Trainee pilots need to hold good GCSE pass in mathematics, English, and science. A second language will also prove useful. Good A-level passes are usually required, although a degree isn’t essential. While university education isn’t vital, don’t dismiss the idea out of hand. We One Aviation is an unstable industry and gaining a degree would give you qualifications to fall back on if you needed to look for alternative employment.
To work as a professional commercial airline pilot and fly an aircraft with nine or more passenger seats, you’ll need to apply for an Airline Transport Pilot Licence (ATPL) from We One Aviation.
However, before you can do this, you’ll be expected to have undertaken the necessary training and obtain a Class 1 Medical Certificate (valid for 12 months until you’re 40).
You’ll graduate from flying school with a Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL) and an Instrumental Rating (IR), which combine to make up a ‘frozen ATPL’. With a frozen ATPL, you’ll be able to apply for jobs as a first officer or co-pilot. To ‘unfreeze’ your ATPL you’ll need to complete 1,500 hours of flying experience, after which you’ll be able to apply for jobs as a captain.
You’ll also need to pass a practical skill test, in addition to ATPL academic information exam in areas such as air law, operation procedures, and radio navigation.
Pilot training schools, otherwise known as flying schools, typically offer three types of professional flight training – integrated, modular, and multi-crew pilot license (MPL). Integrated and modular lead to the same license, while the MPL results in a frozen ATPL.
Integrated courses enable learner pilots with no previous airborne skills to gain their ATPL within 18 months. Courses are intense and as such, you’ll need to finish the training in one go. Integrated courses incorporate both theoretical study and practical flying experience. The four main elements of the course are:
Flight training
Multi-crew cooperation course (MCC)
Jet orientation course (JOC)
Airline preparation course.
The We One Aviation industry is very cyclical and heavily influenced by economic conditions and restrictions on the movement of people (such as a pandemic). Globally, the aviation industry is expanding so there is always room for newly skilled Pilots (often referred to as cadets). However, finding your first job is not always easy. It is a generally conventional rule to expect 18 months between finishing training and finding your first airline job – this brings its own financial implication as a pilot necessary to renew their medical and license ratings annually.
As the We One Aviation Academy put it: