View Full Version : wanna fly in usa
CatPilot
11th Mar 2011, 13:52
Hello, guys! Just one question: how many chances do I have to get a job as an commercial airline pilot in usa. Now I'm flying as a 737-cl captain somewhere in asia and currently have 3000TT and 1000hrs from left seat. Of course I currently don't have any FAA/JAA license but think that it's not a big deal. And say I already have a green card.
NEDude
12th Mar 2011, 12:03
If you have the green card and good experience, I do not think there will be much trouble if/when hiring picks up. Of course you will need to convert your licenses to FAA, but that should be fairly easy. Lots of foreigners are hired to fly in the U.S. I think the green card is the hardest part to get.
The bigger question is can you handle the poverty level wages most U.S. carriers pay start you out at?
Mike_Retired_ATC
17th Mar 2011, 12:49
Since you are already rated as a 737 left seater you might want to go to the Southwest Airlines web site and click their careers link and apply for one of their open pilot positions. Southwest flys all B737's and the last time I was on their web site they had a vacancy announcement for pilots.
takamasa
21st Mar 2011, 06:34
is it hard to get a job for non-Us citizen at this moment?
MarkerInbound
21st Mar 2011, 18:18
As has been posted ad nauseum, if you are not a US citizen and do not have a green card, it is illegal to hire you. If you do have the green card you would be classed the same as a US citizen. That being said, many US pilots have been looking for aviation jobs for 6 months to a couple years.
misd-agin
21st Mar 2011, 21:47
Captain job? Low. You'd have to find someone that's hiring into the left seat, which is not that common in the U.S.
FO job at a commuter/regional? High.
Major airline? Average at best.
MarkerInbound
22nd Mar 2011, 00:58
Well, good luck trying to get someone to sponsor you for a H1 in aviation.
MarkerInbound
22nd Mar 2011, 20:17
Ok, if you don't have the right to work in the US it would be illegal to hire you. You get this right by being a citizen, holding a green card or an H1 visa.
Dug up a listing of H1s (actually the employer's labor certification) for 2010. Twenty six companys in scheduled air transportation made 111 applications. I did not see a single pilot. One crew scheduler, one avionics tech, Iberia brought a station manager in and the others were computer or financial geeks.
CatPilot
25th Mar 2011, 13:29
Thanx everybody for the reply. The main question is how many chances do I have to be hired for example by Southwest if I do have a green card, FAA license and 3000TT on a 737? (As was said before, there are lots of native pilots looking for a job in US). And by the way my spoken english is far from perfect (but it's just a question of time).
MarkerInbound
25th Mar 2011, 14:53
I saw numbers posted for another company (not SW) that was hiring last year. They got 4000 resumes, tossed half right off the bat, 400 some made it through their screening for an interview and they hired 87. I would think SW could be just as picky.
George Semel
27th Mar 2011, 00:07
Yep and you would still need to have either Air Force Silver Wings or Navy Gold Wings. SW is a great place to be if you can get in that is for sure.
CrazyStuntPilot
28th Mar 2011, 20:50
If you have the 1000TPIC and your current times in 737 I think you have good chances at SW.
I can answer on your question bkz do the same thing. It will be very hard for you - a lot of American pilots would like be hired an major airline, be sure they have enough expirience to get this place. And you have to strive for this place very hard. In any case you've got a GC it means you wanna live in U.S. Therefore begin for getting ATPC, prepare resume and look for pilot job:ugh: here. And enjoy if you get it fast - CRJ, right seat, 20K:ok:
Now I'm flying as a 737-cl captain somewhere in asia and currently have 3000TT and 1000hrs from left seat.
Out of curiousity, which asian civil aviation authority allow a 2000 TT pilot to act as a B737 Captain? And what kind of airline is approving that?
zondaracer
6th Apr 2011, 06:41
In the US direct entry captain is very rare. Also, most pilots have resigned themselves to a career at a regional airline. Those who make it to a major are few and far between. So you should see yourself starting out at a regional if you can make it to the US.
Also, you will probably never make it to a major airline in the US if you don't know anyone working there. That is just fact. If you don't know anybody at Southwest who will write you a recommendation, then your chances are next to 0.
If you have a green card, you are one step ahead. Be wary of those who say that you can work at Southwest since you have a 737 type. Yes,
Southwest requires a 737 type, but type ratings from foreign licenses don't transfer to FAA licenses usually except for private pilot priveleges only (unless you have a Canadian license I think but I am not the expert in this field).
Yes, foreign pilots get hired in the US, those who already have right to live and work get treated equally, but when thousands of pilots are on furlough like now, American pilots and the like are going overseas to find work.
If you just got a green card in the lottery recently, congratulations. you just need FAA Certs and you can join the queue. Best of luck