Flying for U.S. company

mflyer · Post by **mflyer** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 11:22 am

I may have a good opportunity to fly for a U.S. company. I'm wondering, for those who have done this before, what's involved in obtaining an FAA license. I have my canadian Airline Transport with current group 1.

I would continue to live in Canada and also be based in a canadian city. Although I do not have an American citizenship, they would be willing to work something out such as a sponsership only because they want crew based up here. Any info and experiences would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Mflyer.

snoopy · Post by **snoopy** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 1:04 pm

You will likely want to obtain a US ATP. You will need to do the ATP written first - either Part 121 or 91, you get to choose which one you write. All the exam questions for US gov. exams are public information and are randomly pulled out of a test bank. I recommend you buy both the GLEIM and the ASA study guide for the US ATP written. If you can put your mind to studying, this will be enough to pass if you do your homework - if not, spend a bit of cash and take a crash course for the written.
For the ride, I highly recomend ATP: http://www.allatps.com/.
Depending on your IFR currency, I recommend the ATP 10 hour (8 hours training, 2 hours for the ride), but they have a shorter course. Its a meat market type place - high pressure go go go and they stuff you with ride info from the moment you walk through the door. This technique seems to work and I had no trouble with the program/ride even though my IFR skills are a little weak as I don't use them enough.
If you require further info, pm me.
Cheers,
Snoopy

ahramin · Post by **ahramin** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 1:12 pm

If you live close to the border, bear in mind that the flight test does not have to be done in a U.S. registered aircraft.

snoopy · Post by **snoopy** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 1:15 pm

Oh yes, one small point I should mention....
If you convert your Canadian ATP direct over to a US ATP,bypassing the Commercial ticket, and you do it in a twin, you will end up with a US ATP Multi-engine ONLY! If you only intend to fly multi then this is no problem. However, should you wish to fly a single-engine aircraft commercially, you will need to do a seperate IFR ride in a single engine aircraft (ask for a single-engine add-on to your ATP).
One other thing, most FAA inspectors are not familiar with the standards for training in Canada. If the instructor or the inspector ask you if you have done chandelles and/or demonstrating VMC as part of your Canadian training say YES! If you say no, the inspector will make you do them. The inspector I had caught me off guard with the question so I took a chance and said yes. It was a good thing.
Cheers,
Snoopy

Regruntled · Post by **Regruntled** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 1:40 pm

What Snoopy said is all similar to what I was told by an FAA inspector when I asked the same thing. Two other things he mentioned to me might help as well: For conversion rides, many FAA examiners will give you what's known as a "courtesy" flight, meaning not too intense; just to make sure you can actually fly. This means that if you're fairly proficient with the IFR stuff, you may be able to bypass much of the flight training portion and save yourself a pile of $$. Also one new post-911 issue is a security clearance thing you have to do. Basically you need to send them a form, they check with Transport to confirm that you actually hold a TC ATPL, then they can issue you a US private (in person only). Only then can you do the conversion ride, though you can write the exam whenever you want. This can take a while so you may want to get this bit done right away to get the ball rolling.

Here's a link to some useful stuff: http://www.faa.gov/avr/afs/flightinstruction/index.cfm

Probably the best thing to do for info is to click on the "FSDO Locator" link and call the office closest to you. I called the office in Minneapolis and the guy there was super helpful. Hope this helps!

Cheers,

R

shankdown · Post by **shankdown** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 2:23 pm

Hey, I just did my conversion stuff for my US ATP down in Portland at ATP. The cost of it is $1295 US plus $350 for the ride. Give them a call at 1 800 ALL ATPS to find out where the closest school is to where you are. I first purchased the ASA books and studied all of that. Then I went to ATP and did the 3 day thing where you spend the first day going over all of the questions in the database, which takes you from about 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. (with a short break for lunch), and then you write the exam in the evening, the second day you spend flying and getting used to the airplane, doing approaches and flight training... shutting down engines, approaches to stall, steep turns (the usual), and the third day was the ride. I was given a license that day. I also had to fill a form out and get approved to go down there. That whole process took about a month. I'd recommend giving one of the FSDO's (Flight Standards District Office) a call and ask if they have the forms available, or go to http://registry.faa.gov and look for it. Your company may also have it handy. I don't think the approval costs anything, so I'd start that process right away. That way you're a little bit ahead of the game, and the company can see that you're a keener. But don't get into too much of a panic about the whole thing, because it was lots easier than I expected it to be. Well, I hope that helps.

SD

snoopy · Post by **snoopy** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 3:31 pm

Regruntled,
You don't need a US private to convert your license. You can convert on the basis of your Canadian ATP and show them your Canadian license for the ride.
Also, the safest thing to back up your experience and avoid hassle is to take your logbook(s) as well. My inspector was not familiar with the Canadian requirements for the ATP (they are stricter than the US requirements) and so wanted to verify my hours/experience as logged. I only had my current logbook with me, and this was an issue until he phoned his supervisor who told him that verification of hours was not necessary if a Canadian ATP is held.
Cheers,
Snoopy

Regruntled · Post by **Regruntled** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 4:48 pm

Snoopy:

You may be right, however the way I understand it the whole process is a "homeland security" thing, not a licensing thing. You may not need to have the private signed off before the test, but you will need to have that security form confirming your identity before they'll admit you to the ride or give you the FAA license. Either way it's worth looking into before losing 2 months to red tape!

Cheers,
R

mflyer · Post by **mflyer** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 9:12 am

Thanks for the info guys. I did contact the one of the FAA offices nearest to my location. They pretty much told me the same things. It looks like It's less involved to go for the ATP than the commercial and IFR as there is only one flight test to complete and not two.

yycflyguy · Post by **yycflyguy** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 9:19 am

Don't forget that in the US under the Freedom of Information Act all test questions must be made available to the public. Pick up a Gleim or ASA book and start reading the questions..... only A, B, or C to choose from too!!