Hi Nick,
TIE Pilots are awesome but I may be prejudiced.........
OK as for gloves I got mine at Wampa Wear (google) a few of the lads here do periodic orders from them and i would recommend you jump on a bulk order to save you some postage costs, there are a couple of vendors in Brisbane also but they are a bit hit and miss with stock and sizes.
Compads - PM Oevil1 here on the forums as he makes them and a mighty fine job he does too.
Hard aromour - Check out Arakyel over the the JRS (
www.jrs501st.com) he does great helmets, chest and back plates and chestboxes. Prices are pretty good but with the dollar the way it is then it can get a bit pricey. Arakyel has had a heater issue recently so he does have a bit of a back log of work built up (mine included)
Flightsuit - there are various build threads here on the forum and you can see the one we all used.
TIE Pilots are a great way to start as you can get your Reserve Pilot approved nice and fast while you work on the harder, more expensive items.
We have a number of Pilots in the Garrison who will all be more than willing to help.
As for Galactic Academy - there are no approval requirements for the kids. Just sign them up on the GA website and they will get a welcome email and certificate etc. My kids both troop with me and have a blast. We have a couple of "Rubies" brand Jawa costumes and we are currently making a Mini Vader and a Jedi so it keeps my boys busy and involved
If you need any help with any part of the build please feel free to PM me and remember a TIE Pilot is like a Stormtrooper that hits what he aims at!!!
Cheers,
Adam.