Quickest way to an FAA ATP - presuming you meet all the experience requirements and hold an ICAO CPL or ATPL is to:
1. Jump through the TSA insecurity hoops. You'll need a school approved for international students to help you with that.
2. Do a medical. Class 3 is ok for checkrides but a Class 2 or 1 is needed for air transport ops ie charter or airlines, respectively
3. Pass the ATP theory exam**. Single exam, multi-choice, piss easy after some self study. Gleim, ASA & Jeppessen all publish study texts geared for the exam.
4. Do the checkride** in a light piston twin or single, land or sea. Do it in a single land you'll only have privileges for single land. Do it in a multi sea you'll only have privileges for a multi sea, and so on. Do it in an amphibian - and do both splashes & bumps - and you get both land & sea for single or twin as appropriate. A US checkride includes a ground oral portion and the flight component. Don't pass the oral = don't do the flight. Buy both a Practical Test Guide (PTS) and one of the guides to the oral part of the checkride.
** A couple of caveats:
* The system is changing in Aug or Sep. You will need formal ground school and sim training prior to the test & checkride - so get in & get it done before then!
* No requirement for an instructor recommendation for a 1st attempt at the exam or checkride, however if you're not familiar with way things are done in the US then some time with an instructor is *strongly*
recommended.
* You may need to have your State of issue verify your licence to the FAA. Years ago you didn't used to but it might be different now.
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An alternative to using a light aircraft is to do a type rating at one of the usual places. Make sure you confirm that you want to include an ATP checkride with the type rating.
Last edited by Tinstaafl; 25th Mar 2014 at 15:42.