Questions about PPL/CPL Training / Airline Selection

The supplement in the current Pilot magazine (Chipmunk on cover) about the various paths to airline flying makes good reading. Don’t forget the Military route !!

Of course you can’t be expected to cough up that sort of money just like that. With Oxford, HSBC have a loan deal where they can loan you up to £50,000 I believe.

It is worth getting a brochure from Oxford, or, if possible, go to a seminar. They are really good and give you a good feel for the place. I went for a seminar and also looked a FTE and CTC. Me being in Arizona right now may tell you something about which school I chose in the end.

Good luck

Minidoh

Theres an article in this months Pilot magazine highlighting what all the different options are and the whole process of becoming an airline pilot

Edit- Do you think that it is a good idea to contact to Oxford Avation School get a brouchure from them

You might as well…I did, and it’s a good read. Looks a very nice place to go if you have the money. I think it’ll be the RAF for me. To start with anyway!

Thanks for the Advice guys. Minidoh y ou h ave to keep in mind that i am only at the first year of my GCSE’S so i have a long way before i can aford £70-100K so there is pleantay of research i will do.

Edit- Do you think that it is a good idea to contact to Oxford Avation School get a brouchure from them

Nick,

You need to do far more research into it before you make any kind of decision. I spent the best part of 5 years looking into which school, how, when, why etc for my training and then employment. I am currently about 4 weeks away from gaining my CPL, but few airlines will hire you with that. In fact, I cant really think of any airlines that will hire you with a CPL in the UK. You could possibly get some small king air charter work etc, but without the ATPL you dont stand a chance with an airline these days.

After you have your CPL, you will need to do the IR and MCC, which then qualifies means you have a “frozen” ATPL. All that means is you have passed all the necessary exams but to not meet the hours required to have your ATPL. You cannot become a Captain until you have unfrozen your ATPL, which can be done in just over a year, if you work hard. In terms of costs, Modular guys can expect to pay between £30,000 and £40,000 purely in TRAINING costs. You then have accomodation etc. Integrated students like myself pay up to £70,000 for the training. In all honesty a £100,000 budget for integrated wont be too far from the truth at the end of it all, as people often forget how expensive living can be!

You will come across a lot of arguing about which is better; modular or integrated. Of course with modular you pay far less, but then some airlines are less keen on modular students. In fact, the BA head of flight deck recruitment said two years ago that BA will not and do not take modular students. BA aren’t the only airline, and trust me many airlines do take modular students, it just depends on what your goal at the end of it all is.
I chose integrated because I felt it suited me better.
Check out www.pprune.org for info, and without meaning to sound rude, you need to do far more research. From your post I can tell that you dont know much about it all. Keep in mind that there are many many young students who want to be pilots. You will have to make yourself one of the lucky few to actually get the job at the end of it all. If you haven’t done your research, you can forget it all together.

In terms of salaries, BA pay for First Officers will start somewhere around £28,000 but they pay for your type rating (which will cost you in the region of £20,000). BA also pay you £10 per flying hour, so if you do the limit of 900 hours a year thats an extra £9000 on top. Most airlines have flight pay. BMi pay for starting First Officers is £41,000, but you have to pay for your type rating. At the other end of the scale, some airlines cough *ryanair* cough need a fair amount of research before even considering. Out of 25 people on my course, not one person has said they will consider working for them. I am not saying anything incorrect about them, I haven’t worked for them so I cannot tell you whether they are as shocking as some people say. Pprune should give you a good hint as to what the situation at Ryanair is like :p

It’s not the easiest career to get into, but the commitment to get good results in groundschool and you flying will show how much you want it. Best of luck and feel free to PM/email me if you have any specific questions.

Minidoh

P.S. A few schools you could google to check out their websites:
Oxford Aviation Training
CTC Wings
Cabair
Flight Training Europe

Jet 22

Before you spend any of your hard earned cash I suggest that you read the information available on these websites very carefully (If you have not done so already):

BALPA – How to become a pilot

GAPAN – Career Advice

Download all the documents and read them thoroughly. The advice contained therein is free and impartial, neither organisation has any axe to grind. Just remember that almost everyone else is trying to sell you something.

exmpa

If you want to get a posistion at an airline you need an ATPL.

PPL – 5K
CPL – 30K
ATPL – 30K

= 65K

At the end of it you may not even get a job…it’s a risk you may want to think about.

And airline wages vary from airline to airline…