Originally Posted by Catboatsailor

We must have conflicting sources. I'm former XJ and three of my XJ friends interviewed. 2 were hired (out of the 3 total hired for the day). Mesabah's previous comment is a generalization that does not apply. Delta has not yet looked at our employment records (above and beyond PRIA btw) before the interview. The reason why my friend was turned down was not on mesabahs list. I know some have failed the cog test. The avg age of pilots being interviewed is mid to late 40's. They aren't the xbox generation, flawless 121 safety records, not so flawless with tapping a pen against a computer screen. I have heard of military guys taking the compass and expressjet interviews, just to get the practice. IMHO utilize the interview preps like Aerocrew, etc. The hunters out there understand the concept of "buck fever". The first time you climb up in a tree stand, wait all weekend and finally see a buck..... Odds are you'll miss with the first shot. On the whole we are all safe competent pilots. We have been up in that proverbial deer stand for years. Don't let the first hunt be for that prized 24 point buck (ie Delta). Practice with some Does (ie interview prep, friends etc). The panel interview is unnatural for the majority of pilots. We are not salesmen who deal with that on a daily basis. We need to be prepared.
Trying to prove you are Delta material in a 3 hour time span (HR & exams) is daunting. Mistakes will be made on both sides of the table. Unfortunately many pilots that we have flown with for years, who we literally trust to fly our families, who already exclusively fly Delta paying passengers, don't make it thru the process. <- excuse the longest run in sentence ever. My 8th grade English teacher is shedding a tear somewhere. No human designed system is perfect, the HR process will make mistakes and lose quality pilots. Swamp I bet you and I agree. We know some of these pilots being turned down. We have a vetted interest in their success, we have seen, on a daily basis, their professionalism.