Originally Posted by
HercDriver130
Societal standards have nothing to do with it. Christ man, a company can set whatever minimums they want to set. Fact of the matter is that for many years MOST major airlines in this country preferred to hire former MIL guys... fair... NO.. reality yes. The reality is that right now companies can pick and choose who they interview and hire and who they do not. Its all a matter of supply and demand. There is currently a huge supply of pilots with BIG airplane experience for operators such as Omni, Atlas, etc to choose from and they choose generally to hire from that demographic. Three years from now it might be totally different if and when the Legacy carriers start retiring pilots at a decent clip. You are right, what you fly does not define your abilities, but it does provide a proven track record, and who can blame a company for hiring from a pool of pilots proven to have flown large aircraft. Training is expensive. Fair...perhaps not. Reality,,,,yes. I personally have been victim of the "not having the right type rating" issue. It is what it is. It is still a free society and companies are free to hire whom they want to hire.
Herc, i do agree with some things you say. But understand just because a company can say "No more Turboprop driver" does not equall being right. And i believe any pilot that has a heart knows it's just flat out wrong!!!!
Just because someone has the experience in the airplane or some specific jets they're looking for does not guarantee passing training, it surely does give him an advantage. But some guys still fail recurrent training on aircraft they have been flying for years, and it does cost the company extra money to work with him and get him current. But at the end of the day, it's just a lack of pilot unity that allows the company to dictate some of those hiring practices. Because if a pilot says to another pilot the plane you fly is not good enough, then that is crazy. I think when you look for the potential candidate, it should be about "let me see if i can fly with this guy for two weeks, or a month or a day without wanting to kill him at the end, and then his experiences. Not just denying someone resume right of the back without even giving someone a chance.