It wasn't.

But, it was an economics issue of supply vs. demand.

GP

OIC.... They HAD to PFT to get a job at the certain commuters that required it. Why didn't they get a job at a commuter that didn't PFT?

As an Airbus captain (not at JetBlue) I fly with lots of great FOs and a few crappy ones. I find there is very little correlation between their experience and their performance. Almost none, really.

If my company had a program like this, I'd never give a graduate of the program a hard time... Unless they sucked.

It sounds to me like a lot of people here are just frustrated that somebody else might have an easier path to the airlines than they did.

Didn't SWA just stop PFT?

...This thread is disturbing.

You have the money to go through the JetBlue course, go through it, work hard at it and you will be rewarded for your hard work. All of these people chiming in that it is not fair, bla bla bla. Hint number 1. Life is not fair. A lot of us had a crappy decade or two due to the times. I'm in my 40s and finally at a national carrier. I wish I could have been at a legacy by now, but I will never fault anyone for taking a better path.

Good for you, you get to bypass the crappy life as a regional pilot. Most of these people wish they could have as well. Good luck to you and hope it works out.

Not true. I'm glad I got the experience at the regional level. Yes it was low pay for a couple of years but then the captains moved on and I took their spot. There are no shortcuts for experience like that. This is the same as these millennials coming out of college crying unfairness because they don't want to start at an entry level position.

Ah yes, remember the good old days when people graduated college and begged for jobs cleaning toilets just so they could "pay their dues?" Man I miss those days.

Nobody from a prior generation EVER wanted to make good money early in their career, start a 401k before they were 40, or aspire to retire at 50. Nope, it's just this "entitlement generation."

GMAFB.

I don't think this is about scrubbing toilets. But "Paying your dues" goes hand in hand with the experience of what to do when it really hits the fan. We all know that real life rarely gives us what happens in the sim... Sim=wink wink there may be an engine problem on this takeoff... Real life= BLD leak in icing conditions followed by flap failure, air return, bing bong lady in 23 is having a hear attack, oh your diversion airport just closed... deal.

The reason you fly smaller planes early on or go into the military is so if you Ef it up you hurt the smallest number of things. JMO.

Going forward, I truly don't think jb will need this program and I don't support it at this stage of the game. That being said, if I was in a position to apply and attend I'd take it. Call me hypocritical, but that's life.

Nope!

The reason you fly smaller planes early on is because nobody will hire you to fly the bigger ones.

That was due to market conditions.

Market conditions are changing.

You're right captcooldoosh. No way in hell I could have dealt with those horrific scenarios flying a F18 at 25. Not nearly enough ILSs or SIDs under my belt.