Visa has arrived...

Finally all my paperwork is now where it matters with those in Waterford (PTC HQ).

On Thursday my passport was returned to me with a new addition. The middle page was affixed with a US M1 (student) visa. The turnaround time considering the bank holidays we have been surrounded by is quite impressive and being safe in the knowledge that I now have completed is a great relief.

The whole process started in February this year in Manchester. Below is a recap of the processes I've already been through having not yet left the country.

Assessment day

The assessment was run in Manchester and involved a number of group exercises, written exams and computerised tests. The latter focused mainly on exercising the required skills involved in becoming a pilot. These included hand-eye coordination, mental maths and multi-task problems. Quite fun actually! An interview later and you await your fate. The whole process takes the majority of the day and begins bright and early at 8am.

Flybe selection

Having completed the assessment day I was put into the 'pool' which I received frequent updates on the list being reduced more and more. I was then offered a mock-interview, again in Manchester, before finding out as to whether I receive a full interview with the airline. It was a fantastic experience to receive first hand not only experience of a full interview but also the feedback offered by three men in extremely credible positions to comment and coach. 

I then received an email offering an interview with Flybe. Having received my time and date I headed to Exeter before finding out the following week. 

Medical

A night in Dublin and a day of medical tests later I was back home awaiting confirmation that all had gone to plan. Three weeks later I received my Class 1 IAA medical.

Visa

To train in the USA a student visa is required. This, as previously documented, involved a trip to the capital which was possible to fit into one day. The visa arrived last week.

The above is only a snippet of what I've had to go through and for anyone reading this that is also thinking about going along the same/a similar route, time and dedication are paramount. Having said that - if those two aren't there then I guess you're looking at the wrong career path!

I now await this coming week further information on Florida including outbound flights.

Penultimately, although not a follower of the Royals it really was a day to be proud to be British. There are two 'Global Cities' in the world today. New York and London. Friday, for me, showed the difference between the two hubs. It was a day for London and the entire nation to show what kind of a show we can put on. And it seemed to go quite seamlessly! Maybe not that British after all!

Everyone has somewhere to go...

I enjoy my people watching (As you'll have seen in earlier posts) and last week on route to the capital was no exception. 

It always amazes me how everyone is going somewhere with purpose. Everyone is going from A to B and taking so many different routes to get there. In my train carriage alone I sat next to a gentlemen off to London to sell wholesale lighting, a lady behind who managed the ATMs of a number of major banks, a young lady across the aisle with something to do with politics, a girl off with her family to attend a weekend at what I'd call 'vet-camp' and finally a group of four gents returning home after a weekend in the lake district. As you can see a wide variety of people from all different backgrounds. I'm sure that throughout the other cabins on board the 7.38 Virgin Pendelino train to London Euston, it was no different.

Arriving in one of the world's biggest transport cities means travel is busy, slow and frustrating. Arriving just after rush hour I assumed that it would be a bit quieter to get about the city. How wrong I was. Due to the American Embassy policy of no mobile phones I had to check my bag into left luggage before finding the tube station. Even checking in my bag took thirty minutes - London is certainly not a place for those in a rush! Finally, on to the Victoria line, a quick stop on route and via the Central line I arrive at Bond Street. The area around Bond Street was, to say the least, quite affluent; certainly during the hours of the day. The likes of Mercedes, BMW and Audi would be seriously frowned upon as Bentley, Ferrari and Rolls Royce were the norm around the local streets. Each sat very patiently outside the coffee shops as their owners sunned themselves in the baking, 27 degrees sun. What a life for those who are lucky to inherit it or equally those who work hard enough to earn it.

Finally, I arrived at the Embassy. Sat proud at the top of Grosvenor Square the US Embassy cannot be missed. The famous eagle sits honourably and proud on top of the fifty year old building. Queuing to get inside the was in itself a long and drawn out process mainly focused on safety. Imagine security at an airport and you're about right. After queuing for almost 45 minutes I was allowed to enter.

