I too have had the benefit of earning multiple ATP licenses or certificates as we call them on the west side of the saltladen buffer zone. My view is a bit confused over the good and bad of each system (US and UK). The flying standards for practical tests are for most parts identical. My British colleagues would argue against any FAA standard being remotely close I fear. Our oral testing prior to flying is by far and away more difficult. Our recurrent checkride and training requirments are more stringent. The FAA mandates specific amounts of time and topics that must be covered in the six month checkride process. I have never had anything remotely resembling that under the UK system. The UK system seems to be a check to minimum standard and issue the pass without any real training. The amount of esoteric and totally useless knowlege required to pass the UK written exams exceeds that of the FAA, however we are catching up as our bureaucracy matures. Our written exams are based upon a building block concept in light of the way our FAR's are structured. Different FAR's apply to different levels of operations thus the base of knowlege is different for the level of operation the pilot is in. Licensing in the US is far and away better. Try to justify the ridiculously expensive fees to take exams and the awkward schedules the CAA has for administering them. The FAA makes themselves available rather than the other way around by the use of independent examiners and examining stations in addition to FAA officials and offices.
The basic attitude mentioned by a few of our UK pilots here is very accurate. What was good enough for Wellington is good enough. The reason it used to be an empire is just that kind of attitude. Just because it was invented in the US doesn't mean it won't work, is unsafe, or shouldn't be used or endorsed. The JetRanger, even though single engine, held the record as the safest aircraft flyiing for many years in a row. Despite the fact it flew over water, mountains, and other hostile terrain. British pilots scoff at the practice but the accident records prove the validity of the use of single engine aircraft in light of the modern engines and engineering advances.
Have you ever tried to get a former British Army QHI, now Civilian TRE/IRE to accept the notion that S-76's, Bell 212/412's, BK-117's, BO-105's are not type ratings in the US and thus will not "be on our license"? Hellfire....you should have seen the fracas at Aviation House when I presented my official US Army Pilot Flight records...all nicely collated, typed, and secured in a folder, IBM printouts of the daily entries on one side and the flying orders, DD-214, and Totals sheets on the other. (Not allowed ol' bean...they are not in a bound logbook you know!) Really, I think it was because my folder had those hi-tech american metal clip things instead of the correct string type.
The current flap at where I am at now is the unheard of use of centralized documentation and not keeping the aircraft logbooks at the field site where the aircraft is located. Once again the US system allows for innovation and improvements in technology at a much greater pace than the UK bureaucratical mindset. I fear in time , as our government grows in size and power....we too will be faced with the same kind of problems. How many times now have I read how the increasing fees charged by the UK are actually forcing people and businesses out of the industry. I kind of like the concept of walking into my local FAA office, grabbing a cuppa, and teling them which exam I need and then sitting down and taking the thing.....free of charge. Yes, I can access the FAA website and download all of the questions that are going to be on the test ahead of time so I can memorize them or practice them. Usually about 1500 questions to choose from when they make up the test papers...so your memory has to be pretty darn good.