ATPL hour build with American registration

[Northbeach]

Off topic – perhaps, then again maybe not.

One of the things I like best about the United States is the relative lack of barriers to vertical movement for individuals who are willing to work and have the zeal to improve their lot in life by moving up through the socio economic levels of society. Millions have found it the land of opportunity; life liberty and the pursuit of happiness and all that.

It seems to me that Europe is making it much more difficult by introducing costly, regulatory burdens and obstacles for those not of “noble” birth, “old money” or elite political connections to change their lot in life and become professional aviators if they so choose.

Our airline has flying for us German, Scandinavian and French Captains. What an incredible asset they are to our organization as flight officers and instructor pilots (as are the Middle Eastern and Asian pilots we have). Each one of those European individuals are a first generation immigrant, who left Europe in their 20s, to pursue their dream of commanding an airliner in the United States. Collectively they are our gain and Europe’s loss, we are fortunate to have them.

Those pilots are better off in the left seat of the airliner or instructor’s position that they have earned, than doing some “less demanding” task that some anonymous bureaucrat or “system” would have relegated them based on their perceived “station in life”.

So, for all of you in Europe who are running into newly erected barriers, difficulties and obstacles rooted in Brussels and in the reams of new onerous regulations that you yourself had little or no input into bringing them about, you have my sympathies.

Becoming an airline Captain is a hard enough road; and it looks like it is going to get more expensive and onerous.

All societies have their problems. The United States is flooded with problems,but keeping good pilots needlessly out of the air is just so “unnecessary”. All those hours, training, landings, approaches, night flights, cross countries and airwork in that "N" registered aircraft was not really "flying" at all..............pity..........