Entering the building I was directed in to the room that would become my home for the next four hours. I was given a ticket number which must be adhered to. It's quite simple and effective really. It's something they have clearly nicked from Argos. I took a seat and awaited the calling of my number. 10 minutes passed and 436 was announced. Great - I'll be out of here within the hour! Or so I thought...I quickly learnt that the first call was to hand over all my documents to be processed. As I was applying for a student visa this included a number documents which were mainly to prove that I wasn't planning to work during my stay in the Sunshine State. Having handed over said documents I returned to my seat and awaited my recall, this time to be interviewed by an American.

While I waited I again continued my hobby of people watching. There were people from all different backgrounds, social classes and nationalities. It really was a mix of the human race; all with one aim - a ticket into the United States. 

An hour passed. Boredom began to set in. Another hour passed. With no phone, no internet access and only a 'Why to visit the USA' promotional brochure (really - you think people sat in that room needed persuasion?!) to keep me occupied it really was becoming ever more frustrating. What made it worse was seeing the hundreds of people sat out in the gardens facing the building enjoying the best weather we've seen so far this year. Anyway, we finally got to hour three and shortly afterwards I was recalled for the interview. Three questions later and I was done. "Your visa is approved." The four words I've been waiting weeks to hear. I was bouncing off the walls at this point. So many stories I'd heard of people failing over little things. I would have hated to have made the journey again, threatened my course start date and my scheme with Flybe. It was all or nothing - thankfully I had done enough to satisfy the US authorities.

It wasn't until after I'd returned to the train station, retrieved my bag and mobile, got something to eat, realised I'd missed my train and gone on a little tour of the terminal that I'd sat in a room for three hours, three bloody hours to be asked three questions! Three questions! My interview took a matter of two minutes for which I had to wait a whole 180! 

Having engagements in the evening and having missed my training back north I then had to look at my timings. Luckily I was able to catch the train leaving only an hour later and arrive just in time at my meeting. For anyone applying for a US visa and an interview is a requirement I seriously recommend booking the earliest appointment available and give yourself at least half a day, if not longer if possible to attain your desired result. It is a very drawn out process and without giving enough time it could be very costly afterwards in terms of transport etc. 

On the journey home between napping, I again could hear around me people making business and leisure plans. I saw the drinks cart brought through the carriage. The ticket conductor and the cleaner and a brief appearance by what I assumed to be one of the train drivers. It was at that moment I realised that all those people were involved in getting me, and my fellow passengers, from A to that all important B. Whether it be train, plane, bus or boat; there are so many people, cogs in a machine if you like, involved in getting passengers to that special 'somewhere.' 

Within eighteen months I hope to be one of those cogs in that well oiled machine.

Reality kicks in.

Having attended my medical a few weeks back it was simply a matter of waiting for the results. Before leaving the hospital I asked the chances of failing. The receptionist was very pleasant and just smiled and said "if there is a problem it would be discussed now." Handed me my receipt and then I left.

With this positive attitude I've waited a little over two weeks to hear back from the IAA in Ireland. Good news arrived on Thursday as the postman dropped off the golden ticket. Well, a green A4 sheet with a bunch of scribbles and the all important stamp of authentication.

With less than five weeks to go until departure, my medical certificate in the bag and US visa interview tomorrow the scary thought of this becoming a reality is slowly but surely starting to sink in. As I've mentioned before, it's been a long tiring journey so far and I haven't even left the UK yet!

I still very much have a long list of tasks to complete (which does seem to be getting longer!) before leaving the country. These range from giving up hobbies and professions to personal banking and a whole range of problems in between. It's a very odd situation. I'm used to a full calendar. Work, meetings and social events fill my weeks quite regularly and over the next five weeks I somehow have to reduce that from seven days per week to zero. I'm dropping things I love, stuff I'll miss as well as others which I am very happy to drop! The long term goal will hopefully make this all worthwhile.

So now I await tomorrow - one of the final fences to jump over before departure. By this time next week I hope to have all my paperwork in place for departure to Florida come May.