Originally Posted by
Typhoonpilot
While I am adamantly opposed to pay for training schemes, that doesn't appear to be the case here.
Most of us pay for our own Private, Instrument, Commercial, Multi-Engine, and CFI ratings with no job guarantee.
In this case, it would appear that a prospective pilot would pay for the equivalent of the above ratings with Aer Lingus covering additional expenses and perhaps offering a job at the end. Not a bad deal if it is true.
Typhoonpilot
Agreed, and I think flight academies will play a part in future large-scale manpower solutions for the airlines. But, the devil is in the details. What if a student washes out? What if there are no jobs at Lingus when the students graduate? Until there are more details that prove that it's a good deal - I'm going to say it's not.
64 weeks of living and breathing airline systems and procedures might produce a widget that can used on the line, but expect a trail of personal carnage for those who don't make it. Based on PFT contracts I've seen, a washout from a program may be exposed to the full amount (100K Euros in this case) if they are unsuccessful. The airline should set extremely high standards for applicants that would ensure a high probability of success and cap liability at 25% should they fail to qualify. That would be a good deal.