Pilot Internships Canada

Any comprehensive professional pilot flight training program must offer students an opportunity to undergo pilot internship after completion of the flight training phase. Why is it important? Because most airlines do not want to hire a freshly-graduated pilot with only 200 hours of flight time, even if he/she has a commercial pilot license with all the required ratings. We understand that this problem becomes one of the main obstacles on the path of the professional career development of any new pilot. Because of that, our program offers up to 18 months of paid pilot internship as a professional flight instructor. During this internship, pilots are presented with a great opportunity to increase their flight time from 200 to 1500 hours, build flight time on single and multi-engine airplanes, acquire initial professional pilot work experience and collect excellent references from the employer. In addition to all that, pilots can get a big percentage of previously spent tuition fees back by earning a salary of $35 CAD per flight hour, working up to 130 hours per month.

After pilots complete their initial flight instructor internship, they will be offered another type of career development support: an advanced internship as international ferry pilot with Global Air Ferry. This work as a professional pilot involves flying light and medium piston and turboprop airplanes, with MTOW under 5700kg, from aircraft dealers in North America to buyers in other countries, including Europe, South America, Asia an Africa. During this internship, pilots will be given an opportunity to build even more valuable international cross-country flight time, get acquainted with different types of airplanes, acquire experience of flying in International airspace across Atlantic Ocean and advance their aeronautical experience much further. Of course, this is also a paid internship and pilots will receive salary between $250 to $500 per flight day, while en route. Pilots will also receive free initial training from our experienced ferry pilots.

Finally, as an add-on, after competing their full unrestricted ATPL license, pilots will be able to apply for permanent employment in the regional airlines in Canada in order to build approximately 1000-2000 hours on medium-size passenger jet, such as CRJ-200/700/900 or ERJ-175 or Q-400. This internship is reserved for our graduates who perform well and have very few check-ride failures.

Aerocadet faculty and staff take pride in our students and strive to provide them with the skills necessary to succeed in the aviation industry. Therefore, we have developed two levels of pilot internship programs. 

Background

Graduates will be offered opportunity to apply for internship as a flight instructor with our Canadian FTP, under the terms of the Canadian The Post-Graduation Work Permit Program (PGWPP). Our flight center in Canada East is registered as "Toronto Airways Inc" and in Canada West is registered as "Canadian Aviation College". Both are approved by the Canadian government as Designated Learning Institutions (DLIs) number O19304162252 (TA) and O110027361097 (CAC). This means that the students who graduate from this program are eligible to apply for the PGWPP. The PGWPP allows pilots who have graduated from eligible Canadian designated learning institutions (DLIs) to obtain an open work permit (can work anywhere in Canada) to gain valuable professional aviation experience. Students will be offered priority hiring with the FTPs in Canada for the flight instructor position to build valuable flight time for the duration of up to 12 months in Canada East and up to 36 months in Canada West. Alternatively, or in case that our FTPs are full and unable tohire any more instructors, Aerocadet will provide internship employment assistance placement with another flight school or air charter company in Canada. PGWPP does not limit students to any one particular company in Canada, so graduates can work at any one of dozens of aviation companies across the country (see list below). The only limitations being that the employment must be full-time (30+ hours per week), as a pilot (field of study), and can not exceed 12 month (half of allocated maximum study period). Pilots can expect to build over 1500 hours of total piston and turbine flight time during this period - experience which is required to obtain an unrestricted Canadian ATPL. (Aerocadet will provide comprehensive administrative support for this stage of the program)

FTP Internship Acceptance

Student, and at this point, a fully-qualified Transport Canada flight instructor, will be offered opportunity to apply for internship as a flight instructor with our Canadian FTPs, under the Intern Abroad Program in Canada. This program allows international students who completed academic or vocational studies in Canada to undergo career development internships. During this period, if qualified and approved, the student will work as flight instructor for our FTP "Toronto Airways" near Toronto, Canada, and gain over 1500 hours or total flight time. (More information about this work program can be found here)

Acceptance to internship is subject to the following terms and conditions: [a] Student must complete his/her flight training phase within the 150% of the allocated term (18 months); [b] have no TCCA and internal academy policy violations, accidents or incidents; [c] must demonstrate English language proficiency on the level of ICAO-5 standards or higher; [d] have no DUIs (“driving under the influence”) violations, arrests and drug/alcohol related convictions; [e] have a clean criminal history background check; [f] have no more then one failed Transport Canada practical or theoretical examination; [g] must maintain clean and professional appearance throughout the entire term of his/her training and demonstrate high standard of knowledge and flight instructor professionalism.

