I fancy that!!!

[D J Bentley]

Flying on my holidays recently, and I noticed when the stewardess went in to the cab with a couple of drinks for the pilots that they were sitting with their feet on the dash, reading the newspaper!!
Is it really that easy a job?

If that's what they get paid for, then it might be worth trying!! Seems a doddle!!

So, question is, how easy is the training, where can I do it, and are jobs easy to come by now Sept 11th has receded into the backs of people's minds?

Cheers,

DJB

:cool:

[scroggs]

Yep, that's what I do for a living. It's money for old rope, piece of p*ss to get into, and you sound like the ideal candidate for the job.

:}

[Charlie Zulu]

Hi DJB,

To get into the flight deck you require something called a CPL/IR at a minimum with ATPL Theoretical Knowledge otherwise known as a "frozen ATPL".

There are many ways to go about gaining the licence but the two main routes are as follows:

1) Integrated Training Course
2) Modular Training Course

The integrated training course takes you ab-initio from no previous knowledge / flying skills to a CPL/IR fATPL with around 250 hours total time in around 70 weeks duration. It is very expensive, look at around £70,000 from start to finish.

The modular training course takes a little longer (normally) but you pay as you go and can mix and match where you carry out each stage of your training.

The route goes something like this:

1) Private Pilots Course

2) Hour Building - Ie fly 100 hours as you require 150 Hours to start your Commercial Flying Course.

3) ATPL Theoretical Modular course. Either residential or distance learning. Do not underestimate the amount of work involved. Over the two modules you'll have 7 exams in each (14 in total). You can carry out the studying while hour building.

4) Commercial Flight Training Course.

5) Instrument Rating Course (on a Multi Engine Aeroplane - the expensive bit).

6) Multi Crew Co-Operation / Crew Resource Management Course

You'll probably end up with about 250 hours with the modular route as well. BUT it normally works out cheaper this way as compared to the integrated option. But you still need to budget for £30,000 to £40,000 to complete the training.

Then you'll have to try and find a job with the thousands of other qualified pilots (many of them with thousands of hours on jet aircraft who were made redundant after Sep 11). So you're probably want to get yourself a Flight Instructors rating as well so you can at least fly and get paid for it. But even flight instructor jobs are hard to come by because most other qualified people are doing the same! ;-)

As for airlines sponsoring prospective pilots... forget it since 11/9. Even BA who recruited 100 cadets or so a year for sponsorship have stopped doing so.

I'm not even going to comment on the "is it really that easy?" question. Work it out for yourself.

Best of luck,

Charlie Zulu

[witchdoctor]

Complete tosh,

I got my job reading papers and chasing hosties round the FMS just by hanging round bars. Got talking to one old duffer and after a few beers invited me out to the airfield for a quick bash round in his 737, thought I did OK and asked me to come and work for him.

Licence shmisence! Nobody really has a licence. It's just propaganda by the FTO's.

And yeah, loads of jobs if you know what pubs to hand round in, know what I mean.;)

[Tonic Please]

You flew about in a 737 from some airfield? Is doing that very common? If I give you my details, can you introduce me to that guy at the bar? I'll buy him a few drinks, sit in the Bird, and go for a spin on my 90 hour PPL with moderate knowledge of Boeing systems.

Sarcasm? By all means NO! I am merely following a route which appears to work :}

Smooth skies,
Dan

[Flypuppy]

Witch doctor, you just did a bit of poleing around in a 737? Once you get out of those light twins pop over to my place. The Chief Pilot liked the look of my shiny shoes and told me to get down to the sim as they were short of a pilot on the next New York flight.

20 minutes in the 747-400 sim and I was ready for doing the Daily Telegraph crossword and the hot and cold running hosties. Still couldn't figure out 12 across though. The 2 weeks in Bermuda to recover from the flying was acceptable, although the hotel mini-bar didn't stock Krug Grand Cuvée.

What sort of newspapers do you read on the 737? Is it just the lightweight tabloids? Smaller cockpit I would guess so you can't read the broadsheets eh?

:ok: ;) :p :D

Brightened my day anyway.....

[Easy Glider]

D J BENTLEY,

That was undeniably one of the best posts I have ever read on here. Really made me chuckle. Nice one mate.

I think we've been rumbled guys!!!

[carbonfibre]

Hey Fly puppy

I got the same routeing except i got stuck on 4 down on the crossword, not used to the telegraph crossword, dont usually get passed page 3 in the sun, my Instrument scan is greatly improved on that page

:cool: :ok:

[expedite_climb]

DJ B - did you notice the little white clips on some of the instruments ?

Pilots they are for reminding them about what speed to fly, but they arent really, they are all so clever they just know the speed. That way they can use the clips to hold upto 7 previous days page3 girls.

Many use double sided tape to stick a pic of their kids to the console, in case they nearly crash. I dont do that anymore as I spill my coffee too much.

Mind you those foot rests are bloody comfy.

[Watchoutbelow]

For gods sake lads, stop giving the game away!

How are FTO's supposed to get business if people find out that its all about who you know down in the pub?

Keep it to yourselves otherwise the business will become flooded with newly qualifieds with no good prospects of getting work in no time.


Ooops too late.

[Snigs]

Now I know why I didn't get the job, I pitched up to the interview, put my feet up on the desk and pulled out Lord of the Rings and started reading. If only I'd have known it should have been the Telegraph

:{

[wobblyprop]

i suppose the revelation that mine came off the back of a coco pops pack should be kept very quite :p

[Northern Highflyer]

Not forgetting to use the wx radar to pick up Sky Sports and watch it on one of the telly screens in front of you.

[witchdoctor]

I'm a bit miffed now. Apparently if I hadn't been in such a hurry to leg it off into a 737, only 30 minutes later and I would have been given the chance of a LHS position on Concorde. Admittedly it would only be a short-term contract, but made a bit sweeter by moving on to test pilot the A380 with a bit of whizzing about in the JSF at weekends.

Humph!!!!:*

[BN2A]

Welcom to PPTruNe - The Professional Pilot's Truth Network.

:uhoh: :ooh: :uhoh: :ooh: :uhoh:

[batty]

Bloody hell if they were reading they must have been the realy inteligent pilots....I just look at the pictures...;)

[carbonfibre]

NH

Sky sports, which airline is that they must have a good subscription package, we can only get BBC1 and 2, we have asteroids on there too, well until they explained it was a TCAS thingy

:ok:

[topper2]

Oh, I thought it was a screen saver for those long periods of inactivity! :confused:

[batty]

Ever thought of getting FS2003? Could always load it up in the cruise...they say its very realistic you know....Airbus kindly provide a joystick as well !!