Originally Posted by
chrispike7
Hi
After much deliberation I have decided not to pursure a career in the airlines. (Mainly due to family commitments)
I wondered however is it possible to become a ppl instructor and move into simulator instruction without having worked as an airline pilot?
What kind of typical path would one follow to achieve this?
Many thanks
Chris
Depends what sort of simulator you are talking about.
If you mean multi crew aircraft, not really.
In principle you
could do 'sim experience for Joe public' but the options are poor because there are plenty of retirees and other experience people to choose from.
Or, as was mentioned above, ad hoc stuff on cheap training devices masquerading as airline simulators. Terrible money, dead end career path. Don't do it. And do not get suckered into some of the currently advertised scams ('become a commercial jet instructor').
But if you are serious about career instructing, reasonable money can be earned without airline experience but it takes time and probably investment. I say probably - but there is a lot of airline recruitment going on and I know quite a few relatively long serving instructors have been siphoned off to the airlines. Supply and demand might favour you in the near future.