How to Become an Airline Pilot in Australia: License, Cost and Airlines

The Australian route runs to a CASA commercial pilot license (CPL): a Class 1 medical, at least 150 hours of aeronautical experience on an integrated course with a Part 141 or Part 142 flight training operator (200 hours otherwise), the CPL theory exams and a flight test, then a multi-engine instrument rating and, for the airlines on our board, every ATPL theory subject passed. The Qantas Group Pilot Academy’s course takes students with little or no flying experience to the CPL, the instrument rating, the ATPL theory and MCC in 55 weeks. QantasLink publishes a First Officer minimum of 500 hours, though it was not taking pilot applications on 16 October 2026. Four schools’ published 2026 prices for the commercial license diploma, as search results showed them on 16 October 2026, run about AUD 97,000 to 104,000, and three schools’ prices for the multi-engine instrument rating about AUD 38,000 to 48,000. Australia writes its own rules, in Part 61 of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations (CASR) and the Part 61 Manual of Standards, so a license from abroad has to be converted before you can fly for an Australian airline. CASA’s licensing, exam and conversion pages could not be opened on 16 October 2026, so the figures we give from them come from search-engine copies of those pages: check them on casa.gov.au before you rely on them.

1. The Class 1 medical, first

Book the medical before you pay for training. CASA’s guide for students says you need no medical to start flying with an instructor, but you need one before you fly solo. A commercial, multi-crew or air transport pilot license needs a Class 1 medical certificate (CASA’s page on the classes of medical certificate). You apply through CASA’s online Medical Records System and are examined by a Designated Aviation Medical Examiner (DAME), a doctor CASA appoints; the certificate is issued only if you meet the medical standard (CASA’s user manual for the system, in a search-engine copy). All three airlines on our board ask for a current CASA Class 1, and the Qantas Group Pilot Academy asks for one before its course starts.

CASA’s page on the classes gives the Class 1 a validity of one year, unless its Aviation Medicine Section advises otherwise; the Class 2, for a student or private pilot, lasts four years if you are under 40 when it is issued and two years if you are over 40. CASA has a separate page on air transport pilot license holders past 60, which search results quote as calling for a medical examination every six months, as ICAO Annex 1 does; we could not open it. The medical certification article explains what the examination looks at.

2. The licenses: integrated or not, and the instrument rating

Australia’s pilot licenses are set by Part 61 of CASR and its Manual of Standards. You train with a flight training operator approved under Part 141 or Part 142, and the minimum experience for the commercial license depends on whether your course is integrated, a single approved course from the start, or not. CASA’s minimums for an airplane CPL, as search-engine copies of its CPL page gave them on 16 October 2026 (we could not open the page or the regulation itself that day, so check them there before you plan around them):

The CPL page also sets a minimum of time as pilot in command, left out here because only one search copy gave the figure for an integrated course. CASA’s guide for students sets the minimum ages: 15 to fly solo, 16 for a recreational license, 17 for a private license, 18 for the CPL and 21 for the air transport pilot license. There is no minimum age to start learning, and you need no formal education for the exams, but you must be able to speak, read and write English. The CPL also needs the theory exams (step 3) and a flight test.

The airlines then ask for a multi-engine airplane instrument rating with the 2D and 3D instrument approach endorsements, as each of the three airlines’ published lists on our board says. The rating has experience minimums, an exam and a flight test of its own in Part 61; we could not check its figures against the regulation, so ask your school for them. The instrument rating article explains what the rating covers.

Part 61 also has a multi-crew pilot license (MPL), trained for an airline’s two-pilot flight deck from the start, but none of the three airlines on our board names an MPL route in its record. Jetstar asks for a multi-crew cooperation (MCC) certificate, and Network Aviation, in the Qantas Group, for an MCC course or multi-crew experience; the MCC courses article explains what they teach.

The airline schools. The Qantas Group Pilot Academy at Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport, run by Flight Training Adelaide, is an ab-initio school for students with little or no flying experience, who can qualify for the CPL, the multi-engine command instrument rating, the ATPL theory and MCC on a course of 55 weeks, longer if the weather holds the flying back, on the Diamond DA40 and the twin DA42. You must be 18 to start (pre-selection is open from 17) and hold Year 12, a Certificate IV or an equivalent. Selection means about 10 hours of computer-based training with an online theory assessment, online psychometric and skills tests and an interview at Toowoomba, with a fee of AUD 200. The Academy’s FAQ, read on 16 October 2026, says it is not a Qantas Group cadet program and that there are no funded cadetships with the Group’s airlines: graduates are not guaranteed a job, and those who complete the course are invited to a Qantas Group assessment center, from which they may be eligible for a pilot job at QantasLink, Jetstar or Network Aviation. Our record of Jetstar lists a two-phase Cadet Pilot Program, the CPL and multi-engine instrument rating, then an A320 or 787 type endorsement, in periodic intakes; we found no 2026 intake in search results on 16 October 2026. Our record of Virgin Australia lists a cadetship, but the latest intake we found reported was its relaunch in 2017, with recruiting in 2018, so we could not confirm that it still runs. The cadet programs page compares the airline schemes worldwide.

