I am not sure that the process is necessarily flawed.

However, the stats appear to be off. In full disclosure, I am at a regional hoping to join the mainline ranks.... But I have been involved in recruiting in another life.

Here is how I see it.

The really hard part seems to be getting the interview. Sure some folks do not make it through the interview but it appears to me that the majority does. And the general notion is that it is your job to lose once you get to the interview.

At the same time, airlines seem to focus on getting that special personality, cultural fit etc. On top of that it is very hard to get rid of a bad apple once on property.

So to me that means that I would try very hard to avoid false positives. How do you do that? With evaluation of paper applications or through interviews?

I would interview way more and probably be way more selective in the interview process instead. Make sure you cast a wide net initially but then make sure there is the right skill, fit etc. in a face to face interview.