You want to change it, make it a FCL that for Jet operations you must have 500 hours turboprop and for Turboprop ops, you must have 500 ME.
But of course, that could never happen....
Clanger,
Indeed it wont happen/shouldn't because that would limit the industry and its growth even more.
A TP will again require a TR. Which will leave either the cadet having to pay up for it, or the operator paying for it and bonding the cadet to the operation for 'X' period.
Also, we simply dont have the TP traffic in the UK (or indeed the EU) that would provide the kind of pilot numbers that are required just for current numbers to be maintained, let alone for considering growth.
Another caveat to that, is that TP aircraft are still in the public transport sector, and the difference in public transport operations between a TP with no more than 19 seats and say a Dash-8 with 78 seats is ?
Then there is the consideration put forward of a 1500 hrs minimum for pilots going into public transport operations.
Again, in the UK (and EU) we simply dont have the levels of non-public transport GA traffic that could ever provide for the number of pilots required to maintain even a marginal decline, let alone to maintain current numbers let alone industry growth.
if you are being paid for your services as a pilot, carrying passengers or not, you will be required to have a commercial ticket. and if you have a commercial ticket, then a mandated level of minimum hours to use that is going to have to lead to some possible routes..
you pay for the hours to rent an aircraft and beat up the sky to get to 1500 hours. so, again you're paying to fly again, and just how many trips to le' touquet can one person do ? then, it will likely take a decade of weekend flying to get to that level of hours, and with the cost, then your back to having an established career to pay for it... more issues here.
Next is there
any evidence to say that someone who has built up 1500 hours of weekend flying and beating up the skies out of controlled airspace is any more/less safe than someone who started out in the right seat of a commercial transport aircraft at 300 or 400 hours ?
Instructing ? likewise. The UK (and the EU) doesnt have the number of flight schools that could ever hope to provide the numbers.
Besides, the operational costs for flights schools is prohibitive in the EU. Look at where the 'big' flight schools send their students, take for example OAA... Phonenix AZ. The weather is more consistent and its
cheaper.
Now if you're throwing 500 hours of ME time as requirement, it becomes even more problematic.
The answer to the conundrum is actually quite simple. While the number of issues and sub-issues thrown into the mix add another layer to 'the onion', more legislation and tinkering with the FCL's wont change anything a jot. More to the point, it will make things
worse. That is not where the answer is.
What will change things is a simple change to allow the industry to be competetive, nationally, regionally and internationally.
Equally important, we need to allow growth not place a stanglehold on growth.