Where is the Best for commercial training in usa?

[robclay26]

Hi all,
Just looking for some help and advice. I'm from ireland and hope in "the fall" to head to the states to get my commercial licence. i will have before i go, an irish ppl (m) microlight mtow = 450kg and i also have a current/valid faa class 1 unrestricted medical/student licence. I can't do the Jaa course, i failed the medical in ireland, and out side europe is my only hope.
I would like to hear from anybody that has gone through flight training in america, whats school they recomend, prices, what the schools where like, inhouse
accommodation.
I have been looking at the Delta flight acd. in florida, seems quite good. also looked at Jet university.
if anybody could come back to me with any help, i would be delighted!
thanks for you help and time
Rob
e-mail
[email protected] ([email protected])

[cirruscrystal]

I was at EAA european american aviation innaples last year and cant recomend them highly enough. Excellent instructors, brand new diamonds with garmin 1000s ready to enter direct to the airlines as closest to turbine as you can get - liquid cooled da42s.

http://www.eaa-fly.com

:ok:

[231153]

I recently completed my flight training at Flight Safety Academy in Vero Beach Florida. Florida is definitely a beautiful place to learn to fly. The ground school staff were top class & I found the flight instructors to be very good. There were only a few days that we were unable to fly due to weather which was fantastic, it meant that I was able to accumulate a lot of hours in only a short period of time. Good luck with your training whichever school you choose.

[robclay26]

Hi, thanks for reply and help.
I am considering Eaa for my FAA training, What was the accommidation like and was food included in price?
Did you do the full course from zero to commercial licence?
How did you find the training? I don;t know alot about FAA training, im from Ireland and know the JAA system but can;t do JAA commercial, they won;t give me a medical! I have my class 1 FAA medical!
How many exams/subject are there? I have lots of experence from aircaft maintenance here in ireland and also will have a ppl by june.
would love to hear back from u,
thanks for help again
Robbie

[Wilton Shagpile]

Hi Rob, I'm not really 100% sure on what exactly these large aviation schools can do for you, but I guess they work on the principle that if they can stream you into a job after "graduation" then they can charge high fees.

This is a sound model but if you don't have the right to work in the US, then it won't work for you as they can't (won't) employ you unless you get lucky and find one willing to sponsor a visa. There are loads of threads on this very topic and I think that the chances of that happening are almost zero.

If you just want to get your FAA certificates and try your luck in JAA land then I think you're going to struggle without loads of hours or a bizjet rating. If you are keen to try (and nothing ventured, nothing gained I suppose) then I would suggest doing it as CHEAPLY as possible as I think it is highly unlikely that you will be any more marketable with A CPL/IR from a large school than from a small one. I just think you'll struggle to get work whichever school you use so to minimise the risk I would do it on the cheap in case it doesn't work out for you and you waste loads of money.

FAA training is prety cheap compared to JAA and I would just look for a nice small school with plenty of aeroplanes. Most US schools can offer training for the CPL and IR as well as all the PPL stuff.

I once revalidated my FAA PPL with a guy at Denham. He was instructing (I believe) just on FAA certificates so that might be a way to get some hours over here. I guess there are quite a few PPLs operating solely on an FAA licence so they will need BFRs etc.

Anyway, good luck with it if you decide to proceed. It will be a tougher road for you than most I guess but I wish you well!!

[B2N2]

FAA ratings (Approx $100.000.00).

It's not that expensive......
Euro to the dollar is pretty favourable right now.

[phantomcruiser07]

Flight safety academy is most likely the best for commercial flight training in US, I herd tehy also got plan to open more bases in UK, anyone got update?

[thepotato232]

First of all, as Malc4d said, be very careful about committing to this course of action if you do not have the right to work in the US. Whatever you may have heard about a pilot 'shortage' here, it hasn't caused any of the regional employers to start sponsoring visas. Second, having dealt with several disgruntled former Delta Flight Academy students, I would humbly suggest you avoid that place like the plague. I have yet to hear anything good about them. Flight Safety is probably the biggest player in the US training arena, and my current airline outsources most of their training to them.

My biggest piece of advice is not to get sucked in by the highest-priced operations out there with promises of glass cockpits and 'guaranteed' job offers. I did every bit of my initial flight training at the cheapest FBO I could find and flew the old steam gauges until I got my second airline job. I'm richer for the experience in more ways than one. Glass just isn't as scary as people make it out to be, so there's no need to pay a ton of extra cash for a brand new Diamond Star from day one unless you've just got more cash than you know what to do with.

In answer to your question about the exams - the federally mandated written exams are a joke. Go over the test bank a bit in your off time and you'll be fine. The ab initio programs you're looking at will no doubt have their own stage check exams, but they're not in place to weed anyone out. A checkride is a checkride, however, and you'll need one for your private, instrument, commercial, ME, CFI, CFI-I, MEI and (eventually) ATP.

[jonjam]

Surely you can convert though right?

Or do the eurpean airlines looks less favourably upon Faa qulaifications converted into JAA?