XXPLOD - it's different in the FAA / USA system.
Here, you do 14 exams for a CPL/IR. And that's after the 7 doing the PPL. In the USA, you do 1 for the PPL, 1 for the CPL, 1 for the IR and 1 for the ATPL. Here, you are given an ATPL after clocking up the hours. There, the ATPL is extra work as I mention (though you still need the 1500hrs in both cases).
Also, the USA has no Class A below 18000ft, which means quite a lot of heavy iron can be flown - if not exactly efficiently - without an IR.
The USA has no type ratings below 12500lb (5700kg) unless it is a turboJET (in general).