What do the 'experts' out there in Canada reckon the chances are for a friend of mine who is about to marry his Canadian sweetheart. He's got about 6000 hours of which about 1700 are heavy turboprop and 3700 are jet (B767, B757, B737).

I told him to check out the Transport Canada website but they are slightly vague about foreign licence conversion when it comes to ATPL experience. Some of the written exams may have to be done again, specifically Air Law and he'll have to do a flight test and an IR to convert his JAA ATPL. I think his current type rating will also be recognised.

I told him that he'd be better off staying in the UK but he would prefer to raise his family in Canada. The number of jobs available for someone with his experience are very limited when compared to the UK and Europe but he's prepared to take a chance for the sake of his lifestyle and the great open spaces of Canada.

Comments or advice from anyone who has gone down that route recently would be appreciated. PM if necessary for more information.

My advice would be to commute to Europe.

You make more money and work less. Why bother slagging around Canada for 16 days a month when you can go Cargolux for 10 days a month and commute.

MO MONEY, not to mention a good a lifestyle.

Tell him the grass is always greener - see above post ;)

Very interesting thread. I got an FAA PPL, and currently study in the US. This thread confirms the fact that Canada is not all that better than US in the aviation market. They both have the same tendencies.

It's funny, cause I got an idea of how the job market is from online forums like this one, both for US and Canadian markets.

Everybody says that you gotta work for almost no money, be patient, and stick to it if you want to survive, and that the market is pretty horrible.

Pretty much they all say you gotta instructo for ca couple of years, build time...and then get that cargo job or charter job if you're like after a couple of eons of searching for it, then work like a slave night and day, for almost free till you build some more time...(thousands of hours) till you can apply for a turboprop job...

basically a long and hard road...with very little hope at the beginning, always a chance of getting furloughed with a kick in the but....always changine locations...and better not have a family for a while...

it's a sad tale I heard many times over...it's hard to look into the eyes of a teenager who is eager to become a pilot because he/she loves it soo much, and tell them that they probably won't find a job easily, they have to pay boat-loads of money to train, not to mention sweat.

about the conversion to JAA, I'll be doing this eventually.

From my research and form what I know as of right now, the best path for ICAO licence holders is to get as much flight time as possible, where it's cheaper than Europe...

that's my plan, finish up my FAA IR, build as much cross country, instrument, PIC time as possible...eventually get my multi and get multi engine time...

then when I have 3 or 400 hours, and some 100 hours multi, go to UK, do some 20 or 30 hours or hoever much it takes to get comforable in European airspace, take the ATPL exams, and get the JAA CPL/IR...

...and look for jobs...

Archer