Help with pilot training.
 

Hi Guys,

I'm new to this forum so i'm sure these questions have been asked 100,000 times so i do apologise for my ignorance but i just want to make sure i get real time up to date information.
I'm a 22 year old student finishing college and after 4 years and obtaining a degree i have realised i want to follow my dream and become a pilot. I have looked into this for years but, living in Ireland, to do the course in waterford, costs atleast €90,000 and moving away was never an option as my father was ill, but has since passed so i am now in a position to move away.
I have looked into doing training in america, particularily Florida,and the cost of training seems so much cheaper, places like phoenix east and delta connection academy to name a few. So to bring this story to an end i am looking for some info.
Number 1: does anyone know where the best schools in america to train are? or are the two i have named above any good?

2) Realistically what will it cost me to get a cpl in one of these structured programs?

3)what is the job scene like for pilots at the minute? is now a bad time to begin pilot training? I will be getting a loan from the bank with the help of my mother so this is obviously an important factor.

I would really appreciate any help on this matter as i am finding it hard to get any other sort of info on this!

Thanks,
oscarorange42.

a little advise..... but not much !!
 

Hi,

Firstly, I must admit I've been out of the training side of things for a few years but I've kept in touch with whats going on...

Having said that, I'll say what I always say when asked for training advice - talk to David Coulson at Cranfield Flight Training (they have a website with their phone number - I dont have it with me right now...). David always seems to know where is best for individual trainees, probably due to his 20,000 plus hours in training (plus thousands of non training hours as well).

As for the job market today - in short, no hope !!! There are many, many experienced and type rated pilots looking for work so new CPLs have no chance..... BUT if you can predict when the economy will recover you can time completing your training to finish just as the jobs appear...

So, not much advice but the best I can do...

Good luck,

Ian.

have you tried looking through the stickys ontop of the forum?

yeah i've looked at the stickys, it is quite useful but it doesn't really give me the info i'm looking for, i'm prepared for that sort of lifestyle, it's the questions i have listed that i need answering!!!! thanks for your help though mate!

have you looked at FTE?
Dont forget that the FAA cpl isn't a whole lot of good to ya over here without getting it converted.

You are right OscarOrange42 the questions have been asked 100,000 times. The answers comprise opinion, conjecture and information. The problem is that, it is not simply a case of answer my 3 simple questions and then I can catapult myself into a new and exciting career. You do need to do some proper research and that is much more time consuming. As you rightly say it may involve borrowing large sums of money and therefore it is very important.

By way of example:

Presumably not, since few will have experienced more than one or two. There are undoubtably a large number of schools that can service your requirement. The schools that individuals have had problems with can be found by research. Good schools, or those that individuals have had good experiences with, can be found by the same method. To a greater or lesser extent it is a case of finding which sort of establishment will seem to be right for you. Is an American flight school going to help you achieve your aim? Have you considered European schools. Have you considered the differences and limitations of different types of licences.

No doubt a look at their websites or a telephone call will provide a number for you. How realistic that is may well depend on your own progress and circumstances. Almost certainly that cost will only be but a small part of the costs you will likely incur through, training, living, converting, renewing, further training, travelling, administration and a host of other even more "realistic" costs than just the ones you are alluding to. Do you think a "cpl" is going to be enough?

Truly awful! Airlines are suffering badly in the current global economy. Businesses are cutting back on travel generally and where it is unavoidable they are cutting their budgets for that travel. Airlines around the planet are cancelling and defering orders for new aircraft. Salaries are being frozen or in some cases reduced. Job security is absymal, with many companies making pilots redundant or stopping all new recruitment and promotions. The near and medium term outlook is very gloomy. Retirement ages have recently been extended by up to 10 years in some countries, taking the pressure off natural recruitment by a similar period. Oh, and by the way, I am talking about the "scene" for experienced professional pilots with thousands of relevant hours experience. For newly qualified pilots it gets worse. They are prepared to pay for type ratings and line training thereby removing the number of jobs that might otherwise have existed in earlier times. There is so much supply and almost no demand, to the extent that is difficult to see how great a turnaround in the industry would actually be required to improve these prospects.

It isn't hard to get this information. It is readilly and glaringly available on these forums and elsewhere. As I said you need to do some proper study and research, you really do!

2 cents worth
 

I would get a loan and get a proper University degree, then get a proper job and then buy a proper aircraft and fly for fun!

Don't let your obsession with flying blind you to the reality of the absolute misery currently experienced in this industry. OK, even the market recovers and airlines hire again, there will undoubtebly be another downturn and you will be 50 years old begging for a greeter position at Wal-Mart because you don't have any transferable skills and relative experience in stable industries. Fact Jack.

Look before you Leap my friend.:ok:

in Croatia it costs around 30000E, not in intercockpit, in Zagreb Hrvatsko Zrakoplovno Nastavno Središte - Croatian Airplane Training Center