So why is flying in the states just so damn easy?

[jemax]

So,

Career to date has all been in the UK, Commercial and instructing, the last 5 weeks has been spent in Arizona doing the IR. What an eye opener, everything seems so sensible and straightforward over there.

You pass a test, in the US, temporary airmans certificate, you are good to go straight away, valid 120 days whilst the paperwork and license follows in the post (one fee, significantly cheaper as in $400 for an IR fee for examiner, test and paperwork fulfilment). Versus our blessed CAA, 2-3 weeks to process the payment, then same again to get the paperwork, before you are allowed to exercise the privilages of the test you have just passed (Commercial test fee about £600, plus £100 ish for the paperwork). Oh of course you can always go down there, if you live anywhere near Gatwick, arrive at 7am, queue, get it issued on the same day, but of course sacrificing a days work.

Duats.com, 1-800 wx brief, for those who don't know this is a combined, Notam, weather, plight plan service. Simplicity itself. Lets not mention the NATS site, I refer to the French equivalent, which unlike NATS is actually able to provide you accurate route briefings, without pages of irrelevent information. Oh and the completeness of the NOAA's weather service.

Fuelling, arrive Tucson 9pm at night, park under the control tower, greeted by a smiling face, fueller happily goes out to the aircraft, puts in the requisite amout, 20 minutes later we are on our way, after a comfortable coffee in the Pilots lounge. Try getting fuel in the UK at 9pm at all!

No use of QFE at all.

Cost, not the flying, but all the peripheral stuff, charts $10, AFD (Sort of equivalent of Pooleys) $4, oh and charts which have an actual expiry date printed on them.

I guess there is a bit of a downside too, I can't get a work visa, temperatures in Arizona which will raise the Density Altitude 5,000ft, lower salaries, I think. Losts and lots of younger pilots coming through the system.

Grass is greener syndrome, well not in Arizona as it's all desert! Still love it here, shorter distances, great for heli's except the fog and icing, but my god it feels cold after 5 weeks in AZ

I know the infrastructure is huge, government supported and has obvious economies of scale. But what an eye opener, the system over there seems to have been driven by pilots and common sense, we could learn a lot!

[alouette3]

And yet there are those in the US that say that the FAA, ATC, and everything else associated with them is antiquated and terrible.

I guess travel does broaden the mind-----:)

[SASless]

The very real sad tragic fact is there are more than a few on the eastern shore of the Great Saltwater Divide that peer down some very long noses at our system and very haughtily proclaim loudly to all and sundry how the UK CAA/JARS/EASA are so much "better" than the US FAA.:ugh:

I would never suggest life is all bliss on the western end of the Saltwater Divide but having suffered (on multiple occasions) all the pain that can be inflicted by a bunch of Noddy's and Jobsworth's disguised as "public servants".....at least our system will require another two hundred years or so to catch up with where ya'll are now.

The UK CAA has certainly changed from my first experience in the mid-70's and certainly not for the better. They appeared to be quite human back then and despite the bureaucracy generated hiccups, upon appeal either formal or informal, they usually did the "right" thing. I sure do not see that being the case today.

[jemax]

Oh and I forgot to mention GPS approaches

[SASless]

GPS....Yank DOD thing....Harumph!

[B Sousa]

Arizona, you say?? Were you here by chance, lots of folks go there.

http://www.shebleaviation.com/

[oscar bravo]

No helicopters at Sheble's though...
Actually, I just got back from Sheble's...did an airplane CFI add-on. Took 5 days and cost $2,000. Interesting place to say the least. One guy there passed his CFI checkride one day, hired on and signed off a solo student the next day. Good folks there.

[B Sousa]

Interesting. although I havent been there myself, I have sent quite a few folks their way. I wish they would get a Helo or two there (providing its not a Robbie)

[jemax]

As it happens it was Quantum Helicopters in Phoenix. But it's funny how two weeks ago it was 80 degrees, now I am trying to source an immersion suit for a flight across the Irish Sea, brrrrrrrr!

[helimutt]

immersion suit? irish sea? are you mad? Oh forgot, we wear one every day!! Glad to hear you found the US easy going. Did some hour building there and it was great. Laid back.
Pray tell what you flying across the Irish sea? Something nice? Not a single I hope? lol:)

[AndyJB32]

Trained in California in 1995, then worked there for a year instructing. When i returned to the UK to get my CAA (now JAA) licence, i was in for a very expensive and frustrating awakening.
I think both systems have pro's and con's to them, but the FAA's attitude is definitely more pilot friendly. They give the impression that one of their roles is to facilitate people in their pursuit of gaining and keeping licences. I found them helpful, friendly and easy to deal with.............
on the other hand the entire system in the UK appears to be largely overly-expensive and frustratingly complex: I've lost count of the number of threads on pprune that are asking for help to clarify licencing requirements within the UK, after the CAA have been unable to clearly answer the question. If the governing body being confused by their own system isn't an indication that it needs simplifying, then i don't know what is. One obvious example is in the rule book : in the states any aviation question concerning rules and regulaitons is contained within one book divided into 2 parts - the FARAIM. If only it were that straight forward in the UK. It's almost as if the function of the CAA is to protect a privilaged flying club in the UK, and if a candidate is willing to jump through many needless hoops at great expense they are then grudgingly allowed to enter this carefully guarded group.
I know that in the states i would quite happily, easily and just as safely as in the UK, fly for fun. In the UK i'm fortunate enough to be employed by a company that takes care of the dealings and expense of CAA contact by and large, as there is no way i would have continued flying for fun in the UK: too expensive and too frustrating!
Andy:sad:

[manfromuncle]

The sad fact is that the CAA do not want people to learn fly, and they treat GA as an annoyance, and they don't know how to deal with helicopters. They are really only interested in the airlines, and having a nice fat salary/pension for working 10am - 4pm and scoffing a cheap 3 course lunch everyday.

Witness the grief you get at the FCL counter for not having this piece of paper, or this box ticked etc. Everyday there is a queue of frustrated people who just want to earn a living/get a licence issued. First question you get is "how are you paying?".

You wait until they rack up the charges for a licenses airfield next year and see the death of flight training in this country, as schools are forced to put their prices up to survive.

Will it change with EASA? Not likely. It will mean even more regulation and more cost. And the CAA will fight tooth and nail to hold onto their little empire. Look how long JAA took to get established and working (not that it ever has for helicopter pilot licencing)

In a few years the UK will look like Sweden/Norway/Japan. Hardly anyone will train at home as it's too expensive, and the only people flying helicopters will be the military, rich private owners and police/EMS.
:ugh: