If you want to become an airline pilot, most people say you should get an Airbus A320 Type-Rating straight out of flying school. That means after you build 200 hours, acquire your CPL (commercial pilot’s license), and are instrument-rated, you’ll spend at least an additional 2-2.5 million Pesos for Airbus A320 type-rating (initial type-rating).
But is Airbus A320 type-rating actually worth it? Will this rating guarantee you a spot in front of the line for those applying for the airlines? Or are you putting your money in an investment that will take too long to materialize, if it will?
Here’s the real deal on post-flying school type-ratings and if you should get it.
What is a Type-Rating?
Before going deep into whether you should get an Airbus A320 Type-Rating or not, you should first figure out what type-rating is. That’s because pilot licenses are not the same as driver’s licenses, where one license is enough for you to operate different vehicles.
When you get a driver’s license, you can pretty much drive any car in the same weight class you’re licensed for. However, it’s different when it comes to flying, where each aircraft type requires its own license.
For example, if you’re licensed to fly a Cessna 152, it doesn’t mean you can operate the Cessna 172. You have to get an endorsement from a qualified flight instructor first, and then you have to apply in CAAP to have it added to your license.
So, when you look at pilots, you’ll see that their licenses would have listed ratings at the back of their card, detailing which aircraft they’re allowed to fly.
A Number’s Game: Is a Type-Rating Worth Spending Money On?
Now, the main question many people ask is—is it worth spending an extra 2-2.5 million Pesos on getting an Airbus A320 rating? Many would either say yes or no, but it’s not simple as that. You have to consider several factors before even making a choice.
The first thing you should consider is can you afford it? This 2-2.5 million Pesos is just the tuition for the initial type-rating course.
It doesn’t include the cost of acquiring your initial licenses (commercial pilot license, instrument rating), including a multi-engine rating, which costs around the same price or more. You also have to pay for your living expenses while you’re undergoing training.
And if you do have a Commerical Pilot’s License and an Instrument Rating that amount of money (2-2.5 million pesos) can buy a lot of block flight hours on a flying club. Check out Arayat Aero Club, members can fly solo anywhere around the Philippines.
If you sum this up (Commercial Pilot’s License, Instrument Rating, Initial Airbus A320 type-rating), training could set you back by over 5-6.5 million Pesos. Not every family can afford this amount, and even if some could, this money could be better spent on other investments.
You also have to consider that getting a commercial pilot’s license with all the required ratings and other licenses doesn’t guarantee a job in the airlines. Getting a type rating does give some advantage since the airline doesn’t have to risk their money to train you. But if you don’t perform to their standards, they can just as quickly fire you from their ranks.
And, unlike in the US, where airlines are scrambling for pilots, the situation in South East Asia is a bit different. While it’s true that some airlines are now looking for pilots to fill their ranks, there are still hundreds, if not thousands, of experienced pilots who are looking to return to the skies.
Most airlines require first officers to have at least 1,000 hours under their belt before even beginning to consider them. It’s only at times of desperation when airlines cannot operate flights because of understaffing that they start hiring pilots with fewer hours.
So, if you can afford to spend the extra two million on the initial type-rating and wait when airlines start hiring pilots with less than a thousand hours of flying time, then you can do so. But in the meantime, you should still keep on flying. Otherwise, you might have trouble returning to the cockpit of an A320 if you don’t have practice.
The Hidden Cost of Type Ratings
Aside from the training cost, you also have to consider several other factors. Flying multi-engine aircraft means you have to get a multi-engine rating. This costs between 500 to 800 thousand Pesos.
You should also remember that a type rating is specific to one aircraft type. Most airlines in South East Asia operate the Airbus A320, but they also fly different types like the ATR42, ATR72, Boeing 737, and Q400.
What if you invested in an A320 rating, but then opportunities opened up with airlines flying a different type of Aircraft? Your A320 type rating advantage is diminished, and you might have to spend a couple of extra million to get the desired rating.
Furthermore, if you don’t get hired within the same year you acquired your type rating, you’ll have to spend money on simulator time to stay current. That’s an additional 200 to 300 thousand Pesos per year flying a Level D Simulator, just to maintain a type rating. That same amount can buy you a decent amount of flying time on a Cessna 152/Cessna 172 and hone your flying skills and aeronautical decision making skills.
Finally, getting a type rating might be putting blinkers in your eyes when it comes to the pilot career. While it’s true that being an airline pilot is a genuinely lucrative position, it also comes with a lot of caveats and sacrifices.
If you’ve invested millions into your type-rating, and once you’ve made it in the airlines, you figured it’s not for you, you’re pretty much stuck with the grind. That’s because you want to make back your investment before looking at other flying opportunities.
Several other flying positions out there can provide the same as the airlines, or even more. Alternatively, you can focus on a different career path and then just turn flying into a passion you’ll spend on. That way, you can pretty much fly when you want, where you want, and not be tied to the whims of scheduled flights and the demands of airline flying.
Do Airlines Prefer Pilots With Type-Ratings?
If you’re able to afford the cost and maintenance of a type rating, then you can go ahead and enroll. But does it really give you an advantage over other pilots when the airlines are hiring?
Conventional wisdom says yes. After all, the airline doesn’t have to risk the cost of training you. So, if you don’t pass their standards for some reason, they wouldn’t have wasted so many resources on you since you paid for it yourself anyway.
But are they looking at it merely from a cost perspective? You must remember that pilots handle equipment worth millions of dollars. And it’s not just the machine and insurance they’re worrying about. A pilot-error accident that causes loss of life can also damage their reputation and lead to lawsuits and fines.
A pilot with over 1,000 flying hours across different types of terrain, weather, and airports, might be a better gamble for airlines. That’s because these pilots have the wisdom that only comes with experience.
But if you have both—experience and a type-rating—then that’s something that will propel you to the front of the line.
It Takes Experience to Build Skill
We all started with zero experience and bag full of luck. We try to fill the experiences as much as we can. If in case the bag of luck runs out, hopefully we do have enough experience to get us out of trouble.
Borrowed quote from a member of Philippine Flight Simmer’s Group: Windwalker, Airbus A330 Captain.
If you’re an airline pilot handling the lives of hundreds of passengers every day, then these people expect you to be skillful. You must have this intuition of flying, where you can feel the aircraft and rely on the combination of instruments and competence to get everyone to their destination safely.
You don’t get this experience in type-rating training. When you enter a type-rating institution, your instructors expect you to know how to fly properly. They’re only there to get you up-to-speed with advanced equipment.
But if you can afford the initial cost and annual proficiency checks, then go and do it by all means.
Once you have the type-rating, it doesn’t mean that flying smaller aircraft is below you. Continuously hone your skill so that when the time comes that the airlines call you up for an interview, you can proudly say that you’ve added several hours to your roster because of your love of flying.
Let me know what you think, comment it down below.
