UK, Australia or Norway????

[mractive]

Hi, iv had a search and haven't found what i'm after i hope you guys can help me?

I Am looking to get fully qualified so i can progress into a career in an airline eventually (not another one on the bandwagon). I currently do not have a ppl so will require training from virtually scratch.

i have considered the oxford ctc route but it just doesn't seem to add up money wise and having to relocate.

Iv narrowed my choices down to 3 options but am more than open to other ideas

1. Shoreham flying time. visited the guys down there and i really liked the feel of the place. Nice and small and feels like id be less of a number and more of a respected client. its also 15mins from me which helps with accommodation costs.

2. Study in Australia, Preferably Brisbane. (lived there before and loved it)
Airline Academy of Australia - Qantas approved Commercial Flight Training Organisation. (http://airlineacademy.com.au/) anyone got any experience of these guys? I personally do not want to relocate in the UK if i am to relocate it will be abroad as to be honest id rather be in the sun.

3. NEARS NEAR - Pilot education - Home (http://www.nearas.no/default.asp?menu=19)
This course looks very attractive however my only note of caution is the amount of time involved GF will locate with me but only for a year id say, Also are the flying hours accumulated on this course directly useful to a career in an airline?

any advice on these options will be great.

just so you know a bit of background info i have a degree in Architectural Technology, 2 years professional experience as an assistant architect and also have a BTEC nat dip in Mechanical and Electrical Engineering. Im 25 and have the funds available to cover my studies.

[mractive]

additionally do you have to state where you got your licenses from to an employer and also would this have any bearing on employment? for example would the Shoreham course be looked more favorably upon when compared to a jaa course done abroad i.e USA etc or a converted license.

many thanks

[rodrigues]

I would stay well away from the Airline Academy of Australia (AAA). Feel free to PM me for justification of this.

The first warning bell should sound when you realise you're paying for everything up front with this mob.

[LH2]

AFAIK NEAR only offer the groundschool bit, then you're supposed to get on a plane to the States and do all the flying with a U.S. school, then I don't really know how, you end up with a Norwegian licence.

If it were me, and assuming you are in the UK, I would just find somewhere close to where I live and do it there on my spare time.

Matter of fact, you said you live 15 min from Shoreham and you liked the place... well, get your licences there then!

additionally do you have to state where you got your licenses from

No, it doesn't matter a bugger.

[mractive]

ok i c, i think i might give Shoreham another visit and check out some of the other schools there first, see which is best for me.

At the minute im thinking of staying local, can anyone let me know if its feasible to study for my fATPL (modular) and do a Masters in Project Management in Construction (Sept to Sept, one year course). I already have a degree in a similar field and found i had a hell of a lot of spare time when i was doing this, from what i hear the masters course is run on 2-3 days a week and only really gets intensive for part of the course.

let me know if u think im biting off more than i can chew, but id like to cover as many bases as possible and hopefully by the end of the studies il be able to have two solid career paths. so theoretically i should always be employable.

[Aerouk]

I would watch out with Norway, great country but bloody expensive!

[LH2]

but bloody expensive!

Not really, unless you're a local then you get screwed with taxes. Otherwise, by now the rest of Europe has pretty much caught up with them price-wise.

Of course being tee-total helps :)

[bfisk]

NEAR does provide the flight training as well, and they do arrange all the paperwork (as far as possible) for you, so it's a one-stop-shop. They do however subcontract all the actual flying, as they have no airplanes themselves. I went there when they partnered with NAIA in Conway, SC, and it worked out pretty good (for me anyways) until NAIA went out of business. As far as I understand NEAR has been pretty successful transferring the whole ordeal to somewhere in Florida.

@thread starter: if there's a local establishment near you I would strongly consider it, unless there is a point in it self, moving away.

Also, it seems to me that during interviews, you might discuss how/where you got your liscences, but it seemed rather irrelevant compared to your experience/total time/personal character/other traits. I suppose that as long as you've done it in within a reasonable timeframe, at a location not in the third world, it's really not relevant as long as you've got the right piece of paper.

[mractive]

cheers for the information guys, its seeming more and more likely il choose to do it locally. Maybe a trip to USA might be done to gain hours depending on weather here.

but going back to my other question do you guys think i could study for my fATPL (done in modular system) and do a Masters in Project Management in Construction (Sept to Sept, one year course). I already have a degree in a similar field and found i had a hell of a lot of spare time when i was doing this, from what i hear the masters course is run on 2-3 days a week and only really gets intensive for part of the course, a few months when the majority of course work is in.

[Aerouk]

LH2,

I was in Norway last week, everything was pretty much double the price of the UK.

[bfisk]

mractive: it depends on you as a person. The ATPLs can be quite time consuming, it's not rocket science (for the most part) but there is a lot of subjects to cover, and each can be quite extensive.

However, for even asking, I assume you are the person who sees the challenge and not the obstacle. You'll do fine :E