DV 2015 - Those Who Are Applying Wave Here!

[saunj11]

Hi saunj11,

Good to hear from a fellow pilot!

I already have a commercial pilots license and a multi-engine command instrument rating. I have 4 months of training left for my instructor rating, which means I will find out the result of my DV 2015 entry approximately 1 month before I finish my course. In Australia we do not have large regional airlines like the USA, so instructing is the main way that pilots gain experience to join airlines. Career progression is much slower for pilots in Australia than the USA, and that is the driving factor for me wanting to work in the USA. All my licenses have been issued by the Australian CASA, which is part of the ICAO, so conversion of my licenses to FAA is very straight forward. It would take approximately 4 weeks to convert all of my licenses to FAA. I know that the pay for regional airline pilots in the USA is terrible, but as you say you have to start somewhere and career progression is faster for pilots in the USA. From a purely financial perspective, my dream to work in the USA makes no sense whatsoever, because pilots in Australia get paid far more for than their American counterparts for every level of work. Experienced pilots flying for large American airlines still make a very decent living though, and I think the USA is a more interesting place to fly.

Where in the US are you studying? What are your plans after you graduate?

Yeah the regionals here are good to get into, but just like anywhere else in the world you still going to need your hours. If you don't graduate from an approved University, you going to need a minimum of 1500 hours before you can fly for a regional still, that req is 1000 if you graduate from an approved university, and 750 if you are military. So instructing here is also the only way most people build those hours up.

I could be wrong here, but as far as I know you can not convert any instructor ratings elsewhere in the world. Well I know for a fact that you can't do that with the FAA one, its only valid for teaching FAA courses, and you cannot "convert" that per se. You just have to take the whole course again if you want to instruct in a different country.

Im studying in North Dakota, at UND. They have a good aerospace program where you get your certificates, and at the same time a degree from the University. What you major in is your option, they have ATC, Management programs or commercial aviation. I personally am taking the management route as a backup, incase I decide to be on the ground instead of the sky

I hope I can stay here when I'm done , but I'm sure as you know the prospects of that are slim without hitting a luck in the DV. I have been entering myself and my family for 5 years now, hoping this year it turns out right.

 

[MattK]

Yeah the regionals here are good to get into, but just like anywhere else in the world you still going to need your hours. If you don't graduate from an approved University, you going to need a minimum of 1500 hours before you can fly for a regional still, that req is 1000 if you graduate from an approved university, and 750 if you are military. So instructing here is also the only way most people build those hours up.

I could be wrong here, but as far as I know you can not convert any instructor ratings elsewhere in the world. Well I know for a fact that you can't do that with the FAA one, its only valid for teaching FAA courses, and you cannot "convert" that per se. You just have to take the whole course again if you want to instruct in a different country.

Im studying in North Dakota, at UND. They have a good aerospace program where you get your certificates, and at the same time a degree from the University. What you major in is your option, they have ATC, Management programs or commercial aviation. I personally am taking the management route as a backup, incase I decide to be on the ground instead of the sky

I hope I can stay here when I'm done , but I'm sure as you know the prospects of that are slim without hitting a luck in the DV. I have been entering myself and my family for 5 years now, hoping this year it turns out right.

Experience is something we must all go through and its an important part of what we do, however the USA still has far more opportunity for pilots. In Australia there is no law regarding the number of hours a pilot must have to get into an airline, but of course the airlines always select the most experienced pilots (often hiring them from overseas) and it is unheard of for pilots to get direct entry into airlines before they have many thousands of hrs and experience on turbines ect.

I am aware that my instructor rating (IR) cannot be directly converted to an FAA license unlike my PPL, CPL, ME CIR and NVFR ratings. If I was to move to America I would convert my PPL, CPL, ME CIR and NVFR ratings straight away and apply for other entry level pilot jobs like freight, charter, sightseeing, skydiving etc. I would concurrently enroll in a IR course at a US college and, after graduating, work as an instructor pilot, because I believe it is the best way to gain experience (and because I really enjoy instructing!). Worst case scenario: I have enough money saved already that I could easily support myself for an entire year without a job and study full time, then I would start working after I have an FAA IR license. I would volunteer myself for angel flights while I was studying (if those exist in the USA?).

The good news is that if I get selected for further processing for a green card in DV 2015, I would still have upwards of a year (possibly 18 months) to work in Australia (where there are plenty of instructor pilot jobs) before I would have to physically move to the USA, and it is feasible that I could already have 1200 hrs of experience logged (including the experience I have from my training) at the end of that time. This would put me in a very good position to get an instructor pilot job in the US after I have an FAA IR, and not long after I would have enough experience to be able to apply to a regional airline.

I hope everything works out for the both of us! I will keep an eye on your DV progress and hopefully, one way or another, we will both end up flying in the USA!

 

[saunj11]

Experience is something we must all go through and its an important part of what we do, however the USA still has far more opportunity for pilots. In Australia there is no law regarding the number of hours a pilot must have to get into an airline, but of course the airlines always select the most experienced pilots (often hiring them from overseas) and it is unheard of for pilots to get direct entry into airlines before they have many thousands of hrs and experience on turbines ect.

I am aware that my instructor rating (IR) cannot be directly converted to an FAA license unlike my PPL, CPL, ME CIR and NVFR ratings. If I was to move to America I would convert my PPL, CPL, ME CIR and NVFR ratings straight away and apply for other entry level pilot jobs like freight, charter, sightseeing, skydiving etc. I would concurrently enroll in a IR course at a US college and, after graduating, work as an instructor pilot, because I believe it is the best way to gain experience (and because I really enjoy instructing!). Worst case scenario: I have enough money saved already that I could easily support myself for an entire year without a job and study full time, then I would start working after I have an FAA IR license. I would volunteer myself for angel flights while I was studying (if those exist in the USA?).

The good news is that if I get selected for further processing for a green card in DV 2015, I would still have upwards of a year (possibly 18 months) to work in Australia (where there are plenty of instructor pilot jobs) before I would have to physically move to the USA, and it is feasible that I could already have 1200 hrs of experience logged (including the experience I have from my training) at the end of that time. This would put me in a very good position to get an instructor pilot job in the US after I have an FAA IR, and not long after I would have enough experience to be able to apply to a regional airline.

I hope everything works out for the both of us! I will keep an eye on your DV progress and hopefully, one way or another, we will both end up flying in the USA!

Sounds like a good plan! And you def would be in a good spot coming here with hours if you instruct before you leave. Plenty of instructor jobs available here too from what I see.

Good luck to you too, here's hoping we both get selected. Who know's, maybe one day we will both be sitting besides each other flying for a US carrier, the world of aviation is so small! Cheers

 

[MattK]

Sounds like a good plan! And you def would be in a good spot coming here with hours if you instruct before you leave. Plenty of instructor jobs available here too from what I see.

Good luck to you too, here's hoping we both get selected. Who know's, maybe one day we will both be sitting besides each other flying for a US carrier, the world of aviation is so small! Cheers

Hahahaha that would be brilliant! Good talking