Remuneration Package

Salary for this internship will be paid by the FTP directly to Student. Student will be allowed to work at least 30 hours per week under the Canada Student Permit program at a rate of $35.00 CAD per hour. Hourly rate is subject to change without notice by the FTP.

Term

This internship is limited to 24-36 months or 1500 hours and achievement of unrestricted TCCA ATP license; whichever comes first. The recommended duration is 24 months.

Flight Instructor & Charter Pilot Internship Resources

Should a graduate elect to work on PGWP in other flight schools or charter operations, and not our FTPs, he/she will be able to apply for employment at the following institutions:

List of all flight schools in Canada's Eastern Regions

List of all flight schools in Canada for Central Regions

List of all flight schools in Canada for Western Regions

List of all the air charter operators in Canada

List of all the bush pilot operators in Canada

Flight Instructor & Charter Pilot Resume Building Tips

To be successfull when applying for internship positions, a pilot needs to have a correctly formatted resume with the pertinent to your employment target informaiton. Use the following guidelines to ensure that your resume is acceptable by the potential employer in North America. Your resume must be fully accmmodated on a single page. Do not spread your resume to two or more pages, not matter how much experience you have. If you need to creatively format your resume to fit into a single page - do it.

In addition to your actual resume, you will need to attach a resume cover letter. A cover letter expands in more detail on your skillset, personal abilities, motivations and experience. It also outlines why, specifically, you are applying for employment as an instructor or a chater pilot with a specific company. Again, the covver letter should not exceed one page.

Finally, with every application for employment, you will need to include a professional reference letter or anemployment recommendation letter. Such letter is normally issued by the flight school or any other company which takes upon itself the responsibility of recommending you to another organization for employment. The FTP and Aerocadet will provide you with such letters upon graduation.

What you must include in your resume when targeting a North American company:

What you should NEVER include in your resume when targeting a North American company:

Background

This optional internship course is offered to our graduates who want to continues building valuable flight time and grown their aviation experience by working as international aircraft delivery pilot for our partner, Global Air BVI IncC. This company is specializing in aircraft sales and delivery from the United States to Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia for their international clients. Expected pilot salary is $2500 – $4500 per aircraft transfer.

Upon completion of flight instructor internship, Student will be offered advanced commercial pilot internship where he/she will serve in the capacity of an international ferry pilot with Global Air BVI Inc. During this internship student will be based at his/her permanent domicile and provided with the
opportunity to transfer light single and multi-engine piston and turboprop aircraft under the FAA registration from the United States to other world regions. Global Air BVI Inc will supply Student with the suitable to his/her experience requests to undertake certain aircraft delivery projects as an independent pilot contractor.

Internship Acceptance

In order to qualify for this internship, Student must: [a] have completed the entire flight training program in accordance with the section 7 of this agreement; [b] logged at least 1500 hours of total flight time; [c] hold TC or FAA CPL or ATPL licenses with single- and multi-engine endorsements and instrument ratings; [d] must have no accidents, incidents, Tc or FAA violations, arrests or DUIs.

Remuneration Package

Salary for this internship will be provided after Student completes at least two initial trans-Atlantic crossing under the supervision of a qualified ferry pilot and is found to be proficient in the international route planning and navigation. Thereafter, Student’s salary will be negotiated on case-by-case basis, starting from $250 USD per flight day. [a] Hotel accommodation en route, airline tickets to ferry departure point and from ferry arrival point, as well as daily per diem will be paid by Global Air LLC or the party commissioning a particular ferry project. [b] Ferry flights availability to the Student on week-by-week basis during his/her internship is subject to aircraft type, weather, maintenance issues, route availability, operational requirements and other factors. [c] Personal insurance and documentation, such as valid passport,
visas and valid license are sole responsibility of the Student.

Term

This internship is limited to 24 months.

Main Benefits

This internship offers pilots the following benefits

Background

This optional internship course is offered to our graduates who want to continues building valuable turbine time on regional jet aircraft with MTOW over 30 tons, such as CRJ-200/700 and ERJ-175 or Q-400.

Upon completing 12 months and 1500 hours of flight time under the PGWPP, Students will be able to apply for the Canadian Airline Transport Pilot license. This license is a full, unrestricted ICAO ATPL and can be converted to any other ICAO ATPL, if needed. Practical and theoretical ATPL exams do not have any specific training prerequisites, so pilots can take them as soon as their reach personal aeronautical experience of 1500 hours. The minimum requirements for this license are experience are: 1500 Flight Hours, incl. 250 PIC, 100 PIC Cross Country, 100 Night, and 25 Night Cross Country PIC, and 75 Hours Instrument; successful completion of a 2 Part Written Exam. There is no Flight Exam required for the issue of a Canadian ATPL.

