Is PPL The Best First Step To A Career As A Pilot

[Paddy88]

Hi Guys,

I am new to the forum, I will start off by saying Hello!.........I am Looking at the best way to start a career as a Pilot, I do understand this is a long hard process and takes alot of time, hard work, dedication and patients, all of which I have.

However I dont have £80,000 spare to pay for all my own training, But I do have a nice car which is in the process of being sold in order to put myself through my PPL, but is this the best thing to do? My plan is to first of all do an aptitude test before I spend any money on training, and if I pass get my PPL, my class 2 medical, and as many other qualifications I can get to increase my chances of applying for scholarships or similar where the airline pays for the training and I pay them back via my salary once qualified with an airline if and when they open.

Please could you give me your opinions and advice on my plan, I am open to suggestions!

Many Thanks

[pilotwannabe101]

Hey Paddy88,

I'm new to the forum as well, I've done a lot of research so might be able to point you in the right direction (a little)

You have 2 options.

1 - Get into a flight school, something like CTC or Oxford Aviation Academy, there are plenty of others - this is called integrated training(you study full time and do everything with them - a PPL is not required), keep in mind this will cost you around the £70,000 mark. - best to research flight training schools near you.

2. Alternatively you can go the modular route which means completing all the same stuff but includes your PPL, and its half the price.
It will definitely take you longer but will cost you half the money.


Your best bet is to research the wannabes forum, it really is a gold mine of knowledge from people in the know.

[Gazeem]

First port of call, barring perhaps a trial lesson is getting a CAA class 1 medical. No point spending a penny further if you can't hold a licence - people have spent a lot of money before they've learnt that lesson.

[Bealzebub]

I do understand this is a long hard process and takes alot of time, hard work, dedication and patients, all of which I have.
That is correct except that patience is more of a requisite beyond the medical part, but it also takes a lot of money and a lot of luck, neither of which are always easy to come by.

The first thing you should clearly understand, is that a licence plus 250 hours, doesn't equal airline pilots job. In a few cases it does, but in the vast majority of cases it doesn't even come close.

Most people are limited by cost and opt to complete their training by doing it in modular stages at training providers of their choice. This is often deemed to be a far cheaper way of licence aquisition, but it is usually way below the levels of experience that most airlines seek when recruiting new first officers (co-pilots). Generally airlines look for qualified candidates from either a military or civilian background with 1500-2000 hours experience usually with 500 hours on turbine (jet or jet/prop) equipment. The gap between licence aquistion and achieveing these experience levels are where many people come unstuck. Jobs in this "aerial work" territory are often few and far between. There is a lot of competition for those that are available, which then often sets a high experience bar, and usually low levels of remuneration.

There are "cadet" programmes run by a few airlines through a few recognised integrated training schools. They are relatively rare, have a high application standard, and require significant levels of financial commitment. I have seen figures of £70,000 and £80,000 mentioned so far. In reality prepare yourself for a minimum investment of £90,000. These sums often requiring secured bank loans and guarantors. These schemes are the most likely way of obtaining an airline placement with only a couple of hundred hours experience. This is because the training courses are single provider, geared up to direct airline placement, with the airline having a significant input or monitoring presence in the programme.

There are no airline "sponsorships" as such, although you will often see courses or programmes where the term "sponsorship" is used loosely to qualify some subsidy that the airline contributes toward the overall cost of a few schemes. You should understand that these programmes have a significant advantage with regard to airline placement, but they do not guarantee placement with an affilated airline, whatever past record or current intention may be. There is still a significant degree of risk and a very large financial exposure.

Integrated courses are also offered at similar cost for those embarking on training without an airline affiliated programme. Some airlines will consider candidates from these courses into their cadet recruitment subject to additional assesment and nearly always significant additional cost. For example a "self sponsored" type rating may be required, which might cost in the region of £30,000 on top of the training course.

Despite tales of impending shortages, there are a lot of people who are unemployed, employed in jobs that would change as soon as a better opportunity presented itself, training through the airline affiliated schemes , and training through the integrated training schools. On top of this huge reserve are the pilots working their own way up through the modular, self improver routes. This group expands the number of would be jobseekers by many many multiples.

A pilots licence (unlike a drivers licence) needs to be regularly renewed and re-tested. This is an expensive process and involves various tests, experience requirements and examinations on an annual basis, something that many people neglect to budget for, in the heady euphoria of training towards licence issue.

