Cost of flight training to CPL/ATPL standard?

Question

Hi there, right, I'm 31 and I have my Private Pilots License. I've researched the cost of modular ground training for my CPL/ATPL and I'm happy with that. But what's the approximate cost of the real flight training (this being the bank breaker I imagine) to get me to an employable standard? And, given that my age and nil experience probably disqualifies me for sponsorship or the likes, what help is out there (and how helpful is it)?

Answer 1

You're employable (at some entry level pilot jobs) with just the CPL.  

Having 500 or a thousand hours flight time as an instuctor might help toward getting hired at a commuter air carrier.  

Answer 2

I'm not sure what you are asking.  The CPL standard is different than the ATPL standard, so those are different questions.  You then ask about an employable standard, which is different still.  I would suggest you keep working on your ratings and you will learn more as you go.  If you need to know now what the total training cost will be, I would imagine between 60 and 100 thousand dollars.  This is US dollars, which I assume is what you are talking about.  I would get your commercial and flight instructor, get a job teaching, and just do the job.  With time, you will learn far more than you can get from this website.  Good luck to you.

Answer 3

An "employable standard" is the CPL with an instrument rating, which is obtainable at 250 hours. Since very few jobs except instructing are available to pilots with such low time, you'll need to get a flight instructor certificate (CFI). Since you already have a PPL, you can figure that the CPL, Instrument and CFI ratings will cost you between $25,000 and $35,000 in the USA (the cheapest country to train in). Possibly more if you pick an expensive school. However, to be more employable, you also need to add the multi-engine rating with a multi-engine instructors certificate, so add at least another $5000 to the price tag.  Building multi-engine time isn't easy unless you can instruct in twins or you have incredibly good connections.  

At 500 hours you can start looking for a job with an air taxi service or charter outfit, or possibly a small regional airline. You could get that by instructing or you could buy 500 hours by renting airplanes, but that would cost you at least $50,000. Since the ATPL requires a minimum of 1500 hours flight experience, that would cost you a minimum of $150,000 USD, so it is far better to build that amount of time with a flying job.  

Unfortunately, most hiring standards are set by insurance requirements, not government-mandated flight time minimums, so on average, to be truly employable and competetive, at least 3 times the regulatory minimums are typically needed before you'll be considered for any particular job. In other words, the airlines require a minimum of 1,500 hours if you have the ATPL, but most won't actually consider most applicants if they have less than 5,000 hours. To reach that experience level, figure on working lesser jobs for 5 to 10 years.

In the regional airlines, figure that the minimum requirement is going to be 1,000 to 2,000 hours total, with 200-500 of that time in multi-engine aircraft. It might take 2-4 years as a flight instructor to build that much time. For lesser jobs, 500 to 1,000 hours are a typical requirement and again, instructing is the usual way to get it. Only flight schools and a very few other aviation business will consider a pilot with less than 500 hours.  

Again, much of the required experience is driven by insurance requirements, not regulations. Also, if you don't have a 4 year college degree, your chances of getting hired at a major airline decline by about 75%. With a 2 year degree, your chances of getting hired are about 50% less. It's an extremely competetive business with lots of over-qualified applicants, so who you know counts at least as much as the experience you have.

Good luck, whatever you decide.