No probs Boogie
EK4457, I'll agree with you about the beer, nats pi$$
"2)
Air space in the UK is much more complicated. For me to go in a 2 hour nav trip from Barton, I will need to do at least 1 CTR transit and 1 MATZ penetration. Not to mention the Low Level route and Advisory airspace if you want to go over water. There is ALWAYS class A (MAN TMA) above you. The midlands are the same and London is even worse!"
I would totally agree with the bold quote above, if you were flying from Tuscon AZ to El Paso TX.
Take a look at the image below, it's the VFR transition North/South routing over Los Angeles. It's a complicated route, but totally necessary if you need to cross the LA basin. There is the LA Class B airspace all over the place (FAA Class B is similar to our Class A) You have Long beach, Torrence, Hawthorne, Santa Monica and an air force base thrown in for good measure, with their airspace from the surface to approz 2500'. Just to the south is Orange County, a Class Charlie that needs to be looked at. Once a student (hour builder) is used to the US RT and airspace, I would typically send him/her to Santa Monica, Santa Barbara or around the surrounding area. I had many students that were trained in the UK and on the East coast that really struggled with LA and it's not surprising, it's very demanding airspace.
But before making a blanket statement like, "the UK airspace is much more complicated", have a think before alienating others on pprune.
The point I'm getting at, is hour building is what you make of it. You can fly pi$$ easy routes in both the UK and US and not bother talking to anyone and bumble around the skies burning holes. It's down to the individual to make the most of his/her budget and training.
Personally I would recommend to go for the FAA IR rather than a UK IMC, but that's a totally different argument and we won't go there on this topic
