replies they very helpful and giving me a better insight and understanding into the industry in different areas.

safe flying

rickair7777

You need to get a 4-year degree if you want to have a shot at an airline career.


DCA has a bad reputation in the industry (high cost, low value).


The right training starts with a college degree...without that you are dead-in-the-water. flight schools will lie to you and tell you anything you want to hear so they can get your money.

You will need instructor ratings (CFI/CFII/MEI) if you want to start a career in the US.

I know some people who went there, none of them have anything bad to say...probably better than a big puppy mill like DCA or PEA.

Very few in the US, and you will need previous airline or military experience.

Getting a corporate job at 800 hours would be very unusual in the best of times. Times are bad right now...pilots with thousands of hours in corporate jets cannot get a job. The only way to get a corporate job in the US right now is to already have one.

Grumble

This can't be stressed enough. Flight schools will tell you whatever you want to hear to get you in the door. It's like a guy telling a girl he loves her, just to get her in bed. You're the chick, every flight school is trying to [sleep with] you.

As far as timeline, a reasonable expectation from zero time to a commercial licence is about a year, assuming you're training full time.

Your biggest hurdle right now, like everyone else has said, is that college degree. Without it everything else is a waste of time/money. UVU or another accredited school, where you can fly on the side is your fastest route. ERAU is the most expensive of thsoe.

Clinton

yea i understand thats whats worrying me i want to know that im getting my moneys worth and getting the ratings that i need to get to where i want to be.

but can anybody tell me im still confused on the examination side so ppl=7 exams atpl =14 exams but how many cpl exams are there?

rickair7777

That sounds like JAA or CAA.

In the US, there is only one (easy) written for each written. The ATP is harder than the rest, but its more of a pain-in-the-ass than an academic challenge.