Hawkeye0001
20th Oct 2023, 22:46
Good evening gentlemen!
I need some advice from those flying in the UK as my wife just signed a job offer in London and we'll have to move there next year - meaning I've got to find a job there (EU citizen, right to work would be secured through a spousal visa).
8 years ago I changed from a full time flying job as Chiefpilot for a small outfit in East Africa with sideline EMS work as a paramedic to the opposite scenario when we had to move back to Europe for family reasons. While I tried to keep my pilot licenses current (FAA CPL(H) IR / CFII + East African CPL(H)) by freelancing once or twice a year in East Africa, the covid meltdown was the last straw that finally broke the camel's back (but hey, never had such job security as in EMS during the pandemic...).
Before that I collected some 1850 hrs on an FAA CPL(H) / IR & CFII and Tanzanian CPL(H) doing a range of flying from utility work in the US to many years of hot & high bush flying in East Africa; most of it on the R44 (plus the ubiquitous R22 & S300 time from school and a whopping 75hrs on MD-500E with Class A ext. loads for survey work) as well as a bit of instruction.
Considering that I'll have to convert one of my licenses either way to work in the UK (medical vs. flying) I'm actually considering that I may as well get back in the saddle as I do miss flying helicopters more and more by the day. My question to you gentlemen is this: does it seem a viable option to convert to a UK CAA license in terms of cost, job prospects, pay, license conversion to convert / fly in the UK (esp. now that it's not useable for any EASA country anymore) and how would you recommend going about it? We're looking to relocate to anywhere within 100km of London and are free to choose (wherever would be best suited also in tems of flight schools / operators etc. if I go that route).
I need some advice from those flying in the UK as my wife just signed a job offer in London and we'll have to move there next year - meaning I've got to find a job there (EU citizen, right to work would be secured through a spousal visa).
8 years ago I changed from a full time flying job as Chiefpilot for a small outfit in East Africa with sideline EMS work as a paramedic to the opposite scenario when we had to move back to Europe for family reasons. While I tried to keep my pilot licenses current (FAA CPL(H) IR / CFII + East African CPL(H)) by freelancing once or twice a year in East Africa, the covid meltdown was the last straw that finally broke the camel's back (but hey, never had such job security as in EMS during the pandemic...).
Before that I collected some 1850 hrs on an FAA CPL(H) / IR & CFII and Tanzanian CPL(H) doing a range of flying from utility work in the US to many years of hot & high bush flying in East Africa; most of it on the R44 (plus the ubiquitous R22 & S300 time from school and a whopping 75hrs on MD-500E with Class A ext. loads for survey work) as well as a bit of instruction.
Considering that I'll have to convert one of my licenses either way to work in the UK (medical vs. flying) I'm actually considering that I may as well get back in the saddle as I do miss flying helicopters more and more by the day. My question to you gentlemen is this: does it seem a viable option to convert to a UK CAA license in terms of cost, job prospects, pay, license conversion to convert / fly in the UK (esp. now that it's not useable for any EASA country anymore) and how would you recommend going about it? We're looking to relocate to anywhere within 100km of London and are free to choose (wherever would be best suited also in tems of flight schools / operators etc. if I go that route).