3. The CASA theory exams, and English

Each license has its own set of CASA theory exams. CASA’s exam pages, which we could read only as search-engine copies on 16 October 2026, say they are sat in Australia only: the private license exams at an approved flying school, and every flight crew license exam through CASA’s exam provider, Aspeq, at venues across Australia. For an airline seat you need two sets:

Plan each set as a block: the same exam pages say the seven CPL subjects must all be passed within two years of your first pass, and so must the seven ATPL subjects. The instrument rating has an exam of its own, IREX. Each paper has a fee, which you pay when you book. The airlines want more than the CPL subjects: all three on our board ask for every ATPL theory subject passed, or a full ATPL, when you apply. v1prep’s ATPL theory banks follow the EASA syllabus, not CASA’s: they cover the same meteorology, navigation, performance and systems, but not Australian air law or CASA’s question style.

English. Your license also records an aviation English proficiency level on the ICAO scale. CASA’s aviation English page, in a search-engine copy, sets Level 4 as the minimum, reassessed every 3 years, Level 5 every 6 years, and Level 6 never. All three airlines on our board ask for Level 6 on the license.

4. From license to the first airline job

The airlines on our board hire on the CPL with the ATPL theory passed; the air transport pilot license (ATPL) comes later, from the age of 21. Search-engine copies of CASA’s ATPL page and application form, seen on 16 October 2026, give its experience as at least 1,500 hours of aeronautical experience, with at least 1,400 hours of flight time as a pilot and 750 as the pilot of an airplane, and up to 100 of the 1,500 in a simulator; 200 hours of cross-country flying in an airplane; 75 hours of instrument time, 45 of it in an airplane; and 100 hours at night in an airplane, not counting dual instruction. We could not check these against Part 61 itself, so confirm them with CASA. You also need all seven ATPL exams and the ATPL flight test, and, by the same copies, CASA issues no flight crew license until your security background check is complete.

The hours in between have to be built. One way is instructing: the flight instructor rating has its own CASA theory exam, training with a flight training operator and a flight test (CASA’s instructor-rating page, in a search-engine copy).

Then the airlines, each at its last check (the date is in the table in step 5). QantasLink publishes a Direct Entry First Officer minimum of 500 hours of total flight time in an airplane, preferring 50 of them flown in the previous 12 months, but its careers page said on 16 October 2026 that it was not accepting applications for pilot positions. Elsewhere in the Qantas Group, in copies of their requirement lists seen on 5 October 2026, National Jet Systems’ A220 First Officers need 500 hours on fixed-wing aircraft plus 200 in command of a multi-engine or a turbine airplane, or 200 on multi-crew aircraft, and Network Aviation’s need 500 hours plus an MCC course or multi-crew experience. The Group pilot vacancies listed on the QantasLink page on 16 October 2026 were senior ones: E190 Training and Checking Captains at Network Aviation in Perth, and A220 simulator instructors and examiners at National Jet Systems in Melbourne. Qantas mainline fills its seats mostly from the Group’s own airlines and the Academy, and its Direct Entry Second Officer list, from 300 hours in command of a multi-engine airplane, was not taking applications in a copy of its careers page seen on 5 October 2026. Jetstar’s careers page, in search results on 16 October 2026, said it was not accepting pilot applications, and Virgin Australia, recruiting Direct Entry First Officers for the 737 at its last check, on 21 September 2026, publishes no single hours figure.

The low-hour pilot jobs page lists every airline on our board that takes First Officers at 500 hours or less, and the hours requirements page compares the minimums.

5. The Australian airlines, and what they ask

The Australian airlines on our jobs board, each as it stood at the date in the last column. All three ask for a CASA ATPL, or a CPL with every ATPL theory subject passed, a multi-engine instrument rating with the 2D and 3D approach endorsements, English Level 6 and a CASA Class 1, and none asks for a type rating: QantasLink sets 500 hours for its Direct Entry First Officers but was not taking applications on 16 October 2026, Virgin Australia publishes no single figure, and Jetstar was not taking applications either. The Qantas Group’s open Captain seat, on 16 October 2026, was Network Aviation’s E190 Training and Checking Captain vacancies in Perth. For their First Officers, all three ask for Australian or New Zealand citizenship, Australian permanent residence or, at QantasLink, the unrestricted right to work in Australia or New Zealand, without sponsorship. The Qantas Group pilot requirements page sets out each Group operator’s list.

