Exams: CPL only (13) versus ATPL (14, now 13)

I´m currently in the process of upgrading from IR to ATPL theory. Did my IR exams 4 years ago. IR to CPL you are credited with HP and Met (both are substantial subjects). IR to ATPL you are credited only with IFR Comms and if your CAA has already changed to the newest EASA learning objectives/questions database you are credited with nothing as both IFR+VFR Comms merged.

As per CPL vs ATPL – the extent of self prep seems the same, prepare for quite some studiing. As someone posted at AvEx forget about your girlfriend for a year – having three exams to go I´d say it´s four months of hard labour plus some weekends spent on the theory course.

Peter wrote:

In Europe, a CPL if practically worthless, and a CPL done with CPL exams together with an IR done with IR exams is just as worthless because such a CPL/IR cannot ever be upgraded to an ATPL (via the only route which is 500hrs in a multi pilot RHS job). You can fly bizjets with such a CPL/IR but those jobs are rare.

I don’t understand. I agree that if you go for a career, then you should do the full ATPL exams at once, but for an RHS job with a European airline, all you need is a CPL/IR. It won’t take long to get 500 hrs in that seat. Do you mean that you won’t get hired if you don’t have the full ATPL exams?

The only one I found interesting was meteorology.

Thag is 90% of the sh**t when it comes to understanding things and grasping concepts, the rest is a walk in the park when it comes to getting 100% pass on Q&A automation without a clue behind

I completed the UK CAA CB-IR exams in 2018.

Now in 2021, with a view to completing a FI course, I am studying for the 13 UK CAA CPL exams.

There is no cross-credit available for passes in the CB-IR exams (by contrast, the full IR exams provide CPL cross-credit for Human Performance and Met).

Having completed and passed Module 1 (Human Performance, Principles of Flight, Aircraft General Knowledge, Instruments) I offer the following observations:

• A consequence of Covid is that consolidation days are now all provided over Zoom, there is no requirement to physically attend groundschool

• Certainly for Module 1, for which I attended consolidation classes with the ATPL students, there are minimal differences between CPL and ATPL learning objectives. I understand that there is more divergence between CPL and ATPL in subjects such as Performance and Meteorology.

• Plenty of jet-based material in the CPL course material and exams

• The UK CAA has recently transitioned to UK Question Bank 2020. The question banks are still valuable, but do expect plenty of questions that you have not seen in the question banks. Plenty has been written about the 5% pass rates in certain subjects when the QB2020 was launched: What a Performance! – The CAA exam with a 95% failure rate

• For the UK CAA exams, I have so far found Bristol Ground School’s question bank much more representative of the exam questions, compared to Aviation Exam.

…rest is a walk in the park when it comes to getting 100% pass on Q&A automation without a clue behind

Certainly not in my case, lots to study and understand. But then, some of us have superior talents

…Bristol Ground School’s question bank much more representative of the exam questions, compared to Aviation Exam

I´ve used AvEx explanations + some web searching for both IR and ATPL, all but one exam +90%, read some books but none prepare for EASA “dance”

Thanks for the link MarkW – pretty damning stuff

UK used to allow load of things even with PPL (before AirOps NCO & CAT were introduced)

https://www.peter2000.co.uk/aviation/misc/SummaryOfCATPTAWANO2009May2010.pdf

PT with CPL in AirTaxi is no longer “practical or profitable” in UK land, the only route is fATPL+MCC+CPL/MEIR in twin jets (or maybe CPL doing FI work in ATO in VFR C152)

MarkW wrote:

The UK CAA has recently transitioned to UK Question Bank 2020. The question banks are still valuable, but do expect plenty of questions that you have not seen in the question banks. Plenty has been written about the 5% pass rates in certain subjects when the QB2020 was launched: What a Performance! – The CAA exam with a 95% failure rate

A 95% failure rate says more about the practise of memorising question banks than the quality of the exam questions!

Thank you for your answers.
I’m in the process to lose my job, so I wonder before taking something else, if I should not get the opportunity to get a professional licence.
Who knows, maybe I will need it sometime ?
30% is not nothing… But ATPL may be the best investment if I really go this way.

Ibra wrote:

I am in the same boat, I did my IR exams as I felt the utility is worth it and I was not going to wait one boring year to start the IR training, now I am doing ATPL and halfway through, I think CPL would have been suboptimal and same hassle (probably 15% less in TK and 30% less in QDB)

PS: I think you can get 092 COM exam in ATPL grandfathered from your IR but you may need to check

@Ibra
If not impolite, why do you go this way ?
I will check which one can be grandfathered.

@Peter wrote:

f not, then don’t do any of them – you will just waste a chunk of your life for some academic self-flaggelation purpose, and a PPL/IR will be just as good

Actually, I wondered if this “challenge” could arise anything in my flying skills. Maybe not !

@Capitaine wrote:

Basically, the question is what you want to do with your life.

I thank you Capitaine, this is exactly the question I’m wondering now