First thing to do, is read these forums to get a real picture of what is happening out there to those who have completed their training and for whom the glasses have lost their rose tint. This bit is free. Then when you are ready to start parting with your cash, get a class 1 medical completed.

[Groundloop]

However I dont have £80,000 spare to pay for all my own training,

You have 2 options.

1 - Get into a flight school, something like CTC or Oxford Aviation Academy, there are plenty of others - this is called integrated training(you study full time and do everything with them - a PPL is not required), keep in mind this will cost you around the £70,000 mark.

Therefore Paddy88 has ONE option - as Option 1 is not an option!

[Milton1995]

Have to agree with everything said by bealzebub, fantastic post. :ok:

[Paddy88]

Thanks guys, especially Bealzebub, There is some great information there for me to think about. If I were to consider the millitary route, would having a ppl Increase my chances during officer selection process of being a pilot? I am just thrying to look at ever option and see which is the best route for me to take!

First things first......CAA Class 1 Medical!

[Genghis the Engineer]

Thanks guys, especially Bealzebub, There is some great information there for me to think about. If I were to consider the millitary route, would having a ppl Increase my chances during officer selection process of being a pilot? I am just thrying to look at ever option and see which is the best route for me to take!

First things first......CAA Class 1 Medical!

Answering your first question - yes.

Answering this question - yes.


A class 1 medical will tell you if you have the physical potential. The PPL will tell you if you have the basic aptitude and motivation, and do so relatively cheaply.

Personally, I can't understand why any bright, motivation, young individual with a fascination with flying would want to aim for the airlines if military flying is a realistic option.

To hell with the money and hours, given a choice of flying a fighter, SAR Helicopter, or a scheduled airliner, I would take the third option only if it was quite clear I wasn't going to get one of the first two. But then I love flying far more than the idea of the status and income.

G

[Paddy88]

Thanks Genghis the Engineer, I like your response!, I think I have a lot to mull over and think about my best route, I think the military option financially sounds my best bet, as spending £90,000 is out of the question (saying that, I have just put £10 on the euromillions haha) but before I do that, I think an aptitude test and medical will firm up my decision on a career as a pilot.

Thanks for all of the great replies, yous have really helped me out and have given me some excellent responses to my question :ok:.

[redsnail]

Righto,
Instead of paying a fortune for a class 1, research the requirements for a Class 1.
The big ones that "take people out" when young are colour blindness and diabetes. Also, visual imperfections beyond 5 dioptres will take you out. So, you can get your eyes tested "cheaply" and get a simple health check that'll give you an idea.

To find out your general aptitude, look up "GAPAN" and do their tests. They can give you impartial advice about how to proceed before spending a shed load of cash.

Good luck.

[Megaton]

I disagree with Ghengis regarding the military route. To join any branch of the Armed Forces you need to demonstrate your motivation to be an officer first (Army Air Corps excepted) and pilot second. If you think the RAF is a short cut to civil aviation I think you'll find that the Officer and Aircrews Selection Centre will sniff you out. Join the Armed Forces by all means but only if that's truly where your heart lies.

Clive Hughes book, Guide to Becoming a Professional Pilot, is an excellent book and although not very glossy is absolutely invaluable.

Indeed, my flying career started with pprune and Clive Hughes book in the late nineties and has led to the right hand seat of the 747.

My advice would be:

a. Buy the Clive Hughes book.
b. Get your Class 1 medical sorted.
c. Go from there.......

[smith]

Really, the military option is not really viable in the current market, David Cameron has just decomissioned all of the UK's Aircraft Carriers, sold off all the harriers with them, closed various RAF bases and retired the Nimrod's. Do you guys actually read newspapers? The resulting fall out is that a lot of trainee pilots have been "let go" midway through training.

Read a few of the threads on here and you will find that the bank of mum and dad is the only real option for ab initio training and P2F schemes. Did you fall asleep and wake up back in the 90's? The chances of an airline in the UK paying for your training in this day in age is quite frankly laughable and if you are serious about making the airlines you need to wipe the green from behind your ears and toughen up a bit :ok:

[Genghis the Engineer]

I don't disagree about the problems in becoming a military pilot, I was merely saying that given a choice - I think that any enthusiastic aviation-happy youngster should give it their best shot. And of course, do it because you want to be a military pilot, and for no other reason.

G