Pilot/ame

[heli_b]

Hey All,

 

Im a low timer and looking at going back to school to do my ame, would like to fly in the summers and wrench in the winter, I know lots of guys do the ame part first then the pilot licence but wondering if anyone has gone the route I would like to and how did you find it?

[AH1]

I know a new guy that took engineering second, and is now employed as an engineer. Smart move.

[worldywings]

I think you will find yourself turning wrenches a lot more than flying but if you have the time and money...sounds like a great idea!

[DGP]

Go for it...they will find that they cannot afford you as an enginner but they can as a pilot/ eng...if they push to hard in the wrong direction...walk

[212wrench]

The hardest part would be completing your apprentiship. You need to obtain after school 30 months of experience working aircraft as a "mechanic"

 

http://www.tc.gc.ca/civilaviation/RegServ/...rds/t566s01.htm

 

you also need to complete 70% of the required tasks as stated in Appendix B of chapter 566 of the CARs. These need to be in your apprentiship logbook and signed off by a licensed AME. They require that you know how to do the job, can use the appropriate manuals to do the work, use the proper tools and complete the paperwork.

 

http://www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/Regserv/...rds/a566sb1.htm

 

You would also be required to complete training at an approved ATO. This for your situation would be best done as a correspondance course through ICS. The problem with this is you only obtain 1000 hours credit to your apprenticship as opposed to the 1800 obtained at school. Meaning you have to work as an apprentice for an extra 6 months. You also have to write the 3 technical exams that are usually written in school at Transport Canada (this can be a bit of a chore as you would write exams on stuff that you learned 4 years ago but haven't used since for example any of the fixed wing questions)

 

This is why it is usually better to become a wrench first and then a pilot. It takes 4 years to get your AME license, it takes 3 months to get your pilots license.

[Kris]

Im an apprentice AME.

and ive got to tell ya, some of the smartest engineers ive met are pilot AMEs

Apprenticeing isnt so bad. Its alot of school and Work. But if your use to aviation it should be a breeze. Good luck.

[skullcap]

And I will tell ya that the aircraft I took over with the most snags on it while still "flying" was maintained by a pilot ame, to the tune of a Jetranger III tailrotor on a Jetranger II. And the guy was not an idiot, just overworked. Just because you are an engineer doesn't mean you are safer. Watch the overdoing of duty time per day, something has got to give.

 

"know your limit and stay within it"

 

[Guest SidewallPuncture]

no disrespect, but you'll have to decide which career you value more.

 

I suspect you'll become an experienced engineer with low (same) flying hours long before you become and experienced pilot with some valuable maintenance experience.

Very rare you see someone in the middle making the best of both worlds

[deuce bigalow]

Jack of all trades. Master of none.

 

I've met good engineers who flew average and good pilots who wrenched average. But I only met one guy in 30 years who was a master of both.

 

And I met quite a few who took apprentice positions after getting their pilots licenses in order to get their foot in the door. Soon they found they were worth something to the company as fixers...........and nothing as a noob pilots.

 

So the company stalls and stalls but is reluctant to send the guy out to fly when he could be productive in the shop.

[InspectorGadget]

1/4 of the AME classes were 100hr pilots when I was there a couple years ago. Fixed and Fling Wing. Out of those, I would say 80% just wanted to fly and were just doing AME for thier resume. Not any real heart or great interest in it. Some people can work through it but I think others just lose interest and don't do too well. It takes alot of commitment to do the schooling/2.5 years of work after and I think many of the guys/girls waste thier time and money doing it.