European airline jobs

[orange]

As we know, the US requires a minimum of 1500 hours (besides the different required certificates and ME time, etc) to even apply for an airline job.

Is there such a minimum in Europe?

I saw a show over the weekend about Easyjet, UK's busiest budget airline.

They showed student they took off the street (one worked at a coffee shop, etc) and get them from nothing to right seat on A318/19/20/21 in 2 years. But it is costly 120,000 pounds (over $150,000). Also requires 5 GCSE's (which I understand are qualification tests in various subjects).

They showed a kid who was 20 (looks 14) sitting right seat for a flight from Paris to Greece, IIRC. The starting pay is about 40,000 pounds ($50,000) and goes up to 60k ($75k) after 2,000 hours when you become senior first officer.

And they showed the training academy where they start. It's 6 months of classroom only, then PPL in a Cessna, and then the other certificates I guess? They showed them in a twin prop, but didn't discuss any other certificates. Then a type rating for the A320 family and then they go to airline training. And within a few weeks, they are doing their qualification checkride with the airline, in an actual jet (without passengers). Do US carriers do that? I think sim only. From what I understand, the first time US pilots fly an airliner is with paying passengers. If they do 6 touch and goes without screwing up too badly, they earn their wings. Those that don't go back to the classroom for more instruction. The biggest issue they seemed to have is keeping the centerline when landing.

Seems like a much easier and faster (albeit costly) path to an airline career.

 

[mtuomi]

It's been that way for a long time. EASA has what's called "frozen ATPL", which means you have your ME/IR and CPL and have passed the 14 written exams for the ATPL. Often you only have 250 hours at this point in an actual airplane.

GCSE's/"A-Levels" are UK education standards. 5 GCSE's roughly is the same level of education as GED/High School Diploma, it is more standardized though.

EASA ATPL is way more involved than the FAA ATP, even though technically both are ICAO ATPLs. Takes a year normally on average to study the subjects. It's just a different approach, Europeans think that structured training for 250 hours will prepare you to an airline job just as well, as teaching to fly/flying skydivers for 1500 hours. Knowing a lot of European airline pilots, I tend to agree. Different experience levels/skillsets, when applied right, both will result in safe airline pilots, and statistics do seem to confirm this too.