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Old 16th Jun 2018, 15:27
  #4910 (permalink)  
phonetic
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Canada
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Originally Posted by JV
I should not even be on this thread, but, as an early retired and inconsequential Canadian, who flew numerous general aviation aircraft, and numerous airliners, mostly for charter operators (think britannia, monarch, and the like), long haul and short haul, big and narrowbody, and one asian national carrier doing long haul, I must say that being a pilot in the UK sounds awfully complicated. And yes, have flown into the UK numerous times, along with the rest of Europe. Just part of the job.

After a fair amount of outright bankruptcies, mass layoffs, and constant seasonal layoffs, it just so turned out that I had to get many new type ratings with the new employer, and all paid by the employer. So, none of this type rated requirement was going on. At the end of the day, it was just another airplane to learn. People of my ilk actually got fed up by going onto yet another course, just to fulfill employment requirements.

The two main carriers here, and, all of the American carriers, hire non type rated pilots all the time, and they provide all of the training. However, there are no cadet programs, people tend to have at the very least, 2000 to 5000 hours of flying time in anything that flies. Even if you had a type rating on one of their aircraft, it would mean little or nothing, since initial job awards are solely based on seniority driven openings.

I feel for you guys, aviation life in Britain sounds very hard...........

Cheers
I have the same background as you, except I'm a dual Canadian/British passport holder, and dual TCCA/EASA ATPL holder. About 9 type ratings for many of the same reasons as you, flown in Asia also.

I think this comment is nonsense. Maybe you should have gotten your EASA licence, and worked in the UK (not on a validation) before making those comments. You might see things differently. Then again, the majority of Canadian pilots (not necessarily you btw) are scared to death of the EASA ATPL exams, as most would never get through them.

Additionally, your comment about hour requirements, and no cadet programs is grossly outdated. In the 90's, and early 2000's, these comments would have rung true, but not in 2018.

To be honest, I feel worse for the Canadian kids who can't/won't make any money in their careers. You'd make more money as a TTC bus driver in Canada nowadays. It's a shame.

Cheers!

Last edited by phonetic; 16th Jun 2018 at 15:41.
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