Pilot... nothing yet

[ryan_sharara]

Hey all,

Well, Iam a CPL(A) ME-CIR holder, lebanese nationality, 19 years old, live in UAE. 200 hours TT (did my training in Australia). I applied everywhere> literally, Africa for bush pilot jobs, sent about 25 CVs, no single answer. CX SO program, no answer too, Airarabia, no answer. Europe: not eu citizen, Home countries airline, not currently recruiting and dont think in the near future - downhill..

Please can anyone shed some light ?!

Looking forward to your replies.

[M1ghtyDuck]

From what I understand you have to physically go to operators in Africa to get a job, otherwise the chances of employment are zero. If you turn up in person chances are pretty good.

[redsnail]

G'day,
Welcome to the hard part.
Sending CVs to Africa etc when you're a low houred pilot is pretty pointless unless you have something special to offer. WRT Africa etc, you need to be there.

Europe requires a JAA/EASA licence. If you trained in Australia, you probably won't have that. Apart from the citizenship issues, no one will be interested in you in Europe until you have both.

25 CVs is nothing I hate to say. You need to target the companies that hire low houred pilots. Spraying every one wastes your and their times.

Find any job in aviation to keep the money coming in. Make contacts and keep your ear to the ground.

[RTN11]

How long have you held your CPL/IR? age 19, you can't of had it too long. I know people who waited 12-18 months for their first break, but it came in the end.

Personally, I went straight into instruction as I had planned that from the start, rather than blindly sending out 25 cvs, I turned up in person to 5 companies and found a job within 5 days.

I know things will be different trying to get straight into an airline, but turning up in person, dressed smartly with a good looking CV in your hand is far better than just sending off one side of A4 and hoping that makes the impression for you.

[ryan_sharara]

It have been 11 months since i finished the cpl me-cir and 4 out of 7 atpl exams

[ford cortina]

Sorry to hear that, but....
Did you not do any research before starting training?
With 200 hours you will be very lucky to get any job, anywhere.
You need to take a good hard look at your options, where in the world can you work, legally? Where can you use your license?
And then travel there, if its Africa well you will have to go, but my understanding is that you will not be the only one.
:ugh:

[Luke SkyToddler]

Sorry to point this out to you, but teenage airline pilots are actually a really bad look with the travelling public. Not too many operators in Africa are going to turn a 19 year old kid loose in charge of a C206 with a half dozen wealthy tourists on board, either.

The mere fact that you are 19 years old with an FATPL tells me two things ... 1) you've never had a real job, and 2) all you've done since you left school was train as a pilot. Nothing intrinsically wrong with either of those things but, from an employer's point of view, it is a very large flag that the guy probably doesn't have a clue about how the real world works. The fact that you're complaining on here because your job search so far has consisted of posting 25 CVs to random operators, is also a big flag that you REALLY don't have a clue about how the real world works.

There is such a thing as "too young" as well as "too old", and right now you are at a massive disadvantage compared to guys 5 or 10 years older, who have at least been out there, done some stuff, gained some maturity.

Want my advice, pack your bags and go travelling - in a country where you have the legal right to work. Go find a town where your target employer is, buy some beers for some pilots and get the info you need.

Alternative plan, get a job, even if it's not flying related, but something that will pad the CV a bit. Keep your IR current and keep applying. Don't get despondent even if it takes years, you are only 19!!

[Andi]

Am I missing something??

Quote: " It have been 11 months since i finished the cpl me-cir and 4 out of 7 atpl exams

[Luke SkyToddler]

Andi - in Australia/NZ you do the CPL written exams before you sit the ATPL ones, so you end up doing 3 sets of exams. Most people get their CPL/IR issued, and then do their ATPL subjects one or two at a time, while they're working in GA or whatever

[ryan_sharara]

Yes, and since the exams i have done is valid until 3 years, I said that I will continue the other 3 when needed.

Well I am a Lebanese citizen and nothing other, so I can't apply to any of those cadets.