At this stage, qualified pilots will be able to obtain employment permit in Canada and apply for employment as a first officer in the regional airlines in Canada, such as Jazz , WestJet, etc. This stage is facilitated by taking advantage of the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) program. CEC is a point-based permanent residency program for the PGWP program graduates. CEC candidates become eligible for an unrestricted work permit, including airline employment, after they have built up at least one year of Canadian work experience as full-time employees (30 hours per month as flight instructor, as per PGWPP). Because the required documentation is minimal, CEC applications are normally processed within six months. As soon as the CEC application is submitted, pilots are allowed to continue employment under CEC/PGWPP until the CEC application is approved. (Applicants under the Canadian Experience Class are not required to show proof of settlement funds). When approved, student becomes eligible to apply for airline pilot internship with any Canadian airline. The work experience must have been obtained after graduating from the program of study. Aerocadet will provide comprehensive administrative support for this stage of the program). (The Canadian Experience Class point-based system is discussed in detail on our blog here >>>)

Internship Acceptance

In order to qualify for this internship, Student must: [a] have completed the entire flight training program in accordance with the section 7 of this agreement; [a] logged at least 1500 hours of total flight time; [b] hold TC ATPL licenses with multi-engine endorsement [c] must have no accidents, incidents, TC violations, arrests or DUIs. The minimum requirements for this employment are ATPL, and experience: 1500 Flight Hours, incl. 250 PIC, 100 PIC Cross Country, 100 Night, and 25 Night Cross Country PIC, and 75 Hours Instrument; successful completion of a 2 Part Written Exam.

Remuneration Package

Salary for this internship will be paid by the airline. Salary starts from $40 CAN per flight hour, with 75 hours monthly guarantee and ability to fly up to 100 hours per month.

Term

This internship is unlimited,

Employment Search Resources

List of all airline operators in Canada

Background

Experienced airline pilots could qualify for immigration to Canada under the National Occupation Classification (NOC) system as a "TEER II" professional (code 72600 - "Air pilots, flight engineers and flying instructors"). "TEER II" usually includes occupations that require a college diploma and apprenticeship or training of 2 or more years. The TEER system is grouping of occupations under new NOC 2021 system of Canada. The NOC (National Occupational Classification) system plays an important role in functioning of key Canada immigration programs, such as, Express entry, PNP, etc. It classifies or categories the various occupations, which exist in Canadian labour market. Consequently, it helps the Canada immigration applicants to choose the relevant occupation, while registering their profile in an immigration program.

In order to qualify for the immigration visa under TEER II, you must show significant work experience as an airline pilot flying abroad and hold a valid and current airline transport pilot license. The qualification process is a point-based system and requires an assessment by a properly certified immigration consultant (scroll down to see contact information for the "Canadian Immigration Services" among our partners).

If you are approved for the immigration visa, you will need to convert your ICAO ATPL to Transport Canada ATPL. The conversion process is easy and can be enrolled into right here on our website. Read about ICAO ATP to Transport Canada ATP conversion process >>>

Employment Acceptance

Current hiring qualifications for an entry-level regional racier, such as Air Canada Jazz are: 500 hours total time, work visa or PR, Transport Canada ATP. No type ratings is required, as it will be provided for free during the initial training. Preference is normally given to candidates with qualifications beyond the basic requirements, such as applicants with two crew multi-engine turbine experience, college graduates and applicants with commercial or military flight experience, as well as pilots who have extensive Flight Management System (FMS) and/or glass cockpit experience. Having said that, considering acute pilot shortage in Canada and in North America overall, reaching the minimum requirements is normally sufficient to get an invitation for an interview.

Remuneration Package

Salary starts from $40 CAN per flight hour for a First Officer, with 75 hours monthly guarantee and ability to fly up to 100 hours per month. Captains or "Street Captains" (pilots who have sufficient experience to start employment as Captains instead of First Officers) can expect salary from $80 CAD per flight hour, and upwards of $133 per flight hour. After completion of nominal work experience at a regional airline, pilots can apply for employment at a major airline, such as Air Canada, where they can expect to reach as much as $300 per flight hour.

Term

This internship is unlimited.

Main Benefits

The main benefits of working for the Canadian carrier are

The only programs that allow students to apply for the aforementioned internships are: