Becoming an airliner pilot.

[Bilal2104 213]

Hello friends,

 

I will start of by saying sorry if this is in the wrong forum. Since my step dad has come into my life he has introduced me to flight simulation at the age of 10 since then I've done more then 2000 hours flying non stop and it has been my dream to be and airliner pilot :). I'm currently 17 years old at college and if it helps my gcse weren't bad managed to get a B in both maths and English if that helps. What I'm wondering is where do I go after I finish college ( 1 more year left). I've logged a few hours toward my ppl at my flying club. I have done a lot of research but still quite baffled on what to do next. Please can somebody advice me on the next steps on what to do.

 

Many thanks and have a good day. Bilal

[Tui737 22]

Hi

There are many ways to become an airline pilot. The industry has changed over the years & continues to change as the demand for pilots changes acoording to growth & the airline economy & World trade.

 

In the UK there was a time when nearly all the pilots were ex-military. Demand for pilots grew as a result of low cost holiday companies & greater number of business travelers increased & the airlines moved towards the civilian pilot as a way to fill the demand.

 

In my younger days, the route for most was to build hours usually by becoming a flight instructor until you had around 500-700hrs flying time by which time the airlines would show an interest. Sometimes, an airline would sponsor the course or qurantee a position once qualified.

 

Then there came a shift towards flying colleges. You sat an entrance exam, paid your money & left with a CPL/ATPL. Many UK students went overseas to places like Florida where a CPL/ATPL courses were much cheaper & the weather almost assured that the course would complete to a dead line. This used to mean taking another course back in the UK as most airlines did not accept FAA courses. This has been overcome nowadays because many USA flying schools & colleges are run by or for the UK student.

 

Another way is to go to college & gain your CPL, leaving with around 200hrs & getting a job as a bush pilot. This is a tough way to do it but many have & are doing it this way as I write.

 

I'm not up to date on how things are right now but one piece of advice I would give is to wright to different operators & ask how they recruit pilots. Show particular interest in their company & keep all replies- these are useful in future interviews & shows your long term interest in their company, it might give you the edge over other applicants.

 

I'm sure you will get many replies to your post & I hope that your desire to be an airline pilot is realised.

 

Best wishes.

[SpeedBird20 0]

To get to the right seat as a First Officer you need a Frozen ATPL (Air Transport Pilot's License) which consists of a PPL ME/IR (Private Pilot's License with a Instrument rating, allowing you to fly in poor weather conditions essentially, and a night rating allowing you to fly at night, along with 150 hours of flying on the PPL).

 

Then you need a Multi-Engine rating, allowing you to fly twin props etc.

 

After that, you need the CPL ME/IR (Commercial Pilot's license with instrument and night rating, which will be flying a light twin prop such as the PA34 Seneca or Beech baron).

 

Then you need to complete the ATPL theory exams and complete a MCC, or Multi Crew Co-operation course (for working with crew members efficiently) and Jet orientation course (JOC). Finally you need a type rating to fly a specific aircraft in line service.

 

To summarize fairly basically, you need.

 

PPL ME/IR

CPL ME/IR

ATPL Theory

MCC + JOC

Type rating

 

After completing the whole course you don't receive an ATPL license, but the combination of licenses is a 'Frozen' ATPL. To become a Captain in the left seat you need to have the ATPL 'unfrozen' by having 1,500 hours flight time, which is gained through flying in line service, and usually the company will give you the option of upgrading to Captain if the position is available.

 

To get the frozen ATPL you need to go through a flight training organization (FTO), for example, Oxford Aviation, FTE Jerez or CTC (these are just a few examples).

 

In order to get on an fATPL course the FTO will usually put you through a series of assessments, usually an aptitude test, hand-eye co-ordination, and teamwork exercises etc. This is to see if you can pass the course the school will put you through.

 

For an fATPL you need to be at least 18 years old, and to unfreeze the ATPL you need to be 21.

 

The course usually lasts about 18 months.

 

Funding for an fATPL course is very expensive, anywhere from £60,000 to in excess of £100,000, and funding will have to generated yourself, unless you can find a sponsorship program where an airline funds all or part of the costs. However, since 911 the number of sponsorship programs has dropped drastically.

 

The qualifications you need to start the fATPL course are usually 5 GCSE's A*-C, but they are dependent on the training provider and are not industry specific. For example, to join some sponsorship programs you need 7 GCSE's A*-C with at least 3 A-levels BBC.

 

This is just a basic summary really and things might be slightly different, however you do need an fATPL from an FTO. Take a look at Oxford Aviation's APP first Officer course

 

http://www.oaa.com/p...e_structure.php

 

Once you've got an fATPL you can apply to a First Officer position within an airline.

 

Though I'd be of help!

[japascoe 98]

Since you mention GCSE I'm guessing you're in the UK?

Have you tried looking at the BA future pilot programme website: http://www.bafuturepilot.com/the-programme/, they also link to some flying schools that I think also train non-BA pilots.

Flybe also has a program for future pilots: https://www.flybe.com/en/corporate/careers/pilot_training.htm

I'm sure you could check more airline websites for more information.

[PIC007 82]

What country are you in?

[Bilal2104 213]

Uk sir :)

[PIC007 82]

Uk sir :)

 

I'm in the US so not much help for you, sorry. That is unless you decide to come to the US for training, which a lot do since it's much cheaper than Europe

 

Heres a link that might provide some information for you..

http://www.airlinepilotforums.com/

[Bilal2104 213]

mny thanks pic007 for the suggestion i will look into it. btw does doing a btec differ anything in aviation. even tho you have done maths

 

many thanks

[PIC007 82]

mny thanks pic007 for the suggestion i will look into it. btw does doing a btec differ anything in aviation. even tho you have done maths

 

many thanks

 

I'm not sure what you are referring to... 'btec'?

[Bilal2104 213]

oh sorry sir this only applies to students studying in uk. :)

[PIC007 82]

oh sorry sir this only applies to students studying in uk. :)

 

Roger! What I can tell you is that flying / learning in the US costs less than 1/2 what it does in the UK, from what little I know/read about aviation in the UK.

 

If the FAA charged what they do over there, there would be a second revolution :-)

[Bilal2104 213]

hmm im concidering just saving up btw sir do you know roughley the amount it will cost in dollars.

 

many thanks.

[PIC007 82]

You have a lofty goal, if you are specifically looking to fly for an airline. There are many routes to take to get there, the cheapest is to get a 4 year degree and join the military. If you qualify the gov pays for your flight training then after you fill your commitment you can transition to the airlines.

 

If you go the civilian route, you still should have that 4 year degree. and to be honest, it really doesnt matter what degree you have anymore. There are schools that specialize in aviation, mine was Embry Riddle. They used to have just 2 campuses but now they are pretty much world wide. You are at the age that is perfect for something like that.

 

Otherwise there are flight schools that will take you from 0 time to ATP like American Flyers, etc. Some airlines accept those. some arent too keen on them. Things have changed a bit here now after the fiasco with the Colgan Air crash in Buffalo, so I would do plenty of research by checking with air carriers and posting in the link I gave you, lots of good info there.

 

Money wise its hard to give a number because there are so many vaiables, but a ballpark figure for just getting a commercial/ multiengine/ instrument ticket would be in the $50k-$60k range depending on where you trained, and thats just for the flight time. Flying aint cheap! And once you get a job it doesnt pay well until you have been there for a few years, so bear that in mind.

[Bilal2104 213]

pic007 thank you very much sir for the advice and 50-60k is cheap in uk were paying about 110-130k, big price difference. i most probably will go the civillian route friend. btw you mentioned 4 year degree i know this may sound silly but could you tell me what its called becasue maybe they might do it in london.

 

mant thanks

[PIC007 82]

2 years= Associates

4 years= Bachelors

 

You can get by with a 2 year, or in some cases none, but for the major airlines, 4 year degee is preferered