I was about to get a job with a b1900 operator, but there is some problems with the company itself, so its a risk doing the b1900 TR.

I have been working in a non-related aviation job.

Lebanon has only MEA. and their cadet job opens up in early 2013.

And the Command Instrument Rating expires on the 29th of may '12

I am starting to think more of Africa, so if anyone of you guys did it, please shed some light.

Any more information would be great.

thanks :ok:

[corsair]

At the mo, I'm bringing a 23 year pilot up to speed. He's good to be fair. But my worry is that he's a bit young. It is unfair and I know that age is not neccessarily a measure of maturity.

But the problem is not just that he can kill himself but that he can kill a bunch of other people and cost me my job.

So I'm super careful. It would be the same if he was 19 except that I wouldn't even let him in the door.

Sorry but that's the cruel reality.

But stick with it, your time will come. Age 19 you have a long way to go.

[Luke SkyToddler]

... but before you apply to Susi Air you should probably read THIS Susi Air 5 dead in 9 months (http://www.pprune.org/south-asia-far-east/483753-susi-air-5-dead-9-months.html)

Lot of Lebanese at Qatar Airways, have you applied to them?

[ryan_sharara]

Thanks for the information planetearth, i will check.

Luke. I just saw the thread yesterday... Scary :} ... Qatar is taking Fast track second officers. :( but if you are still contacting them ask them how did they go through... maybe through another way... thanks !


:ugh:

[Bearcat F8F]

Just out of curiosity, isn't there good job opportunities for GA pilots in Australia?

From what I've heard it's not a bad place to be in if you're a pilot...

[Andi]

Luke SkyToddler,

thanks for info about Aussie CPL/ATPL . Point taken.

ryan_sharara,

quick info from my side about my start into aviation. Finished late 2001,
sent out about 800 CV, mostly no reply, always kept current, went for flight instructor rating in 2006 (as last chance that I gave myself before quitting), got a job in late 2007 on a biz jet and just finished new type rating on CRJ 200.

You are young, don't give up even if you think you are at the end and please secure yourself a job where you can earn some money to survive and try to keep current.

[ryan_sharara]

Hi Andie,

Thanks for the post :)

Well yes, sure not quitting. I still didn't even start :E

I am currently doing b1900 TR in South Africa.

Just a question for the readers:

My Australian IR will expire on 31st of may. Once I complete the TR over here and successfuly put it on my australian licence. Would it be auttomaticaly renewed? If not, Can I do an IR renewal on a Full motion simulator in SA and re validate my IR ? or....

[FlyingDumbells]

Are you doing the B1900 because you have a job now?

[AvEnthusiast]

Same thing goes here. But saw a lot of guys stressing on keeping current. What if you live in a country where there is no GA or small planes at all for which you have the ratings, so how will you keep yourself current? and if you don't and trying to get a job and takes you years, they can easily say you, you are even not a pilot because you haven't flow for this much time. Are there any tips for keeping current where there are no small planes?

[ryan_sharara]

FlyingDumbells, nope, I still don't have a job.

AvE, well, where did you do your licence??

[FlyingDumbells]

Ah right ok...how come the TR then? Out of curiosity How much does it cost for it if you dont mind me asking and how many hours is the course? Do you need to do a BGT exam? I'm same boat as you it seems haven't got a job yet and I may renew my Instrument rating next week in OZ as it just lapsed...also thinking about EASA conversion...

[AvEnthusiast]

Faraway from my home-country. And I can't afford to go there every now and then and even don't want to go there. Converted to home-country and thought will find a job with big guys,but... as we all know.

[ryan_sharara]

The type rating costs: 7200$ including MCC other than costs of living and etc..

Its 12 hours on fixed base sim, then 4 hours on full motion sim (test) and 1 hour base training (familiarization)

BGT exam ?

[FlyingDumbells]

I see. Not too bad then. Are you looking to get into falcon then?...as your in DXB, read they are not hiring currently...

BGT - Basic Gas Turbine

[Skyblade]

@ryan
Which flying school in oz you did your CPL?