Conversion for less than 5 figures?

[banjodrone]

I'm wondering if anyone has done a non-JAA to JAA CPL ME/IR conversion or knows of anyone who has done it for less than 10,000 Euro. Considering that it's been well over a year since I've flown either VFR or IFR and with the upcoming change in theory syllabus approaching, maybe it's not such a hot idea but with all the changes coming along part of me is thinking I should do something before I'm out of my depth. Around 10 KiloEuros would be my absolute max budget if I manage to sell everything I have but something else tells me I'd be wasting my time and throwing it away if I can't complete within that limit. Groundschool can be correspondence and for flying the location is not important, just good prices, good standards and honest shopkeeping. Or do I need to wake up

[zondaracer]

Sounds like wishful thinking, but my frame of reference was the UK. Under 10k would be impossible in the UK unless maybe you have 500hrs on a multicrew aircraft, but Even then I'm doubtful.

Let's have a look at possible costs
£999 - for CATS distance learning (least expensive that I know of)
£952 - CAA written exam fees (14 x £68)
£785 - flight test fee CPLME (expect add'l fee for SE rating)
£785 - flight test fee ME-IR
£238 - initial license issue (add another fee if adding SE)
£341 - initial class 1 medical
You're looking £4100 before you get to the MCC course (roughly £2000 more) and the flying bit (think 5-10 hrs for CPL, 10hrs in sim and 5hrs in plane for IR plus rental for flight tests), not to mention any travel and accommodation expenses incurred in the whole process.

Keep in mind that this is a UK specific example. You could take a look around southern Europe (Spain, Greece, Portugal) or Eastern Europe (Poland, Serbia etc). I'm not sure what the going rate is but maybe someone else can chime in with their experience. I know that the ME-IR conversion at Aerodynamics Malaga with all fees included for the holder of a CPL-ME is €5000, but this doesn't include the written ATPL exams and CPL conversion. And the Spanish authorities are painfully slow. I heard written exams for the ATPLs in Greece are €5, but I don't know if it's true.

[banjodrone]

Thanks for that breakdown Zonda. I'll definitely check Southern and Eastern Europe out but I'm not too optimistic. It's all the little things that add up and catch you out.

[Alek Mozajew]

In Poland it is a little cheaper. Theoretical ATPL courses are about 2500 PLN (depending on the group size, and distance learning is availble), intitial medical is about 400 PLN, CAA charges about 2000 PLN for theoretical exams, I dont quite remember rates for practical exams. As for the flying it depends on how much validated experience You can provide and how much (if at all) You're short to meet the JAR-FCL 1 requirements. From what I've seen in practice each case gets an individual conversion program approved with the CAA.

1 EUR = 4,4 PLN
1 GBP = 5,1 PLN
1 USD = 3,3 PLN

So to answer Your overall question, conversion for under 10000 EUR is definately possible in Poland. You might also check out Slovakia as they operate EUR, so You're not risking the currency exchange rate fluctuation.