ATPL in USA

[shadow04]

can anybody tell me if the idea of going to the USA to do the ATPL and then coming back to AUS is still available and if so whats the process.

[404 Titan]

shadow04

Yes you can but be very very careful going down this road. Most airlines in Australia including QF, J* and DJ require that you have an Australian ATPL without exemption or at least have a frozen Australian ATPL without exemption. Put into plain English they what you to have an Australian ATPL after passing “ALL” the Australian ATPL subjects. They don’t want you getting an Australian ATPL after you got credits in most of the subjects because you have a foreign ATPL.

[shadow04]

Thanks for the advice, the company i am thinking of does not require Australian passes so i am safe there. do you know the procedure involved or companies that can do it?

[rmcdonal]

Whats so hard about getting the Australian ATPL?

[Defenestrator]

And be very careful of this catch. If for some reason down the track you decide that you want the full credits for the Aus ATPL (ie the subjects) it can get very messy. IF you fail any one of the subjects you will in effect failed a subject for the issue of a licence that you already hold. CASA will give you with a very limited time period to pass ALL subjects or they will cancel your ATPL that was issued on the back of your FAA ATP. Think long and hard before going down this road. It's cheaper just to jump through the hoops here at home and get a fully accredited licence. Might seem like a short term fix but in the long term you'll moe than likely regret it. At some point though invest in a FAA ATP. Can come in very handy when working OS.

D

[shadow04]

Thanks greatly for your advice. much appreciated

[Chimbu chuckles]

Yup...a mate of mine did the US licence - Oz licence conversion and then 10 years later applied to VB. They suggested he come back when he had the Oz subjects passed. He failed the first one and CASA ripped his ATPL off him in a heart beat...he did NOT get any timeframe to pass them all before licence cancellation, it happened overnight...he was just very lucky his job didn't require an ATPL otherwise he would have been unemployed as well.

That caused another mate of mine to withdraw his application from VB.

Get the Ozzie licence first and then get the US one if you feel you want to work somewhere that requires that licence...the ME for example.

[haughtney1]

For my eventual return to NZ or OZ

Whats the deal with a JAA(UK) ATPL to Oz conversion?

[Defenestrator]

Geez Haughtney, you're a clever lad. Surely you could have found this.

http://www.casa.gov.au/fcl/overbr.htm
Dunno much about it though. Have a look at the NZ conversion as well. I'd take which ever one is quickest and cheapest and then use the Trans Tasman Mutual Agreement to get the other.
D

[haughtney1]

Geez Haughtney, you're a clever lad. Surely you could have found this.

"better to keep ones mouth shut..and have people think you are stupid.....than to open ones mouth...and remove all doubt"

I've also been associated with laziness

[Monopole]

I think its a fair point that most Oz compaines require the OZ ATPL

On the contrary (imo) tomwato. From what I can gather most Oz operators don't care where the licence is issued. I have several friends who went the US route, and they all bar one, have regional airline gigs in oz (and one in VB).

I looked at going down this road a few years back, but objected to the requirement of submitting finger prints to go on the US crimminal data base before I did anything wrong. I also objected to obtaining a visa (other then the training visa and contradictory to the fact that the USA and Aust have a visa waiver programme) just because i'm a 'white male between the ages of 18 and 65'.

And as for the fairness in the time taken to do it.......

If you rocked up to sit the exam without any study you would not pass. The fact that if you do fail you may not sit the exam again for another 30 days adds some pressure if time or money are tight. You then require a test flight which will also require some training. Ok, so maybe you can do it in roughly a week, but it is not as easy as we Australians make it out to be. The flight test is probably harder then any flight test you have ever done (from what I've heard).

Shadow04, unless you inspire to nothing less then VB, or QF I would not be too concerned about a US ATPL. It can even work in your favour.