Getting FAA commercial:Checkride on sim?

[Victo]

Hello,
I hold a JAA commercial licence and I need to get a FAA commercial for a job I've been offered. As I have to do a Type rating, someone knows if I can, after getting the written exams, pass the checkride on the sim while doing the Type Rating? Or would that only be for the ATP case? If I go directly for the ATP, do I have to pass the instrument rating before?
Thank you very much.

[Tinstaafl]

Never heard of a CPL being done in a sim, however I'd venture to say that if the sim is approved for doing an ATP then it could be acceptable for a CPL. The catch is that the CPL includes visual ground reference manouevres so the graphics system must be capable of displaying those. Not sure any sims have a wide enough field of view to accurately do turns around a point or figure eights etc.

If you can, go directly for the ATP. It's a single theory exam & a single flight test. No need to hold an FAA instrument rating before an FAA ATP test, nor do you require an instructor recommendation. The FAA ATP includes instrument privileges ie they're built in to the licence, and not a separate instrument rating. The ATP flight test is more or less an instrument rating flight test but with some slightly higher tolerances ie 1/4 scale deflection, instead of the more typical 1/2 scale. Getting an FAA CPL & IR, however, will need an instructor recommendation, two exams (Commercial & Instrument) & two flight tests (Commercial & Instrument, obviously)

Be aware that flight tests for FAA licences & ratings include a ground oral portion with questioning about the application of the rules and privileges & limitations of licence that can last several hours.

Don't forget the TSA insecurity bull**** has to be done first.

[Victo]

Hello Tinstaafl,
many, many thanks for your reply. I've been able to get more info from it than in several mails I've received from several flight schools I've contacted. I had the dilema to go the commercial way or the ATP way, because i would have to pay a few night hours that I'm missing for the ATP requirements, but with what you say i see it will be much easier to do this, and faster, that is what I need. Only another short question, the flight test for the ATP licence does also include the oral portion?
Oh, just another thing, surfing on internet, I found some info saying that the FAA ATP requirements were going to change in 2013, is that true?
Again, thank you very much.

[Tinstaafl]

Every FAA flight test includes an oral portion. Don't pass the oral = don't get to fly.

Don't know of any changes to the ATP requirements. There are changes to the minimum experience & licence required for an FO in an airline ie it's becoming 1500 hours & ATP instead of the current CPL/IR.

Should have mentioned that the ATP flight test can be done in any aircraft, even a single or light twin. Keep in mind the FAA segregates licences by category & class at each licence level. Category is Fixed wing, Rotary wing, Glider etc. Class, for fixed wing, is Single Engine Land, Single Engine Sea, Multi Engine Land, and Multi Engine Sea (SEL, SES, MEL, MES, respectively). You have to do the flight test in each category & class to get the licence in that class. A test in a MEL will not give you SEL privileges. You'd have to do another test to get SEL added to your licence. You can short cut the system - slightly - if you do the test in an amphibian. Alight on water, and land on land + the other test items & you can get the licence for SEL/SES, or MEL/MES in one hit.

[B200Drvr]

Victo

If you do the checkride on a full motion level D sim as part of the type rating course, typically you will only do questions on the oral about the aircraft you are doing the sim check on, unless you get an instructor examiner that is out to prove something. I had an FAA Comm, and did my ATP Check on the HS 125 sim. It was the same flight check as the type rating flight check, and the oral was all type specific.
Good luck

[Victo]

Thank you again Tinstaafl, and thank you B200Drvr. A lot of info and all very useful to me, I didn't know the segregation of licences with the FAA ATP. Very good to know too that "If you do the checkride on a full motion level D sim as part of the type rating course, typically you will only do questions on the oral about the aircraft you are doing the sim check on". This simplifies a lot the whole thing!
Never expected to get all my ideas so clear with a couple of posts, thank you very much guys.

[caber]

The oral exam would mainly be on the aircraft you are about to use, but be prepared for general knowledge questions as well. My atp oral included questions on nav charts, and the examiner looked at my written test results summary to ask questions on the same topic as any incorrect answer. The written results don't say which question you may have gotten wrong, just the general area it was about. Just check your results and brush up on those topics if you had any wrong.

My atp came while employed using an airline examiner, your results may vary depending on who gives the test.

[Victo]

Hello Caber, it's good to know what you say about getting asked about the themes with more incorrect answers. Thank you very much.

[B2N2]

Read up on the Practical Test Standards (PTS) for the ATP.
http://www.faa.gov/training_testing/testing/airmen/test_standards/pilot/media/FAA-S-8081-5F.pdf
And yes, you can do the type rating and the ATP ride at the same time.
Just arrange it well in advance so everybody has their ducks in a row.

[leonardoperezsalles]

If I have my PPL/w IR Based on my foreign lic...would I have to make the Instrument Exam again? and the checkride?
With whom could we check if getting the CPL checkride while getting a type in the sim is possible?

[B2N2]

If I have my PPL/w IR Based on my foreign lic
then its only good for recreational purposes as the IR DOES NOT carry over to a FAA CPL.
So you need to pass the IR Checkride and the CPL checkride.
Commercial Practical test standards:
http://www.faa.gov/training_testing/testing/airmen/test_standards/pilot/media/FAA-S-8081-12C.pdf

Check from page 149 onwards.

1. Use of Level 1, 2 or Level 3 FTDs is not authorized for the practical test required by this PTS.
2. For practical tests, not more than 50 % of the maneuvers may be accomplished in an FTD or simulator UNLESS:
a. each maneuver has been satisfactorily accomplished for an instructor, in the appropriate airplane, not less than three (3) times,
OR
b. the applicant has logged not less than 500 hours of flight time as a pilot in airplanes.
3. Not all Areas of Operation (AOO) and Tasks required by this PTS are listed in the appendix. The remaining AOO and Tasks must be
accomplished in an airplane.
So it must be a C or D level sim and you still need to fly an airplane.

A type rating is always at ATP standards so if you meet the aeronautical requirements take the ATP ride all of which can be done in a sim.
http://www.faa.gov/training_testing/testing/airmen/test_standards/pilot/media/FAA-S-8081-5F.pdf
Check with your training provider be it SimuFlight, Flight Safety or any of the others.