Cadet training costs: At which point do the politicians say "enough is enough"?
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"At what point do the politicians say enough is enough" are you havin' a laugh mate? 
Ask yourself why training in Europe / UK is so much more expensive than training in the US. Sit down and figure the actual cost of flying a plane per hour.
Virtually every additional expense in Europe is due to either excessive taxation (particularly fuel tax and VAT), or else it's due to excessive intrusive pointless and eye-wateringly expensive EASA regulation, that barely differentiates between the smallest local flying club and the biggest legacy airline, in terms of the cost of regulatory compliance.
There is absolutely ZERO chance that the politicians will do anything to save you from your plight, for the simple reason that a huge chunk of the money you pay goes straight into their pockets.
Ask yourself why training in Europe / UK is so much more expensive than training in the US. Sit down and figure the actual cost of flying a plane per hour.
Virtually every additional expense in Europe is due to either excessive taxation (particularly fuel tax and VAT), or else it's due to excessive intrusive pointless and eye-wateringly expensive EASA regulation, that barely differentiates between the smallest local flying club and the biggest legacy airline, in terms of the cost of regulatory compliance.
There is absolutely ZERO chance that the politicians will do anything to save you from your plight, for the simple reason that a huge chunk of the money you pay goes straight into their pockets.
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The Merchant Navy operators get a reduction in Tonnage Tax for employing British officers. With flags of convenience and crews from the cheaper parts of the world becoming the norm, the government reckoned that if the trend continued there wouldn't be any British officers left. Therefore they brought in this initiative to act as an incentive for firms to employ British officers.
Additionally, it's almost impossible to train to become a Merchant Navy officer whilst sailing aboard a motor cruiser or similar, you need time on-board larger vessels and the only way to achieve this is with a sponsoring company.
Personally, I'd like to see the government reduce APD for airlines above a certain size which fund cadet programmes up front/guarantee a loan and increase it for those who don't. Of course it would only apply to the big boys, not the smaller TP operators etc. who are no doubt squeezed anyway.
The Train Operating Companies often get 300 applicants per vacancy for train driving roles but training is paid and you get a very good salary during training. That said, the railway tends to be fairly left wing politically and the cultural norm is for trainees to be paid.
Aer Lingus most likely chose FTE because all of their cadets go there, the school is of a known quality to them. Wouldn't do untagged integrated myself though, huge risk.
As for bureaucracy, the CAA have of course been involved in the Red Tape Challenge in relation to GA, hopefully we'll see this reduce costs for training outfits, wouldn't bet on it though.
Additionally, it's almost impossible to train to become a Merchant Navy officer whilst sailing aboard a motor cruiser or similar, you need time on-board larger vessels and the only way to achieve this is with a sponsoring company.
Personally, I'd like to see the government reduce APD for airlines above a certain size which fund cadet programmes up front/guarantee a loan and increase it for those who don't. Of course it would only apply to the big boys, not the smaller TP operators etc. who are no doubt squeezed anyway.
The Train Operating Companies often get 300 applicants per vacancy for train driving roles but training is paid and you get a very good salary during training. That said, the railway tends to be fairly left wing politically and the cultural norm is for trainees to be paid.
Aer Lingus most likely chose FTE because all of their cadets go there, the school is of a known quality to them. Wouldn't do untagged integrated myself though, huge risk.
As for bureaucracy, the CAA have of course been involved in the Red Tape Challenge in relation to GA, hopefully we'll see this reduce costs for training outfits, wouldn't bet on it though.
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The Merchant Navy operators get a reduction in Tonnage Tax for employing British officers. With flags of convenience and crews from the cheaper parts of the world becoming the norm, the government reckoned that if the trend continued there wouldn't be any British officers left. Therefore they brought in this initiative to act as an incentive for firms to employ British officers.
Sad thing is, the airlines will scrape until they find the bottom of the barrel.
