The new “GA Ready” course

What you need to know to be GA Ready and land your first pilot job in the Top End

Landing your first job is hard! Newly qualified commercial pilots often find themselves competing for a prospective job with other candidates who have slightly more experience, or who were at the right place at the right time.

To improve their chances of landing a charter flying job in the top half of Australia, some green pilots look at getting some self-funded familiarisation training on a Cessna C206 or similar, plus at least 5 hours of private hire for PIC time.

One company that offers an interesting and unique course of post-CPL training is Flight Standards in Darwin. They combine a high performance single-engine endorsement with maintenance training, interview coaching and other essential experiences. Cameron Marchant offers us some information on their “GA Ready” course:

By way of being located in the Northern Territory (right where the professional journey begins for many new Commercial Pilots), we offer a unique training package tailored to suit those who intend to make this region the start point for their career or who would like some experience on a relevant aircraft type.

The course is conducted over six days (full-time) and includes the following training, presented in a commercial aviation context:
•Cessna 210, Piper Saratoga / Lance or GA8 Airvan Type Familiarisation – with minimum of 5 hours on type achieved during the course;
•Remote / Unsealed Airfield operations – including an “overnight” on a simulated charter operation;
•Land & Hold Short Operations (LAHSO) training – a qualification necessary for efficient operations at Darwin International Airport and attractive to prospective employers;
•Darwin airspace familiarisation training – including a visit to Darwin ATC;
•Pilot Approved Maintenance training – conducted by our friends R&R Avionics, Darwin.
•CAO 20.11 training including life jacket training in the swimming pool.

In addition to the specific training above, pilots on this course will also receive guidance on other useful skills such as drum refuelling and how to best present for potential employers when seeking that elusive first job (how to prepare a resume, how to present for interview and likely interview topics).

Finally, in conjunction with Hardy Aviation, the opportunity to travel in the right seat of an RPT service through the Tiwi Islands will provide an invaluable insight to the job of an on-line GA pilot.

The flight training is delivered by our team of instructors all of whom have extensive charter experience in the Top End.  We teach you what you need to know that others can’t and we teach it right where you need to be to make the right contacts.  In fact, the aircraft you will fly on this course will have been provided by one of the operators that you will be seeking a job from!

Successful completion of the course will also include the issue of a Flight Review (Single Engine Aircraft).

Cameron Marchant is the Chief Pilot of Flight Standards, a multifaceted flying school that is located in Darwin but also has bases in Alice Springs, Perth and Brisbane.

This article was written by David Roses in 2021. This content is not sponsored by any interested parties.