I'm not really the best person either, as all I ever intended to do was instruct or do pleasure flights or charter work part time. However, when I got my CPL(H) in November I did look into other options, so some of this may be useful.. .. .Until recently you could get work on the North Sea, with them paying for the instrument rating, and thereby acquire that magic turbine time. When I asked one of their pilots in November, she said they were desperate for pilots, but that changed almost overnight to everyone being told to get an instrument rating first. A few do seem to pick the right day or get lucky, but that's the usual story as of now. But before that, and probably once the repercussions of Sept 11th die down, this could be approximate route/costs:. .. .PPL(H) - 55 hours (could be more or less, obviously) @ £200 - £11,000. .hour building - 100 hours @ £150 - £15,000. .30 hour CPL course plus night rating @ £200 - £7,000. .Total - £33,000. .. .Then go to North Sea and leave after three years, with all jobs being open to you, or so they tell me.. .. .All those costs could be reduced, eg by hour building in the US, or even one or two cheaper places over here.. .. .Where is this more expensive than f/w?