6. Foreign licenses, and pilots from abroad

The airlines’ doors first. Jetstar and Virgin Australia ask for Australian or New Zealand citizenship or Australian permanent residence. QantasLink accepts Australian citizens and anyone with the right to work in Australia or New Zealand without restriction or sponsorship, with a passport valid for at least 12 months and unrestricted access to every country Qantas flies to, and asks New Zealand applicants to convert their license and ratings to Australian ones before applying (its careers page, 16 October 2026); Qantas’ Direct Entry Second Officers must be Australian citizens or permanent residents. The Qantas Group Pilot Academy takes students who are neither, if they hold the visa and the right to study in Australia, but its FAQ says Australian citizenship or permanent residence is mandatory for the Group’s graduate assessment and for a job afterward. The only sponsorship we saw was on Network Aviation’s fixed-term E190 Training and Checking Captain vacancies, on 16 October 2026. A license is not a work permit: the right to work is a separate, immigration question.

Then the license. CASA’s conversion pages, which we could read only as search-engine copies on 16 October 2026, describe three routes for foreign pilots. A short-term Certificate of Validation, for the holder of a license from an ICAO state, is issued for the operation you name, for up to 12 months, after exams of its own, and CASA recommends an Australian license for anything longer than three months. A conversion gives you an Australian license, for a stay of more than 12 months. And a New Zealand license holder can be given an equivalent Australian license under the Trans-Tasman Mutual Recognition Act 1997, once the New Zealand CAA has verified the license; a converted instrument or instructor rating then needs an Australian proficiency check before you use it.

To convert a commercial license, those pages say, you need a valid CPL or ATPL for airplanes from an ICAO state, then two CASA exams passed in one window: CHUF, the CPL human factors paper, and COSA, the overseas conversion paper. To convert an ATPL, you pass AHUF and AOSA, and IREX if you have not passed it before. The exams are sat in Australia only, and CASA does not recognize theory credits from other authorities. You also need an Aviation Reference Number, the security check, an English proficiency assessment and an Australian medical from a DAME, and CASA may ask for a flight test. We found no separate route for FAA certificates. If you are choosing where to train, the FAA and EASA licenses compared sets the two largest systems side by side.

7. Money and time

VET Student Loans. An Australian student on an approved aviation diploma can borrow the fees through the government’s VET Student Loans. Air Gold Coast’s loan page and Study Assist, as search results showed them on 16 October 2026, put the 2026 cap at AUD 96,467 per aviation course, within a HELP loan limit of AUD 186,544 for students of eligible aviation courses. A school whose price is above the cap asks you to pay the gap, and not every school offers the loan: CAE Melbourne says it is not available for its CPL program. Check your eligibility, and any loan fee, on Study Assist before you enroll.

Check what each price includes. Some include the CASA flight test fees and some do not; the medical, the headset, books and landing charges are often extra; and an estimate is built on the minimum hours, so you may need more. Ask every school how many aircraft and instructors it has, and what happens to the money you have paid if you, or the school, stop.

Common questions

How long does it take to become an airline pilot in Australia? The Qantas Group Pilot Academy’s full course, from little or no flying experience to the commercial license, the multi-engine instrument rating, the ATPL theory and MCC, takes 55 weeks. Moorabbin Aviation Services lists 52 weeks for its commercial license diploma, and CAE Melbourne and Moorabbin 12 weeks full time for the multi-engine instrument rating. Then come the hours: QantasLink publishes a 500-hour First Officer minimum, with the ATPL theory passed, though it was not taking applications on 16 October 2026.

How much does it cost to become a pilot in Australia? On schools’ published 2026 prices, as search results showed them on 16 October 2026: about AUD 97,500 to 103,700 for the commercial license diploma (Bunbury Flying School, Air Gold Coast, CAE Melbourne, Moorabbin Aviation Services) and about AUD 38,000 to 48,000 for the multi-engine instrument rating (Air Gold Coast, CAE Melbourne, Moorabbin Aviation Services). VET Student Loans cover up to AUD 96,467 per aviation course in 2026.

What license do I need to fly for an Australian airline? A CASA air transport pilot license, or a CASA commercial license with every ATPL theory subject passed, plus a multi-engine instrument rating with the 2D and 3D approach endorsements, English Level 6 and a CASA Class 1. Those are the minimums the Qantas Group, Jetstar and Virgin Australia publish; Jetstar also asks for an MCC certificate.

Can I convert a foreign pilot license in Australia? Yes, by CASA’s conversion pages, which we could read only as search-engine copies: for a stay of more than 12 months CASA converts an ICAO license, and for a commercial license you pass the CHUF and COSA exams in Australia, for an ATPL the AHUF, AOSA and, if not already passed, IREX exams, with an Australian medical and a security check. A Certificate of Validation covers short-term flying, and New Zealand licenses are recognized under the Trans-Tasman Mutual Recognition Act.

Do I need to be Australian to fly for an Australian airline? You need the right to work without sponsorship for a First Officer seat at the three airlines on our board: Jetstar and Virgin Australia ask for Australian or New Zealand citizenship or Australian permanent residence, and QantasLink for Australian citizenship or the unrestricted right to work in Australia or New Zealand. The Qantas Group Pilot Academy trains non-citizens, but only Australian citizens and permanent residents go on to the Group’s graduate assessment. The only sponsorship we saw, on 16 October 2026, was for fixed-term E190 Training and Checking Captains at Network Aviation in Perth.