Airline pilot

[jam17p]

How does one become an airline pilot? Are there any different routes to becoming one, e.g. graduate entry etc.

[theo_wyvern]

i know a number of pilots are ex RAF, they are taught how to fly and then go for a commercial pilots license when leaving the RAF

[xrayspecs]

You have to get a job in Tie rack at Manchester airport, then buy a captains uniform..... no wait, that's Coronation Street..... Free the Weatherfield One and all that!!

[Buenchico]

Here's the information you require:
http://www.learndirect-advice.co.uk/helpwithyourcareer/j obprofiles/profiles/profile495/

Chris

[Clanad]

Here in the U.S., we see a lot of foreign nationals enrolled in a variety of flight schools since our costs for such training are considerably less than in the U.K. or Europe. I was an airline pilot for many years before changing to the Dark Side (Federal Aviation Administration) and many of my generation of pilots used to hang around the local airport, sweeping hangars and doing menial jobs for the opportunity to get a few hours of flight instruction. Many of us, myself included, scraped together enough money to purchase an old airplane (mine was a 1939 pre-war Luscombe 8-A that was far older than I was) to gain the requisite experience rather cheaply. That can still be done, but takes a lot of dedication. Many universities offer flight courses along with a degree, often in aviation management. Problem is, once graduating the new pilot doesn't have enough flight time to be employable. Usually, a flight instructor rating is then earned and enough money can be earned to gain flight hours. Still a difficult profession, but I wouldn't trade it for anything... Trying to describe a sunrise viewed from 35,000 feet over the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming, the Popocatepetl Volcano of central Mexico or Mt McKinley, Alaska (and hundreds of other places) is impossible unless you've had the opportunity to do so from the left front seat of a Boeing 727...