Hi Earth4Mars,
I'm a little out of touch with the current training industry but I'll try to give you some honest answers. First off, someone is going to mention that you need the right to work in Canada, so a visa or a residency/citizenship. If that first one is looked after, then....
Here's a link to the licensing and what you need.
https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/civilaviati...ard421-173.htm
- To work in Canada at first at a regional carrier (like Jazz Air or others) What am I expected to have under my belt?
Unlike most of the rest of the world, no one gets hired into a regional or airline position right out of flight school (there used to be a few exceptions where companies that had Beech 1900's would hire straight out of college programs but I'm not sure what the status on that is at the moment). 3000 hours of time with multi-command and turbine time is the rough normal for getting hired into the regionals these days. So, expect to work for charter companies flying... just about anything from a C-172 to a business jet.
- What are types of licensing are there and what they give as far as job position?
Private: No Job. Commercial: Charter Jobs. Instructor rating (added on to your commercial): Instructing. Airline Transport Licence: Charter, Regional and Airline.
- I have come across many flight schools (Brampton, MFC, ProIFR, Langley..)
which is a better choice? how does someone decide?
I'm sorry, I can't help you out on that question.
- At Brampton, they offer IATPL, is it a waste? How can I unfreeze the ATPL (other than instructing)
We don't have a frozen ATPL in Canada. We call that an IATRA. You write a test that consists of half the questions from the 2 ATPL exams and this allows you to sit right seat in an aircraft requiring a crew of 2. You still have to write the ATPL exams when the time comes. I believe (going from memory here) that you can write both ATPL exams and they will issue you an IATRA that is only good for 2 years.... then you have to rewrite the exams. The one column most people have difficulty acquiring for their ATPL is Cross-country Night PIC. That's difficult to do when you are a first officer. No one here will groom you for command. For some reason, they will hire direct entry captains over your head for eternity in most charter companies... so expect to change jobs now and again in order to move up. Personally, I think it's a dumb way to run a company but it's practically SOP here, with a few exceptions.
- Why would someone go for a CPL (and what comes with it like IFR and Multi Engine) instead of an IATPL or an ATPL course? What does this make in finding jobs?
Nothing comes with a Commercial Licence. You have to add ratings on to it. But to be specific, you have to have a Commercial licence because you cannot just go out and get an ATPL. You require a minimum of 1500 hours of flying and a bunch of sub categories that must be checked off like a list. Since everyone is in the exact same situation, that is an equal footing in looking for a job.
I know, too many questions all at once. I really am kind of lost and actually terrified about the whole process.
It sounds like you are looking to throw yourself into a labour market you have not done a lot of research on. While most pilots have short memories and think that they have the worst working conditions ever, I can tell you that the market here is improving. When I started (no exaggeration at all) one needed 1000 hours just to find a job on a C-172. 3000+ to command a Navajo or a King Air. 5000+ to get onto a regional... that was usually a 10 - 15 year commitment to get to an airline if you were lucky. I regularly meet people who made the airlines in 5 years now, some in as little as 2. So, if you are coming here with dreams of leaving flight school and walking straight into an airline, I can assure you it's not going to happen. If you are coming here to fly a lot of small and interesting airplanes into places no person has ever heard of, then move into an airline with lots of interesting stories about how you survived the old days... then you'll do fine. One constant about Canadian aviation, it's a much smaller market than you think it is... everyone knows everyone. Getting that first job is far more about who you know than what you know. Networking is everything. So, I would suggest a college program for you so you have a network of other pilots right from day one. Good luck.