Hi Flyer4040, Hi from the US o A
I just did a FAA examiner search for Oz and found 8 first class examiners. I personally used Pritti Bhatt at Syd Aviation Medicine for my first FAA medical, was $220. She was great
However when I did my interviews I did NOT hold a FAA first grade medical, only the CASA class one. I just said I would get one if they offered me a job as I already had the CASA one which is a bit more stringent.
Only investments I made prior were the $14 for the ETSA to travel to US for interview and a Sheppard Air prep course (about $45) to get ready for the interview.
Why on earth would you consider Mesa though? I had offers from Mesa and Skywest, but went for Piedmont as they have a much better reputation than Mesa, yesterday I flew to Lexington KY with a Captain who spent 2 years at Mesa prior to Piedmont and confirmed the industry talk, he is very glad not to be there now. Suggest you check out the US airline forums as there is a lot of info there. (google the "mesa board pilot sleep" it was famous for a while here)
Part of my choice was getting free flights to from Aust many times during interview and training by working for a wholly owner carrier (PDT is part of American so they have daily flights to Australia). I was able to spend any off time in training in Australia this way, and also relocate my family for almost nothing
feel free to PM me if you need more or ask away.
R