I did all the exams in the late 1990s. I now have an ATPL A+H. In the RAF I managed to command CFSH Sqn for 2 years as a last tour. Believe me, even as a CFS 'geek' I learned a ton of information while studying for those exams. The military taught me to be a military pilot and the training was first class, thank you your majesty.
It really is quite different out here. I have had to learn many new skills to stay out of the dwang, not many of them were hands on flying related. Obeyance and knowledge of rules and regulations are what companies survive on. The military would go bust in a week if they were in the cut-throat business of civil aviation. I don't have a metman to brief me, an ops clerk to plot notams/do bookings and engineers to service and refuel the aircraft. I do the associated paperwork as well.
In other words, the mindset is different, not bad or impossible, just different. If 2 ex military pilots of equal ability and suitability asked me to put a word in with the company and one had done all the tests and exams......... who do you think would have the advantage????? Any extra qualifications will help.
